Psalm 66:20 Blessed be God, Who has not rejected my prayer nor removed His mercy and loving-kindness from being [as it always is] with me.
Do we really realize how much of an opportunity and blessing that prayer is? I don't think so, at least not always. Just think of it, all across the world today there are people praying to gods who don't have ears to hear, don't have mouths to answer, and don't have hands to help. Idols and false gods who have no ability to actually respond to the prayers that are given to them. If this were the case with us, then it wouldn't be that big a deal to be nonchalant about praying, or seeking a closer relationship with a piece of stone or wood, or a person who is dead and buried. On the contrary, our God is alive! Yes, He did die, and He was buried, but He rose from the grave and as our scripture tells us today, He is always showing goodness, kindness and mercy toward us His people! That's why it's a blessing to pray. To your flesh, it might seem like work at the time, but it has benefits that far outweigh any efforts or distractions that you must overcome to build consistency. I really believe that the key to us having consistency in our prayer life is for us to change the way that we think about prayer altogether. It isn't a job or a chore, it's an enormous privilege and benefit that the Creator of all things always has an open door policy for us. God help us to fall in love with praying to the One who hears, answers and responds. Amen
This verse reminds me of an abusive parent. To an abusive parent when a child has done something wrong punishing them with rejection and removal of mercy and lovingkindness occurs.I know how this feels and the negative behaviours that develops. My coping skills became seeds of death and destruction! An evil stronghold was established with a root of bitterness that controled my every thought and action. I trusted no one not even myself. The empty void within got bigger and bigger until
ReplyDeleteI got to the place where the pain became greater than the fear of change. Surrendering to Jesus was never so easy at this point. By faith I knew that God was good and He would never reject me, seeing how He gave His one and only son to die for me when I was His enemy. His mercy and lovingkindness became my new coping skills. The evil stronghold was destroyed and the root of bitterness removed. And He is still the same today as He was yesterday!
We serve such a righteous and holy God that no one can stand before Him in His presence, ( Ask Isaiah and The Apostle John) yet He graciously INVITES us to come boldly before His throne of grace. Wow!! Whenever we pray, do you know what God does....... He listens.....every time!!!
ReplyDelete