Praying With Assurance: Keys to Profit and Progressනියැදිය

THE NECESSITY OF CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE IN PRAYER

One of the greatest hindrances to answered prayer is unconfessed sin. Psalm 66:18 says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” Many believers pray long prayers, fast intensely, and attend vigils, yet they do not deal with hidden sin in their hearts. God is not mocked; you cannot keep sin as a pet and expect Him to answer your prayers. The first posture of effective prayer is not loudness but purity. Before you come with requests, come with repentance. Remember that prayer is not an exercise in deception—it is a standing before the God who sees everything.

1 John 1:9 assures us, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Confession is not a ritual; it is an honest agreement with God about your wrongs. To confess means to call sin what God calls it—not to excuse, minimise, or justify it. Repentance is not just feeling sorry; it is a change of heart that leads to a change of action. Until you drop that bitterness, that lie, that immorality, that disobedience, your prayers may remain unanswered. Many Christians are shouting at mountains that would have already moved if they had first repented of the sin that built those mountains.

Beloved, if you want your prayer altar to carry weight, keep your heart clean. Do not let hidden offences or secret habits choke your intercession. Begin your prayers with self-examination, asking the Holy Spirit to shine His light on your heart. Where He convicts you, respond quickly with confession and repentance. A broken and contrite heart is irresistible to God. When sin is confessed, the blood of Jesus cleanses; when repentance is embraced, the heavens open. Do not make excuses—make confessions. Do not postpone repentance—embrace it now. When you pray with a cleansed heart, your words rise like incense before the throne, and answers are swift.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:
Have I been trying to cover sin while still expecting God to answer my prayers? What areas of my life do I need to bring under the cleansing of the Blood today?

PRAYER:
Father, search my heart and purge me of all hidden sins. Let the Blood of Jesus cleanse me so that my prayers may ascend unhindered before You. Amen.