Seeds of Wisdom

PRAYER SHOWS OUR DEPENDENCE ON GOD

Psalm 65:2 – “O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.”

Prayer shows our dependence on God which causes him to intervene on our behalf. We see two examples of this in 1 Chronicles. Firstly, in the life of Jabez. “Now Jabez was more honourable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” The name Jabez given to him by his mother when she was in pain was not a blessing as Jabez means “He Will Cause Pain.” “And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So, God granted him what he requested” (1 Chronicles 4:9-10).

Secondly, we see God intervening when some of the tribes of Israel were at war with their enemies - “The sons of Reuben, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh had forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty valiant men, men able to bear shield and sword, to shoot with the bow, and skilful in war, who went to war. They made war with the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them, for they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer because they put their trust in Him” (1 Chronicles 5:18-21). When we pray to God in faith to intervene on our behalf, we can fully expect God to help us. Whenever we step out by faith to do what God has called us to do in life, we can expect God’s favour and help as we seek His assistance in prayer. David took on Goliath who was taunting the children of Israel knowing that he had almighty God backing him and he defeated him with just a sling shot.

Further Reading: Luke 10:38-42, 1 Samuel 17:25-48, 1 Chronicles 5:18-21

Prayer: Father, grant me the grace to have faith in you.