I was in prayer around the beginning of this week, when the Lord gave me a vision of two apples rising. They were green apples, and they arose from my prayers. As I saw this, I realized that Vanessa was praying in the room next to mine at the very same time. The apples symbolized the fruit of our prayers going up to God.
...“What is it, Lord?” And He said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. Acts 10:4
This is what God thinks when we talk to Him. Our pleas rise up to Him. They are uplifting in and of themselves, but God takes this a step further. Our prayers bring Him pleasure.
"Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!" Psalm 141:2
God valued David's prayers, and He values ours, too, if our hearts our pure. We are the apple of His eye (Psalms 17:8)--that doesn't change. But our hearts need to be cleansed and our view of others perfected before our prayers become as meaningful in His sight as our lives themselves.
"Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering." Matthew 5:23-24
David was given a revelation that prayer was offering, and intense prayer a sacrifice. This is so true! Earnest prayer requires us to shut out any worldly distractions, and to put aside all selfish desires. It requires effort, but that's what it takes to draw near to God. If prayer is an offering, then we need to be reconciled to others before we expect God to reconcile us to Himself. We need to accept others before God will accept our desires for forgiveness, mercy, or favor. We need to love others before we can experience His love fully.
But once we come to this point, He draws near! He is pleased with our offerings, and He sees no hypocrisy in us. We are kept as the apple of His eye, and our prayers themselves become fruitful. Our conversation with Him becomes fruitful and multiplies--we ask for more, we receive more, and we have thankfulness for more. We become overshadowed by God, and overcome by His blessings. This is what intense prayer does. If we believe, we will receive whatever we ask for in prayer, and often abundantly more than this.
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..." Ephesians 3:20
But we need to let Him work. We need to access that "power that is at work within us". We need to let the Holy Spirit work! We need to let Him preoccupy us with prayer. The Holy Spirit is groaning and awaiting Christ to mature in our lives (Romans 8:23 and context). Are we doing the same? Are we groaning and longing in prayer? Are we eagerly desiring a blessing from God? Are we longing to be away from these mortal bodies (2 Corinthians 5)?
If so, then our desires are coming up to God. They are catching His attention and pleasing Him. They are manifested out of the spiritual world as a beautiful aroma! There is so much power in prayer. It rises--this earth cannot contain it. It goes to God just as fast as we say or think it--faster, even.
These are the kinds of prayers that please God. These are the prayers that are powerful and effective (James 5:16). These kind of prayers allow for God to heal, for God to convict, and for God to comfort. These kind of prayers require all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our strength, and all of our mind (Luke 10:27). They bring into manifestation the fulfillment of the law. But they are worth it!
Confirmed: A recent post on the Quickened Word website totally confirmed this. A thread on the forum called, "Apple Tree in Bloom" was revived just in time to synchronize with the vision I received from the Lord.
...“What is it, Lord?” And He said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. Acts 10:4
This is what God thinks when we talk to Him. Our pleas rise up to Him. They are uplifting in and of themselves, but God takes this a step further. Our prayers bring Him pleasure.
"Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!" Psalm 141:2
God valued David's prayers, and He values ours, too, if our hearts our pure. We are the apple of His eye (Psalms 17:8)--that doesn't change. But our hearts need to be cleansed and our view of others perfected before our prayers become as meaningful in His sight as our lives themselves.
"Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering." Matthew 5:23-24
David was given a revelation that prayer was offering, and intense prayer a sacrifice. This is so true! Earnest prayer requires us to shut out any worldly distractions, and to put aside all selfish desires. It requires effort, but that's what it takes to draw near to God. If prayer is an offering, then we need to be reconciled to others before we expect God to reconcile us to Himself. We need to accept others before God will accept our desires for forgiveness, mercy, or favor. We need to love others before we can experience His love fully.
But once we come to this point, He draws near! He is pleased with our offerings, and He sees no hypocrisy in us. We are kept as the apple of His eye, and our prayers themselves become fruitful. Our conversation with Him becomes fruitful and multiplies--we ask for more, we receive more, and we have thankfulness for more. We become overshadowed by God, and overcome by His blessings. This is what intense prayer does. If we believe, we will receive whatever we ask for in prayer, and often abundantly more than this.
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..." Ephesians 3:20
But we need to let Him work. We need to access that "power that is at work within us". We need to let the Holy Spirit work! We need to let Him preoccupy us with prayer. The Holy Spirit is groaning and awaiting Christ to mature in our lives (Romans 8:23 and context). Are we doing the same? Are we groaning and longing in prayer? Are we eagerly desiring a blessing from God? Are we longing to be away from these mortal bodies (2 Corinthians 5)?
If so, then our desires are coming up to God. They are catching His attention and pleasing Him. They are manifested out of the spiritual world as a beautiful aroma! There is so much power in prayer. It rises--this earth cannot contain it. It goes to God just as fast as we say or think it--faster, even.
These are the kinds of prayers that please God. These are the prayers that are powerful and effective (James 5:16). These kind of prayers allow for God to heal, for God to convict, and for God to comfort. These kind of prayers require all of our heart, all of our soul, all of our strength, and all of our mind (Luke 10:27). They bring into manifestation the fulfillment of the law. But they are worth it!
Confirmed: A recent post on the Quickened Word website totally confirmed this. A thread on the forum called, "Apple Tree in Bloom" was revived just in time to synchronize with the vision I received from the Lord.
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