Living Life by Design

Prayer is, “spiritual nutrition”. Just as the body needs physical food to survive , so the soul needs spiritual food to thrive. Prayer is our spiritual food…it nourishes us. It strengthens us. 

Prayer is also powerful. It is, as Charles Spurgeon put it, “the slender nerve that moves the muscles of omnipotence.” Prayer has the power to change us, change circumstances, change other people and even change the course of history.

Christian prayer is powerful because we pray, not in our own name, but in the name of Jesus. God hears our prayers…the prayers of the righteous. So, because of Jesus, our prayers can also change the very course of history.

The history of the people of God is set out in the book of Kings (1 Kings 14-16). We can read how the people of God constantly, “did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (14:22; 15:26,34; 16:7). They committed sins (14:22b; 15:26,30,34; 16:2). They had shrine-prostitutes (14:24); they engaged in detestable practices (v.24); there was continual warfare between Israel and Judah (v.30; 15:6,32). The kings were often not “fully devoted to the Lord” (v.3).

“Nevertheless, for David’s sake the Lord his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem by raising up a son to succeed him and by making Jerusalem strong. For David had done what was right in the eyes of the Lord and had not failed to keep any of the Lord’s commands all the days of his life – except in the case of Uriah the Hittite” (vv.4–6).

David was having an impact long after his death. God honoured his prayers for generations. He will honor you’re as well.