Live the Golden Line- The Different Levels Of Payer: Part 2

By Andre Eksteen

In the first part of this series, we began with the foundation: your relationship with God. Without that relationship, everything you believe is just theory — pretty words without power. Faith begins with repentance, honesty, and forgiveness. But when you reach that point where your heart is right with God, something new begins: you start speaking to Him — not just about Him. That is prayer.

Now you must understand, prayer is not simply closing your eyes and folding your hands. It is not a habit you learn — it is a path you walk. It is like breathing in the spirit. If you do not pray, your relationship with God slowly dies from the inside. That is why Jesus said in Luke 18:1 that “a person must always pray and not lose heart.”

If you look carefully in the Bible, you will see that God does nothing randomly. Everything He commands has meaning. Even the tabernacle in the wilderness was built according to a heavenly pattern — the outer court, the inner court, and finally the Most Holy Place (Exodus 25:8–9). Each level had its own atmosphere, its own light, its own closeness to God. And that is exactly how prayer works. It is not just a list you read off; it is a movement closer to His presence. Psalm 42:7 says: “Deep calls unto deep.” That is what happens when your spirit begins responding to His call.

Most people only know the surface. They pray quick prayers between work, traffic, and WhatsApp messages. They say: “Lord, help me with my test,” or “Lord, protect my children,” or “Lord, let my money last the month.” There is nothing wrong with that — that is where everyone starts. But if you stay there, you will never learn who He truly is. God is not your emergency service. He is not your last option. He is your breath. Your

life. Your source.

He did not create you to live like a beggar who only runs to Him when things go wrong. He created you for relationship, for friendship, for intimacy. That is what prayer is — not a monologue, but a life with Him.

Let Your will be done – The heart of every prayer

Before we look at the seven levels of prayer, we must first understand the core of every true prayer: “Let Your will be done.” Jesus Himself prayed this in the garden of Gethsemane — when He sweat like blood, He said: “Not my will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42).

This is the turning point of all prayer. This is where you stop trying to convince God to bless your plan and begin asking that your life be aligned with His plan. This is the place where your faith is truly tested — because it is easy to say: “Your will be done,” but hard to mean it when His will does not fit your plan.

The main reason why people say they “pray against the ceiling,” is because they have never understood this part. They see God as the One who must carry out what they have decided. They use prayer as a way to remind Him of what He “must do.” But God is not your employee. He is the Creator. You are the creature. He commands — you obey.

Our sinful nature always wants our own will to be done. Even our so-called “faith prayers” are often full of self. Listen to yourself when you pray — if your prayer is full of I, me, give me, help me, bless me, save me, give me work, give me money, give me peace, then your prayer has turned into a begging letter full of selfishness, not a conversation of surrender. That is why James 4:3 says: “You ask and receive not, because you ask amiss, that you may consume it upon your lusts.” In other words, you ask for things that feel good to you but are not good for you.

True prayer only begins when you can honestly say: “Lord, I do not know what is best. I trust You to do what is right, not just what I want.” That is not weakness — that is the highest form of faith. It is saying: “I know You see what I cannot see.” And if you truly believe that, God will show you — even in the worst human circumstances — what He expects of you, what you must learn, and what you must do. Because it is there, in the places where everything looks wrong, that He shows you His plan. And then you realise

— even the unthinkable can become a blessing.

A true believer is sometimes placed in such situations on purpose to be a light in that darkness. That is where the test comes: are you like Job — the light that keeps shining even when you understand nothing — or are you, without knowing it, the tool of the dark spirits like his wife and friends who simply sought their own will?

If you ever wonder whether God hears you — ask yourself first: am I praying for His will or for mine? Because if you are praying for your own will, you will always pray against the ceiling. But if you pray for His will, you will always feel His peace, even if nothing changes immediately.

This is the foundation on which every other level of prayer is built. Without it, your prayers remain self-centred and filled with the enemy’s own words.

Let us now walk through the seven levels of prayer. And as you read, test yourself honestly: at which level are you stuck?

