Thoughts for Life: #40 Prayer Shapes History

Alvin Vandergriend- "Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. (v. 4) The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel's hand. (v. 5) Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake." (Revelation 8:3-5) (Google image, People praying).

Do you get the picture here? The prayers of saints, accumulated throughout the ages on the altar of prayer, await the day when God acts on them. The day finally comes when they are brought out and answered. Hurled upon the earth, they bring about cataclysmic changes that mark the beginnings of the end of history.

Can you find yourself in the picture? You can if you have ever prayed for the coming of Christ, or if you have ever prayed that wrongs will someday be made right. Your prayers, with those of billions of other believers, will one day be answered when God brings an end to the world and establishes His glorious kingdom.

God's memory is perfect. He never forgets a prayer. Have you ever noticed that God sometimes answers prayers long after you have stopped praying them? God takes every prayer, prayed in the name of His Son, seriously — even those that were prayed centuries ago.

Today, according to statistician David Barret, there are approximately 170 million believers praying for the revival of the church and world evangelization. There are 10 million small groups praying weekly for spiritual awakening and for the completion of the Great Commission. God has heard every one of these prayers and will answer them all according to His promise and His purpose. What a day that will be!

The prayers of the saints shape history. History was shaped when Moses, from a hillside, lifted up his hands in intercession over a battlefield (Exodus 17:8-13). History was shaped when Elijah prayed "that it would not rain," and it did not rain for three and a half years in Israel (James 5:16). History was shaped when early Christians prayed until the wee hours of the morning and Peter miraculously escaped from prison. (Acts 12:1-17).

In a very sense the future of the world is in the hands of praying Christians. So is the future of your neighborhood and the future of your church, if you are a praying Christian. I hope and pray that your prayers will contribute to a glorious future for the kingdom of God right where you live — and to a still more glorious future in days to come.

(pp. 102, 103 in Love to Pray- 40 Day Devotional for Deepening Your Prayer Life by Alvin Vandergriend)

Let's pray-

Father, we dare to believe that the lives of loved ones we pray for are being shaped through our prayers! This is so, as we know that You hear us when we pray fervently for them with pure hearts and right motives.

We also know that our prayers for our churches have made a definite difference by our consistent praying. Our desire is for You to make changes for the good in every situation we offer up in prayer. May we be faithful to contribute to Your work that we are involved with.

We are thankful for Your plans for our country, as well as the affairs of the world. We know that you are ultimately in charge! Thank You for hearing our prayers and answering them according to Your will, and for the best time.

We ask for Your forgiveness, Father, when our prayers have been so weak as to contribute almost nothing to the shaping of history. May our prayers now be fervent to bring history to an end, when Jesus will "wipe away the tears from all faces . . . and remove the disgrace of His people from all the earth" (Isaiah 25:8).

We petition Your bringing peace and justice in the world, and to bring Christ Jesus back to rule and reign forever! We ask for this in His name. Amen.

641-645 one-line Scriptures for those of you who want to learn some more verses this week- or to review them from when they were first posted-

641- Pro. 28:25 "He that is of a proud heart stirreth up strife; but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be made fat."

642- Acts 4:20 "For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."

643- Eph. 1:2 "Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ."

644- John 20:21 "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you."

645- Job 12:13 "With him is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and understanding."

Quote for today-

- Dr. Wesley L. Duewel- "God's history may well reveal that Paul accomplished as much or more through his prayers as he did through his personal evangelism and preaching. His writings were born of prayer and were filled with prayer. Paul was just like you, except for his massive, unceasing prayer warfare. If ever any Christian fought and won prayer battles, it was Paul!" [p. 154 in TOUCH the WORLD through PRAYER]

Words of wisdom-

- We all have need for action-steps for restoring someone, and to walk slowly enough with them to know their need. We have a responsibility to help others find Jesus as their supply in whatever their need may be. Praying for them will be our biggest challenge, as we're apt to say the wrong thing, unless we take the time to pray for them first. Sometimes, it may be the only thing we're asked to do.

Today's Popular post-

#22 The Office of Intercessor

C. Peter Wagner tells us in his book, PRAYER SHIELD, "An office in a church goes beyond simply a gift.

My understanding of 'office' is a public recognition by the Body of Christ that a certain member has a particular spiritual gift and is released to use that gift in regular ministry."

Upcoming posts:

3/12th- #16 Your Indwelling Prayer Partner (Repost)

Dr. Wesley Duewel

19th- #18 The Holy Spirit Will Add Special Depth, Power (Repost)

Dr. Wesley L. Duewel

26th- Fruits of Prayer
Lee Forbes

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