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Scripture Reading: Psa. 42:1-2; 27:4; 62:1; 104:34; 145:5; 29:2; 150:1; Gen. 18:22, 33
In this chapter and the next we will consider how we can enjoy God through prayer and reading the Word. Prayer and reading the Word are the most crucial means to receive and enjoy God.
Although prayer and reading the Word are quite common among us, there are many details to consider. Many people pray, but they do not know the meaning of prayer. Similarly, many people read the Bible, but they do not know the significance of reading the Word. The more common a practice is, the more science there is to it. We should never think that as soon as one becomes a Christian, he automatically knows how to pray and read the Word. It is not that simple. If a Christian truly touches the key to prayer and reading the Word, he is on his way to enjoying God daily. Let us now consider how to enjoy God through prayer.
Prayer is not mainly a matter of coming to God to ask for something. The meaning of prayer is not to ask God to do something for us. The primary significance of prayer is to breathe in God, to absorb God. When we pray, we should not have a motive or intention of asking God to do something for us; rather, our intention should be to breathe in God and absorb Him. Regrettably, many Christians misunderstand the meaning of prayer. They think that we need to pray to God in order to ask for help because there are things that we cannot do. Let me say strongly, this is not prayer. Real prayer has nothing to do with asking God for help.
Simply put, prayer is our spiritual breathing. We all know what it is to breathe. When we breathe out, we exhale the carbon dioxide that is within us. When we breathe in, we inhale the oxygen that is outside of us. This is what happens when we breathe in and breathe out. In prayer we do the same thing — we breathe out what is within us, and we breathe in what is in God. Everything that we have in our natural being can be compared to carbon dioxide, and everything that God is can be compared to oxygen. When we pray, we breathe out everything undesirable, and we breathe in everything of God.
Recently, we found a good hymn on prayer (Hymns, #255). This hymn says that when we come to God, we breathe out ourselves and everything we have, and we breathe in God and everything He has. By this breathing in and out, we are delivered from ourselves and are put into God. This kind of breathing discharges what is within us and brings in everything of God. When we breathe out, our sins are exhaled, and when we breathe in, God’s holiness is inhaled. By breathing out, we rid ourselves of weakness. By breathing in, we take in God’s power. We may be full of sorrow and grief, but as soon as we come to God and breathe out, the sorrow and grief are gone. After breathing out, we must breathe in. When we breathe in, God’s joy and comfort enter into us. This is the meaning of prayer. Prayer is to breathe in God, just as we breathe in air. Whenever we pray, we breathe in God. Prayer is our spiritual breathing before God and in God. Even though we often do not know what to say when we wait on God, there is a sighing within us. This sighing can be compared to breathing. Our experience shows that when we sigh a little, the weight on our shoulders disappears. We are fully released and rested, and we overflow with a sense of sweetness. We may often find ourselves sinking into darkness and confusion within, not knowing which path we should take, what we should do, or even how we should pray. But while we wait on the Lord, we utter a sigh from deep in our being. It is interesting that after sighing for a while, the darkness and confusion vanish, and we become clear and uncluttered, knowing the way to proceed. This wonderful experience is the meaning of prayer. Real prayer is nothing but waiting on God and breathing in God. When we breathe, we exhale everything that we are and inhale everything that God is.
Let us now consider ten points to illustrate how we breathe in God through prayer.
In order to breathe in God through prayer, we must appear before God. The psalmist says that he thirsts for God. His soul pants for God as the hart pants after the streams of water. He says, “When will I come and appear / Before God?” (Psa. 42:2). Do we appear before God when we pray? Do we thirst to touch Him in our spirit? Whenever we breathe in God, we must first exercise to appear before Him. We should never think that God is only in heaven; He is abiding in our spirit. When we pray, we close our eyes not only to concentrate but also to stop our outward being. Our outward being often wanders with our eyes. By closing our eyes when we pray, we close the gate of our eyes, shut the door to the outside world, and turn the direction of our being to our spirit. After we stop our entire being and close the door to the outside world, we will be able to turn to the deepest part of our being and exercise our spirit. When we turn to exercise our spirit, we immediately touch God and appear before Him in our spirit.
