Saturday, May 26, 2012

Weekend Worship—Righteous Prayers


The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit. James 5:16b-18 NASB

I fought so many fears while our son was deployed to the Middle East. Probably the greatest was that somehow my prayers wouldn’t be enough to keep him safe. I remember one night in particular. I awoke from an unknown dream, screaming in my mind. I was drenched with sweat and had tears running down my cheeks. I couldn’t remember the dream—only the terror, that horrible feeling of helplessness. I looked over and saw 2:52am blinking on the clock. I could hear my husband’s soft snores and they reassured me I hadn’t disturbed him. Too often he lost sleep because of my fears.

I knew sleep wouldn’t return anytime soon, so I grabbed my Bible and once again headed downstairs. I settled into my chair in the den and began to thumb through the pages, searching for comfort. I tried to focus enough to pray for my son, but my prayers seemed common, not good enough to inspire God to go great lengths to keep him safe.

In my page turning, I found myself reading these verses in James. As I read I felt even worse. Did I have to be Elijah to pray effectively? I would never consider myself in the same category of righteousness as him. Even more discouraged I thought about these verses. As I did, God brought something to mind that I’d never considered. I remembered that early on in Israel’s history God had warned them that if they didn’t obey Him, He’d withhold blessings, specifically the blessing of rain. I felt hope begin to blossom. I immediately turned to Deuteronomy 11 and there it was—God’s warning that He would shut up the heavens if they turned from Him.

My heart leapt. Righteous prayer wasn’t based on my goodness, but on God’s! Elijah’s prayer was effective because he knew God and he just prayed God’s own words back to Him. God would always be true to His word. I felt a floodgate of possibilities open up. I could pray scripture over my son and know that God would hear and answer.

8 comments:

  1. Edie, I needed this this morning. Though it was about your fear of when your son was deployed, I applied it to my own life. I can pray Scripture over my situation as well. You helped me see that what I'm going through right now isn't impossible to overcome. It just feels that way at times. Thank you for this reminder. Love you precious friend!

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  2. Beautiful, beautiful reminder. I praise God my righteousness isn't dependent on my goodness, but on His grace!

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  3. Great lesson for today, thank you for sharing.

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  4. Thank you so much, Edie, for the beautiful reminder.

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  5. Thank you for reminding me that God answers prayers based on His goodness and not mine.

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  6. Lovely, and yes I needed this today as well. I cannot imagine what it feels like to have a son off like that, but I could relate to leaning on our Lord...my daughter, son in law and 3 year old grandson will be leaving at the end of July for two years as missionaries...I am learning the act of letting go and letting God!

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  7. I often feel my prayers are inadequate and fear they will not keep those I love safe...or help deliver them from severe trials. What pressure this puts on us until we realize, as you said, that God is faithful. It is His goodness, not ours.

    Romans 8:26 gives me great comfort. "Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words."

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  8. A beautiful post, Edie. I have no idea how parents of soldiers manage to keep breathing while they're away. I'm thankful I haven't been called to be in that club. But I've had other trials with my kids here on our home soil, and prayers seem so hollow at times. Until you realize Who you're praying to. His great power and huge heart change situations beyond our wildest imagination.

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