When we receive bad news, whether it pertains to us or someone else, we are often moved to pray. For those who have a walk with Jesus, prayer is a natural bi-product of bad news. If someone tells us of a difficulty in their life, we often respond with a very appropriate, ¨I will pray for you.¨ It is up to us then to follow through on our commitment. God hears our prayers no matter how short and He knows the intentions of our heart. However, the Lord has taught me that while short prayers work, God wants to call us deeper in our prayers that we may uncover all the treasures that lay before us as we unite with the heart of God.
Since hearing of my sister´s cancer, I have found myself in a constant prayer. I feel that I am uncovering different areas of God´s heart as it involves my sister´s illness. Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, ¨Pray without ceasing.¨ I have never considered or fully understood what this passage means until this season of my life.
There are three things that the Lord has pointed out to me from this passage. First of all, we need to have a daily, moment by moment, dependence on God in every area of our lives. As I have prayed for my sister, I realize that there is nothing I can do to make her better. If she conquers this cancer, it´s because God does it. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.
Secondly, this passage has taught me to pray repeatedly. We should always be in a spirit of prayer. Our lives should be a conversation with God. I once heard a missionary say that every day should be a prayer or conversation with God, when you go to sleep you don´t ¨hang up the phone¨, you just say, ¨see you in the morning.¨ I have found myself praying for my sister at all hours of the day.
The third lesson the Lord has taught me from this verse is to not give up. I love the parable Jesus shares in Luke 18 about the persistent widow. We learn a valuable lesson from this widow about prayer. We are encouraged to continue praying until everything God desires has been accomplished. God is teaching me the importance of lingering with God. We should not pray for someone in order to scratch the request off our bucket list. We should pray and pray over and over until God does something in response to our prayer. We have seen the Lord work in recent weeks in my sister´s life as God has used the chemo to shrink her tumor. I continue to pray for complete healing, pressing in until the Lord has completed His work.
What a privilege it is to pray and talk to the God of the universe. For me, prayer has never been so exciting and faith building. May God ignite within you a passion for prayer. May He take you to new levels in your prayer life and may you understand His heart more fully as you seek His face. Ask the Holy Spirit to ignite your prayer life and see what happens. What a privilege it is to carry everything to God in prayer.
There are three things that the Lord has pointed out to me from this passage. First of all, we need to have a daily, moment by moment, dependence on God in every area of our lives. As I have prayed for my sister, I realize that there is nothing I can do to make her better. If she conquers this cancer, it´s because God does it. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.
Secondly, this passage has taught me to pray repeatedly. We should always be in a spirit of prayer. Our lives should be a conversation with God. I once heard a missionary say that every day should be a prayer or conversation with God, when you go to sleep you don´t ¨hang up the phone¨, you just say, ¨see you in the morning.¨ I have found myself praying for my sister at all hours of the day.
The third lesson the Lord has taught me from this verse is to not give up. I love the parable Jesus shares in Luke 18 about the persistent widow. We learn a valuable lesson from this widow about prayer. We are encouraged to continue praying until everything God desires has been accomplished. God is teaching me the importance of lingering with God. We should not pray for someone in order to scratch the request off our bucket list. We should pray and pray over and over until God does something in response to our prayer. We have seen the Lord work in recent weeks in my sister´s life as God has used the chemo to shrink her tumor. I continue to pray for complete healing, pressing in until the Lord has completed His work.
What a privilege it is to pray and talk to the God of the universe. For me, prayer has never been so exciting and faith building. May God ignite within you a passion for prayer. May He take you to new levels in your prayer life and may you understand His heart more fully as you seek His face. Ask the Holy Spirit to ignite your prayer life and see what happens. What a privilege it is to carry everything to God in prayer.
