Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come."

Luke 11:1-2 (ESV)

 

A healthy prayer life flows from a deep and loving relationship with God. As we pray, we are availing ourselves to what God is doing on earth to bring about His Kingdom.

Prayer builds Kingdom-mindedness.

To be Kingdom-minded is to live your life in constant pursuit of God’s Kingdom, of His righteousness. If you are not Kingdom-minded, your mind will be full of worries and negative thoughts. This will prevent you from living life as Christ intended.

Praying with a Kingdom perspective allows us to focus on Kingdom priorities. This can result in practical involvement and action. Practical involvement and action will also strengthen your faith and your understanding of the power, majesty, and beauty of God's Kingdom. In so doing, our prayers reflect an attitude of advancing and manifesting the presence and power of the Kingdom into all the spheres, structures and systems of our communities, cities and nations.

Kingdom-minded prayers are radical, but they are not militant nor seditious. For our fight is not against any physical foes, but we are up against the unseen powers that slither in the darkness of this world (cf. Ephesians 6:12). Such prayers disrupt the activities of demonic forces and accelerate the gospel's work in a particular area or region.

For example, when the Apostle Paul freed a Philippian slave from an unclean spirit, he and Silas were both severely beaten and thrown in jail. However, instead of succumbing to their suffering, they began to pray and sing hymns in praise of God. We don't know what they sang, but we know that their hearts were all about God and accomplishing His will. They soon established a new church after Paul led the jailer and his family to faith in Christ. All of these incredible things happened in just one day.

Learn to pray Kingdom-minded prayers and proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom and witness what God will do.