Pastor John’s Blog

When bad news comes our way it is sometimes difficult to organize our thoughts enough to pray. It could be that bill that seems impossible to pay, or that medical report that gives a bleak diagnosis, or a menacing lawsuit. This is why it is good to know that God knows how to read. All that we need to do is lay the bill, the medical report, the court paper or whatever else before him. He knows what those documents contain. King Hezekiah knew this. Upon receiving a letter from King Sennacherib of Assyria stating the terms of surrender for Israel, Hezekiah “went up to the Lord’s Temple and spread it [the letter] out before the Lord.¹⁵ And Hezekiah prayed…” (2 Kings 19:14-15, NLT). Certain that God knew all of the details contained in that letter Hezekiah proceeded to tell God “Bend down, O Lord, and listen! Open your eyes, O Lord, and see! Listen to Sennacherib’s words of defiance against the living God” (2 Kings 19:16, NLT). No fancy prayer was needed. No mention of every detail was necessary, because he had spread the letter before the God that is able to read. You too can do this. Take that document that is troubling you and lay it before the Lord, and ask Him to help you. Then trust in Him and walk away knowing that God has read the letter and is handling it.

There are times when we feel so weighed down by burdens that it becomes difficult to articulate what we want to say to God. Such heaviness provides us an opportunity to pour our heart before the Lord. This type of prayer does not require eloquent speech, only tears, and the soul cleansing that it affords us is significant. Hannah did such a prayer when she went before the Lord to ask for a child because she was barren. 1 Samuel 1:10 tells us that “Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord” (NLT). The priest Eli, “Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound…thought she had been drinking” (1:13, NLT). But she could not form words because the sorrow was so great and the tears were so many. We get a sense of the depth of her anguish in her reply to Eli: “I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord…I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow” (1:15-16, NLT).

When Eli finally understood what was happening he gave her this blessing that contained a promise: “go in peace! May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him” (1:17, NLT). This was not just a desire that he was expressing but a promise of assurance, as if to say “God has heard you, so go in peace.” God heard this woman’s speechless prayer that was expressed only through thoughts and tears. This prayer had so cleansed her soul and the words of Eli given her so much comfort that she replies, “Oh, thank you, sir!’… Then she went back and began to eat again, and she was no longer sad” (1:18, NLT). So if your heart is heavy today go an empty it out before the Lord. No words needed, only tears. He will hear you!

One Benefit of Prayer

Most of us will pray to God when trouble comes, and rightly so because God tells us in Psalm 50:15, “Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you”…(NLT). But if we only pray when trouble comes we are missing an important benefit of prayer, and that is the spiritual strength that daily prayer brings. Psalm 138:3 says, “As soon as I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by giving me strength” (NLT). Think about it, the times that we have felt weak and dry on the inside were times when our prayer lives had no consistency. So if you have not already done so today, take a moment to pray to the Lord. And while you’re at it, ask Him to help you establish the daily discipline of prayer. You will always feel empowered once prayer is part of your daily routine.