What Happens When We Pray In The Spiritual Realm

When we pray, something happens that would not have happened if we hadn't prayed.

That phrase encapsulates much of what the Bible has to say about prayer. It also serves as a reminder of how powerful our prayers are in influencing God's method of ruling in our lives and the world.

Though I agree with this maxim, I also recognize that it is only valid if we add additional qualifications. It only applies to real believers, for example. Because they do not have access to the Father's throne, billions of people around the world will not see anything happen when they pray.

It's also true only if “pray” refers to genuine prayer addressed to the true God, in true faith, and from a pure heart. Those who anticipate results through mindless, monotonous, or cursory prayer will be disappointed.

And it's only true if “happens” doesn't imply that we anticipate all of our problems to be handled promptly by a “fix-it” God who responds to all of our prayers. What happens when we pray is always for our benefit, and it will happen in God's own time and manner. It will come from a heavenly Father who wants what is best in His love, understands what is best in His wisdom, and does what is best in His power.

Even with those qualifications, the difference sincere prayer produces in God's work in our world is mind-boggling.

When we pray, we enjoy God.

No joy on earth compares to the thrill of knowing God and having a loving relationship with Him. When David declared to the Lord, “You will fill me with delight in your presence, with endless joys at your right hand,” he had a taste of it (Ps. 16:11). The chief end of man, according to the Westminster Shorter Catechism, is to “glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”

Prayer is a path to happiness. It's difficult to talk to God or listen to Him and not feel delight at the end of it. Prayer and gladness were brought together in His “house of prayer” in the Old Testament. “These I will bring to my holy mountain and give them gladness in my place of prayer,” God stated of foreigners who pledge allegiance to Him (Isa. 56:6–7). The same joy can be found in prayer now. To meet Him, we don't need to go to a “house of prayer.” Through Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, we can meet with the Father at any time, anywhere, and about everything. That is sheer happiness! We will enjoy God more if we pray more, sincerely pray.

When we pray, we win over sin.

Our greatest foe is sin. C.H. Spurgeon coined the term “sin.” “The worst tyrant on the face of the planet.” Sin is a dreadful power that causes sorrow and drags people down. It is an adversary who seeks to destroy us and drag us to hell.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we are set free from the penalty of sin. We can also be set free from the power of sin, which can injure and hamper us in our daily lives. As they waited with Jesus in Gethsemane, Jesus wanted His sleepy followers to obtain triumph over sin. “, he explained “Keep a close eye on yourself and pray that you do not succumb to temptation. The soul is eager, but the bodily is frail” (Matt. 26:41). We shouldn't be surprised if we fall prey to temptation if we aren't watchful and praying to overcome the world, the body, and the devil. At the start of each day, I pray a short win-over-sin prayer. It assists me in achieving significant victories.

When we pray, God gives us “good gifts.”

By comparing Himself to earthly parents who know how to provide wonderful gifts to their children, Jesus underscored His Father's willingness to give good gifts to His children. “How much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” he said. (Matthew 7:11; Luke 7:11).

Spiritual blessings such as grace, knowledge, joy, peace, power, and sanctity are among the “good gifts” Jesus mentioned. God desires to bestow these blessings on His children. He doesn't guarantee that we'll get everything we want. But he hears us when we pray for “everything according to his will” (1 John 5:14–15). “He hears us” indicates that He agrees to grant our request.

“Dad, can I have a Bible?” our youngest son asked when he was old enough to read in my study.

“Because I can note and remember the verses we're learning in Sunday school if I have my own Bible,” he replied.

Why did I rush to get him a Bible? He asked for something I wanted him to have, so I gave it to him. God desires for us to have His “good gifts,” and He joyfully delivers them to those who ask for them. Be a self-assured inquirer! Believe that God is a gracious gift.

When we pray for others, God releases His grace and power into their lives.

