Real prayer is the Christ indwelling us praying to the Christ on the throne, for we are mingled with God and one with God to the extent that He as the Spirit joins in our weakness and prays in our prayer, and He knows what God’s mind is and what to pray for. Amen!
We need an upgrade in our prayer life and an update in our way of praying, for prayer is not merely our bringing our supplications before God but much more than that.
To pray is to open to God and contact God and let God contact you, and it is to absorb God to the extent that what you pray is actually God praying in you.
As praying persons, we are learning to cooperate with God and work together with God in prayer, and we allow God to express Himself and His desire through us in our prayer.
The goal of prayer is not merely that we accomplish something and a particular thing gets done; it is to absorb God and be mingled with God.
Prayer is in the mutual contact of God and man; when we contact God and God contacts us, that is prayer, and in this mutual contact, we are infused with God and He expresses Himself through us.
May we learn to open to the Lord, make a contact with God, receive God, and absorb God, that is, absorb God’s element, so that His heart, His feeling, His mind, and His desire would be infused into us.
When we are filled and saturated with what God is, when His mind becomes our mind and our desire is a reflection of His desire, our prayer will express Him and will be efficient, for He will carry out what He desires to do.
There’s no higher labor that a Christian or a church can do on earth than to work together with God and cooperate with God by means of prayer.
When we pray in the mingling of God and man, we actually allow God to express Himself on earth.
When we pray in the mutual contact of God and man, what we pray for is not primarily our need but God’s need, and He has a way to meet His need and further His move with our cooperation in prayer.
Real prayer is not us expressing something of what we need or desire; real prayer is touching God, receiving something of God into us, and then uttering something of what He has put into us in prayer.
Real prayer is the expression of God’s desire through our prayer, for real prayer is according to God, for God’s need, and in God’s dispensing. May we learn to pray real prayers and not merely pray for our needs.
May we realize that we are made for God, and when He mingles Himself with us, we are satisfied. May we pray in the mingling of God and man and allow God to express Himself through us in our prayer!
Spending More Time in Prayer to be Filled with God, Surrender to God, Gain God, and Pray one with God
![A real prayer is also man breathing in God just as he breathes in air. While you are thus breathing in God, spontaneously you are obtaining God, just as when you breathe in air, you receive air… The more you pray, the more you will be filled with God, and the more you will surrender yourself to God and be gained by Him. If you do not pray for a week or, even worse, a month, then you will be quite far from God,… [which] means that you cannot obtain God and be obtained by Him. The only remedy for this situation is to pray. And it is not enough to pray for only two or three minutes; you must pray again and again until you have actually breathed God and are actually obtained by God, and God by you… The ultimate result of a prayer should be that the intercessor gains more of God and is gained more by God, although the thing which he has asked of God may also be fulfilled. Witness Lee, Lessons on Prayer, ch. 2](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/A-real-prayer-is-also-man-breathing-in-God-just-as-he-breathes-in-air-683x1024.jpg?resize=450%2C675 "A real prayer is also man breathing in God just as he breathes in air. While you are thus breathing in God, spontaneously you are obtaining God, just as when you breathe in air, you receive air… The more you pray, the more you will be filled with God, and the more you will surrender yourself to God and be gained by Him. If you do not pray for a week or, even worse, a month, then you will be quite far from God,… [which] means that you cannot obtain God and be obtained by Him. The only remedy for this situation is to pray. And it is not enough to pray for only two or three minutes; you must pray again and again until you have actually breathed God and are actually obtained by God, and God by you… The ultimate result of a prayer should be that the intercessor gains more of God and is gained more by God, although the thing which he has asked of God may also be fulfilled. Witness Lee, Lessons on Prayer, ch. 2")
The more we pray, the more we will be filled with God and the more we will surrender to God and be gained by Him.
One of the results of praying real prayers is that we are filled with God.
When we only pray for our needs, we may feel good inside, but we may not gain more of God; when we are mingled with God and are filled with God through our prayer, we are satisfied and God is satisfied.
