Why Pray?

God’s Power Principle For Today:  “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us”  (2 Cor. 2:1-12).   

Hey Gang:  I need to make a confession to you this morning.  I am not a very avid reader.  On my desk, as I write this epistle this morning, are four books with markers that tell me where I am in the book.  In one I am on page 32, the second 18, the third 47 and the last an amazing 123.

But I have found myself returning to a book by Dr. John DeVries, founder of Mission India, titled Why Pray; this has been a source of encouragement to me.   I have asked that question many times and, I confess, I have even stopped praying for a season because I did not think God was listening.

You see, I tended to measure the success of my prayers by what I received from them in short order.  There is an ad on Television advertising Wentworth Finance where the people are shouting “I want my money and I want it now”.  That was kind of my attitude when I went to the throne room for a specific need.  Have I had victory over that, to a degree, but I must admit the battle goes on.

But the resurgence of the Village has given me a leg up on the victory-trail over this issue.  I learned, from Dr. John, that when we have a specific need we should place it in the Father’s hand and move on.     When Cathey, my daughter, became the exulted ruler of the Village, her mom and I felt we needed to build a pyramid of prayer warriors who were willing to pray in a sacrificial way for wisdom and direction and strength and protection for her and the Village. 

Our challenge to each one, ‘If you are not willing to pray sacrificially and as Paul challenges us “without ceasing” please do not sign up to be a prayer warrior.  I believe the prayer warrior ring that surrounds the Village today is the catalyst that has produced the changes and victories that have become a wonderful testimony to God’s grace, mercy and love.  To fail to fulfill your prayer commitment is to leave a hole in the covering.  Satan dearly loves to move into those holes.

I believe one of the most overused phrases in existence today is, ”I will pray for you!”  I believe, if everyone, who at one time or another said they would pray for me, did indeed follow through and placed my needs on the refrigerator door, the bathroom mirror or the rear view mirror of their car, I could have been able to walk on water.  (Just joking of course!)

Soooo, dear friends, let me share a piece of advice I received years ago, when I confessed to a friend that I had a hard time remaining focused when I was praying.  He said, “Journal your prayers.  Not only will you remain focused but you will have a record of your prayers and can look back and see when they were fulfilled.  So, I have two recommendations to you this morning: one, if you are asking “Why Pray? I recommend you get John’s book, Why Pray; and, if you have a hard times staying focuses, try journaling your prayers for a season and see how God blesses.

Blessings,

Gramps