“The prayer of a good person is powerful and effective,” James says after ordering Christians to “pray for each other” (James 5:16). Prayer has a significant impact on the lives of individuals we pray for.

Prayer has no effect on its own. When you pray for someone else, no energy, force, or grace is transferred from you to them. All of prayer's power comes from God. In response to our prayers, He responds in powerful ways. Enthralled by the magnitude of this power, R.A. Torrey writes in The Power of Prayer, “Prayer is the key that unlocks all of God's inexhaustible grace and power. Prayer offers access to everything that God is and has. Prayer has the power to accomplish anything God can, and because God can accomplish anything, prayer is omnipotent.”

Prayer has the power to move mountains. It has the power to change people's hearts and families. It has the power to transform entire communities and even countries. Because it is the might of Almighty God, it is the ultimate source of power. Even the most humble Christian has access to this power. Elijah, James reminds us, was a prophet “Even as we are, a human being.” He prayed for rain, and it didn't come because God heard his prayer (James 5:17–18). Your prayers have the power to change people's lives!

When we pray, God enables us to do great works.

The disciples were shocked when Jesus told them He was leaving them. He assuaged their worries by pledging miraculous power to carry on His mission. “, he explained “Because I am going to the Father, I assure you that whomever believes in me will accomplish the deeds I have done, and even greater things than these. And everything you ask in my name, I will accomplish in order for the Father to be glorified in the Son” (John 14:12–13).

In other words, they would continue to establish the Church in collaboration with Jesus. He would work from His heavenly seat, just as they did on earth. The connecting link would be prayer.

This promise was not limited to the disciples who would perform works similar to those that Jesus had performed. He assures her of the same “Anyone who believes in me.” Doesn't that involve you and me? What a potent combination: the Almighty Son of God working from His throne on high with millions of Spirit-filled, Christ-indwelt believers on earth to create His Kingdom. We ask, He responds, and mighty works are completed to the glory of God the Father.

When we pray, society becomes more livable.

In the Old Testament, God promised to grant “peace and prosperity” in response to prayer. “Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have sent you into exile,” God declared as the Jewish exiles traveled toward Babylonian captivity. Pray to the Lord for it, for if it succeeds, you will succeed as well” (Jer. 29:7). It can often feel as if there is nothing we can do to make our planet a better place. However, God reminds us that if we devote ourselves to prayer, we can make a difference in our communities and nation.

We should be able to “enjoy calm and quiet lives” if we honor God and others through our prayers. “Prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving… for all people—for kings and all those in power so we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness,” Paul encouraged believers (1 Tim. 2:1–2).

That is God's goal, which He desires for us to achieve via prayer. Through the prayers of His people, God shapes civilization. Our intercessory prayers, by God's design, provide grace, promote peace, limit evil, protect innocent people, avert disasters, enforce justice, and increase crops. “The planet itself breathes and is sustained by Atlas arms through the prayers of people whose love has not become cold,” writes Helmut Thielicki. The world revolves around these raised hands and nothing else” (Our Heavenly Father, p. 109).

When we pray, the devil trembles.

We were instructed to pray by Jesus “Rescue us from the tyrant” (Matt. 6:13). Prayer is the fundamental channel through which we get the Father's assistance in defeating the devil. When His disciples were unable to cast out a demon, Jesus linked devil-defeating activities to prayer. “, he explained “Only prayer can bring this kind out” (Mark 9:29). Knowing that the devil would pursue His disciples after He left, Jesus prayed twice for them to be protected from the evil one (John 17:11, 15).

According to Luke, Jesus' life and ministry were characterized as follows: “He went around doing good and healing everyone who was under the devil's control” (Acts 10:38). The Son of God appeared, according to John “to put an end to the devil's work” (1 John 3:8). Paul urged believers to be on the lookout for the devil's schemes and to resist them “to never stop praying for all of the Lord's people” (Eph. 6:18).

