Prayer - Inspiration
14Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. 15When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.16With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.—Psalm 91:14-16
After the invitation to prayer and the assurance that He will answer, God added an addendum to the policy He gave Jeremiah: “Call to Me, and I will answer you” (Jeremiah 33:3a). What's the answer going to be like, God? How will I recognize Your answers?
First all, “ . . . I will tell you great things you have not known” (v.33b). I will inspire you with greater understanding and knowledge than you could achieve on your own.
Let's think about Jeremiah here for a minute. God instructed Jeremiah to remain unmarried as a sign of the harsh judgment that God was bringing to correct Israel in their rebellion. Jeremiah’s audience was heavily into idol worship. They were into deception and debauchery. You say, "Man, it's so hard now. I wish we could go back to the old days." Really?! How about those olden days when people were so far from God that they were sacrificing their little children in the fire as offerings to Moloch? God's people were fully engaged in this blatant rejection of God. Don't ever say to yourself, "It's so far gone. It's never been this bad!"
This is as clear as it gets: If something is going on in your life today and you're wondering about God’s character, "If God really is X, then why is Y happening?" The answer to that dilemma is prayer. God says, “Call to Me, (in that moment) and I will tell you great things you don't know.”
Here's an awesome way to pray: it doesn't matter if you're going through heartbreaks in ministry or family or in your career or whatever. These crises are prime times to go to God and say, "I'm not seeing it, Lord. I'm not feeling it. Why would You allow us to go through this?" Now the answer God provides is not necessarily coming directly from Scripture. But insight to help you understand what's happening and why it’s happening will come through prayer! And you won’t know this until you pray! The reason why we're so often perplexed and frustrated and bitter and defeated—God forgive us—is because of our prayerlessness. “Call to Me, and I will tell you great things you have not known.”
—James MacDonald
Journal
· What are some areas of life that I’ve been considering “off limits” that I now know I need to entrust to God and expect to have Him answer with “great things you have not known?”
Prayer – Almighty God, You know the “scary” areas of my life. You know the things I’m afraid to bring up to You because they seem to cast doubt on Your goodness or sovereignty. Remind me that I don’t have to “cover” for You. Show me that I can trust You with things that look impossible to understand or to endure. Teach me that You will always be with me, even when I don’t understand. Thank You for Your faithfulness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
