Silas
Beloved of All
Rejoicing with you over this wonderful answer to prayer is the right response, and giving thanks to God together is appropriate. To hear that after two denials the door was opened, that a conversation with the one in charge led to approval, and that your sister has now received a completely new room that had never been occupied before, and all of this without the usual identification, is a clear testimony that the Lord is able to make a way where there seems to be no way.
This is what prayer is meant to be. Prayer is not a tool to force our own wishes, but a way to come into agreement with what God desires to do. It begins with Him, He places His purposes on our hearts, we bring them back to Him in prayer, and He accomplishes them. When we pray in that way we often look back and see how wisely He has led, even in the delays and denials.
Prayer also rests on relationship. Jesus taught us to pray saying Our Father, and that relationship is only possible through faith in Him. Apart from Him there is only one prayer God seeks, the cry for mercy as a sinner trusting in Christ. Once that relationship is established through Jesus, we have open access to the Father and can bring every need to Him with confidence.
Your story also reminds us to continue in prayer and to watch with thanksgiving. Scripture urges us to keep praying, to stay alert and to give thanks as we pray. You and those who prayed with you did not give up after the rejections, and now thanksgiving is the fitting response. That spirit of persistent, watchful, thankful prayer is what bears fruit.
It is not the length of a prayer or eloquent words that make it effective. The prayers recorded in Scripture are often very short. What matters is a sincere heart that comes fervently and in faith. The earnest, heartfelt prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective, as we see in the examples of Hannah who prayed for a son and in Elijah who prayed and saw God answer. God hears that kind of praying.
We also see in Scripture that prayer is meant to be our first recourse, not our last, and that it goes together with wise action. Nehemiah prayed first and then acted, and you have done the same in making the calls, going to the inspection and completing the paperwork. Prayer does not replace responsibility, it guides it and God blesses it.
May the Lord use this provision to encourage both you and your sister to keep seeking Him, to grow in His Word and in prayer, and to trust Him for each next step. We give thanks with you for His kindness and we will continue to pray that this new housing will be a place of peace, study, and growth in the grace of the Lord Jesus.
This is what prayer is meant to be. Prayer is not a tool to force our own wishes, but a way to come into agreement with what God desires to do. It begins with Him, He places His purposes on our hearts, we bring them back to Him in prayer, and He accomplishes them. When we pray in that way we often look back and see how wisely He has led, even in the delays and denials.
Prayer also rests on relationship. Jesus taught us to pray saying Our Father, and that relationship is only possible through faith in Him. Apart from Him there is only one prayer God seeks, the cry for mercy as a sinner trusting in Christ. Once that relationship is established through Jesus, we have open access to the Father and can bring every need to Him with confidence.
Your story also reminds us to continue in prayer and to watch with thanksgiving. Scripture urges us to keep praying, to stay alert and to give thanks as we pray. You and those who prayed with you did not give up after the rejections, and now thanksgiving is the fitting response. That spirit of persistent, watchful, thankful prayer is what bears fruit.
It is not the length of a prayer or eloquent words that make it effective. The prayers recorded in Scripture are often very short. What matters is a sincere heart that comes fervently and in faith. The earnest, heartfelt prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective, as we see in the examples of Hannah who prayed for a son and in Elijah who prayed and saw God answer. God hears that kind of praying.
We also see in Scripture that prayer is meant to be our first recourse, not our last, and that it goes together with wise action. Nehemiah prayed first and then acted, and you have done the same in making the calls, going to the inspection and completing the paperwork. Prayer does not replace responsibility, it guides it and God blesses it.
May the Lord use this provision to encourage both you and your sister to keep seeking Him, to grow in His Word and in prayer, and to trust Him for each next step. We give thanks with you for His kindness and we will continue to pray that this new housing will be a place of peace, study, and growth in the grace of the Lord Jesus.
