What they were doing was unpleasant, and potentially harmful, but it is legal.
So we prayed.
We endured for a little longer, and then suddenly they stopped. Someone on the other side of the world made a decision that changed everything.
“It is possible to move men by God through prayer.” ~Hudson Taylor
David asked the Lord, “Should I go out to fight?”
The Lord replied to David, “Yes, go ahead.”
So David went and defeated the Philistines.
“The Lord did it!” David exclaimed.
“He burst through my enemies like a raging flood (from 2 Samuel 5:19-20).”
“Three times Paul begged the Lord to take the tormenting thorn away (from 2 Corinthians 12:8).”
Can you see yourself doing the same thing? Pleading, begging for release from sorrow or suffering. Can you see God bending down to listen? Can you hear him saying to you, “My grace is all you need. My grace is sufficient for you. My grace is enough. My power works best in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT, ESV, MSG).”
Paul asked, but the Lord did not relieve his suffering.
Some time later Paul wrote this, “What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later (Romans 8:18).”
Through suffering Paul learned hope.
Weakened by an affliction, Paul pleaded for release from pain. God did not take his pain away. He offered something better. His own grace and power.
“My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).”
Moses left Pharoah’s court and pleaded with the Lord. The Lord responded by shifting the wind, and the strong west wind blew the locusts into the Red Sea (Exodus 10:18-19).
Sometimes God changes the natural world in response to our prayers. He can do anything!
Sometimes we pray for a long time without seeing change. Consider the Israelites and have hope.
They cried for help. God heard, remembered his covenant and knew it was time to act. But first, He appeared to Moses and told him the rescue plan. When Moses went to Egypt, life got harder for the Israelites. Even Moses said, “You have done nothing to rescue them (Exodus 5:23)!” God sent ten plagues, one at a time. The Israelites journeyed to and then through the Red Sea. That was when they finally saw God’s answer to their prayers.*
*Read the whole story in Exodus 1 -15.
“Moses pleaded with the Lord to remove all the flies. And the Lord did as Moses asked and caused the swarms of flies to disappear (Exodus 9:30).”*
Don’t complicate prayer. It is profoundly simple.
Job said, “I call on God and expect an answer (Job 12:4).”
God said, “My servant Job has spoken accurately about me (from Job 42:7).”
As I looked through my journal, I read, “My daughter is sick. I don’t know why. Lord, you do! When you were here you healed people from morning to night. You are able to heal her. Are you willing?”
She’s better now. I almost forgot she had been sick.
My journal reminded me to pray, “Thank you, Lord, for healing our daughter! You are the Lord who heals (Exodus 15:26).”
A Blog on Prayer 