Thoughts On Prayer And The Church

I love it when God takes control of a situation and you can see the Holy Spirit working with in the body. God absolutely loves the church and if you do not believe that then review the Gospels and you will now how much He loves us. God has a way, that if things seem crazy with in the body and is under attack, of taking care of the body. All the church has to do is pray and pray diligently. Its not a one time prayer request, it is an on going thing prayer request. The Church needs prayer to function, it needs its people to come together and ask for Gods direction, protection, and intervention. I know the church prays but does the church pray enough? Jim Cymbalta, the pastor of The Brooklyn Tabernacle once said

“The Bible does say, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations." Preaching, music, the reading of the Word--these things are fine--but they must never override prayer as the defining mark of God's dwelling.”

(Matthew 21-13He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers.”)

Is it possible that the preaching, singing, and other programs have become a distraction?
What I mean is do we focus so much on the preaching and the music that prayer takes a seat? If Gods word says, His house shall be a house of prayer then where is the focus on prayer? It is a lot more than putting request on a bulletin or sending it through email.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.-Act 2:42

As this verse says, the church should be devoted to the apostles teaching. Which the teaching of the apostles was the Gospel. We as a church should be devoted to the gospel of Jesus Christ it is the foundation. The rest of the verse is easy to understand. Building relationships, eating together, and prayer seems fun and exciting, right?
I read this and I look at today’s church and wonder where is this happening?
The church has developed into a routine you do rather than a lifestyle we choose to live. Some churches have become more about the program rather than allowing the Holy Spirit to move. Some churches have gotten into the entertainment business and focus on numbers of butts they can get to sit in their seats, neglecting community and encouraging ways to serve others. Some are very traditional and hang on man made ideas and functions. The development of clever fads and strategies has produced the same result, failure….
Prayer I believe is what makes the church function. Prayer is as important to the function of the church as a tune up is for car or batteries to an Wii remote. A church that prays and listens for direction will thrive. I can only imagine, what the church over all, would be like if it rid themselves of all the distractions and began praying and listening….