After touching God in our spirit, we must learn the lesson of not opening our mouth quickly. We do not need to shout and cry when we touch God. We should be silent and calm. The more silent and calm we are, the better.
Many of us cannot pray once we are told to be silent. As soon as we are quiet, our minds wander, and we become confused. We need to shout and cry in order to concentrate. This proves that we have not learned the proper lesson in prayer.
We must learn a serious lesson in prayer. We must turn our entire being away from the outside world. We must stop our entire being and turn to our spirit so that we can appear before God. The psalmist says that he desires to dwell in the house of Jehovah to behold His beauty (27:4). The house of Jehovah is our spirit. We must turn our entire being to our spirit and remain there silently. This is a matter of practice.
In order to have prayers that breathe in God, we first need to turn to our spirit to touch God. After we touch God, we need to be silent before Him. This is true even in human communication. A person is probably not that close to us if we can only speak loudly to him once we meet. The more intimate we are with a person, the more silent we can be when we are with him. Simply by looking at each other, our sentiments are conveyed without speaking. The same can be said concerning one who is experienced in touching God. When he touches God, he is silent. Even if he is moved to tears, these tears are inward rather than outward. If he has anything to say, he speaks quietly; he does not need to shout or cry. Everyone who learns to breathe in God learns this lesson. As we touch God in our spirit, the best thing to do is to be silent before Him.
Although these points do not have a legal or fixed order, we should learn to behold the beauty of the Lord in silence (v. 4). Many Christians have never heard of this practice. Beholding the beauty of the Lord is to look at the Lord in our spirit and to gaze at Him. When we come before God in prayer, we must learn to stop our speaking, to cut off our words, and to simply turn to our spirit to appear before Him, touch Him, behold Him in silence, and gaze upon Him. We need to look at Him again and again, beholding, appreciating, and even treasuring Him. This is very sweet and necessary. We should never consider prayer to be merely asking God to do something for us. No, the object and subject of prayer are not things. Both the object and subject of prayer are God Himself. First we should touch Him. Then we should be silent before Him. After this we should behold Him by looking and gazing at Him. This is to absorb God and enjoy Him.
When we open our mouth, we do not need to ask or beg, but we can inquire. Many brothers and sisters have never inquired of the Lord. They only ask and beg. They say, “God, my son is sick. I have this need and that lack.” Their asking turns into begging: “Heal my son. Take care of me. Give me what I need.” What is this? This is begging. These are not good prayers. The best prayer is inquiring prayer. As we touch God, wait in silence, behold His loveliness, and converse with Him, we can ask Him, “Would You like me to mention a certain matter now?” This is the sweetest kind of prayer.
When Abraham stood before Jehovah (Gen. 18), he did not open his mouth quickly. He waited before God, inquired of Him, and looked at Him. There are times when we do things according to the index of a person’s eyes; we speak according to the expression on their face. This is how we should pray. The psalmist expressed his desire: “To dwell in the house of Jehovah / All the days of my life, / To behold the beauty of Jehovah, / And to inquire in His temple” (Psa. 27:4). We must turn to our spirit, behold Him, and then inquire of Him.
I am afraid that many brothers and sisters have never prayed this way. It may be difficult for a sister who is praying for her husband’s health to discuss the matter with God. It is difficult to find a person who would say, “God, can I pray for this matter? Can I bring up this subject now? What should I ask?” This is not how we usually pray. If a husband is sick, when his wife kneels down, she says, “God, my husband is sick. Please heal him quickly and promptly so that he will recover his health and even be healthier.” How does this sister know that God wants to heal her husband promptly or to make him healthier than he was before? What if God wants him to be sick or wants to take him away? How does she know what God wants to do? She should discuss this matter with God. If she does not discuss this matter but simply implores God when she prays, in reality, she is the Lord in this matter; everything revolves around her. Brothers and sisters, have we learned the lesson of inquiring of God? Those who have never learned this lesson are wild and reckless in their prayers.