Prayer is our most powerful weapon in the fight against evil. We can thwart Satan's attacks, frustrate his plots, and reduce his effectiveness through praying. We attack the devil's strongholds, develop God's Kingdom, and send workers into the harvest field via prayer. Satan's undoing is prayer—true prayer.

The Kneeling Christian has one of my favorite spiritual warfare quotes: “Nothing terrifies the devil more than prayer. His main goal is to prevent us from praying. “Satan laughs at our toiling, mocks our intellect, but trembles when we pray,” someone wisely observed. (Page 17)

But I have a question for you “Is it true that when I pray, the devil trembles?” The response is yes “Yes, but not because of me; rather, my prayers move God's hand.” The devil trembles because of what God performs in response to our petitions.

The Greater Work

This gift of prayer is such a wonderful and generous gift. God makes it possible for us to enjoy joy, overcome sin, gain spiritual riches, unlock storehouses of grace for others, achieve great acts, reform society, and vanquish the devil all through one one gift. God makes the talents and powers of heaven available to us via prayer.

How does prayer work spiritually?

The low or no cost of faith healing, as well as the absence of drugs or medical technologies, are perhaps the two most evident advantages. Almost everyone in the medical, scientific, and religious communities agrees that the human mind has a lot of untapped potential, including the ability to heal physical and emotional diseases. According to numerous academics, a person's faith has a significant impact on his or her sense of well-being, ability to battle disease, and desire to recover.

For persons suffering from stress-related diseases, prayer and other spiritual techniques can be especially effective. According to Dr. Herbert Benson, meditative prayer can help with anxiety, moderate depression, substance misuse, ulcers, pain, nausea, tension and migraine headaches, infertility, PMS, sleeplessness, and high blood pressure.

Prayer is also effective in assisting people in coping with terrible situations such as chronic sickness and death. Prayer gives us a new sense of meaning, purpose, hope, and control. These beliefs may aid in the instillation of a fighting spirit, which has been believed to be a key factor in recovery. Prayer can improve the quality of one's life and provide a sense of peace and acceptance when one dies. Furthermore, being a member of a religious group can help patients by alleviating the social isolation that many sick individuals face. Friendship visits or visits from their spiritual leader serve as reminders that they are still a part of a faith group as well as the greater human community.

Researchers have lately discovered that prayer and spiritual practice are frequently linked to people's relationships with other living things. Although the intensity of the human-animal link was originally highlighted in relation to people's grief over deceased pets,

The human-animal bond and its function in spirituality are increasingly being researched separately.

What does it mean when you pray in the spirit?

If you want to pray in the Holy Spirit, you want to build Jesus Christ's love character, and you want to shape your prayers around desires that aren't sexual, but rather desires that grow your capacity for love. This includes desires for occupations, wives, children, and material goods, among other things.

What does prayer do to your brain?

Evagrius, a fourth-century saint, sought to honor God and devote his life to great causes. In the previous edition, I discussed the eight dangerous beliefs he recognized as limiting our relationship with God. Recent discoveries about the human brain have verified some of his intuitions about the harmful effects of rage and other negative emotions, which I find fascinating.

The book “How God Changes Our Brain: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neuroscientist” isn't specifically Christian. “Many of you are questioning, do I believe in God?” adds one of the writers, Dr. Andrew Newberg. I'm not sure if God even exists. Mark, one of my colleagues, does not believe in God. I'm not certain. But we can show you that believing in God is essentially beneficial to your well-being as a human being.”

Newberg uncovered a number of facts about the impact of religious contemplation on the human brain. For starters, dedicating 12 minutes each day to personal thought and prayer has a significant impact on our brain. It increases a specific brain circuit that improves our social awareness and empathy, as well as our ability to love our neighbors by increasing compassion and reducing negative emotions. What is one of the most damaging emotions? Anger. What is the function of rage? It separates us from the rest of the world. It disconnects us. As we withdraw into ourselves, it kills community.

