Dr. Wesley L. Duewel: Desire has a tremendous motivating power in prevailing prayer.
The deeper your desire to see God's answers, the deeper your hunger to see God at work, and the more urgent your heart-cry to see Christ triumph, the more powerfully the Holy Spirit can pray through you.
Holy desire is a holy power that energizes prayer. It is a dynamic of the Spirit.
Fenelon wrote,
"He who desires not from the depths of his heart
makes a deceptive pray-er."
Heaven wants sincerity, not beautiful, polite words. Heaven wants depth of soul, not lukewarm mouthings.
After hearing many of our family prayers or even pulpit prayers, God's angels, who see our souls through and through, must feel like uttering Solomon's words in Ecclesiastes 1:2,
"Meaningless! Meaningless!... Utterly meaningless!"
We have said the same words so often that we can almost say them without thinking. There is nothing new because nothing is really desired.
Repetition is sweet in the ears of God when it is the heart-cry of the soul. Jesus repeated in the agony in Gethsemane, but repetition is lukewarm nothingness when it is unfelt words that are consciously or unconsciously intended as much for the ears of the people as for the ears of God.
Such words may be a sedative for our own soul. They do not register with God.
You may have to prevail before God for some time before you reach total, deep sincerity in your praying.
Fraser wrote,
"Real supplication is the child of heartfelt desire, and
cannot prevail without it; a desire not of earth nor
issuing from our sinful hearts, but wrought into us by
God himself. Oh, for such desires!"
Urging the necessity of welcoming spiritual desire and turning it into prayer, he adds,
"An earnest desire in spiritual things is a bell ringing
for prayer. Not that we should wait for such desires.
We should pray at all seasons, whether we are
prayer hungry of not. If we have a healthy prayer
appetite, so much the better."
There is a sense in which your deep, holy desire is in itself prayer.
"You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted...you
listen to their cry" (Ps. 10:17).
Although your heart repeatedly cries out to God with deep desire, you will not be able to voice that desire constantly.
But even when the prayer is not on your lips, the desire with which your whole being cries out to God burns as a continuing flame of prayer in God's sight.
Such was the unceasing prayer of Paul's heart, as he wrote,
'I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my
conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit—I have
great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.
For I could wish that I myself were cursed and
cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers,
those of my own race, the people of Israel" (Rom. 9:1-4).
Where did Paul get such constant deep desire that burned as a flame on the altar of his soul? He saturated his soul in the truth of the Old Testament.
He saw Isaiah describe God as standing all day long with His hands outstretched to the people in longing (Is. 65:2). He heard him plead through Ezekiel,
"Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O
house of Israel?" (Ezek. 33:11).
He heard God plead through Hosea,
"How can I give you up?...my compassion is aroused"
(Hos. 11:8).
Paul heard God in these Scriptures, and his heart-cry became one with God's.
(Google image and my emphasis added)
Used by permission of the author and Duewel Literature Trust, Inc., Greenwood, Indiana
#39 The Dynamics of Desire
by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
(pp. 60-62) Zondervan
Father, please arouse our determination to speak
meaningful/heart-felt words when praying.
as our deepest desires to You, and to
allow You to move on our hearts.
May we realize that You must effect our
praying with Your Holy Spirit
before there will be any changes.
Help us understand that just repeating
the same prayers over and over
as sedatives for our souls, will not register
with You, and will not amount to anything.
Open us up to what Your Spirit is
leading us to pray for.
I ask this in the Name of Jesus.
Amen.
Today’s Bible verses-
(Joshua 1:9) "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and be of good courage: be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest."
(Rom. 2:4) "Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?"
Today’s quotes-
"Hope continually. There is never a time to stop hoping when our hope is founded on God. Hope is stronger than wishing and more active than longing. It is desiring deeply with an earnest expectation of fulfillment. "But as for me, I will hope continually, and will praise Thee yet more and more" (Ps. 71:14). [Taken from Herald of His Coming Newspaper, Vol. 75 No. 4 (892), p. 4, used by permission.]
"The battle of prayer is against two things in the earthlies: wandering thoughts and lack of intimacy with God's character as revealed in HIS word. Neither can be cured at once, but they can be cured by discipline." Oswald Chambers
Our thought today-
God gives us so much more than we ask for! {I've found this to be very true! He has supplied all my needs through the years, even when I've had unspoken thoughts of a question concerning provision}.
Our question today-
Do you understand that God's goodness is to draw you to Himself, that you may know Him? (see Rom. 2:4 quoted above)
Upcoming posts-
#40 Recognition of the Need of Prevailing Prayer
5th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
Just So
7th- Saturday's post by Debbie McEwen
The Power of the Word of God: Part 4 (last one)
8th- Sunday evening's post by R. A. Torrey
#41 How to Deepen Your Desire
10th- Tuesday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
A popular post-
Bear One Another's Burdens Author unknown
This uncertain road that lies ahead
Our faithful God has always gone
before us
And He will lead the Way once again..."
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