Level 1: Petition – The level of dependence

This is where everyone begins. It is where you bring your needs and worries to God: food, health, protection, guidance. Philippians 4:6 says: “Let your requests be made known unto God in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.” It is right and good to ask. He is your Father — and He expects you to come.

But here lies a danger. This level tests whether you trust God or just use Him. It is easy to believe He is good when everything goes well. It is hard when you ask and nothing happens. Then the human heart begins to doubt. “Does He still hear me?” “Did I do something wrong?” “Why is He not answering?”

Here you learn patience. Here your faith is refined. Because God is not a vending machine you press with a prayer and get an answer. He is a Father who wants to teach you to trust Him, even when you see nothing.

What does it feel like? When you pray wrongly — out of selfishness or your own will — you quickly feel disappointed and discouraged when God does not answer the way you

expected. You begin to doubt, you feel rejected, and you wonder whether He still hears you. But when you pray rightly, with a sincere heart that seeks His will, He always gives guidance — even if He does not give what you ask.

He shows you what you must do, where you must turn, and how you must handle the people around you. You may be in severe financial trouble; prayer will not make money rain from heaven, but it will show you how to be wise, how to have peace, and how to serve others in your situation. He may even show you that your whole life is on a dead-end path and that you must take a different direction. His answers are seldom easy or fast, but always living — answers that shape your character and change the lives of those around you.

This is the level of dependence — where you learn that asking is not wrong, but that faith is greater than answers.

Level 2: Intercession – The level of compassion

Look carefully at what I said above about how God answers — He does not always give what you ask, but He always shows you what to do. And that kind of answer pulls you directly into the next level. Because when you begin to understand that prayer is not just about your own needs, your heart begins to change. You turn your eyes away from yourself and begin to see others. That is where you step into level two.

But before you can enter this level, you must learn something most people do not want to hear: you must learn to forgive others. Because God can only forgive you as you forgive others. That is not my opinion — that is Jesus’s own words (Matthew 6:14–15). You cannot intercede before God on someone else’s behalf while still holding a grudge. Unforgiveness kills your prayer; it keeps you bound in the same chains as the person you hold it against.

We will speak more about forgiveness in a later article, but understand this already: you cannot enter this level with a hard heart. You cannot pray for others if you are still trapped in bitterness. Intercession begins with a clean heart — one that says: “Lord, I release them as You have released me.”

As you grow, you begin praying for others. That is when your focus shifts from “me” to “us.” You carry the burdens of others, you stand in the gap. Ezekiel 22:30 describes how God looked “for a man to stand in the gap before Me.” That means someone willing

to pray for others when they cannot pray for themselves.

Intercession softens you. You begin seeing people through God’s eyes. You weep over their need, even over people who hurt you. You realise you cannot say you love God if you cannot pray for people.

But it costs you something. You feel their pain in your own spirit. You carry a burden that is not always understood. You can become tired, because you carry things that do not belong to you. Yet this is the place where you begin participating in the work of Christ. He lives to intercede for us (Hebrews 7:25), and if His Spirit lives in you, you will do the same.

What does it feel like? You feel a heaviness that makes no sense. Sometimes you cry for no reason. Other times you wake in the night with someone on your heart. It is the Holy Spirit inviting you to intercede.

Intercession changes you. This is where you learn that prayer is not only for yourself — it is for the world around you.

Level 3: Spiritual warfare – The level of authority

Now it becomes serious. In the previous series, we already spoke about the spiritual world that exists around us — that invisible reality that is just as real as the ground under your feet. As you grow spiritually and God sees you are mature enough to handle it, He begins revealing that world to you. You begin seeing what others are blind to, and you understand whom we truly fight against. You realise you are no longer of this world, even though you still live in it for now. Your spirit belongs to another Kingdom, and here you begin living as you were created to live — a warrior in God’s creation.

Ephesians 6:12 says: “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness.” This war is not symbolic. It is not just a pretty sermon illustration — it is a reality. And every day you wake up, you stand in the middle of it.

