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.