The Importance of Praying
Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.†And God granted his request. 1 Chronicles 4:10
I believe that Jabez is showing us that by our righteous living, if we will faithfully call on our Lord God, He will bless us. Jabez demonstrates that God's divine blessing and protection do not come automatically, but occur as the result of our commitment to Him and as a result of our prayers. May you examine your heart about your prayer life. You may be thinking, I do not have time, but we must make time to pray to our Lord God daily. We need to seek His face and His will in every circumstance.
As you read the Bible, notice how many people cried out to their Lord for answers to their problems. In Genesis 18 and 19, Abraham prayed that God would not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. God does not overlook sin; He sees every evil, injustice and immorality that is being committed. At the right time, if there is no repentance from sin, God will judge and condemn the people. Our Lord God is a God of love and justice. The very nature of God requires that wickedness be punished. That is why each of us are standing in the gap for our spouses and our loved ones. Abraham prayed for the righteous people and God answered his prayers by saving Abraham's family. As you read this story, I pray that you will become burdened about our nation and the world. We each can make a difference by our prayers. I pray that you can see the importance of praying!
The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here--sons- in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.'" Genesis 19:12-13
Think about Joseph. Joseph was seventeen years old when he was sold into slavery by his brothers. He spent thirteen years as a slave and three of those years were spent in prison. But God had a plan and purpose for Joseph. God raised him to a position of honor and rulership at the age of thirty. Joseph was faithful to his God and knew the importance of prayer.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.†When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt." Genesis 45:4-8
May each of us always remember the importance of praying. There is power in praying. God moves mountains of circumstances when we pray. When you are in distress and do not know what to do, cry out to Him for your answer.
In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears. Psalm 18:6
You have a choice today, to become like Moses, Samson, Elijah, Daniel, Jesus, Peter, Paul and many others, who all have shown and taught each of us by their own personal lives the importance of prayer. Only God knows by your prayers what will be accomplished in the future. If each of us will comprehend the importance of prayer, people will be saved and healed, marriages will be rebuilt on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, loved ones will be delivered from alcohol, drugs and other sinful lifestyles and our churches will grow into lighthouses for the lost. Let's pray!
God bless you,
Charlyne Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.
Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.†And God granted his request. 1 Chronicles 4:10
I believe that Jabez is showing us that by our righteous living, if we will faithfully call on our Lord God, He will bless us. Jabez demonstrates that God's divine blessing and protection do not come automatically, but occur as the result of our commitment to Him and as a result of our prayers. May you examine your heart about your prayer life. You may be thinking, I do not have time, but we must make time to pray to our Lord God daily. We need to seek His face and His will in every circumstance.
As you read the Bible, notice how many people cried out to their Lord for answers to their problems. In Genesis 18 and 19, Abraham prayed that God would not destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. God does not overlook sin; He sees every evil, injustice and immorality that is being committed. At the right time, if there is no repentance from sin, God will judge and condemn the people. Our Lord God is a God of love and justice. The very nature of God requires that wickedness be punished. That is why each of us are standing in the gap for our spouses and our loved ones. Abraham prayed for the righteous people and God answered his prayers by saving Abraham's family. As you read this story, I pray that you will become burdened about our nation and the world. We each can make a difference by our prayers. I pray that you can see the importance of praying!
The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here--sons- in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.'" Genesis 19:12-13
Think about Joseph. Joseph was seventeen years old when he was sold into slavery by his brothers. He spent thirteen years as a slave and three of those years were spent in prison. But God had a plan and purpose for Joseph. God raised him to a position of honor and rulership at the age of thirty. Joseph was faithful to his God and knew the importance of prayer.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.†When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt." Genesis 45:4-8
May each of us always remember the importance of praying. There is power in praying. God moves mountains of circumstances when we pray. When you are in distress and do not know what to do, cry out to Him for your answer.
In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears. Psalm 18:6
You have a choice today, to become like Moses, Samson, Elijah, Daniel, Jesus, Peter, Paul and many others, who all have shown and taught each of us by their own personal lives the importance of prayer. Only God knows by your prayers what will be accomplished in the future. If each of us will comprehend the importance of prayer, people will be saved and healed, marriages will be rebuilt on the solid rock of Jesus Christ, loved ones will be delivered from alcohol, drugs and other sinful lifestyles and our churches will grow into lighthouses for the lost. Let's pray!
God bless you,
Charlyne Steinkamp
Rejoice Marriage Ministries, Inc.