When we pray in this way, by contacting God and allowing Him to pray in us, we find ourselves becoming more obedient to Him, for we surrender ourselves to Him.
We become more possessed by Him and gained by Him.
We all have experienced this to a certain extent.
However, for us to experience being filled with God in prayer, for us to gain God and pray one with God to such an extent that we simply surrender to God, we need to spend more time in prayer.
We cannot simply spend two or three minutes with the Lord in prayer and we’re filled with God; rather, we need to take more time to spend with God in prayer.
The more we pray in spirit, in the traffic between God and man, the more we are mingled with God, and the more we want to pray.
May we learn to spend more time in prayer, even to pray more minutes during the day, so that we can absorb God and fully discharge something of God before Him in our times of prayer with Him.
The Bible tells us that we should pray unceasingly; this means that we need to spend more time in prayer with the Lord, and in this prayer, we gain God and are gained by Him.
We can say that real prayer is like breathing – we have to breathe all the time, and on one hand, we exhale and on the other, we inhale.
On one hand, we exhale ourselves and on the other hand, we breathe in God.
As we breathe in God through prayer, we obtain God, we gain God, and we are filled with God.
The more we pray, the more we will be filled with God and the more we surrender ourselves to God to be gained by God.
But if we don’t pray for a week or even worse, for a month, we will end up being quite far away from God, which means that we can’t obtain God nor can we be gained by Him.
May we be those who set times of prayer with the Lord throughout the day to breathe in God, open to God, and gain God, so that we may be filled with God and express what He has put in us back in prayer to Him.
As we pray, we realize that we are nothing and that we can do nothing (Mark 9:28-29); we open to God and we ask Him to do in us what He wants to do.
In Mark 9 the Lord told the disciples that a particular kind of demon cannot come out except by means of prayer.
Prayer means that we are nothing and can do nothing, so we need God, we come to God, and we exercise our spirit to be one with God and be filled with God.
We have an utter sense of lack of helplessness, and of neediness, for we can’t make it, we can’t face it, and we can’t do it, so we come to the Lord in prayer.
We kneel down, we open to the Lord, and we confess our need for Him, trusting in Him and looking to Him.
When we have such an attitude, He infuses Himself into us to meet our needs inwardly, and He expresses Himself through our prayer in our oneness with Him.
The governing principle of our prayer should be that prayer brings us into God; the issue of proper prayer is that we find ourselves in God (Luke 11:1-13).
We need God, we open to God, we come before Him in prayer, and we are brought into God; through prayer, we are filled with God, and we find ourselves in God.
This takes time; we need to spend more time praying ourselves into God. Being in God and living one with God takes time and is a process; we need to pray ourselves into Him, exercise to be one with Him and allow Him to fill us with what He is.
May we be brought out of ourselves and into God to be fully one with God, be filled with God, and have Him as our everything in our daily living day by day.
Lord Jesus, we need You! We cannot do this in ourselves; we can’t live the Christian life and we can’t work for You in and by ourselves. We open to You, dear Lord, and we desperately need You. Come in and fill us with Yourself. We simply surrender ourselves to You to be gained by You and to gain You. We realize that we are nothing and we can do nothing. Keep us before You, emptying ourselves before You and allowing You to fill us day by day. May our prayer bring us into God. May we be brought out of ourselves and into God to be filled with God and be fully one with God. Amen, Lord, we look to You and we trust in You; we want to learn to pray ourselves into God! Increase the mingling between God and us. Fill us more with Yourself. Make us fully one with You!
Learning the Secret of Prayer to Cooperate with God and Allow God to Express Himself from Within us in Prayer
![Moreover, in like manner the Spirit also joins in to help [us] in our weakness, for we do not know for what we should pray as is fitting, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for [us] with groanings which cannot be uttered. But He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to God. Rom. 8:26-27](https://i0.wp.com/www.agodman.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Moreover-in-like-manner-the-Spirit-also-joins-in-to-help-us-in-our-weakness-for-we-do-not-know-for-what-we-should-pray-683x1024.jpg?resize=450%2C675 "Moreover, in like manner the Spirit also joins in to help [us] in our weakness, for we do not know for what we should pray as is fitting, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for [us] with groanings which cannot be uttered. But He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to God. Rom. 8:26-27")
We need to learn the secret of prayer so that we would cooperate with God, work together with God, and allow God to express Himself through us in our prayer.
