Action and Passion in Prayer
It fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. So it was, that as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat bread. — 2 Kings 4:8
When they could not come near to him for the crowd, they removed the roof where he was. When they had broken it up, they let down the mat that the paralytic was lying on. — Mark 2:4
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: Our prayers should be accompanied by bold actions that express faith in what we ask for. They also need passion and commitment, not indifference or mere formality. When Bartimaeus learned that Jesus was passing nearby, he cried out for mercy and kept shouting despite those who tried to silence him. His persistence led Jesus to stop and ask what he wanted. Though his need seemed obvious, he stated his request clearly: to regain his sight. In the same way, we should bring what we long for before the Lord with a persevering heart and specific words. Bartimaeus regained his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
Frequently, our prayers must be accompanied by bold actions that reinforce and support them. God expects us to pray and then to set out to do what we have prayed for as though it were already a reality. James says that faith without works is dead.
Moreover, our prayers should be expressed in a way that shows passion and commitment to what we are asking for. God does not answer indifferent, merely formal prayers. Passionate and bold prayers, on the other hand, move him.
In the case of blind Bartimaeus, in Mark 10:46–52, we see those three elements of passion, action, and petition clearly illustrated. When Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is passing nearby, he instinctively knows he will have only one opportunity to receive the miracle he so desperately needs. All the pain he has accumulated over decades of blindness and poverty pours out in a cry of passionate appeal to the Lord: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” At that moment, Bartimaeus does not care about the people’s rebukes or criticism. He does not care that he is making a fool of himself by shouting like a madman at a Jesus who, at first, does not seem to pay him any attention. He is guided only by his passion, his burning desire to escape his sad condition as a beggar and a blind man. This drives him to desperate action: to break every rule of etiquette and decency, to shout until he is heard, and to impose himself on Jesus’ agenda despite the rebukes of the disciples, who kept telling him to be quiet.
When the Lord stops and sends for him, moved by Bartimaeus’s persistent and daring action, he asks him an intriguing question: “What do you want me to do for you?” Why does he ask him that unnecessary question? It is obvious that what Bartimaeus needs is to regain his sight! God likes to hear our requests spoken aloud, stated clearly and specifically, born of a heart that has nurtured and refined them over time, concentrating and distilling them through repetition and careful tending until they become a smooth little stone, super-concentrated and ultra-dense. When we present to the Lord this humble but powerful product of our tears and sleepless nights, it instantly elicits a positive response from heaven. Bartimaeus answers the Lord without hesitation: “Master, let me see again.” Five words. But more than enough to bring about the longed-for response from Jesus: “Go, your faith has saved you.” Scripture says that “Immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus along the road.”