Just a few weeks ago in the NFL, the Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin was involved in a tackle that took a hit to his chest causing him to suffer cardiac arrest on the field. Reports say that for 9 minutes the coach and medical staff on hand did CPR on this young man prior to transporting him to the hospital. In a culture where coaches get reprimanded for praying, both teams took a knee and joined together in prayer that his young man would live. There was no vote, no discussion and no debate. Knees bowed and while the cameras were rolling, all bent their heads and raised their hands in prayer. A sportscaster with a high-profile television news agency stopped and said on the air, “I don’t know if this is appropriate or not, but right now I am being led to pray so that is what I am going to do.” He prayed in Jesus’ Name on tv and the only thing said was ‘Amen’ echoed by his 2 co-casters. The Hamlin family asked for prayer and made no apologies for Damar’s full and miraculous recovery, attributing it to answered prayer.
I don’t know why this story hit me so hard. Perhaps it is because our African son Josiah looks so similar to Damar. Perhaps it is because they play the same position in football and both love the sport. Perhaps it is simply that the Holy Spirit kept niggling me dozens of times in the day to stop and pray. What I do know is that in a crisis, you are hard pressed to find anyone, believer or not, that doesn’t throw a prayer to heaven for help in their desperate time of need. It is when we are so totally helpless, like watching this young man on tv laying on the field and not breathing, that we cry out to God to rescue us and hear our prayers.
Does God hear our prayers? Is it only when so many ‘storm’ the gates of heaven that God listens, or does He also hear the weeping parent, friend or child who is alone? Should we only bother God when the stakes are high? What about claiming what is ours by faith? Is there room to boldly march into the throne room and demand what is promised? We have looked at Jesus’ words on prayer, but what else does the Bible have to teach about praying?
This topic is far too exhaustive to cover in a week’s worth of devotionals, but there are some fundamental truths we can look at. We will see three today, and five tomorrow.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:6, 7)
*we can bring ALL things that make us anxious before God
*we are to pray about them instead of being anxious about them, and keep asking as often as we need to
*the result will be the peace of God in our hearts
*there is no promise of a solution, but God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds
*we are to have an attitude of thankfulness; for we are not in this alone but have a Father that hears us
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)
*believers in Jesus have the right to approach God directly
*draw near in Hebrew represents a person approaching God which is only possible because of our high priest, Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross
*we can do this confidently and not unsure or with apologies. In other words, we can have courage and speak plainly and honestly
*God will give us mercy (not getting what we deserve) and grace (getting what we don’t deserve) when we need it
*in our time of need, we should come
Pray continuously (1 Thess 5:16)
*We are commanded to talk to God all the time; therefore, we aren’t bugging Him by coming to Him in prayer
*it should be a ‘way of life’; when we see something beautiful, we thank Him for creating it; when we pass an ambulance, we pray for help for the injured; when we think of a loved one, we lift them before God. It is to be not a 24/7 no breaks prayer, but rather so natural that we take everything to God in prayer
*it is a communion with God many, many times each day as a way of life
*it is a mental attitude of prayerfulness and being conscious of His presence with us at all times
May I encourage you to go to the Bible and read what it says about prayer? The milk says pray, but the meat teaches us how and why and when. Google ‘the Bible and prayer, verses’ and then look up some of those passages and see for yourself what God’s Word has to say about talking with God. Make a list or categorize what you find. What a great way to dig deeper and see what God has to say about what you have to say to Him!
Our song for today is Take My Life and Let It Be by Chris Tomlin.