Friday, April 1, 2022
"Now while I was speaking and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering" Daniel 9:20-21
This amazing thing called prayer. It is the pathway to comfort, direction, motivation, intimacy, and earth-shaking power. It's an open invitation from our Creator Father to experience Him and His incredible realm. Volumes of books have been written on this subject, and many more could be added.
The book of Daniel is, among other things, the chronicle of a man of prayer. Nothing is more dramatic than this answer to prayer by an angelic being. And, thanks to Daniel's prayer and the angelic response, a prophetic answer in the form of a Seventy-Week timeline gives us understanding of God's plan for the ages.
What are the possibilities of prayer for us? Perhaps not the dispatching of an angelic messenger (although it could be). Through prayer we have the privilege of getting to know our heavenly Father better, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus. In their presence we find peace amidst life's storms, and guidance when the way is unclear. We find clarity and purpose when despair pervades.
While prayer produces joy, it takes work and involves persistence. It must become a daily discipline, but this is no guarantee that we will feel ushered into the presence of the Almighty. Sometimes it seems as though nothing has happened, when in reality there is much more at work than what we feel. Revelation 5:8 speaks of "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." Whether we sense it or not, our prayers ascend as a fragrant offering to our Father.
Prayer is the ultimate adventure in that the possibilities are limitless. But it's not ultimately about receiving from God what we request; it's about the adventure of better knowing God and Jesus our Lord.
May today be an important step in the adventure of prayer.
Pastor Steve
"Now while I was speaking and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering" Daniel 9:20-21
This amazing thing called prayer. It is the pathway to comfort, direction, motivation, intimacy, and earth-shaking power. It's an open invitation from our Creator Father to experience Him and His incredible realm. Volumes of books have been written on this subject, and many more could be added.
The book of Daniel is, among other things, the chronicle of a man of prayer. Nothing is more dramatic than this answer to prayer by an angelic being. And, thanks to Daniel's prayer and the angelic response, a prophetic answer in the form of a Seventy-Week timeline gives us understanding of God's plan for the ages.
What are the possibilities of prayer for us? Perhaps not the dispatching of an angelic messenger (although it could be). Through prayer we have the privilege of getting to know our heavenly Father better, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus. In their presence we find peace amidst life's storms, and guidance when the way is unclear. We find clarity and purpose when despair pervades.
While prayer produces joy, it takes work and involves persistence. It must become a daily discipline, but this is no guarantee that we will feel ushered into the presence of the Almighty. Sometimes it seems as though nothing has happened, when in reality there is much more at work than what we feel. Revelation 5:8 speaks of "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." Whether we sense it or not, our prayers ascend as a fragrant offering to our Father.
Prayer is the ultimate adventure in that the possibilities are limitless. But it's not ultimately about receiving from God what we request; it's about the adventure of better knowing God and Jesus our Lord.
May today be an important step in the adventure of prayer.
Pastor Steve