Oct 9 2002 11:03AM
A new look at the power and essence of prayer!
Why Cry Out?
Last year on Mother’s Day at Sagemont Baptist Church in Houston, the pastor asked all the families who wanted children to stand up. Then with a loud voice the church cried out to the Lord that He would release His power and bless these women with children. Eight women had babies within one year. In Tampa, Florida, a couple had prayed for five years to have another child. After attending one of my seminars, they went home and cried out to God, "Oh, Lord, deliver us from barrenness!" The wife also asked God to "make it a girl." Two days later they conceived. Two days after that, they received a letter from a fertility clinic they had been attending that said they were unable to conceive because of the husband’s low sperm count. Today, they have a beautiful baby girl and sister for their son!
I believe that as we survey the Bible, we can’t help but see an unmistakable principle and pattern. God’s people, in their time of need, cry out with their voices for His help, and He promptly answers with His saving power. This doesn’t happen once or twice, but over and over again. James 5:14-16 says the effectual, fervent prayers of a righteous man accomplish much. Praying aloud is a natural way to give more to God, to love Him more … to pray to Him not just with your heart and mind, but also with your vocal energy. Like fasting or kneeling, crying out is a Scripture-sanctioned way to pray with intensity and commitment.
Unconditional, Total Surrender
How does crying out differ from praying? A cry represents a sense of my helplessness. It represents unconditional surrender. The Lord brought this message to me about three years ago. As I have done for nearly 40 years, I went off to the Northwoods of Michigan to seek God. There was a personal matter I wanted to bring before the Lord – the matter of marriage. As I sought the Lord, God directed me to Isaiah 56 where it says that He will make the eunuch joyful in the house of prayer. Not really knowing what this meant at the time, I later understood that what the Lord was saying was that if I stayed dedicated to Him, He would give me new joy in His house of prayer. I asked God to teach me to really pray, and He has answered!
As the Lord has unfolded new wisdom on prayer, I have experienced and seen a new joy in God. God then directed my attention to Elijah. I wondered...what made him powerful in prayer? Elijah cried out, and it didn't rain for forty days. Could I see God's power like that when I cry out to God?
There are different types and ways of crying out to God. Sincerity is the key. A sincere cry to God is an open declaration that we’re incapable of dealing with a particular situation, and that we are in desperate need of His help. The deepest, most sincere cry is one of unconditional surrender to God and His will.
To cry out with a loud voice for help – with the unleashing of emotion that often comes with it – can be a humbling experience. That’s why we often resist it. We tend to be proud, wanting people to think we’ve "got it all together." But such pride causes God to turn away His face. God resists the proud because pride is our attempt to be equal with God and is in direct opposition to all He wants to do in and through our lives. It is reserving for ourselves the right to make final decisions. But with the cry of humility, we turn that right over to God with no strings attached. We then center our lives around Him - He is glorified and we are joyful.
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