Prayer

Friday March 27, 2026

Prayer.  The psalms teach us to pray, but we must set aside time to fervently pray.  God is awakening my spirit to the importance of prayer.  Listen to this prayer of David.  Remember David was a man after God’s own heart.  David prays, “Listen, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.  Protect my life, for I am faithful.  You are my God; save your servant who trusts in You.  Be gracious to me, Lord, for I call to You all day long.  Bring joy to your servant’s life, because I appeal to you, Lord” (Psalm 87:1-4).  David next goes on to describe qualities he knows about God which is why David can be bold in his prayer to God.  Did you notice what David asks? He asks God to be gracious to him, for he has called to God all day long.  When is the last time, or have we ever, spent all day long crying out to God?  In David’s petition to God, he humbles himself by confessing he is just a poor and needy person.  I don’t believe David was saying he was poor, meaning he was without money.  It is possible, however, as there were times when David was fleeing from Saul that his means of support was limited, viewing from an earthly perspective.  But, David was humbling himself before the Lord.  One of the things we learn from the earthly ministry of Jesus was that He had compassion (pity) upon the lowest of the low.  When we are so low, and it feels like we can go no lower, we can call out to God in humility, but in confidence, knowing that He shows compassion to the lowly.  I just finished a book entitled “Power Through Prayer” by E. M. Bounds.  This book was really written by a pastor for a pastor, but I would recommend it to anyone.  If you are a member of our church and reading this, this book is currently in our church library.  The entire book emphasizes the importance of prayer and there have been many good takeaways for me.  I’ll share two to close out this post.  The writer states, “The age may be a better age than the past, but there is an infinite distance between the betterment of an age by the force of an advancing civilization and its betterment by the increase of holiness and Christlikeness by the energy of prayer” (p.48).  “Prayer seems outdated, almost forgotten – an art lost in the hustle and bustle of modern life.  The greatest gift our age could receive is someone who can lead preachers and the church back to the practice of fervent, dedicated prayer” (p.84).  Sounds like quotes fashioned for today, right?  The author, E. M. Bounds, lived from 1835 to 1913.