A person who really learned the secret of prayer spontaneously works together with God and allows God to express His desire and heart from within him and through him, ultimately accomplishing God’s purpose.
We all have to admit that we don’t know what we should pray as is fitting, but the Holy Spirit intercedes for us according to God’s purpose (Rom. 8:26-27).
We don’t really know how to pray and what to pray for; we may know to ask things from God and praise Him, but we don’t know much concerning the prayer as revealed in the Scriptures.
We need to learn to pray the kind of prayers that touch God’s desire and are up to His standard.
Real prayers are not just man praying to God and God listening in the heavens; real prayers involve God and man, man and God.
It is not merely man praying to God but the Spirit is mingling Himself with man, puts on man, and joins with man in prayer.
Hallelujah, though we do not know what to pray as is fitting, the Spirit joins in our weakness, and He knows what is in God’s heart, so He prays in us and through us according to God.
Outwardly, we are the ones praying, but inwardly it is the Spirit who is praying; two parties express the same prayer at the same time.
This is what we see in James 5:17, where it says that Elijah earnestly prayed; in Greek, this means, prayed with prayer, or prayed in prayer.
Elijah didn’t pray desperately that God would send the rain; he was given a prayer and he prayed in that prayer and with that prayer that was given to him.
We can say that Elijah’s prayer was God praying His prayer to Himself in Elijah. Andrew Murray once said that real prayer is the Christ who indwells us praying to the Christ who is sitting on the throne.
It may sound strange that Christ prays to Christ Himself, but this is the case in our experience.
We do not know what to pray for as is fitting, and we don’t even know how to pray; however, the Spirit groans in us, prays in us, and prays with us and through us, for the Holy Spirit prays in us according to God.
In this way, we are mingled with God, God is mingled with us, and we work together with God by uttering the prayers that He puts in us.
When we pray, we touch God, we are mingled with God, and He prays in our prayer.
When we pray, it is He who is praying, and when He prays, we also are praying. He prays within us, and we express His prayer outwardly, for He and we are altogether one and we pray at the same time.
As we remain in this mingling of God and man, we and God cannot be separated; we are one, we speak as one, we work together as one, and He expresses His desire through us in our prayer.
In this way, our prayer becomes His prayer, and His desire is expressed through our prayer; therefore, He can accomplish His purpose through us.
This is the kind of prayer that He needs, and this is the kind of person that He desires to gain.
May we learn to pray real prayers before God so that we may work together with God and cooperate with Him, allowing God to express Himself through us and accomplish His purpose.
Real prayer always touches God’s purpose; it always is for the fulfilment of God’s need and His purpose.
The standard prayer is the prayer that allows God to express Himself through us.
Lord Jesus, thank You for being the Spirit in our spirit who joins us in our weakness, for we do not know what to pray and how to pray. Amen, Lord, we open to You. Mingle Yourself more with us today. Mingle Your intention with our intention and infuse the desire of Your heart into our hearts. May we be those who pray in a prayer, praying the prayer that You are praying today. Make us so one with You, dear Lord, that our prayer expresses Your prayer and accomplishes Your purpose. May it be You who prays in our prayer, and may we express Your prayer. Oh Lord, we yearn to be fully one with You to the extent that You express Yourself through us and we cooperate with You for the fulfilment of Your purpose. Amen, Lord, grant us to pray real prayers before God, prayers that meet His need and accomplish His purpose!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brothers, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1959, vol. 4, “Lessons on Prayer,” ch. 2, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, God’s Economy in Faith (2022 spring ITERO), week 3, entitled, Praying with God as our Faith.