Our God is neither wild nor reckless. He will not deal with wild and obstinate people. Whether God is revealed as Jehovah in the Old Testament or as Jesus in the New Testament, He is shown to be a very civil and fine person; He is not wild. John 11:1-44 is a good illustration. Martha and Mary asked the Lord to come immediately and heal their sick brother. This was wild and obstinate. The Lord, however, indicated that He was not ready. The two sisters thought that it was time, but the Lord was not yet ready. He remained where He was for two more days, and then He came. When Martha saw Him, she complained, saying, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died” (v. 21). Mary repeated the same thing. Although they were women, they were wild and reckless. However, the Lord was gentle and fine; He did not react in haste. Rather, He said that He was the resurrection and the life, and although her brother was dead, he would rise again. Martha had already responded, saying, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection in the last day” (v. 24). This was a wild jump. She jumped from the present time all the way to the end of the age. After she said this, she went and called her sister secretly to meet the Lord, saying, “The Teacher is here and is calling you” (v. 28). This word came from Martha. Later, the Lord asked where Lazarus had been put and requested that they take away the stone. Martha again spoke recklessly, saying that it was useless to open the tomb because it smelled. The Lord, however, told them to do as He said and then cried out in a loud voice, saying, “Lazarus, come out!” (v. 43). Lazarus responded and came out. The Lord said, “Loose him and let him go” (v. 44). This shows how the Lord answers prayer, and how differently people pray to Him. Many pray in a wild way, but the Lord answers in a fine way. He responds to man’s prayer in a gentle and proper way.
It is difficult to find a person who does not pray to God in a wild way. We are not used to beholding His loveliness in silence; we are not used to living according to the index of His eyes. This is a pity. We must learn to be an inquiring person in our prayer. We should ask the Lord, “Can I bring up this subject at this time?” We should look at His eyes. If He is not happy, we should not continue. If He has an expression of approval, we can proceed by asking how we should pray. This is what it means to inquire. Some may say, “This is too slow. Things will be delayed, and people will die.” We need to remember that time is in God’s hand. He is beyond time. The Lord can save a brother if he is sick, He can resurrect him even if he has died, and He can make him fresh even if he smells. We must believe that our Lord never delays any work. The best prayer is inquiring prayer, but inquiring can only happen when a person is calm. If we have never touched God and have never been calm before Him or never beheld His loveliness, we do not know the meaning of inquiring.
We should learn to wait on God. This is a trying lesson. Even in human relationships waiting is an important element. Suppose I want a brother to help me. If he is busy when I go to see him, I cannot make my request. I must wait until he is no longer busy before I can open my mouth. We should not think that we can skip this step when we pray. Many times when God asks us to do something for Him, He does not force us. He waits until we are ready. If God can wait on us, should we not wait on God?
The book of Psalms is filled with the matter of waiting on God. In the prayers of the psalmists the word waiting is uttered numerous times. We need to wait on Jehovah (37:9). Our soul should wait in silence for God alone (62:1). We cannot breathe in God without first waiting on Him. Waiting on God is to allow Him to determine the timing. We cannot dictate the time; He dictates the time. We need to wait. When we pray, we need to inquire of God, and we also need to wait on God.
We also need to learn to muse or meditate on everything about God. We must meditate on God’s loveliness, His lovingkindness, His dignity, His glory, His attributes, and His acts. We must learn that when breathing in God through prayer, we should not only inquire of Him and wait on Him but also meditate on Him and ponder His acts.
We should not think that it is a waste of time to temporarily set aside other matters in our prayers while we meditate on God. God already knows our needs. What touches His heart the most and gives Him the sweetest thought is our musing on Him in His presence. This is the reason the psalmist says, “May my musing be sweet to Him” (104:34). We should remain in His presence and behold Him in silence. While we behold Him in this way, we inquire of Him, wait on Him, and muse on Him. We can muse on His dealings with us and on His dealings with the saints of old. We can also muse on the sweetness of His person. We can meditate on His desire, love, patience, character, glory, and sweetness. In this musing, we absorb God, and His elements fill us. We should gain this experience and learn this lesson.