The second is neuroplasticity: unlike a plastic cast, our brain is malleable. Scientists previously believed that our brain grows and develops for several years before starting to degrade and corrode. However, we now know that our brains continue to evolve as a result of our daily experiences and behaviors. Newberg claims, for example, that our memories can take on new forms merely by the way we repeat them to ourselves. They become self-contained from the memories we're recalling.

Third, because our brains are continually changing, we must be aware of whether we are progressing in a positive or negative direction. Every day, every week, and every year, the disciplines we engage in essentially impact the course of our lives, and we must be aware of the amount to which our actions affect our brain.

The fourth point is that prayer and personal contemplation assist us in achieving a healthy life balance. I believe that each of us should devote a short amount of time each day to personal prayer and thought. It's something I require. You'll require it. We must make space, no matter how busy we are, to know our priorities and values and to assess how well we are living up to them. “What modifications do I need to make to develop my life with God?” we must ask ourselves every day.

Newberg outlines eight ways in which we might positively modify our brains. He begins by emphasizing the need of retaining one's own religious faith, and then emphasizes the importance of spending time each day in prayer and spiritual thought. Talking to people and being a part of a community are also vital. Aerobic exercise also aids in the development of our brain. Yawning, according to Newberg, focuses our attention. Another thing you might do is listen to relaxing music for 12 minutes every day. The brain benefits from staying intellectually busy and becoming a lifelong learner. Finally, he claims that smiling brings people together. People who smile attract others, while those who frown or display wrath repel them.

It's fascinating to compare and contrast Newberg's book with Evagrius' portrayal of fury. Evagrius called rage the most feared passion, a boiling wrath towards those we believe have injured us, because it tears societies apart.

We've all struggled with this emotion, which Newberg defines as the most primal and difficult to manage, at some point in our lives. Anger disrupts the function of our frontal lobes, robbing us of our ability to feel compassion and empathy. It also causes a cascade of neurochemicals to be released, which destroys the areas of the brain that control emotional responses. In other words, anger impairs our ability to self-regulate, or to respond in a controlled manner regardless of the input. Surprisingly, Evagrius recognized mildness, or the ability to restrain oneself, as a heavenly attribute that corresponds to the lethal concept of rage.

When we focus carefully and consistently on our spiritual values, blood flow to our frontal lobes and anterior cingulate increases, causing activity in our brain's emotional areas to diminish. This aids us in developing the ability to respond in ways that preserve and even reestablish community. The trick, though, is to have a conscious aim. The more we concentrate on our inner ideals, the more control we have over our lives.

As we continue to grow our relationship with God and impact our destiny in deep ways, I encourage you to join me in focusing on Scripture and spending time in prayer each day.

Is prayer a spiritual gift?

I'm sure hundreds of millions of books and articles have been published about prayer, including how to pray, prayer models, answered and unanswered prayers, and prayer for specific periods and events in our lives.

Prayer can be as complicated as we want it to be, or it can be as simple as we want it to be. Prayer does not have to be long, flowery, or wordy. God is equally receptive to modest praise, supplication, or confession. “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner!” says the psalmist. “You'll be finished!”

“Praise be to your name!” says the narrator. “Thank you for your provision and safety!” “I'm grateful for your son Jesus!”

Prayers of “breath” or “thought” might be the start of a prayerful dialogue between us and God. The gift of prayer is undoubtedly the most significant and necessary spiritual discipline for a disciple of Jesus to grow in.

As we go through the Bible, we come across people who pray – regular, everyday people. These folks converse with God in response to him communicating to them or in response to a need.

What happens if you pray midnight?

