When All I Can Do is Pray
“The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” James 5:16b
Sometimes when we’re faced with agonizing circumstances or with situations that leave us feeling helpless and hopeless, we fall back on the idea that all we can do is pray. And in that statement, we resign ourselves to doing less than we think we should.
But friends, prayer IS doing the very best we can do!! It supersedes any human effort that we could put forth. It is reaching into a dimension that is beyond time and space and is powerful and effective beyond anything we could do on our own.! When we pray, we stop relying on ourselves and begin relying on the immortal, unchanging, all powerful God.
God is everything we need in every way at every time. He is the only One capable of meeting needs, solving dilemmas and saving from desperation. Why would we think that petitioning Him is weak and ineffective?
He is our Abba, our Father (Mark 14:36). The One who loves us as His very own, who made us His children, His beloved, and Who has given us a hope and a future, and an inheritance that is fit for a saint and royalty. He provides lavishly because He loves us.
He is Elohim- the God who is Creator (Genesis 1:1). If He creates each moment in which we live, He can craft a solution and resolution that will bring our loved one from desperation into redemption and freedom.
Our God is Yahweh, the Great I Am, the Existing One (Exodus 3:14-15). He always was, always is, and always will be. He is eternal and able to do more than we could ask or think.
We raise our petition to El Roi, the God who sees (Genesis 16:13). He has already seen the hardship and heartache. He sees the desperation of your situation-He knows every detail. He also sees exactly how and when He will resolve it. Nothing is beyond His scope. He is able!
We kneel before El Shaddai, the all sufficient One (Genesis 17:1). He is fully sufficient and competent to answer any question, meet any need, and intervene in even the most desperate of times. His answers are perfectly complete according to His will and are for our good and His glory. There is none better to whom we can bring our burdens and needs. Why would we imagine that we could do more than pray to Him?
We pray to Emmanuel- God with us. He will never leave us or forsake us. He is with us perpetually and perfectly (Matthew 1:23) in everything and in every way.
He is our refuge (Psalm 119:114), our strength (Psalm 22:19), our strong tower (Psalm 61:3), and our fortress (Psalm 91:2). He always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres because He is love incarnate (1 Corinthians 13:7) (John 1:14).
It is a deception of the enemy to think we are powerless and “all we can do is pray”. We should not think of prayer as our last resort and the least we can do, but instead, as our first and best line of defense. Prayer is powerful and effective (James 5:16). We have a direct line to the God of all Creation, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the One to whom every knee will bow and tongue will confess that He is Lord (Romans 14:11).
Let’s go before Him now, whether it is for healing, for deliverance for a prodigal, for salvation for a friend or loved one, He sees, He hears, and He answers. Bring your burdens and bring the requests of those you have committed to pray for, and lay them at His feet. He already knows and already has an answer prepared. Wait on Him. He is faithful.
“Abba, Father, I come before you with a heart of hope, yet burdened with so many things. I know You see, you are El Roi and nothing is too hard, too dark, too distant, or too complex for You to understand. Lord, I lift (name) to you. You know their needs, their struggles and their pain. You are El Shaddai, the all-sufficient One who will meet those needs and solve those problems better than I or anyone else ever could. Help me to understand and remember that prayer isn’t the last resort nor is it a lame excuse for help. It is the first and best thing I can do for anyone because I’m reaching out to You, the Great I Am, the One who created everything and Who created my heart. You are the One who seeks fellowship and communion with each of us and You gave Your Son in exchange for my sinful soul. Lord, how could I ever think that prayer is a patronizing response to a difficult need. Help me to pray in the power of the Holy Spirit who lives in me (Jude 1:20) and believe, in faith, that You will do more than I could ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). I trust You Lord and I will rest in Your almighty power, Your sufficiency, and Your perfect timing. I pray these things in the powerful and perfect name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
Pray without ceasing.
Prayer is Never Pointless
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15
Friends, prayer is never pointless. Although we may not see anything happening, it's only because we are human, limited and bound by time and space. But we must be mindful, that all around us, there are conversations, battles, and mighty warriors (heavenly hosts) who are protecting, fighting for and guarding us with the Father's direction, permission and power.
“For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways.” Psalm 91:11
There are ministering angels who do His bidding and who support God's chosen and dearly loved children according to His will and the needs present.
“Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?” Hebrews 1:14
There are realms that we cannot see (and I don't think we would want to), but we must acknowledge are there. The spiritual world is larger than the one we operate in daily... and that should be a comfort to us, because that means our God is bigger than anything we can comprehend and He is able to do more than we could ask or imagine. I trust Him.
