Praying in God's presence
One of the key elements of encounterprayer is an awareness of Jesus’ presence, so that we are able to speak directly to him.
I was reminded of this as I read the story of King Hezekiah in Isaiah 37. Hezekiah had just received a message from his enemies enticing him to doubt God’s ability to deliver him from their hands. This is what we are told:
‘Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORDand spread it out before the LORD.’ Isaiah 37:14
I love the sequence of events in this story – Hezekiah received the letter, read it, then went to the temple to lay it out before the Lord. This relates well to encounterprayer.
We all get unwelcome news that can come in a variety of ways: distressing information, the resurfacing of a painful memory, sudden anxiety about the future. The challenge is what we do with such news. It usually has an immediate impact on us: anxiety and shock often set in and unless we do something to prevent them taking root, they tend to seep deeper within us. Hezekiah took a positive step and as well as praying about his disturbing news, he took the letter to the temple.
I was reminded of this as I read the story of King Hezekiah in Isaiah 37. Hezekiah had just received a message from his enemies enticing him to doubt God’s ability to deliver him from their hands. This is what we are told:
‘Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the LORDand spread it out before the LORD.’ Isaiah 37:14
I love the sequence of events in this story – Hezekiah received the letter, read it, then went to the temple to lay it out before the Lord. This relates well to encounterprayer.
We all get unwelcome news that can come in a variety of ways: distressing information, the resurfacing of a painful memory, sudden anxiety about the future. The challenge is what we do with such news. It usually has an immediate impact on us: anxiety and shock often set in and unless we do something to prevent them taking root, they tend to seep deeper within us. Hezekiah took a positive step and as well as praying about his disturbing news, he took the letter to the temple.
|
For me, the temple represents the earthly dwelling place of the living God, the most holy place of his presence. So, Hezekiah’s instinctive reaction to receiving his enemies’ threats was first to seek the presence of God, and then to lay out the threats posed against him. His prayer was bold and faithful, and God changed his situation in a remarkable way.
On many occasions I have asked for prayer, and the person praying for me has launched straight into it with barely a break between my speaking and their praying. If we take time to encounter God before we start to pray, it provides both us and the recipient with space to metaphorically ‘enter the temple’, to open our hearts in God’s presence before praying with renewed faith and confidence. |
|
Rather than allowing our hearts and minds to be gripped by anxiety and desperation, encounterprayer encourages us to focus on God’s goodness and majesty so that we can bring our intercession to him in faith.
With every blessing to you all,
John
With every blessing to you all,
John
