Speaking of Prayer……

You know, God, I’d really like that job, if it’s your will.

Whatever.

Lord, if it’s your will, please just show me the way.

And what if it’s not? Lo que será, será?

All right, so maybe our excuse is that we got the “if it’s your will” thing from the Lord’s Prayer. It does say “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

It’s right to want to do things God’s way. And it’s very logical to want to have that be the subject of our prayers- after all, whatever is God’s will is probably most likely to happen. But here is where we see a mysterious trend in the Bible. Instead of just voicing their wishes and hoping that it was God’s will, the prayer warriors of the Bible presented God with a picture of himself, from what he had told them. They asked based on what they knew about God.

Daniel- Repeated life and death situations doesn’t make him stop praying. He knows he’s innocent when thrown in the lion’s den, and he knows God to be his shield.

Moses (Ex. 32:11-14) - The barganing in Exodus isn’t some sort of “let’s test God and try to change his mind” game. Instead, he has trusted in what God has told him so firmly that he can use to the salvation of the Israelites.

And Abraham (Gen 18:23-33)- In the end, whether Sodom and Gomorrah is saved becomes secondary to Abraham’s realization of the greatness of God’s mercy in the granting of all of his requests.

So what’s my point? Simple. We want God on campus next year, in hearts and minds of Swatties. So right now, instead of saying

Oh Lord, if it’s your will, please save some people next year

…..pray as if you are expecting Him at the door of Kohlberg 115. Practically, pick two Swat friends and start asking for specific changes in their lives- that they will want to know Him, that they will come to the first large group, that something that happens this summer that will cause them to start wondering…….

What else might be His will? Well, ask Him. But be prepared for some answers.

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I know you all have mountains of summer reading, but if you want read more about expectant prayer from a much better author, get Daring To Draw Near by John White (Intervarsity Press)……

~Theresa