“Now it Came to Pass…”

“…as He was praying…His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray’…” (Luke 11:1).

Last evening, shortly after dinner, Jeannie sat down in her favorite recliner to relax from the day’s events. I, too, was comfortable on the recliner sofa, looking forward for a few quiet minutes before heading off to bed. Within minutes, her cell phone rang! A rather urgent call from an individual who was requesting advice, and especially prayer for a situation within their family. Literally, a mere few minutes later my phone rang. The caller requesting advice, suggestions, direction, for his granddaughter who had reversed direction, and taken up drugs again. She was aligning herself with ‘druggies’ and was headed again hanging out with wrongful influence.
“Please pray!”

Later, as Jeannie and I prayed, and conferred about our calls, we acknowledged that after separately praying with the ‘callers,’ we then encouraged them that since neither of the situations allowed for personal intervention from them or us, the way we encouraged both callers was to pray in the Spirit. There are many issues of life that for any of us, words of the English language on how a situation can be brought to a conclusion are simply limited. Paul taught with words in Romans 8:26 and following; “The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groaning’s that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

In Ephesians 6:18 Paul was giving additional instructions on prayer when he wrote, “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.” Then he was not bashful to request in verse 19, “And pray for me, too! Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.”

Consider these thoughts, when called on to pray for one in need, or, time in your own personal prayer ‘closet.’ There has been a number of writings about an acronym for the word pray, however, here is one more to consider. Think of this acronym for the word P-R-A-Y. 1) P…Praise the Lord! Before you begin offering a list of items up to the Lord, spend a few minutes praising Him for His goodness, His mercy, and His love. David said in Psalm 100:4, “To enter His gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise…” 2) R…Repent of yours sins! It’s correct and scriptural that the blood of Jesus then covered all your sins. 3) A…Ask for God to meet the needs of others who you know before beginning to ask for yourself! Hebrews 4:16, “Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” 4) Y…Yield to God’s will. If you don’t know what God’s will is over any situation you’re facing today, go back to Paul’s words in Ephesians 6, and “Pray in the Spirit!”

All the while, I can assure you, your prayer life will be lovingly convicted, corrected, enhanced and help you head in the direction to see your prayers answered by our gracious Heavenly Father Who is “The Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3)