The Book of First
Thessalonians: Message Forty Five
By Dr. Michael
Guido, D.D.
A great
statesman was elected to a very high office, and
his friends came to congratulate him. But he
said, "Don't give me your congratulations.
Give me your prayers." In like manner, when
the apostle Paul brought his letter to a close,
he begged the Christians, "Brethren, pray
for us."
You should
have a season for prayer. Someone has well said,
"If you don't have a time for prayer, you'll
soon not have any time for prayer." You must
set aside some time for prayer. The Psalmist
said, "Evening, and morning, and at noon,
will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my
voice." Martin Luther said, "If I fail
to spend two hours in prayer each morning, the
devil gets the victory through the day. I have so
much business that I can't get along without
spending three hours daily in prayer."
"The
morning is the gate of the day, but ere you enter
there,
See that
you set to guard it well, the sentinel of
Prayer."
"So
shall God's grace your steps attend, but nothing
else pass through
Save what
can give the countersign: the Father's will for
you."
"When
you have reached the end of the day, where night
and sleep await,
Set there
the sentinel again, to guard the evening
Gate."
"So
shall no fear disturb your rest, no danger and no
care;
For only
peace and pardon pass the watchful guard of
prayer."
You should
have a site for prayer. There's some place in
your home, your barn, your office where you can
get alone with God. Don't be concerned about
being uncomfortable. Bear in mind that Jonah
prayed in the belly of the fish, Paul prayed in
jail, Jairus prayed on the street, the thief
prayed on the cross. In a certain West African
village, the Christians didn't have a place for
prayer in their huts. So each one went into the
bush, behind the huts, for prayer. In just a
little while there was a worn track from their
huts to their places of prayer. If it ever
happened that their tracks became overgrown with
weeds from want of use, a brother or sister would
say, "There's something the matter with your
prayer track." While you should have a
season for prayer and a site for prayer, remember
that you can pray anywhere and anytime. A young
convert came to the United States to train for
the work of the Lord. He attended a Christian
college and the coach discovered that he was a
fast runner, so he was asked to join the track
team. The day for the great event arrived, and he
started out well, but he slowed down. Then all of
a sudden he picked up speed and won the race,
breaking all records. Asked the coach, "What
was the trouble?" "The big crowd
frightened me," he answered. "Then,
what did you do?" questioned the coach.
"I prayed," he answered. "I
remembered that the Lord was there with me. And I
said, 'Lord, if You'll lift up my feet, I'll put
them down.'"
You should
have a slate for prayer. By that I mean a prayer
list. Write down on that list the names of your
loved ones and friends that need the Lord, and
the list of all your needs. Keep that list,
praying faithfully for each name and need. Then
check off the answers when they come. One day,
before my mother went home to heaven, I was
reading her Bible. I came onto Acts 16:31, which
reads, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and thou shalt be saved, and thy house;" and
there I found my name, the letter "c,"
and a date. Underneath it I found the letter
"a," and a date. "Mother," I
asked, "what's the meaning of these letters
and dates by my name?" "The letter
'c,'" she answered, "means claimed; and
the date is the day I claimed you for the Lord.
For your salvation I prayed night and day without
ceasing. The letter 'a,'" she continued,
"stands for answered. And the date is your
spiritual birthday." No wonder God saved me
and called me into His ministry.
You should
have a verse of Scripture for your prayers. Base
everything on the Bible. "And this is the
confidence that we have in Him," says the
Bible, "that, if we ask any thing according
to His will, He heareth us."
"Where," you ask, "does one find
the will of God?" In the word of God. A
young man felt called to become a missionary, but
he wasn't much of a preacher. Going to a friend
he said, "I don't see how God can use me on
the field; I have no special talent."
"My brother," answered the friend,
"God wants men on the field who can pray.
There are too many preachers and to few
pray-ers." He went, and he prayed
Scripturally and sincerely. To his home folk
would be drawn, and they'd say, "Will you
tell me how to be saved?" and "Will you
tell us how we can find heart-rest?" My
friend, pray without ceasing, won't you...and
pray for me.
copyright 2000 Guido
Evangelistic Association
All Scripture verses are
quoted from the New King James Version.
This series of messages on
the books of the Bible were originally written
for broadcast on Dr. Guido's radio program,
"The Sower." They are collected and
reprinted here for your enjoyment and spiritual
edification.
