PRAYER PRODUCES POWERFUL RESULTS
THOSE WHO KNOW THEIR GOD Part 43
“Those who know their God will be strong and do great things.” Dan 11:32
WHAT DO PEOPLE DO TO KNOW GOD?
If we could comprehend how much power is available to us in prayer, we would pray more! Indeed, prayer produces powerful results! The prophet Daniel is known as a man of prayer. We know that he had a routine of praying three times a day. At one time, Daniel was told that he would be thrown into a lion’s den if he continued to pray. But because of his resolve to trust God, Daniel was unwilling to give up his times of prayer. As you know, God came through for him and protected him from the mouths of the lions. Because of Daniel’s obedience to prayer, not only was his life saved, but the ones who falsely accused him were destroyed in the trap that they had set for him. Also, the king made a decree that everyone must fear and reverence the God of Daniel! Wow!.
Later, because of a vision Daniel received in prayer concerning a great war, he decided to fast and pray for 21 days. After that time of fasting, he encountered an angel and received a vision so powerful that it continues to apply even to this day. Here is a small part of what transpired.
Daniel 10:7-14 I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision; those who were with me did not see it, but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. 8 So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale, and I was helpless. 9 Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.
10 A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.
12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. 13 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me because I was detained there with the king of Persia. 14 Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.”
The angel said to Daniel, “Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.” Wow! To Daniel, prayer was not just something he did; prayer is what he based his life upon. Yes, to Daniel, prayer was a matter of life and death!
Are you aware of how much power there is available to you in prayer? As Corrie Ten Boom said, “Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire? The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayer-less religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks that our wisdom, but trembles when we pray. Samuel Chadwick How true this is!
As I write this, I am praying and asking God to fill you with His Spirit of prayer! I am praying that you will get infused with a new excitement to call upon the name of the Lord and that prayer will become the centerpiece of your life! Oh yes! May the Spirit of the living God convince you in a new way that faith-filled…
PRAYER PRODUCES POWERFUL RESULTS