The Bible speaks of many dimensions of prayer.

Prayer is a primary commission in my life and the ministry of Disciple Nations

I believe that the Holy Spirit is moving in an accelerated way to restore the Church to her primary identity as a House of Prayer.

For pure and persevering prayer I believe we need three things:
1. Foundation: A Theology of Prayer (Bible Truths about Prayer)
2. Inspiration: Prophetic Calls to Prayer (Global Consequences for what you do with prayer in Kansas, etc.)
3. Practicals: Strategies of Prayer (Pentagon of Prayer)

Our theology of prayer should touch all of our strategies for prayer.

Tonight we take a look at the Theology of the "Secret Place Prayer".

Psalms 91:1 (NKJV)
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

Matthew 6:6 (NKJV)
6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

The Old and New Testaments speak of the Secret Place.

It is sometimes translated "shelter" of the Almighty.

The essence of the term seems to mean: The private place of faith and fellowship with the invisible God.

Samuel, David, and Moses all valued this place in their faith journeys.

It is a private place unseen by man not public place seen by man.

It is a faith interaction with the unseen invisible God.

Jesus, when teaching about prayer, highlights the secret place as the preeminent place in contrast to the glory seeking Pharisees who public prayed for glory.

Matthew 6:5-13 (ESV)
5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9 Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come, your will be done,     on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Two primary instructions from Jesus:
1) Pray to be seen by the Father
2) Trust not in "many words" or repetitive "empty phrases", but rather pray in simplicity as he taught.

Obviously we must recognize that:
1) Public prayer is honored and practiced by the disciples in the book of Acts.
2) The throne room of heaven shows a stunning amount of "repetitive" worship.

The point of the teachings of Jesus is not “procedure” but rather the “heart”.
1) Be careful to pray for the glory of God not man.
2) Put no faith in a “formula” of prayer but rather the Father to whom you pray.

The Secret Place should be the predominant place in the prayer lives of the disciples.

Do you have a Spirit led intentional strategy to increase Secret Place prayer in your lives?