The Prayer that Provokes God
Good Morning Friends,
Yesterday Mannie Jackson, author of the Book, Boxcar to Boardroom, presented to a room full of youth and youth advocates in Immokalee, Florida a roadmap for success. He pointed out the importance of trust and preparation and honesty and hard work and being surrounded by friends and the role of a Forest Gump type of luck of being in the right place at the right time.
Risky though it might first appear, embracing someone to help as a mentor/ friend was one of his key points. I would add to it that in addition to engaging men we should risk enough to have a friend in Jesus… the nudge…to offer The Prayer that Provokes God.
Scripture: And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 (ESV)
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
James 4:13-15 (ESV)
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28 (ESV)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:5 (ESV)
When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” he answered. Isaac said, “I am now an old man and don’t know the day of my death. Now then, get your equipment—your quiver and bow—and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die.”
Genesis 27:1-4 (NIV)
Message: Luck did not work too well for the rabbit because the rabbit did not understand the nature of luck. Friends, every occurrence has an antecedent. Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 makes it clear that sometimes the race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong. Time and chance happen to us all. But leaving things to chance for the Christian is a mistake. We need to risk. We need to show up. I am risking a lot putting so much scripture in today’s devotional. But this is not a simple subject. All the scripture above enlightens us to improving our chances for success. In addition, the Bible has examples of chance occurrences that may not necessarily be seen as chance. One is in the story of the death of wicked king Ahab, in 2 Chronicles 18:13 by a random arrow. Another is of the story of Ruth who just happened to be working in a field belonging to Boaz. When we are winning we like to think God is on our side. But it takes a while for loses to be seen, in the history of our lives as events, as something necessary for an even greater good. Regardless there are things one can do to improve desired outcomes beyond a perspective of simply finding joy in all things. If you show up and risk your blessings increase. Friends, the House has odds in its favor and if one is playing for the house…God’s House, even if one does not believe in the sovereignty and providence of God, one will have better results. Good fortune, success and prosperity come to those prepared to receive it. Because God wants to bless us, it is our job to engage God in a discussion on how we can get more blessings. Some scripture suggests we make someone who has the authority and means happy to the extent that they pronounce a blessing. Jacob teaches us how to be blessed….lucky. Blessings come and curses come for reasons. Regardless sometimes we need to ask God to throw the dice because when He does they are loaded.
Pray that those things that are a hindrance to God’s blessings, be removed by grace. Pray we have divine favor. Pray we are connected to God. Pray as servants of God we be carriers of blessings to others. Pray we build a community of stronger Christians. Pray we be willing to provoke God to action. Pray we realize that sometimes luck takes its time.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 