Instead of Crying, Pray!
I prayed to the Lord, and said, Oh Lord, don't destroy your people and your inheritance, that you have redeemed through your greatness, that you have brought forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand. — Deuteronomy 9:26
In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. — Philippians 4:6
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: Life’s battles are faced with persistent prayer: faith must be expressed in specific, repeated requests made with passion and conviction. Instead of giving in to anguish, let us bring our needs to God. But we should not pray only to get through crises. Prayer should accompany our plans, efforts, and daily activities, before and after we carry them out. Let us also pray when all is well and there is peace, without waiting for an attack to come. In this way, we strengthen our spiritual lives beforehand and prepare for times of drought and want.
The battles of life must be fought through persistent prayer. Faith is of no use if it does not express itself in specific, persistent requests. The great reformer Martin Luther prayed: “Dear Lord, although I am sure of my position, I cannot hold it without You. Help me, or I am lost.”
Effective prayer requires that kind of passion and conviction. C. H. Spurgeon, the great nineteenth-century English preacher, wrote: “Prayer pulls the rope down here on earth, and the great bell rings above in the ear of God. Some barely move the bell, so feeble are their prayers; others give the rope only an occasional tug. But the man who communicates with heaven is the one who grasps the rope boldly and pulls it continually with all his strength.”
The Apostle Paul advises, “Be anxious for nothing, but let your requests be made known in every prayer and supplication” (Phil 4:6). In other words, instead of crying, pray; instead of letting your knees shake, bend them. If they’re bent, they won’t be able to shake!
We have already noted that prayer, like faith, is not just for getting us out of trouble and crises. Prayer should bathe and saturate everything we do. It is the banner that goes before us, leading all our efforts. It should come before and after all our visions and projects. It is the element that should underpin and punctuate every event and activity of our day. Martin Luther declared: “I have so much to do that I must spend the first three hours of each day in prayer.”
I firmly believe in preventive prayer. Don’t wait until the devil is at your door, ready to destroy you, before you begin to pray. Pray continually to keep him at bay, to shield your life against his attacks before they come. The best time to pray is when all is well, when there are no clouds in the sky and your heart is calm and at peace. In those times of quiet and even prosperity, like Joseph in Egypt, store up prayers in heaven for the day when drought and scarcity come. Fill yourself with such vitality and power; cover every window and door of your life so that the Enemy, when he launches his attack and tries to hurl his fiery darts into your dwelling, finds your house fortified and protected by the walls of Heaven, raised brick by brick through your persistent prayer.