Job 28:7-8 says, “There is a path
which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture's eye hath
not seen: The lion's whelps have not trodden it, nor the
fierce lion passed by it.”
Yes, there is a path which the fowls of this life
do not know about, and which the eye of the vulture has
not seen.
When vultures go for a kill, they first go for
the eyes of their victim because they know that if they
can get the eyes, they've got whatever it is they are
trying to take.
And many times the vultures of this world try to
rob us of our vision.
The lion's whelps—those young temptations
that we have never even seen—have not trodden it,
nor the fierce lion—that same old temptation that
year after year comes against us—has not passed by
it.
There is such a path and that path is prayer.
Prayer is the path upon which you can walk and
the enemy cannot even reach you.
The Bible tells us in I John 5:18, “We know
that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that
is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one
toucheth him not.”
It is the path we can walk—a path we can climb
as an eagle into the heights of the supernatu-ral and
deep things of God.
Yes, that path many times will bring us to a place
where God will begin to change us.
God will begin to shape our life and turn it upside
down if necessary to draw us closer to Him and to teach
us the things that He would have for us to know.
The Bible tells us in Romans 8:26-28,
Likewise
the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities; for we know not
what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself
maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot
be uttered. And
he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind
of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the
saints according to the will of God.
And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to his purpose.
The Spirit knows exactly what we need at all times,
even when it seems our world is being all torn apart
Verses 16-18 say,
Confess
your faults one to another, and pray for one another,
that ye may be healed.
The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man
availeth much. Elijah
was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed
earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on
the earth by the space of three years and six months.
And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and
the earth brought forth her fruit.
Yes indeed, it is the effectual, fervent prayer
of a righteous man that availeth much.
We need to understand the principles of the Spirit
that the Word points out to us.
I Kings 17:1 says,
And Elijah
the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said
unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom
I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years,
but according to my word.
You may think that he came out of nowhere, standing
with nothing but a leather girdle around him, with scraggly
hair, smelling of the wilderness, pointing his finger
in the face of this king and saying, “Repent.”
You may think that he just came out of thin air,
but rather the reference in James tells us that this word
of prophecy came with first much prayer—effectual,
fervent, earnest prayer.
Throughout the Word of God the power of prayer
was demonstrated through the lives of such men of God
as Moses, Abraham, Elijah, Daniel, and so on.
Samuel Chadwick once said,
The one
concern of the Devil is to keep believers from praying.
He fears nothing from prayerless saints, prayerless
work, and prayerless religion.
He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but
trembles when we pray.
This world will only be shaken by a people that
will get a hold of God and pray.
The hope of this world is not a greater method,
not a greater program, but rather a greater people ignited
by the Spirit through prayer.
The prayer of Moses in Exodus 32 contains a mysterious
dash and semicolon in verse 32.
This may signify a long burdened prayer that Moses
poured out unto God.
But following the dash and semicolon, the prayer
shows the true, selfless burden that Moses felt for the
children of Israel.
It says, “Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their
sin—; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy
book which though hast written.”
This prayer stayed the wrath of God.
Elijah
prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and God honored
the prophet's word when it was spoken unto King Ahab because
the battle had already been won in prayer. The time to fight, the time to pray, is not when you're facing
the impossibility.
That's the time to pray the prayer of faith—to
speak the word. The battle is fought in prayer.
All wars won in the natural are first won in the
supernatu-ral.
Each time God desires to lift us to a new dimension
in the Spirit, that dimension must be preceded by prayer.
To share in the secrets of the Lord we must first
abide with Him in prayer.
Not just a little while, but much time.
E.M. Bounds said, “God's acquaintance is not
made known hurriedly.
He does not bestow His gifts on the casual or hasty
comer and goer.”
To be alone much with God is a secret of knowing
Him and being of influence with Him.
We must pray!
“The secret of the Lord is with them that
fear him; and he will shew them his covenant” (Psalm
25:14). Messages
are not born in the study, but rather on our knees in
prayer. Burdens
are wrought on our knees in prayer.
Sins are remitted on our knees in prayer.
Evil imaginations are captured on our knees in
prayer. Doubt
and fear are expelled on our knees in prayer.
Strongholds are broken on our knees in prayer.
Families
are made stronger on our knees in prayer.
Churches grow stronger on our knees in prayer.
We become a stronger nation on our knees in prayer.
Our most
influential position in God's kingdom is on our knees
in prayer!
"I
waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard
my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and the
mire; He
set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.
He put a new
song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will
see and fear
and put their trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who
makes the
Lord his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those
who turn
aside to false gods. Many, O Lord my God are the wonders
You have
done. The things You planned for us no one can recount to
you; were I
to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare...
I
desire to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my
heart.
- Psalm 40: 1-5, 8
I WAITED...
When you "Wait" upon God, just what does that
mean? Are just sitting
under a tree by a brook, passing the time lazily twiddling
your
thumbs? Hmmmm...Somehow, I don't think thats quite what
the good Lord
had in mind! Waiting is an active word in this verse, it
means to
stand firm, to have faith, to continue on believing what
Gods Word
has to say about your circumstance, and mostly NOT to go
trying to do
it on our own! When we are obedient to God, and we wait,
and do not
become distracted, plus when we begin to exercise our faith
and place
our trust in God allows Him to move on our behalf! And Then
He comes,
the helping hand lifts you out of the sin infested muck
and mire of
this world. He places your feet firmly upon "The Rock
of our
Salvation" Jesus Christ. His Holy Word becomes firmly
planted in your
heart. You are overjoyed with His goodness! You are saturated
with
His unfailing love! You are filled with gratitude because
you have
undeservingly received His gift of grace! And now you can
see
clearly, the eyes of your understanding are now open, and
satan has
no grasp on your life or your heart any longer. You no longer
desire
the things of the world, the old things have passed away,
and all has
been made new in the light of the Savior Jesus Christ. And
nothing
but praise, and wonder flows from your lips. You cannot
stop telling
others all that God has done! Worship and praise to a Holy,
Living
God from the heart of one who has been redeemed!
Lord, today fan the flame, feed the fire, rekindle the spark
of our
first love...You Lord. Help us God to remember just where
we once
were, and how far you have brought us, how much you have
changed us
with Your love. May we never take for granted just how very
blessed
we are!