- Hymns on this topic:
– Praying to express the Lord, / We must not ourselves express, / But let Christ reveal Himself, / His desire in us impress. / Praying to express the Lord, / We must utter His intent, / Quieting our human thoughts / That with His our mind be blent. (Hymns #785)
– Pray to labor with the Lord, / Pray to pave the way for Him; / Pray to move Him and be moved / From the center to the rim. / Pray to labor with the Lord, / Be identified with Him / In His purpose and His aim / Till His blessing floodeth in. (Hymns #786)
– Praying always in the spirit, / Thus expressing God’s desire; / Staying with the Lord in spirit, / We’ll be wholly set afire. / Praying always in the spirit, / Even groaning from within, / Thus we utter God’s intention / By the Spirit’s discipline. (Hymns #780)
A real prayer is also man breathing in God just as he breathes in air. While you are thus breathing in God, spontaneously you are obtaining God, just as when you breathe in air, you receive air… The more you pray, the more you will be filled with God, and the more you will surrender yourself to God and be gained by Him. If you do not pray for a week or, even worse, a month, then you will be quite far from God,… [which] means that you cannot obtain God and be obtained by Him. The only remedy for this situation is to pray. And it is not enough to pray for only two or three minutes; you must pray again and again until you have actually breathed God and are actually obtained by God, and God by you… The ultimate result of a prayer should be that the intercessor gains more of God and is gained more by God, although the thing which he has asked of God may also be fulfilled.
Witness Lee, Lessons on Prayer, ch. 2
Lit., prayed in prayer. This indicates that a prayer from the Lord was given to Elijah, in which he prayed. He did not pray in his feeling, thought, intention, or mood, or in any kind of motivation, arising from circumstances or situations, to fulfill his own purpose. He prayed in the prayer given to him by the Lord for the accomplishing of His will. James 5:17, note 1, Recovery Version Bible, on “prayed earnestly”
Real prayers is not merely us asking God to do things for us. Real prayers is being mingled with God and being one with God to the extent that our prayer expresses His desire, and we pray in a prayer.
Dear brother, real prayer is the mingling of God and man. When we pray we should have the assurance that we gain more of God. We do not know for what we should pray for but the Spirit knows so, like Elijah, we pray in prayer. That is the Christ who is in us is praying to the Christ in heaven. Outwardly we are the ones praying but inwardly it is the Spirit in our spirit who is interceding for God, according to His purpose.
Amen, yes Lord, teach us to pray according to Your purpose. By the Spirit.
Amen, Lord be the praying One in us for Your economy
We have to confess that we don’t really know how to pray according to God’s standard. We don’t know those prayers that touch God’s desire and satisfy His requirements.
We need the Spirit to mingle Himself with us, to put on man, and join with man in prayer.
Real prayer is God praying within us, whilst we express the same prayer outwardly.
May we pursue the kind of prayer when we and God both pray at the same time
The real prayer that God requires is the Christ in us Praying to the Christ in the heavens. Even our earthly needs must be the Christ in us Praying to the Christ in the heavens.
Our weakness is we do not know those prayers that touch God’s desire and are up to the standard hence we need the Holy Spirit to be mingled with our prayers and we to be mingled with the Holy Spirit’s prayer, joined us One, two parties expressing the same prayer at the same time..
We can echo hymn 1132 to the Lord in spirit,
Prayer is the Spirit interceding for us
Oh hallelujah! Lord mingle more with us, and even tonight in the meeting of the praying saints, gain your expression and your desire on earth
To pray the Word means to call Jesus, who is the life giving Spirit mingled with our spirit. This means we are talking to each other with His universal, as well as unchangeable language, His WORD! Speaking one language is the main factor to understand each other. Communication needs a speaker and listener. It is two ways traffic.
May God help us not to be the prayer of our needs only – supplication!
Amen Lord, make the desire of your heart, be the desire of our heart.
Amen Lord Jesus! Grace us to learn the secret of prayer to cooperate with God for the accomplishing of His purpose on earth today! Mingle more Yourself as the Spirit within us to be Your echo chamber! Teach us Lord how to pray accordingly to God!