The Prayer Life [Annotated, Updated]: Persevering in Prayer

by Andrew Murray

does not go out but by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:19-21). If the life is not one of self-denial and of fasting – that is, of letting the world go; if it is not a life of prayer – that is, of laying hold of heaven, then faith cannot be exercised. It is in a life lived according to the flesh and not according to the Spirit that we find the origin of the prayerlessness of which we complain. As we came out of the meeting, a brother said to me, “That is the whole difficulty; we want to pray in the Spirit and at the same time walk after the flesh, and this is impossible.” If someone is sick and desires healing, it is very important that the true cause of the sickness is discovered. This is always the first step toward recovery. If the specific cause is not recognized and attention is directed to secondary causes or to supposed but not real causes, healing is out of the question.