Prayer Journal
Tuesday, May 13, 2003
"He will respond to the prayer for the destitute; he will not depise their plea." Psalm 102:17
In the context of Psalm 102, we find an afflicted man pouring out his heart before the Lord begging God to restore Jerusalem. (Vs 13-16) Then in verse 17 we have this wonderful promise: God listens to the prayer of those who cry out to him in desperation.
We should have great hope from that verse, but I wonder how many times in my life I have truly prayed like that, e.g., praying from a position of utter desperation where God can sense me begging for mercy. God's Word says God is touched by that kind of praying, but truthfully I doubt that many of us do it very often. Desperation comes when we feel vulnerable and helpless.
Are you desperate enough to cry out to God? Why not? Could it be that you feel no real urgency for God to move in your life right now? Do you feel that God has met all your basic needs and therefore you feel content the way things are. Or, is it due to the fact you really don't believe prayer changes anything. You believe it's a matter of fate, destiny or coincidence. The simple fact is you've convinced yourself that God either can't control your circumstances or worse yet, doesn't even care. David disagrees. Listen to the areas of his life for which he prays:
That God would make himself known in times of trouble (Vs.2); in feeble physical condition; when you can't eat or when you are grieving (Vs. 3-5); when friends turn on you (Vs. 7) or enemies look for ways to trip you up (Vs. 8); when you feel lost and forgotten (Vs. 9-10) or when you're dying, watching you body waste away before your eyes.
If you can relate to any of those things, you have a choice. You can either let circumstances play themselves out and ignore God or turn to him and cry out for mercy. Should you cry out to him, Scripture says God will respond. It's true whether you believe it or not. The real question is not does God care, but rather, do we care.
Why don't we be honest for once and stop blaming God for our failure to stop and ask for help?
Just Thinkin'... WebServant
Scripture comes
from the Holy Bible, New International Version; (c)1978 by New
York International Bible Society
Copyright © 1998-2003
James R. Green and Prayertower Ministries - All Rights Reserved
Last Revised on May 13, 2003 9:44 AM
I'll pray today for...
* My spouse
* My children
* Their friends
* My friends
* My employer
* My city
* My country
* Civic leaders
* Schools
* Teachers
* The sick
* The lost
* Those in despair
* The hospitalized
* The grieving
* Widows
* Orphans
* My church
* My pastor
* Church leaders
* Other churches
* Persecuted church
* Missionaries
* Myself
