Many have used prayer as a means of manipulating God, or at least trying to, however the institution of prayer was for the purpose of dialogue and not monologue.
Let's go back to the beginning of time.
God was the initiator of the communication when He approached Adam. He was walking in the garden in the "cool" of the day (see Genesis 3:8). What does this exactly mean? To me, it means that there is a moment in your day when you will feel the breeze of God, which means it's time to respond. The word "cool" in Hebrew is "spirit, wind, breeze." This breeze will prompt you by impulse to search for God. When this happens it may require two minutes or, in some cases, two hours.
Everyone will pray at some point in his or her lifetime, even atheists. Voltaire, during an extreme thunderstorm, was caught under a tree and was seen crying to God. There are different kinds of prayers, but the prayer that I want to deal with is prophetic prayer. Is there such a thing? Absolutely. It is simply praying under the influence of insight and foresight.
It is one thing to pray, "Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven," but unless you actually get to know what His will is in Heaven then it becomes a redundant prayer. Prayer can gather a lot of information from the Holy Spirit, information that could change your entire understanding of your journey, your purpose, and your destiny.
The Mystery Within You
1 Corinthians 2:6-8:
...we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
The mysterious thing inside of you is your secret strength. However, how do you know what it is? And what kind of prayer is required for this to begin to manifest through you? You have a "glory" that is hidden in your spirit, and as you are formed on your journey in this life, the day comes when you experience transformation.
God does three things in your life: He creates you, forms you, and then transforms you. What does this mean? Isaiah 43:1 says: "But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.'"
So God created Jacob, but during a period of 20 years He FORMED Israel inside of Jacob. Only after God had formed Israel in Jacob did he become Israel. Remember how Jacob wrestled with God? And God said to him, "'What is your name?' He said, 'Jacob.' And He said, 'Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed'" (Genesis 32:27-28).
You will have to struggle before entering your destiny.
Why Do We Have a "Hidden Secret"?
1 Corinthians 2:10-11:
But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
Each person has something inside of their spirit that is "unknown," and yet your spirit knows it. You know that there is something great inside of you, but you have no idea what it is; however, you suspect it is something valuable and beautiful.
We are constantly reminded of our faults and flaws by well-meaning and ill-meaning people. Would God jump on that bandwagon??? NO! As David clearly said, "My sin is ever before me" (Psalm 51:3). However, what is the thing that is NOT ever before you? Your greatness, your beauty, your potential, your goodness, and your godly attributes.
So, why do we have a "hidden secret"? The best way for me to explain this is Samson. Samson was born with a hidden secret that God did not want his enemies to know about. The length of his hair would determine his strength. He never pronounced this to anyone, and as long as he kept his secret to himself, he would always be the victor over his enemies. As we all know, he lost his strength when his secret was revealed by the power of seduction.
So, we understand that once the mystery in you is uncovered through prophetic insight given by the Holy Spirit, it becomes your secret strength. The enemy does not know what it is unless it is stolen from you by a seducing spirit. A seducing spirit is similar to a spirit of divination – it has to disarm you and make you feel "at home." The most ambitious desire of satan is to change your course so that you are unprotected and out of line with God's will for your life.
The Kind of Prayer To Pray that Reveals Mysteries
So, what kind of prayer releases information to you about yourself?
Read 1 Corinthians 14:1-2:
"Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries."
Please notice that when you pray in the spirit you "speak mysteries." Or you "reveal" mysteries. So your prayer time could actually be a beautiful time of gaining understanding about YOUR calling in this life and your journey.
I hope this will help some of you with your own prayer life. I believe that, like tithing, instead of doing nothing at all because you don't have the money or time (to pray), just do something, start with something...even if it's just five minutes a day, or $5. I promise you that you will begin to gain insight, clarity, encouragement, direction, and so much more.
God will begin to reveal the ISRAEL inside of you...your secret strength. Then your journey will begin and you'll have great joy as you live out your destiny. This gives a whole new meaning to "power in your prayer"!
Kim Clement
Kim Clement Center
