We will always profit from the Holy Scriptures when prayer becomes a real and deep joy. Merely just to "say our prayers" each morning and evening is an irksome task, a duty to be performed which brings us a sigh of relief when it is finished. But in order to really come into the conscious presence of God, to behold the glorious light of His countenance, to commune with Him at the mercy seat, is a small sample of the eternal bliss awaiting us in heaven.
The person who is blessed with this experience can say with the Psalmist, "But it is good for me to draw near to God..." (Psalms 73:28) Yes, good for the heart, for it is become quiet; good for faith, for it is strengthened; good for the soul, for it is blessed. It is the lack of this soul communion with God that is the root cause of our unanswered prayers: "Delight yourself also in the LORD; And He shall give you the desires of your heart." (Psalms 37:4)
While under this blessing of the Holy Spirit, What is it that produces and promotes this joy in prayer?
First, it is the heart's delight in God as the Object of prayer, and particularly the recognition and realization of God as our Father. Thus, when the disciples asked the Lord Jesus to teach them to pray, He said, "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven." And again, "God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba [the Hebrew word for "Daddy"], Father" (Gal. 4:6), which includes a family relationship, holy delight in God, such as children have in their parents in their most affectionate addresses to them. So again, in Ephesians 2:18, we are told, for the strengthening of faith and the comfort of our hearts, "For through Him [Christ] we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father." What peace, what assurance, what freedom this gives to our soul: to know we are approaching our Father!
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
Second, joy in prayer is added by our heart's apprehension and the soul's sight of God as He sets on the throne of grace - a sight or prospect, not by physical imagination, but by spiritual illumination, for it is by faith that we "see Him who is invisible" (Heb. 11:27); faith being the "evidence of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1), making its proper object evident and present to us that believe. Such a sight of God on such a "throne" cannot but thrill our soul. This why we are encouraged to, "...come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
Thirdly, and drawn from the last quoted scripture above, freedom and delight in prayer are stimulated by the consciousness that God is, through Jesus Christ, willing and ready to dispense grace and mercy to prayerful sinners. There is no reluctance in Him that we have to overcome. He is ever so much more ready to give than we are to receive. So He is represented in Isaiah 30:18, "And therefore will the Lord wait, that He may be gracious unto you." Yes, He waits to be sought by you; He waits for your faith to lay hold of His readiness to bless. His ear is ever open to the cries of the righteous.
Then "let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith" (Hebrews 10:22); So we can "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)