“For I will pass through Egypt this night, smiting all the firstborn in Egypt, both man and beast; and I will execute justice on all the idols of Egypt: I AM THE LORD.” (KJV Exodus 12:12)

“Paul and Silas prayed and sung praises to God at midnight, and the inmates heard them. And then there was a huge earthquake, which shook the prison's foundations, and all the doors were flung wide, and everyone's bonds were loosened.” (KJV Acts 16:25–26)

The midnight prayer is one of God's most potent spiritual instruments, but it is often overlooked by Christians. The prayer said at 12 a.m. is known as midnight prayer (or vigil). Prayers offered around this time have always yielded huge and unprecedented outcomes, according to the Bible and through the years. It is critical that you live a life of vigilance as a Christian. There are spiritual realms you can never reach without mastering the act of praying at midnight. There are certain levels of revelation that may only be obtained through extended midnight prayers. There are also diabolical creatures, thrones, and chains that can only be dismantled by fighting at all hours of the night. The purpose of this article is to alert the church (Christians) to this powerful spiritual weapon that God has made available to us. I think (and have experienced) that any Christian who masters the act of midnight prayer will eventually have power over what happens throughout the day.

Why do people pray in the middle of the night? Midnight (or the hours between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m.) is considered to be the most spiritually active time of day. Dreams, revelations, attacks, and visits from the spirit realm (both by angels and demons) are common during this time, especially when you are asleep. And the reason is straightforward: Humans are easily overwhelmed when they are sleeping. At this period, the body is naturally feeble. As a result, it is vulnerable to spiritual manipulation. A person's human spirit must be guided and led by a higher Spirit, which in the case of a Christian is the Holy Spirit, in order to be powerful in the spirit realm. We're not going to go any further with this explanation. All I want to say is that midnight is always a time when both the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Satan engage in strong spiritual activity.

If you want to be in charge of your surroundings and remove Satanic ordinances in your life, you'll have to learn to resist the forces of darkness at nightfall. Consider the behaviors of witches and wizards, for example. These are dark agents possessed by the witchcraft spirit. This spirit is regarded as one of the most evil in the kingdom of darkness. It takes pleasure in inflicting suffering and, in some cases, completely destroying human beings. Mercy is not a term found in the witches' lexicon. As a result, a person, even a relative, who is possessed by this evil spirit can go ahead and kill the person closest to him or her. And these nefarious agents of darkness are mostly active at night.

Their usual tactic is to fire their evil arrows (attacks) while their victim is sleeping. And when the person wakes up, he or she will see that everything is going wrong. They have the ability to target businesses, ministries, marriages and relationships, health, and so on. Victims' fates are sometimes connected and transported to their Covens (where they meet). Alternatively, the victim is slain outright. God was well aware of the evil nature of Satan's agents, so He commanded Israel not to allow them (witches) to exist.

Now, the point here is that in order to combat and destroy these agents of darkness, you must be awake at the same moment they are operating. To make their evil arrows, enchantments, curses, and incantations against you ineffectual, you must awaken. Not only that, but you can also wreak major and long-term devastation on them. All of this is only achievable with strong and consistent midnight prayers.

The witches aren't the only ones. We also know that the most harmful satanic sacrifices and wicked ceremonies are frequently performed at night. We will be startled if God opens our eyes to see what is going on in our society or even around us at midnight. Many people who appear to be honest, honorable, and nice during the day get immersed in demonic and wicked activities at night. This does not prevent them from attending church and donating to religious organizations and charities. Some of them are moving'satanic altars.'

How can a Christian or the church combat all of this? It's only via really active, long prayers, particularly in the middle of the night.

Now, the Bible does not keep us in the dark about what happens late at night. Job expressed himself as follows: “Do not yearn for the cover of darkness, because that is when people will be destroyed (people will be cut off in their place).” 36:20 (Job) It's what the Psalmist calls it “Nightmares” is a phrase that means “nightmares” (Psalms 91:5). Then Jesus explained that the enemy comes at night to sow tares (Matthew 13:25).

You might be surprised to learn that most of the problems we face today were initially introduced into our lives by demonic forces while we were sleeping. Do you realize that practically every aspect of your life is decided in the spirit realm before manifesting physically? This explains why some of us see things (including blessings) in our dreams or visions before we really receive them. Is this something that happens to you? The same can be said with devilish arrows. Before they appear physically, they are first fired in the spirit realm.