The enemy hates prayer, because every prayer prayed in truth and authority shakes his strongholds. He will do anything to silence you — through distraction, doubt, fear, or even attacks in your family and work. That is why many people give up at this level.

They do not understand that the resistance is the evidence that they are in the right place.

But this is also where you discover your authority in Christ. Luke 10:19 says: “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy.” That is not emotion — that is authority. You begin to pray with certainty. You stand in your home and declare: “Not here. Not with my children. Not in my town.” You bind, you break, you speak life where death tries to rule. You become an instrument of light in the midst of darkness.

This is not an easy level. It requires discipline, purity, and perseverance. You cannot live in sin and fight in war — that is spiritual suicide. You must be pure, focused, and obedient. Your words carry power only if your life supports them.

What does it feel like? You experience resistance. Your faith is tested. You feel tired, sometimes even physically attacked, but you know: I do not stand alone. Christ fights through me. This is where you learn that prayer is not only gentle or quiet — it is powerful, military, heavenly. And this is where you realise: the Light within you makes the darkness tremble.

Level 4: Prophetic prayer – The level of revelation

Few people ever reach the third level described above, and it is not because God withholds it — it is because they no longer want to believe the literal Word. They have turned the Bible into a book of symbolism and comfort, a collection of nice stories with no real power. They prefer a man-made religion that keeps them comfortable, rather than a living faith that calls them to repentance. They deny the existence of evil and turn God into a soft grandfather with a white beard who spoils His already overfed, disobedient grandchildren with even more sweets. It is a religion without fear, without respect, without truth — and without power.

Even pastors, people who believe they serve the Lord full-time, get stuck before this level. They limit themselves with man-made dogma, afraid to go beyond what their church framework allows. They prefer a safe theology over a living revelation. That is why so many of them are spiritually powerless — they speak about war, but they never fight. They preach about faith, but they no longer believe in the real power of the Spirit.

And now we come to level 4 — a level many believe, and even preach, ended with the

apostles. They say the prophetic voice has gone silent, that God no longer speaks directly to people, that revelation is something of the past. They say the supernatural was only for the first century, that the power of the Holy Spirit is some kind of historical phenomenon. But that is a lie. Nowhere in Scripture does God say He stopped speaking. He is just as alive today, just as active, just as vocal as in the time of the apostles. The only difference is that people stopped listening.

Here you begin to experience something that words cannot describe. You no longer speak from your own heart, but from God’s Spirit. This is when you pray what He shows you. Ezekiel 37:4 says: “Prophesy upon these bones, and say: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!”

On this level you no longer say: “Lord, please do this.” You say: “Thus says the Lord.” You declare His promises over people, over places, over situations. You speak life over death, light over darkness. But you can only do this if you know His voice — if you spend time in His presence, if you know how He sounds.

Here you learn to become still and listen. You learn not to confuse your own desires with God’s voice. It is dangerous to speak when He has not spoken, but life-changing when you do. Prophetic prayer brings heaven to earth — it pulls the invisible divine reality into the physical world.

What does it feel like? You experience a holy fire inside you. Your words carry a weight you cannot explain. You know: it does not come from you — it is the Spirit of God speaking through you. Sometimes it brings tears, sometimes peace, sometimes war, but always truth.

Prophetic prayer also brings isolation. You will be rejected, because people do not understand someone who lives by the Spirit. They like predictable religion, not living fire. But do not fear rejection — it is often the sign that you are right. Because when you begin saying what God says, you will always clash with those who want to silence Him.

Level 5: Silence – The level of presence

After the prayers, the tears, and the battle, God brings you to silence. Psalm 46:10 says: “Be still, and know that I am God.” This is not passive silence — it is active surrender. It is when you stop speaking and simply listen.

Here something happens that you cannot explain. It is no longer about what you say — it is about who you are in His presence. You sit there, perhaps in silence, perhaps with tears, and you know: He is here.

