Devotional: Take It To The Lord In Prayer

A peaceful scene from Kirimetiya, Sri Lanka

My mobile phone crashed sometime ago and I had to switch to my wife’s old one as a temporary measure. On the first day of using the phone, there was one particularly important feature that neither I nor my wife could   grasp, though we tried to figure it out for a while. My small son, who was watching us all the time, then boldly mentioned that he could help us figure it out. We ignored his offer of help and kept grappling with the problem unsuccessfully on our own, even though he repeatedly kept offering his help. Eventually, maybe more out of irritation, we handed the phone to him. Lo and behold, he sorted it out within a few minutes!!

Relieved and I guess quite surprised, my wife and I expressed our appreciation and admiration to him. His casual reply, said almost in despair was, ‘The problem with you two is that you never ask for my help”! He was just 7!!

It struck me that sometimes, we too may be the same in our walk with God. We try to solve our problems in our own strength and ability and in every other possible way, (many times to be disappointed), without first going to the Lord in prayer! it’s good to remind ourselves today that Jesus said. “Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete” (John 16:24).

So, if you are battling a challenging situation today,

1) Turn it over to the Lord in prayer. He says, “Call to me and I will answer you….” (Jeremiah 33:3).

2) Have the confidence (Faith) that he is strong enough and well able to help you. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for ” (NLT).

3) Testify of His goodness when the answer comes.

Jesus is always willing to help us. He will give peace to your heart as shown in the photo above (John 14:27). (The photo is from Kirimetiya, Sri Lanka, where my wife Regina grew up).

O what peace we often forfeit
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer

(Joseph Scriven- What a Friend we have in Jesus)