2 August 2019

PRAYER AND DOING THE WILL OF GOD (2)

By John Ollis

Further to my last blog on this topic, I said doing the will of God was not “a walk in the park” and we sure need to regularly pray “not my will but Thine be done”, we sure need to recognise that when we are in the will of God there will be times it can be a frustrating and painful situation.

I am reminded of King David when the enemy had come into the camp and taken all the women away, his own men wanted to stone him to death, we read this in 1 Samuel 30:6 NKJV Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David STRENGTHENED himself in the Lord his God. David must have had to pray, (something like this) “Lord I know You anointed me king, I know I am in Your will, I don’t know what is going on, help me trust you. There sure are times when we know we are in the centre of God’s wi, but still WE HAVE TO PRAY for His grace and strength..

What of the Apostle Paul, a man of God called to be the Apostle to the Gentiles, we love his writings they have blessed us so much, but Paul had to write in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28 NKJV Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness— besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.

I am sure Paul had to pray many times, “Lord I sure don’t know what is going on, but I know I am walking in your will, thank You Your grace is sufficient”.

Let me conclude by telling I believe a true story of a Missionary who had served for many years on a foreign field, he was at last returning him to retire. The ship arrives at his home port, and he sees a brass band beginning to play, thinking maybe this was for him, then he saw a celebrity going down the gangplank and realises it was for the dignitary . No one was at the dock to greet him, he checks into a cheap hotel, and falls on his knees, and cries out to God, “there was not one person to welcome me home”, and God whispers into his heart “YOU ARE NOT YET HOME SON”.

So next time things are tough, and yet you know you are in God’s will always REMEMBER YOU ARE NOT YET HOME.