My friend had a need I could not meet. I told another friend and he provided for her need.
Jesus told us that prayer is like that. “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit and I have nothing for him to eat . . . if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence (Luke 11:5-8).'”
They say dehydration is the #1 cause of illness for Israel’s tourists. The temperature hovered around 110 degrees while we were there, so we understood the need for water.
Long ago the psalmist wrote, “As the deer pants for flowing streams, so my soul pants for you, O God (Psalm 42:1).”
Hot, tired and thirsty souls earnestly desire communion with God through prayer.
Picture courtesy of artist Dr. John E. Weise.
We got into the boat and sailed across the Sea of Galilee. There was no storm. The sea was calm.
But we spoke of the great storm that made the disciples afraid. We remembered that Jesus rebuked the wind and the sea and there was a great calm (from Matthew 8:23-27).
I’ve always liked that story. Jesus still calms any storm. Cry out to him. He hears.
He stood on Mount Arbel, overlooking Galilee, remembering that Jesus, when he lived here, “went up on the mountain by himself to pray (Matthew 14:23).”
And standing there, he prayed, because Jesus said, “Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be full (John 16:24).”
There were children at the Wailing Wall, being trained by their elders.
May we who know Jesus as Messiah teach “the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders he has done (Psalm 78:4)” by praying for and with our children.
“A glorious throne set on high from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary (Jeremiah 17:12).”
We enter God’s throne room and know love beyond measure. We see His glory, above all else. That is why we pray.
Here’s what they did: O Lord, in distress they sought you, they poured out a whispered prayer (Isaiah 26:16).
Here’s what they knew: O Lord, you will ordain peace for us, for you have indeed done all our works (Isaiah 26:12).
