In a joyful place…

Yesterday brought great joy. Someone needed a sewing machine. God led me to ask a friend who had the very make and model he needed. We delivered it. Another person asked for prayer about a job interview. God gave him the job almost on the spot. The joy of seeing answers to prayer is faith-building. Often prayers that seem to be unanswered need a boost so these helped  me remember that “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Actually, what we can see may not be a true reality. Someone told me of cult members and atheists who are “such nice people” yet God describes them differently: 

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the Lord? There they are in great terror, for God is with the generation of the righteous. You would shame the plans of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge. (Psalm 14:1–6)

How easily sight can override faith or make the Word of the Lord seem false. Yet even answers to prayer for sewing machines and job interviews verify the declaration of the psalmist:

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words. (Psalm 17:6)

Answered prayer is special because it encourages me during the times I cannot see what God is doing. Now and then, He reveals Himself dramatically. This psalm is how David experienced faith becoming visible:

In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears. Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry. Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him. He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet. He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water. Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds. The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire. And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them. Then the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils. He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. (Psalm 18:6–18)

The rest of this psalm reminded me again the importance of keeping short accounts with God and being obedient. David claimed that God rescued him because He delighted in him according to the cleanness of his hands. Can I claim that? If not, my spiritual well-being takes priority over answering my prayers. It isn’t that obedience earns answers but that God wants those who ‘play His music’ to be in tune with His will so our prayers fit with what He intends to do.

I had no idea where to find a Juki 9010 nor did I know anything about the job offer, but God pointed me to a friend who had that machine and wanted him to have it. He prompted me to  pray that if this was the right job, my friend would be hired. Being in a “prayer-place” is not about me, but about Jesus Christ and how He has changes lives. As David said…

For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?— the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless. He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights. He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great. You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip. (Psalm 18:31–36)

PRAY: You, Jesus, are my rock and You show me how to pray and teach me what to say. Without You, I would not be able to claim righteousness nor know the words to say when asked to pray. You are also my rock and my God.