SCRIPTURE: Genesis (NIV) 32:9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’”
OBSERVATION: Jacob was headed back to his home country where he would meet his brother, Esau. Jacob had left home because Esau had threatened to kill him. Jacob had sent some messengers to Esau looking for favor, but the messengers had returned saying Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men. Jacob was desperate and turned to the Lord in prayer.
His prayer is a good example for desperate people today. First, he reminded God that he was doing what the Lord told him to do. Second, he was humble and acknowledged what God had done. Third, he stated his immediate need. Forth, he ended by reminding God of His promises.
APPLICATION: Like Jacob, when I am desperate, I should begin and end my prayer with what He has said. It is a way of saying, “I have not forgotten your word. I have hidden it in my heart. And my faith is in you!” I should not take more time in laying out my troubles that I do in praying His word! He already knows my troubles; He wants to know if I know His Word!
PRAYER: Holy Spirit, help me not to let my desperate thoughts and feelings determine how I pray. May the fact that I know you are greater than any problem I face, be clearly stated in my desperate prayers. May the humble confession of my faith, the confession of Your greatness, and the confession of what you have spoken to me all work together to build my faith and to live in victory as You change me and my current situation! Amen
Pastor Leon
Making friends for time and eternity!
On Facebook: Today’s SOAP from Pastor Leon
SOAPs by Pastor Leon 