We Pray Wednesday: Why do we pray?

According to Mark 14:38, one reason that we pray is that we need help resisting temptation.  “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.  The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.”

As Christians, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us.  Upon salvation we received God’s Holy Spirit to guide and keep us until we reach Heaven.  Some believe if a person is truly saved he will no longer have trouble, but nothing could be further from the truth.    When a lost person gets saved, he receives a new spirit.  The Spirit of God moves in and begins His work.  However, living along side of the Holy Spirit is the old nature, the flesh, that part of us we were born with.  The new Christian now has a battle raging inside of them. 

The battle now taking place is one that will be fought until the Christian steps into heaven.  Since there are two distinct characters living inside of the Christian, the battle is to see who will be the more dominate.  Both desire to be in control!

Control is something we like to have.  It is difficult for us to relinquish control of anything to anyone.  We like things our way.  When someone tries to change us we get upset.  I imagine this is how things work in our battle. 

We’ve had the old nature or the flesh for so long that it likes things the way they are.  The flesh likes to be in control, to feel good and to be pleasured.  Now that the Holy Spirit of God has moved in He can only speak of the things of God.  1 Corinthians 2:10-11, “But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? evenso the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.”

We cannot know the things of God except the Holy Spirit of God shows them to us.  Here is the battle.  The Holy Spirit wants to do what God says we are to do and the flesh wants to do what it has always done, its own thing. 

Mark 14:38 tells us that we are to “watch…and pray” why?  So we don’t “enter in” or yield to the temptation of the flesh.  The Spirit of God is willing to do what God wants but the flesh doesn’t. 

We must spend much time guarding our lives through prayer and spending time in God’s Word allowing the Spirit of God to teach us and show us how God wants us to live our lives.  Then we must choose to yield ourselves to the Spirit’s control so that He can do His work of helping us to grow to become more like our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

Christian, choose today to yield to the Spirit of God and not the flesh!