Fresh Faith For Prayer

I have a new excitement about prayer, a new faith in prayer, and a new activation in my prayer life. I have decided to believe what Gods word says about prayer I steady of basing my expectations on past experience.
So, I looked at what Jesus said about prayer.
John 14:13-14
And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
John 15:16
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name
John 16:23
In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.

Thats what Jesus said. I have determined to believe it.

As I studied the Old Testament this fall, I was encouraged by Moses example.
Exodus 32:10-14
"I have seen these people," the LORD said to Moses, "and they are a stiff-necked people.10 Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation."11 But Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God. "O LORD," he said, "why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?12 Why should the Egyptians say, 'It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people.13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: 'I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.' "14 Then the LORD relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.

God relented. God changed his mind. He said He was going to destroy the people, but Moses prayed and God had mercy. And that was not the only time.

Numbers 14:11-20
The LORD said to Moses, "How long will these people treat me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of all the miraculous signs I have performed among them?12 I will strike them down with a plague and destroy them, but I will make you into a nation greater and stronger than they."...(Moses prayer)...In accordance with your great love, forgive the sin of these people, just as you have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now."20 The LORD replied, "I have forgiven them, as you asked

Psalm 106:21-23
They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt,22 miracles in the land of Ham and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.23 So he said he would destroy them-- had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him to keep his wrath from destroying them

Then, I found a verse that really inspired me.

Ezekial 22:30-31
"I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none.31 So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger, bringing down on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign LORD."

God looked for a man to stand in the gap, to pray, to intercede for the land. There was no one, so He poured out His wrath.

Isaiah 59:16
He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene.

It seems that God is looking for, desiring someone to intercede, to ask Him to have mercy. I don't understand this. Maybe that is my problem, I have tried to make prayer make sense, be logical in my mind. Who am I to think that I can understand God's ways.

He wants us to pray, and He wants us to keep on praying.
Matt 7:7-8
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
(How many times have I heard that the tense of these verbs cause the meaning to be "keep on asking, seeking, knocking")
Jesus repeats that in Luke 11, but prefaces it with a story if a man who had unexpected guests show up at midnight. He went to his neighbor and asked for food,bit his neighbor told him to go away because he was in bed. Finally, he gets up and gives his friend bread, not out of friendliness, but because of his persistence.

In Daniel 10, Daniel prayed for understanding of a vision for 21 days. Gabriel showed up and told Daniel that God had sent him the first day Daniel had asked, but he was held up by demonic resistance and had to fight through. I wonder if Gabriel's success was dependent on Daniel's prayer. I wonder how many times I quit praying after 20 days, when the victory was almost there.

Maybe, God wants us to pray until He answers, either by giving us what we ask doe, or until God says "No".
We know that in 2 Cor. 12, Paul prayed three times that a "thorn in his flesh" be removed. Finally, God said, "no, but My grace is sufficient for you."
In Matt. 26' Mark 14, and Luke 22, it is recorded that Jesus asked His Father three times if there could be another way to accomplish His plan. Then, He said, "Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!" (Mark 14:42). He knew the answer.

Another example is Moses. Because of Moses disobedience, God told him he would not enter the Promised Land. Moses asked to go, until God told him, "Do not speak to me anymore about this matter" (Deut. 3:26).

In 2 Samuel 12, Da I'd was told that his child would die. He prayed for 7 days, night and day, I until the child died.

I know that God has good plans for us. God desires that no one would perish. Jesus died for our salvation, and for our healing. Jesus said that we are to have abundant life, fullness of joy, peace beyond understanding. I believe that He intends to say yea to us more than no. Jesus said to ask. I am so motivated to ask, and to keep on asking, for salvation of lost friends, for healing of my lived ones, for a fresh outpouring of the Spirit, for strengthened marriages, for friends in bondage to be set free...until God does give me what I am asking for or tells me no!