Nothing happens in a vacuum. In the spiritual realm, there is always a cause, followed by an effect in the physical realm. We need to wake up and take charge of our midnights. This is where the combat takes place. And how great, powerful, affluent, and healthy we become throughout the day will be determined by our achievements here.

Please, let's look at some Bible instances of great men and women (including Jesus) who won their midnight battles and therefore ruled the day.

How do you know if your getting signs from God?

When it came time to depart, they took a different way back to their homeland, as God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.

“Don't be scared,” the Lord said to Paul in a night vision, “but keep speaking and don't be silent.”

The entire book of Revelation, of course, is a vision that God has communicated with the entire world through the apostle John.

Sign God Is Speaking To You — An Inner Knowing

The Holy Spirit is constantly with you if you are a born-again, baptized believer in Jesus Christ.

But the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I've said.

If you will tune your ears and listen to Him, He will faithfully nudge you in the proper direction.

But how do you know if your inner understanding is the result of your own desires or the Holy Spirit? Use God's word as a test once more. It's not God if your gut doesn't agree with what He says. That's all there is to it.

Sign God Is Speaking To You — Clear Or Blocked Paths

When God blocks or clears your path, it's one of the signals He's speaking to you. He performed the same thing for Paul and Silas:

The Holy Spirit had forbidden Paul and Silas from preaching the gospel in the province of Asia at the time, so they traveled through Phrygia and Galatia. When they reached the Mysia border, they attempted to travel north to the region of Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus forbade them. Instead, they continued on through Mysia to Troas' ports.

Of course, you must be tenacious in the pursuit of your objectives. But what if they aren't in line with how God wants you to live or with His plan for your life? He'll stifle your progress and frustrate you.

When God wants you to travel a certain direction, on the other hand, He'll open an unexpected doorway for you to crawl through.

What is power of prayer?

Beyond medicine, there is a lot we can do to improve our health and well-being. Allow drugs to do their job, but there are many additional instruments available to help us improve our quality of life. “Prayer” is one such tool, as long as it is used correctly. You don't have to be religious to pray, and you don't have to go to a religious place to pray. This is about genuine spirituality, and sincere prayer is free of it all.

Prayers function because everything is made up of energy. The food you eat, the water you drink, and the air you breathe all contribute to your overall health. We are a bundle of energy in and of ourselves. We have the ability to create either negative or positive energy. Prayer performed with a pure heart and good intentions aids in the generation of positive energy or the transformation of negative energy into positive energy. Consider how much good energy you can generate by praying, and how that energy might be channeled for healing.

What happens to your spirit when you fast?

Fasting humiliates our natural inclination to rely on nature and compels us to live from the spiritual. God's voice becomes more audible as a result. Fasting is an excellent technique to obtain insight before making a major decision.

When I read Scripture during a fast, the Word has a lot more power, urgency, and clarity to it. It's as if a veil has been lifted, allowing me to view the intricacies of Scripture with greater clarity than before. As I mentioned in part two of this series, I am constantly learning new things “feed” on the Scriptures (Matthew 4:4) and receive true nourishment from it. I learn to prefer the Living Food to the world's dead food (have you ever noticed that everything you eat is a dead carcass?). (How macabre!).

Fasting makes it simpler to see where and how God is at work. When we practice a spiritual lifestyle, it becomes more natural to live, move, and perceive in the spiritual sphere. Our fleshly nature has been tamed and is no longer a force to be reckoned with “Our spiritual sense is “clouded.”

I've probably only fasted for about 10% of my life, yet I've probably received over 80% of my visions and direct communications from God during or as a result of a fast. I don't want to instill excessive expectations of supernatural occurrences, but there's no denying that fasting increases spiritual sensitivity and obedience. Anyone who has fasted for a long period of time for the Lord will tell you the same thing.