Passionately Seek God's Blessings

Jacob got alone with the Lord. He even wrestled with the angel of the Lord until he received a blessing. Our prayers are usually more fervent and more effective when we get alone with God. Spending time alone with God during the day is a desperate need for every Christian, including you and me.

Genesis 32:24–25 says, "Then Jacob was left alone, and a man [the angel of the Lord] wrestled with him until daybreak. When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob's thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him."

The man said, "Let me go, for the dawn is breaking." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." So he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." He said, "Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed" (24:26–28).

Then Jacob asked him and said, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And he blessed him there. So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, "I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved" (24:29–30).

Note that Jacob said to the angel, "I will not let you go unless you bless me" (32:26). This was not a simple prayer at the table for God to bless the food. This was a passionate plea for the blessing of Almighty God upon him.

Oh my, did God ever bless him! And God is still blessing His children today. Dear people, we must get alone with God. We must have a heavenly hunger for the blessing of Almighty God. We must make a passionate plea for it. Be a copycat; copy Jacob by praying his prayer. Fervently seek God's blessing.

Prayer: Father, teach us the importance of spending time alone with You. Fill us with a passionate desire to seek after Your blessings, not only for ourselves, but for others. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Quote for the Day: "When you pray, rather let your heart be without words than your words without heart." —John Bunyan

Pour Our Your Soul to the Lord

Hannah was "greatly distressed, prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly" in her desire to have a child (1 Samuel 1:10). This chapter is one of the most beautiful and moving accounts in the Bible. Hannah desperately wanted a child, but was unable to conceive.

Have doors been closed to you? Do you have a problem that's bugging you? In Hannah's case, "her rival [her husband's other wife, Peninnah] would provoke her bitterly to irritate her" (1:6). Peninnah was able to bear children, and she never let Hannah forget it.

Do you have an adversary, maybe the devil himself, provoking you? I know I do. What are you doing about it? Murmuring? Mumbling? Discouraged? Defeated? About to throw in the towel? Instead, why not do what Hannah did and PRAY? The Bible says, "Hannah was speaking in her heart, only her lips were moving, but her voice was not heard." The priest in the temple, Eli, thought she was drunk and reprimanded her (1:13).

Have you been misunderstood too? Have you been reprimanded unfairly? Don't get bitter; get better by praying like Hannah. She said to Eli, "No, my lord, I am a woman oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord" (1:13–15). God granted Hannah her request, and she bore a son named Samuel, meaning "asked of God," because she had asked the Lord for him. As she had promised, Hannah dedicated Samuel for a lifetime of serving God in the temple, and he became one of Israel's greatest judges. 

What problem are you dealing with today? Are you experiencing disappointment and bitterness of soul? When Hannah experienced deep pain, she poured out her soul before the Lord. Have you done that lately? Hannah did not pray an easy little prayer like "Now I lay me down to sleep." She prayed with tears, humility, and faith.   

O, dear people, get serious and PRAY. Pour out your soul before God. Remember that "The effective prayer of a righteous man [or woman] can accomplish much" (James 5:17).

Prayer: Father, bless those who are dealing with problems and pain today. May they pour out their souls to You like Hannah did. In Jesus' name, Amen. 

Quote for the Day: "Prayer requires more of the heart than of the tongue." —Adam Clarke

The Power of One Man's Prayers

Daniel 9 is one of the GREAT chapters of the Bible. There, we find this passionate prayer from Daniel:

"Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances… Open shame belongs to us, O Lord… because we have sinned against You" (9:4–5, 8)

He continued, "…all this calamity has come on us; yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Your truth. Therefore the Lord has kept the calamity in store and brought it on us; for the Lord our God is righteous with respect to all His deeds which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice" (9:13–14).

Daniel then pleaded, "O my God, incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Your name; for we are not presenting our supplications before You on account of any merits of our own, but on account of Your great compassion. O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and take action! For Your own sake, O my God, do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name" (9:18–19).

Did Daniel's fervent prayer burn within your heart as it did mine? O, dear people, did you feel it? Do you realize that the situation that he described is also a picture of our country and our people? Wouldn't Daniel's prayer be great for us to pray for ourselves, our country, and our world today?

Jesus prayed and wept for His city and His people. So did Daniel. Shouldn't we do the same? Let's get serious. Our nation and our world are in deep trouble, and we can do something about it. WE CAN PRAY, and prayer changes things. Prayer also changes us!

We need to fall on our knees in humility before the Lord, confessing our sin and asking for the right things with the right motives. Doesn't that make sense? Will you pray like Daniel today? 

Prayer: O Lord, our God, forgive us our sins. Our world has offended You. We are so sorry. We pray for our rulers, that they may be saved and for Your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Quote for the Day: "No one is a firmer believer in the power of prayer than the devil; not that he practices it, but he suffers from it." —Guy H. King

Open Their Eyes That They May See

The king of Aram wanted to overthrow the king of Israel. However, the prophet Elisha kept warning the king of Israel of the Aramean king's plans, allowing the Israelite king to avoid capture multiple times.

Furious, the king of Aram asked his servant how the king of Israel was foiling his plans. His servant replied, "Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom" (2 Kings 6:12). The king said, "Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him." And it was told him, saying, "Behold, he is in Dothan" (6:13).

So the king of Aram sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city. When Elisha's servant went outside, he saw the army, the horses and the chariots encircling the city. He said to Elisha, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?" Elisha answered, "Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them" (6:14–16).

Then Elisha prayed, "O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." And the Lord opened the servant's eyes and he saw the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha (6:17).

What a great moment! Dear people, you may teach a Sunday School class, lead a Bible study, counsel and exhort others, pastor, and preach to a host of people. These people come to you with many problems, troubled and perplexed. You must be equipped to know the Word of God and understand what God is doing. Those of us who teach and preach need to pray, "O Lord, open their eyes that they may see."

That, dear people, is one of the greatest needs in the church today. I'm over 80 years old, and I am appalled at people's lack of knowledge of the Bible and the lack of discernment that I see in our culture. We must ask God to open people's eyes to the spiritual battle that is going on all around us. 

Prayer: Father, open the eyes of those reading this so that they may know who You are and how You are working in their lives. Teach them to invest in those things that will bring blessing to them, glorify You, and allow them to lay up treasures for eternity. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Quote for the Day: "We have to pray with our eyes on God, not on the difficulties." —Oswald Chambers