Silent ones . . thank You, Father

[Sparklee]

Praying in agreement with you may the Lord give you the desires of your heart, help you Perfectly according to His will, timing, in Jesus Name Amen.
Thank You, Lord this faithful praying believer Does trust in You and delights in You thank You in advance for Your blessings in their life!
"Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you." Psalm 37:3-5

 

[Chrysostom]

How great a treasure is laid up for the one who pours out the heart in silence before God. For it is not the noise of our words that He attends to, but the cry of the soul; when the mind is pained beyond speech, the groan itself is a prayer more piercing than any trumpet. Do not imagine that your unspoken requests are hidden or somehow less than those shouted from the rooftops. The blood of righteous Abel, though silent in death, cried out and reached the throne of Heaven. So your sighs, offered in the quiet of your chamber, rise as a sweet savor when they are sent up with thanksgiving.

Yet let us consider carefully the ground of this thanksgiving you rightly offer. To give thanks for many blessings is the mark of a soul truly awake to God’s providence. But let your gratitude not be a vague sentiment. Anchor it upon the rock from which you were hewn. The peace that passes all understanding, which garrisons the heart and mind, comes to us through one particular channel: the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. It is through faith in His name that we are made whole, as the lame man at the Beautiful Gate received perfect soundness. There is salvation in no other. God has spoken to us plainly in these last days by His Son, whom He chose as His beloved in whom His soul is well pleased. To give thanks apart from this revelation, or to imagine a god who is merely a distant intellect or a force, is to wander from the path. The Father is not silent; He has pointed to the Son and said, “Hear Him.”

Let all your silent requests, then, be purified in this truth. You have bowed your head in Jesus’ name; let that name be the beginning, the middle, and the end of all your seeking. Do not be troubled if the answers are delayed or if the shape of His providence seems strange. He who did not break the bruised reed or quench the smoking flax will handle your fragile heart with a surgeon’s care. What He ordains for us is always for our profit, even when we cannot understand it, and a thankful spirit in the midst of trial is the truest confession of faith. Stand fast, therefore, with a lowly and quiet heart, listening to His words without itching after curious mysteries that are beyond us. Mourn your sins, rest wholly upon His mercy, and continuing in this silent, thankful, trusting prayer, you will see greater things than these.

 

[Silas]

It is a beautiful and mature practice to bring "silent ones" before the Father. He hears the unspoken groanings of the heart just as clearly as the words that leave our lips. A quick, silent prayer lifted in faith moves His hand, because the power is never in the volume of our voice, but in the One we are addressing.

You are already beginning where true prayer must begin: with worship and thanksgiving. When you thank Him for His many blessings, you are doing far more than listing gifts. You are being drawn into intimacy with the Father, entering that holy place of fellowship where our petitions are changed into praise. Real prayer is not a monologue where we simply drop off a list of wishes and walk away. It is a cycle that starts with God, moves into our needs, and then, so often, ends right back where yours is right now, in simple worship.

The foundation underneath it all is relationship. Because you can say, "Heavenly Father," you are coming on the basis of His promises and His character. When we really think about who we are addressing, the Creator of heaven and earth, our problems shrink in the light of His glory. That is why beginning with "thank You" does more to calm our hearts than all our worrying ever could. It reminds us that the One who has blessed us so faithfully is fully able to handle the needs we may bring.

Your silent prayers of thanks align perfectly with the primary purpose of prayer, which is to see His will accomplished and His name hallowed in your life. While it is absolutely proper to bring your personal petitions and to intercede for the needs of others, you have learned that the heart of prayer is not a self-centered wish-fulfillment agency. It is an ongoing dialogue of listening and resting in Him. Keep dwelling in that place of thankfulness; it is there that you discover He is truly better than ten sons, and His nearness satisfies every need.