Please trust in my word. We must leave our many affairs, our business, health, family, finance, and livelihood, in God’s hand and remember His promise that our heavenly Father knows that we need all these things (Matt. 6:32). We must cast all our anxiety on Him (1 Pet. 5:7). There is no need to spend much time praying for these things. There is no need to pray for every point. We should believe that He bears the responsibility for all our needs. In our prayers we should forget about ourselves and spend more time to muse on Him, allowing Him and His acts to fill our spiritual eyes and inward senses. God treasures this type of musing; He appreciates this kind of meditation. When we enjoy Him in this musing, He dispenses Himself into us and takes care of all our other needs. We should be at peace and focus on His sweetness instead of focusing on our own affairs. We need to spend time to muse upon His sweetness.
As we touch Him, remain in Him, behold His loveliness, converse with Him, inquire of Him, wait on Him, and muse upon Him, we should worship Him. We should worship Him in our spirit and with our whole being. We should attune our entire being to His holy splendor and worship Him in holy splendor (Psa. 29:2). We should prostrate ourselves before Him and offer Him our worship.
We should also praise God. Praise always follows worship. As we muse upon a certain matter, praises should flow forth from within us.
We also should learn to participate in intercessory work. If time permits and we are able to spend more time before God, He will surely tell us things that concern Him. As soon as we know these things, we need to do the work of intercession. Abraham stood before God. As he remained in His presence, God seemingly said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? I have to let him know that I will destroy Sodom. But there is a child of mine in Sodom. On the one hand, I will destroy Sodom; on the other hand, I want to save Lot. This is My desire.” Once Abraham heard this, he immediately began his intercessory work before God. In his prayer he said, “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed destroy and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it?...Shall the Judge of all the earth not do justly?” (Gen. 18:24-25). Abraham’s intercession was absolutely in the form of inquiring; he did not ask or beg. Abraham kept inquiring all the way to the end. This is the best kind of intercession. As we remain in God, muse upon Him, worship Him, and praise Him, He reveals His desire to us, and we intercede by inquiring. This kind of prayer is sweet.
We also need to allow God to finish what He is speaking. This was what Abraham did. He prayed, but God spoke. The Scripture says, “Jehovah went away as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham” (v. 33). Many times in our prayers we go away as soon as we have finished speaking rather than letting God go away when He is finished speaking. In our prayers we have no thought of God’s speaking. We simply speak what we want. After praying, we say, “In the name of Jesus, Amen.” Then we leave. We do not care if God is leaving or staying. Let me say this jokingly: It is perhaps a good thing that God’s presence is not with us during this type of prayer. If God were with us, He would feel very lonely. It is very impolite to meet someone, not allow him to speak, and leave as soon as we are finished speaking. This, however, is the way many people pray to God.
Although Abraham inquired in his prayer, God was the One speaking. In his prayer Abraham did not finish speaking and then walk away. Rather, Jehovah finished speaking and then left. After Jehovah departed, Abraham left. Can we wait for God to finish speaking before we say, “In the name of Jesus, Amen”? Many times as soon as we finish our speaking, we say Amen. We may say Amen to such a prayer, but has God said Amen? We have finished, but God has not finished. This is a pitiful condition. We have never learned to absorb God, to receive God, and to breathe in God. We pray in a wild and reckless way. We have never been trained in the matter of prayer. We have never surrendered in this matter. We have never allowed God to speak. Consequently, we do not gain much God at the end of our prayers. We have not absorbed Him or received very much of Him.
In summary, when we come to God to breathe Him in, we must first turn to our spirit to touch Him. We should be calm, behold Him, inquire of Him, and learn to wait on Him. We should also muse upon Him, worship Him, praise Him, and learn to intercede before Him. Later, we should allow Him to finish His speaking. Then we can let Him know that we are satisfied. This is the best kind of prayer. It is a prayer that receives and absorbs God. If we always pray in this way, we will surely receive and appropriate much more of God, and He will surely be our real enjoyment. This is what it means to enjoy God through our prayer. May the Lord graciously enable us to live in this reality!