So, today, though it may seem like your prayers are falling flat, trust that God is working in mighty ways, in and around you and in others who will impact you and whose lives may, at some point, intersect yours. Know that prayer is a threshold to eternity and we are welcome to step into that conversation with God any time, any place and bring our burdens and joys to Him. Friends, you can be sure He is working. There is more to this than just you and I...and isn't that a comfort?!
Here’s a challenge: set a time for five minutes, then get on your knees and talk to the Lord. Pour out your heart. List those things that weigh heavily. Name those people who need Godly intervention. Call out those battles, obstacles, and opposition that seem insurmountable. They are not too high, too wide, too long or too deep for God to overcome. When the time goes off, stop and consider, you just spent five minutes in the spiritual realm of prayer with the God of Glory. The Almighty Name above all names. The One to whom every knee will bow and tongue confess His lordship. You went there, and you can go again and again, as often as you like and stay as long as you wish. Prayer is a sweet time of communion with your Lord and Savior. Next time, set your timer for ten minutes and spend half of the time praying…and the other half listening. God longs to hear your voice, but He also wants you to hear His.
Pray without ceasing.
Praying for a Godly Spouse
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:10-12
As our sons and daughters grow into adulthood, our ability to impact their choices begins to diminish. We hope and pray that the things we taught them about God, about Scripture, about living a life that pleases the Lord, are deeply rooted. But we no longer have the ability to steer them away from influences that may be negative or unproductive and we have little say in the friends they choose, especially if they’re living at a distance. Parenting adult children is challenging.
When it comes to finding a spouse, there are challenges there, too. Though we hope our son or daughter would choose to make their decision based on our discernment and approval, by the time the relationship reaches that point, our beloved child may have already made up their mind… our input is just a formality. That’s hard to take, isn’t it?
But we’re not powerless! Not at all. We can make a huge impact on their life choices by talking to the Father and asking for His guidance, His intervention, and His protection. We can ask the He would give our son or daughter His best- better than we could choose or imagine!
So, how do we pray? Many of us likely began praying when our children were just little ones, praying that God would be preparing a godly husband or wife for them. Here’s the thing, don’t stop. Don’t stop praying like that. God will bring the right person at the right time, or make it clear He has a plan that asks our son or daughter to remain single. We need to be okay with that. We need to pray that our children would be okay with whatever God asks of them, too. Because isn’t that the best?
Here are some prayer points we can pray for both future husbands and future wives, and for our sons and daughters, all tied to Scripture.
Pray that they would be like Christ and that He would mold them and shape their heart and mind to be like Him. (Philippians 2:5; Ephesians 4:14-15)
Ask the Lord to make their words (and heart) authentic, not just filled with knowledge, but seasoned with grace (I Corinthians 13:1; Colossians 4:6)
Pray they would exhibit patience and kindness (1 Corinthians 13:4)
they would not be jealous or envious, but truly want the best for others and would celebrate when they have success or honor (1 Corinthians 13:4; Romans 12:15)
Ask God to help them value others before themselves (Philippians 2:3)
Pray that they would have a precise and correct knowledge of Scripture that would enable them to love others well (not to be puffed up with knowledge) and that they would be discerning in the teaching they listen to and the leaders they follow. (Philippians 1:9)
Pray that they would hide God’s word in their heart to keep them from sin (Psalm 119:11)
And pray that God’s word would be a lamp to their feet and a light to their path (Psalm 119:105)
Pray God’s protection over them, so they would keep their way pure by living according to God’s word (Psalm 119:9)
Ask the Lord to keep them legalism and that He would help them truly understand God’s grace and the freedom He gives to trust Jesus alone for salvation (Ephesians 2:8; 2 Timothy 1:9).
Pray that they would not lean into the world’s standards or be pressured to compromise to be accepted, but that they would stand for God’s truth, unwaveringly. (Hebrews 10:23)
Ultimately, pray that God would cultivate two people who, together, would have a godly marriage that would reflect Christ and the Church, surrender and obedience, love and protection, selflessness and sacrifice no matter the circumstances, because their hope is in Jesus and not in the other person to whom they are married.
There are so many things we can pray to this end; this is just the start. Add to the list as you pray and let the Holy Spirit guide your words and your petitions. The words of Scripture are always powerful and effective, it is the most you can do. Let’s God’s word do the speaking for you.
And pray for both the ‘unknown’ future spouse and for your son or daughter, that God would prepare their hearts and cultivate in them the qualities that are important for a God-centered relationship to be developed in His time and His way.
If your son or daughter is already married, pray that God would grow them in these areas. Pray that He would build a strong, God-honoring marriage that would be a testimony of His grace and redemption.
Why not write out a prayer, and then, when the time is right, share it with the one for whom you’ve been praying. What a precious gift that could be for the ‘other’, knowing that they’ve been prayed for and seeing the Scripture that’s been spoken over them, even before they were known to you.
Pray without ceasing!