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We are to believe in the Living God who created us and know that He is a
rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. The Lord is a loving God who
is patient, gracious, merciful, and undeservedly kind to us who have sinned
against Him. The Bible declares in Psalm 86:5-6 “For Thou, Lord, art good,
and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon
Thee. Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my
supplications.” Be encouraged to call upon the Lord knowing that He will
hear and answer your hearts cry. He loves you and waits patiently for you
to call upon Him. (Hebrews 11:6) (Revelation 3:20) (2 Peter 3:9)
I hope this message ministers to your heart to believe in the God who
created heaven and earth and know that nothing is too hard for Him.
AN IRRATIONAL PLEA
Like most of us who are parents, there was nothing as important to Betty
and her husband as passing their faith on to their children. The task had
always seemed natural and uncomplicated. Their kids accepted their faith
easily because they saw it so readily in the lives of their parents.
But John was different. “John is a lot like his father,” Betty confided.
“He doesn't accept things at face value. You have to prove it to him
first.” So more than the other children, John questioned his parents'
faith. “I just don't know if I believe that God answers our prayers,” John
told his mother. “We've been praying for months that this guy at church
would get well, and he's only getting worse. We're always praying for
people who are sick. Sometimes they get better and sometimes they don't.
But that happens to people whether they believe in God or not. I can't
think of one time where God answered a prayer, and there was no doubt it
was Him who did it. Not one time.”
That's when Betty did something drastic. “I felt I had to prove to John
that there is a God and that He does answer prayers,” she told me. Hiding
her panic, she calmly sat down at the table. Placing her arm around John's
shoulder, she asked, “What would it take for you to believe that God hears
and answers our prayers?”
John looked startled. “What do you mean?” “I mean, what prayer could God
answer for you before morning to prove that He does answer prayer?” She
paused for a moment to let John gather his thoughts. “I happen to know,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God does answer our prayers,” she
continued, “and I know that He wants you to know that, too.” Again she
paused, letting her words sink in a little deeper. “In fact, I'm so sure
that God can prove Himself to you that I want you to pick something He
could do for you before morning is over to let you know that He is real and
genuine and active in our lives. Tell me what it is, we'll pray for it, and
before morning is over, it will happen. I give you my word.”
“Even while I was talking to John, I couldn't believe what I was saying,”
Betty told me. “I sat there and promised my son that God would answer any
prayer he could come up with - and who knows what he could have come up with!”
So John came up with his request. “Well, we haven't had any rain for
months,” he said, “and everywhere we go, we hear that people are praying
for rain. The weatherman said there's no chance of rain for days to come.
If God would make it rain in the morning, I'd believe that it was Him who
did it.”
So, together, Betty and John prayed for rain. “When we finished, I patted
John on the back and with all the confidence I could muster, said 'Well,
John, looks like it's going to rain tomorrow. Better get your umbrella
out.' Then I walked upstairs and prayed harder than I'd ever prayed in my
life. I don't know if I got more than two or three minutes of sleep that
night. You know, Frank, I never dreamed I would do anything that irrational.”
The next morning, Betty and her family sat around the breakfast table,
staring out at a clear blue sky. In the background they heard the morning
news reporting another hot day with no rain in sight. Not a word was
mentioned about the night before. The table was cleared, and the kids had
gone to their rooms to get dressed for school. All the while, Betty
continued to pray.
Suddenly, one of Betty's daughters called her to the dining room window.
What Betty saw there took her breath away. “John,” she called out, “Come
look out the window. There's something here for you.” John stepped out of
his room. As he approached the window, a clap of thunder shook the house.
Outside, large beads of rain beat furiously against the pavement. John
stood motionless beside his mother. “This is a present from God to you,
John,” she whispered through tears of joy. “Promise me you'll never forget it.”
With that, she gave him a loving hug, gazed another moment at the miracle
outside, and walked back into the kitchen. John remained at the window for
several minutes, then returned silently to his room.
There was a lot of excitement at news desks around town that day. Out of
nowhere, it seems, a small, black cloud rolled into the city, planted
itself over a four-block area, and for 10 solid minutes threw down a wall
of thunder and rain that hadn't been seen for quite some time. It stopped
as suddenly as it started, rolled itself up, and headed north. No one could
explain it.
By Frank Martin
Read and meditate on these scriptures:
Psalm 103:10-13 “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us
according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth,
so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him. As far as the east is
from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us. Like as
a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear Him.”
Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that
cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them
that diligently seek Him.”
Psalm 91:14-16 “Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I
deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known My name. He
shall call upon Me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and
shew him My salvation.”
All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible.
Today’s Selected Poem: HE SETS HIS PACE TO OURS
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/enpoem123.htm
Today’s Selected Testimony: DELIVERED FROM AN ACCIDENT
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony152.htm
In Christ’s Service,
Dwayne Savaya
Gods Work Ministry |
