Prayer (conclusion)

This muse will conclude, however, the experience will continue on.

You may think I have shared pieces of my life to give you some insight into who I am.  That couldn't be further from the truth.  I am a man of inconsequence, no different than most.  My purpose was to give some examples and allow you to think if it could be possible that normal everyday people can alter life through prayers to their powerful God.

Does God intervene in life as much as we think?  I know He is powerful, omniscient, omnipresent and so much more....do you think God allows life to happen as it will?  Again, God can make anything occur to accomplish anything He pleases, that is not my muse.  But more often than not does life continue on in our sinful world, as it may and God steps in to make the circumstances as good?  Sickness happens because sickness is part of peoples lives.  Car accidents happen because we fall asleep or lose concentration.  Does God not intervene as much as we would want?  Maybe He lets life happen now and redeems the situation later....solves the puzzle as it were.  The person who is susceptible to cancer, gets cancer and dies.....the normal course of life.  However, God salvages the disturbing event of a sin filled world, slaps Satan in the face and draws the victim's father to Himself.  The "Mistaken Identity" happens in Indiana and two families are devastated.  God uses the tragedy to build a ministry to glorify His name.  But.... can the prayers of Gods people, at times, alter this life of ours? 

I believe we can!  Do you remember back to my Christmas blog about Mary?  I'm no different than her...I'm all in.  I've given my life to Christ, this life no longer has anything to do with me, it's Gods deal.  What I do should concern His purpose.  How do I treat people?  How do I respect my Lord?  What do I fill my mind with?  What do I pursue...how do I pursue it?

In Zechariah 7 it says that "they made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words the Lord Almighty had sent by His Spirit....the Lord Almighty was very angry."  Now catch this.  "When I called, they did not listen, so when they called, I would not listen" says the Lord Almighty.  It sounds like life altering prayer may have some responsibility to it.  "I'll check in with God when I need something" doesn't seem to be what God had in mind.

What about Abraham?  In Genesis, God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because they had become such a self interested, despicable people.  It was all set, God held off and altered life because Abraham was trying to find enough good people so God would spare the cities.  Joshua prayed for God to stop the sun so God's people could destroy the wicked Amorites.  Life was altered because of a leader who was concerned about Gods concerns.

Our God doesn't really need us to rectify any situation or give Him any novel ideas but He cares for and loves us.  If something is very important to us and it won't interfere with His overall plans, He might just step in and alter life as it might have normally shaken out.  We live in a sinful world and He is in the process of defeating it, so it's not "my wish is His command" but, "my concerns and desires are His prerogative."  I don't have much to offer but I am His child and He will listen to me.  Don't cut God short!  He may alter life's normal course to fulfill the request of His child.

Prayer Journey (part 3)

It was early morning, not much past bedtime, when I awoke with an overwhelming concern tugging at me.  All I could think about was a friend from high school.  I hadn't spoken to or seen him since we graduated, maybe five or six years.  Why this concern?  We weren't that close, why would I be so worried about him?  I dropped to my knees and prayed for him for a good half hour.  There was nothing specific to pray for so I prayed, in general, for his safety, his family, his heart.  The middle of the night meandered into morning and I couldn't get my friend or the unusual events out of my mind.  I searched out a phone number and called him.  I told him I had prayed for him the night before and asked if everything was OK.  We exchanged exact times of me on my knees and he in a basement being soaked by a ruptured, frozen water pipe while holding an electric hair dryer.

What does it matter?  Why use two prayers?  My friend screamed for God's help.  Why would God wake me up in the middle of the night to pray for a friend?  God could have taken care of this situation without my prayer and no one would have been the wiser.  Who knows what God had in mind.

Maybe if I leave my heart open to the Lord he will allow the precipitation of prayers to trickle in giving me a chance to participate in the excitement of the workings of a most Holy God.