Prayer in the Middle of the Mess

Hey this is Mike Zwick from if not for God podcast our show stories of hopelessness turned and I hope your chosen Truth Network podcast is starting in just seconds. Enjoy it, share it, but most of all, thank you for listening and for choosing The Truth Podcast Network. This is the Truth Network encouraging prayer, God offers an open invitation for his people to talk with him at any time about anything encouraging prayer Dr. James Banks, author of the best-selling and many other books on prayer provides weekly biblical insight help you learn to mom and now James today to start with question that anyone who has had kids ride with them in a card for any length of time would certainly appreciate an email.

It's the concept of are we there yet so you know how to get that to appear as a prayer in the Bible award show up. I love it. There's one prayer that really fits that description. In a lot of places this one. How long, O Lord.

Okay, so maybe that question was is you know you knew what were we talking about today but that prayer is an easy one and all is no probably just look at the way it shows up in Scripture in Psalm 13 David prays how long Lord, will you forget me forever and Asaph break that went Psalm 79 in ascending Psalm 89 and havoc 12 begins, how long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen well, what about the martyrs in Revelation 610 crap you got.

How long until you judge the earth. Yeah, yeah, that's right. And it's a great prayer to talk about because the fact that you see it so much and Scripture shows us something really important and it is just that that we can pray that way God never corrects her disciplines anyone for praying like this.

Not not at all in and I think those prayers are included in his word for reason and that is to show us that we can talk about anything with him. Even our disappointments again just just look at the way David and Habakkuk pray will you forget me forever or how long must I call for help, but you do not listen Aquidneck God never forgets his dear ones and listens to Esther David and Habakkuk aren't writing what they're saying but God wants us to come to him just as we are. That's comforting that's comforting thought, especially when you're going through this pandemic. For this, just a lot of us asking how long been there's nothing wrong with asking got a question like that and the fact that we can. It really helps, but let's talk about this morning. There's there's more to these prayers and just complaining is yet to really at first it might not seem like that because again what they're doing is they're just praying the way they feel, and that's fair game in the fact that we can is is great and I'm glad you bring this up, but it's more than just complaining because you do find complaint person Scripture and in God seems to be fine with those two. Most of the time, but but what we really see in in these how long prayers is that there often mixed with praise and that's really important. Like in Psalm 13 that the next-to-last verse says that I trust you and you were unfailing love, and the very last person I will sing the Lord's prays for, he has been good to me.

So you see where the focus is there something it's not about us and that really helps right.

It's not about us and really helps from despairing is to realize he does have right and ended our eyes are just on our situation, we can despair pretty quickly when I know I've done that so many times and you see a lot of people doing that right now but but the key thing is to remember when you're in the middle of the mass who God is and you can do that at the same time that you're praying how long will you allow this to go on and we need to do that because when we know God's attributes like his love and his faithfulness. We call those to mind and praise him for them. It really gives us hope things I love about this is the emotional sort of back-and-forth. The reason you pray at all is because you know that God is good, but you're in the middle of amassing and crying out exactly you're just being real with him and that is why you're going to him because he's helped you before and and you know he's good. And when we make ourselves real to God. We talked about this before he he has a way of making himself real to us, either intervenes in our circumstance or or he gives us new strength to to go through it, whatever it may be. So James really is the guy who wrote the book prayers for practical stuff. I know you really lived that. So how can we pray this way in our lives. Honestly Robbie, I think we just do it because again these are cries from the heart, and I think about again when we were going through some of those times with with our kids where it was just so rough and you just felt so now it just helps to just stay with God in the moment and you know when you're going through those times when you're thinking how could it have come to this then you have a place to turn. You know you're you you're leaning into him so DEV take a look at some of those prayers like like the Psalm 13 or 79 or 89 don't miss appraising them again that that's so important because that that emotional back-and-forth that you mention it, it's powerful got God moves through our praises to help us fight our battles and those negative things that occurred to us can help us pray with that much more passion and the Lord knows we need to do that you and helps us as we praise them to to remember. He's ultimately in control. So just give it all to him because we can't and he wants us to. And that's a beautiful thing really is James and I was thinking that you know David must've been in nonverbal processor, like me, because often when I'm talking I'll realize something is I will is actually talk through it and so you know how is good is God that he can understand that Robbie lopped off as open his mouth before he thinks email and we can really just be real with you.

Guilty as charged.

Aren't we. It's incredible God just meets us right where we are and he he sets this example for us in prayer. I mean even look at Jesus prayer from the cross, why have you forsaken me.

Even then he was actually praying the first words of Psalm 22 and if you read on in that Psalm you see that it's really about him.

It's absolutely prophetic and and then it ends on this amazing note of praise. So our God is Lord over every situation and and as we come to him no matter where we are in, and we wait for him and just go to him and that will find that he himself is is the best answer to to our prayers.

When the answer doesn't come yet because he meets us with his love, and with his hope. So James and wrap up things with that kind of prayer today that we can really take to heart and let's do it.

Father, thank you, Lord Jesus. We we praise you. Thank you that we can pray this way. Holy Spirit help us to just run to you are beautiful Savior and pour out our hearts knowing that we can and knowing that you are good. We look forward to you. We praise you for your faithfulness in Jesus name, amen. Hear more from Pastor James by visiting the website James Banks.org or by visiting these church in Durham, North Carolina.

May God bless you and encourage you to pray