Often when I am under stress and pressure, I feel one of my greatest needs is to get a good night’s sleep. But I’ve found that physical rest alone is not enough to revive my flagging spirit. I need the spiritual revival that comes from spending quiet time alone with Jesus in prayer and in thoughtful meditation on His Word.
A careful study of the life of Jesus reveals that as pressed as He was, He “often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” If Jesus felt He needed time alone in prayer with His Father, why do you and I think we can get by without it? How is your prayer life? Could some of the exhaustion you are feeling be the result of simple prayerlessness? How motivating it has been for me to view my early morning devotions as times of retreat alone with Jesus, Who desires that I “come with Him by myself to a quiet place” in order to pray, read His Word, listen for His voice, and be renewed in my spirit.
When Jesus confronted a man beside the pool of Bethesda who had been paralyzed for thirty-eight years, He asked, “Do you want to get well?” (John 5:6, NIV)
At first, it must have sounded like a thoughtless question. Surely anyone who had been lying down for so long would want to get up. But Jesus knew it can be easier to lie on a cot letting people wait on you hand and foot, than to pick up all the responsibilities of life that are required when you can walk. The man answered that he did want to get well, and immediately Jesus told him to pick up his pallet, and walk. And the man did.
How do you and I show our eagerness to receive all that God has promised us? One way is through persistent prayer as we ask God for change, seek His Word about the change, then persistently pray until He brings it about. If you have asked God to change your circumstances in some way, claiming His promise for yourself or for a loved one, what are you doing to demonstrate your faith?
Have you erected a shield around your heart? A shield . . . of pride or doubt
or shame
or anger?
Did you think that if you opened your heart and let God see inside, that He would blame you for what you have or haven’t done? Or rebuke you for your lack of faith?
You and I can be so foolish! Why do we think we can hide our feelings from God? Why would we want to hide our feelings from God? Would you open up your heart and show it to Him? Let Him see exactly how you feel and what you think. Don’t hide it or repress it or cover it up or pretend it’s not there. Just pour it all out to Him, and then wait expectantly for His response.
Is God silent in your life? Could it be that He has given you Truth to which you have not responded obediently? Has He given you truth through a Bible study,
or your pastor’s sermon,
or your daily devotions,
or an inspirational book,
or a godly friend,
that you have yet to apply and obey? Have you been frustrated because the Bible doesn’t seem to make sense to you? And when you pray, is it as though your prayers hit the ceiling of your room and bounce back? Have you felt as though God has abandoned you? If so, you need to go back to the last thing you can remember that He told you and act on it. If you can’t remember, just return to the Cross by faith. In prayer, confess your sin of disobedience whether it was willful or not. Ask God to break His silence in your life.