Jesus often withdrew to be alone with the Father. Not for miracles or people — just for the Father. It is this silence that changes you without you realising it. Your spirit is purified, your mind calms, your heart heals.

Imagine this: you are in the middle of the Namib. All you see is sand — endless, quiet, empty. There is no one. No phone, no noise, no distractions. Just silence. The sun beats down on you, the wind moves softly over the dunes, and for the first time in days, maybe weeks, you feel something you have not felt in a long time — peace. You feel light, calm, small. The world is quiet. There are no words, no emotions — just peace.

And in that silence, between the sand and the sky, you feel His greatness, His might, His presence wrapping around you.

I know that feeling. I live for it. I make time every week to be in such a place — not necessarily in the Namib, but somewhere alone with God. It is where the world stops shouting and He begins to speak again. Jesus did the same. He even left His disciples behind to be alone with the Father. He knew there are certain things that only happen in silence — where no one else can go with you.

We humans read this, but we no longer do it. We run from noise to noise, from screen to screen, from people to people — and that is why we no longer know Him. It is not because He has changed — it is because we are never quiet enough to hear His voice.

What does it feel like? You feel light, calm, small. The world grows quiet. Sometimes nothing comes — no words, no emotion — just peace. And that is enough. Because this is the place where you realise: He is God, and I am His child.

Level 6: Praise and worship – The level of surrender

After silence, something begins to bubble inside you. You look back and see His goodness, even in pain. You can no longer stay quiet. You begin to praise Him — not for what He does, but for who He is. Psalm 100:4 says: “Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise.”

Worship is the highest form of faith, because it is when you say: “Lord, even if nothing changes, You are still good.” Paul and Silas did that when they were in prison (Acts 16:25), and the walls shook.

Worship changes your perspective. It is not just a song — it is an attitude. It is saying: “I see You, Lord, above everything.” Your fears grow silent, your doubts disappear. You begin living in gratitude.

What does it feel like? You feel free, light, joyful. You see the same storm, but your heart is full of peace. You lose all fear of the things of this world and you feel like a conqueror. You realise: I am no longer a victim, I am a worshipper.

Many praise Him with their mouths, but their hearts contradict it because they still live in fear and anxiety over the things of this world.

Level 7: Friendship and union – The level of closeness

John 15:15 says: “I no longer call you servants… but friends.” This is where you and God come so close that you carry His presence wherever you go. You no longer pray only in times of need — your whole life becomes prayer.

Moses experienced this when the Lord spoke with him “as a man speaks with his friend” (Exodus 33:11). This is not a religious place — it is a lifestyle. Your will and His will begin to flow together. You think differently, speak differently, live differently.

What does it feel like? You experience a peace no one can break. You never feel alone again. You live in constant awareness of His presence. This is not pride — it is closeness.

On this level your prayers change from asking to thanking, from speaking to listening, from self to God. Your heart beats in rhythm with His. You understand Paul’s words: “I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20)

Child of God, these are the seven levels. Now you must be honest: where are you? Are you still praying only for your own needs, or have you begun to carry, fight, listen, and worship? This is not a competition. It is a journey. Each level is a step closer to His

heart.

But listen carefully — you cannot pray on a higher level than your obedience allows. If your heart is still full of sin and pride, you will remain in the outer court. That is why Part 1 began with repentance. You cannot walk into the Most Holy Place with unclean hands. You must be washed. Made clean.

Prayer is not just asking God — it is allowing Him to change you. It is not about getting things — it is about becoming someone.

As you grow, you will realise: the purpose of prayer is not answers — it is presence. And presence brings peace. And peace brings obedience. And obedience brings closeness.

The Lord is calling His remnant deeper. Not just to speak about prayer, but to live in it. It is time for the church to pray again like the early church — with fire, with tears, with authority. It is time for you to stop speaking about what you believe and start living what you believe.

Because in the end, it is not about how beautifully you can pray, but how closely you live with Him.

It is time to go deeper.

Deep calls unto deep. Answer Him.