THE SOUND OF PRAYING

Proverbs 15:29 The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.

It’s two o’clock in the morning and I am sleeping deeply but when God wants to speak, a little bit of sleep isn’t going to stop Him.  Now, I am wide awake with these words rolling over and over in my mind, “I HEAR THE SOUND OF PRAYING.”

The rest of my night was filled with Biblical examples of when prayer was made and the results…God answered because GOD HEARS THE SOUND OF PRAYING.

In the Old Testament we read about the Children of Israel’s cry for deliverance, God heard their cry and led them out of bondage. Hannah prayed so desperately for a child that the Priest thought she was drunk, but God heard her plea and Samuel was born. Job prayed and had his health, children and wealth restored. Elijah prayed, God heard and sent fire to consume the sacrifice. Hezekiah’s prayers extended his life for 15 years.  And who can forget Daniel.  His dedication to prayer three times every day, even defying government orders, saved him from the mouth of lions and gave him insight and revelation from God.  Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Jonah, David, Moses and the list goes on and on.

THE EARLY CHURCH WAS BUILT ON PRAYER.

Acts 1:14 These all continued with one accord in PRAYER and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus and with His brothers.

Before His ascension, Jesus gathered His followers together and told them to “Wait for the Promise.”  120 gathered together in an upper room and I can assure you they were not discussing, debating, taking selfies or sharing Facebook gossip…no, Acts 1 tells us they were PRAYING.  And as they prayed, THE SOUND OF PRAYING collided with THE SOUND FROM HEAVEN and they were all FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Acts 2:2 AND SUDDENLY there came a sound from Heaven, as of a mighty rushing wind, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

Paul and Silas were in Philippi, preaching Jesus, baptizing people and casting out spirits.  Not everyone appreciated the demonstration of the Power of God, so Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown in jail; their feet securely fastened in stocks.  Instead of pleading their case before God, asking, “what did we do to deserve this?” or “We were just trying to obey God, where is He now?” The Bible tells us they began to PRAY and SING HYMNS to God.  Well God heard THE SOUND OF PRAYING and…

Acts 16:26 SUDDENLY there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.

Acts 10 tells the story of Cornelius, a Gentile.  He feared God, gave alms generously, and PRAYED to God always.  One day God heard THE SOUND OF PRAYING and sent an angel to Cornelius, who informed him that his “PRAYERS HAD COME UP FOR A MEMORIAL BEFORE THE LORD.”  At the same time, God sent a vision to Peter to go to Cornelius’ house with a message of Salvation.

 

Acts 10:44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.

Not only was Cornelius and his house filled with the Holy Ghost but the message of Salvation was now available to all Gentiles, all because God heard THE SOUND OF PRAYING from one man.

GOD’S CHURCH IS STILL BUILT ON PRAYER!

Matthew 21:13 And He said to them, Is it not written, My house shall be called a House of Prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.”

Men and women of old and the early Church understood the Principle of Prayer; God has not changed. There will be no revival without Prayer.  There will be no deliverance without Prayer.  We cannot reach our world with the Gospel without Prayer. God still responds to THE SOUND OF PRAYING! 

In Matthew, Jesus declares, “My house shall be called a House of Prayer.”  NOT a Concert Hall, NOT a Friendship Club, Not a Event Venue of Entertainment, Not a Donut Shop and Coffee Bar, NOT even a House of Preaching, because God hears and responds to THE SOUND OF PRAYING!

As a mom, I hated the sound of whining and I learned to tune it out quite well.  But you let me hear a fervent and sincere cry of “MOM, I NEED YOU!” It could be in the middle of the night, from the backyard or in a crowded mall, everything stopped because my child needed me and I heard the cry.

So it is with our Heavenly Father.  Whatever you lack, whatever your need, PRAY because God hears THE SOUND OF PRAYING!

THE DAY GOD ALMOST HIT CTRL-ALT-DELETE

Ahh, technology…a wonderful tool when it works but the most frustrating piece of equipment on earth when there is a glitch.  If you have used a computer more than an hour or two, you know what I’m saying. Sometimes it just seems to have a “mind” of its own and no matter how skilled the user, programmer or even the creator of the device may be, it will not cooperate…so there are 3 little buttons, that when pushed at the same time take you back to the beginning; CTRL-ALT-DELETE.

God had skillfully created the earth and all its inhabitants.  Everything worked in harmony and the Creation was a delight to God…until one day, there was a glitch in the program and God’s greatest creation decided to get a “mind of its own.”

Genesis 6:5-7 Then the Lord saw the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth and He was grieved in His heart. 7So the Lord said, “I will destroy man who I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, both creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry I have made them.”

And God had His fingers on “CTRL-ALT-DELETE.”  Man had become so evil that God was sorry He had created them and the only way out was to go back to the beginning

BUT…

Genesis 6:8 NOAH found grace in the eyes of the Lord!

Just a few generations later, we read of a man named Abraham and his nephew Lot.  Abraham had left all of his family except for his wife and a nephew named Lot, to follow after the commands of God.  As the families and possessions grew, there arose disagreements between Abraham’s household and that of Lot, so they separated.  Lot chose the well watered, lush plains of Sodom. 

The Bible describes the men of Sodom as “exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord.”  Not only did the worship other gods but their wickedness and sinfulness knew no bounds.  Once again God reached for “CTRL-ALT-DELETE.”

BUT…

Genesis 18:22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but ABRAHAM still stood before the Lord.

Abraham pleads for the life of his beloved nephew and because of the faithfulness of a praying uncle; Lot and his daughters are delivered out of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Genesis 19:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that GOD REMEMBERED ABRAHAM, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.

The years passed and we find the Israelites in bondage to the Egyptians.  A faithful God hears their cries and raises up a great leader to deliver them from the bonds of slavery to the freedom of the Land of Promise.  God performs great miracles, leads them through the Red Sea to safety and destroys their Egyptian pursuers. 

As the journey continues, their dissatisfaction with their circumstances builds. Moses goes up the mountain to receive instructions from God and the whiney, unthankful nation of Israel decides to cause a glitch in the program by building their own god and worshiping to their own tune…and God reaches for the “CTRL-ALT-DELETE.”

Exodus 32:9-10 And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! 10 Now therefore, let me alone that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.”

BUT…

Exodus 32:31-32 THEN MOSES returned to the Lord and said, “Oh these people have committed a great sin and have made for themselves a god of gold! 32 Yet now, if you will forgive their sin—but if not, blot ME out of Your book which you have written.”

Oh God, I thank you for the Noahs, the Abrahams and the Moses’ that you have placed in my life.  Thank you for the times they have been moved with compassion to intercede for me and because of their faithfulness, You have removed your fingers from “CTRL-ALT-DELETE.”

Is there someone in your life that has such a glitch that the only way out is “CTRL-ALT-DELETE? Allow the Holy Ghost to speak a spirit of Intercession into your heart today.  Your prayers could “change” the mind of God and move His fingers from “CTRL-ALT-DELETE” to the “BACKSPACE” or perhaps the “REFRESH” button.

Hebrews 11:7 By faith, NOAH…Hebrews 11:8 By faith ABRAHAM…Hebrews 11:23 By faith MOSES….Hebrews 11:3-13-2018 By faith SUSAN…still to be written!

You could be the NOAH that builds the way of escape or the ABRAHAM that intercedes for their salvation or the MOSES that reveals the way out of bondage. 

YOU COULD BE THE ONE THAT MOVES THE FINGER OF GOD!