THROUGH THE BIBLE IN THREE YEARS
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A three-year-old was experiencing "big church" for the first time. At one point in the service everyone knelt down. Quickly she asked her mother, "What are they doing?"
Her mother said, "Why, their going to pray."
"But, Mom. They don't even have their pajamas on yet!"
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Gen 32:7-12
7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;
8 And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.
9 And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.
11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
KJV
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Every moment is a right moment for prayer. There is no moment that is wrong for prayer.
If we aren't praying for God's help, then we should be praying to thank Him for the help He's already given!
Essau was coming to meet Jacob with FOUR HUNDRED MEN! Jacob did the physically feasible thing by dividing his great company of people.
Then Jacob did the spiritually right thing and went to God in prayer. He might have been afraid, but he didn't run. He KNEW that God had put him on this "track," and he was going to run it! This was A PRAYERFUL COMMITMENT!
Note the humility in his prayer. He attributed all he had to God's provision.
Do you realize that ALL you have is because of God's gracious provision?
Second, Jacob prayed for deliverance, and stated his firm intention to rely totally upon God's Word.
When you pray for God's help, are you promising Him that you will apply yourself to His direction?
Now friends, this is an important lesson! As a pastor, I can testify that I cannot depend upon my abilities. Neither should I be afraid of some people's attitudes. I must simply trust that God has called, empowered, enabled, and then pay attention to FOLLOWING His plan!
When we depend upon what WE can do, we only get what MANKIND can do!
Let us depend upon Him Who makes us alive from our deadness in sins.
Let us depend upon Him Who inspires us when we are "down" from circumstances.
Let us depend upon Him Who will revive us when we are dull in our Christian walk.
Then we'll get what GOD can do!!
Love ya,
Bruce