{"id":985,"date":"2022-08-10T05:29:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T12:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=985"},"modified":"2022-08-09T22:13:13","modified_gmt":"2022-08-10T05:13:13","slug":"focused-prayer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=985","title":{"rendered":"Focused Prayer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(Genesis 18:20-32)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

August is here, which means it’s time to ask: are you done with your Christmas wish list yet? Don\u2019t you know there are only 130 days left until Christmas??? What are you waiting for? It\u2019s time to get cracking on that Christmas list! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But before you do, have you ever taken the time to go through your past lists to determine the success rate? What percentage of the gifts that you asked for did you actually receive? Has it ever been 100%? I suppose that rate of success would be easy to hit if, like my dad throughout my whole childhood, you asked for total dad things every Christmas, like socks and oil change coupons, and nothing else. But most tend to put a little more thought into our lists and, the longer the list, the less likely we are to have all of our wishes granted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prayer is not like your Christmas list in that regard. Prayer has a 100% success rate. No, that doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019ll always get everything you ask for, but it does mean that every prayer you\u2019ve ever offered up to God has been answered. And, it\u2019s been answered in one of two ways: God either gave you what you asked for, or he answered it with something better in mind. In which one of those ways did the Lord answer Abraham\u2019s prayer in Genesis 18? And how can we apply this account to ourselves so that our own lives reflect more focused prayer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abraham had just finished up sparing no expense in hosting three strangers in his home. Actually, as it turned out, they weren\u2019t really strangers. Rather, his three visitors were the Lord God himself and two accompanying angels! That impromptu dinner party culminated in the Lord\u2019s promise to Abraham and Sarah that they would finally welcome their promised child within the year.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following that revelation, the guests were about to leave and be on their way. But before they did, the Lord made known what he was about to do. He explained that he had heard the lamenting over the degree of depravity that had become quite well-known in Sodom and Gomorrah. His intent was to pay a personal visit to see if it was truly as bad as it was made out to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might understandably be wondering why God would need to pay a personal visit to confirm what he had heard. Is the Lord not omniscient? Doesn’t he know all things? Why a seemingly unnecessary trip to experience firsthand what he surely already knew?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To arrive at the answer to that question, let\u2019s ask another. Why does the Lord bother to share his itinerary and plans with Abraham? Why does he not just leave to conduct his divine business elsewhere? He surely doesn\u2019t need Abraham\u2019s approval or permission. God\u2019s plans for Sodom and Gomorrah didn\u2019t require Abraham\u2019s input or insights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his mercy, he was leaving the door open for Abraham to intervene. Yes, the Lord was well-aware of Sodom and Gomorrah\u2019s reputation; but the Lord also had covenant plans to carry out through his servant, Abraham. This was a growth opportunity for him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lord had reiterated his plans for Abraham in the preceding verses. \u201cThen the Lord said, \u2018Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him\u2019\u201d (vs. 17-19)<\/em><\/strong>. God didn\u2019t need anything at all from Abraham. Purely by his grace he had chosen Abraham as the family line through which the Savior would come. On this occasion then, we see God giving Abraham the opportunity to do \u201cwhat is right and just,\u201d acting in a way that reflected well on his gracious God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Abraham revealed the kind of heart that God desires all of us to have: one that is filled with mercy and compassion for others. Upon hearing of God\u2019s plans for Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham seized the opportunity to plead on their behalf. \u201cThen Abraham approached [the Lord] and said: ‘Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?’\u201d (v.23-24)<\/em><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depending on your level of familiarity with the Bible, you may know that something else was certainly on Abraham\u2019s heart at this point: he had family living in Sodom. Abraham\u2019s nephew, Lot, had chosen to live there, so Lot and his family were surely a part of Abraham\u2019s concern. Nevertheless, note that Abraham\u2019s request was not limited to the rescue of his own flesh and blood, but rather that God would also spare the whole city on their behalf. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you think Abraham\u2019s request would stand out just a bit in our cancel culture society today? For that matter, do you think Abraham\u2019s request would stand out even in our own midst or that of any Christian congregation today? Are we as quick as he was to ask for mercy on behalf of “people like Sodom and Gomorrah?” Are we as interested in seeing God show patience and grace to the people of the world today who would undoubtedly rival Sodom\u2019s wickedness? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or are we more like Jonah than Abraham? Would we be responding to God\u2019s stated plan to destroy Sodom with our highest approval rating, rallying behind him to “see those sinners get what they deserve?” After all, mercy and grace aren\u2019t for people like that; it\u2019s reserved for the good folks sitting in the pews on Sunday morning, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Already that says quite a bit about our prayer lives, doesn\u2019t it? When is the last time you prayed for God to show mercy to the wicked and change their hearts? When is the last time you prayed for the conversion of an unbelieving acquaintance of yours by name, especially the ones who brazenly live godless lives? When is the last time that your prayers didn\u2019t revolve at all around you? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These questions lead us all to the same conclusion: there is room for us to grow in our prayer lives. That is probably the first step in becoming more focused in prayer – acknowledging that we often aren\u2019t. And we ought to then go a step further and also acknowledge that God really doesn\u2019t need to waste another second of eternity bending his ear to hear anything that we ask of him or say to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But God is merciful. Jesus\u2019 perfect prayer life satisfied the Father. Our often pitiful prayer lives have been forgiven at the cross, along with our reluctance or flat-out refusal to make growing in our faith our greatest priority. God has taken the worst of us and nailed it to the cross, removing it from us and paying for it through his own Son\u2019s sacrifice. That means there is never a bad signal between believers and God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have all experienced the phone conversation with a bad signal – where the person on one end or the other has a spotty signal. A few words cut out here and there. The person on one end informs the person on the other that they\u2019re cutting out. So they attempt to get to where a better signal is. But it doesn\u2019t get better and patience wears thin. Finally, either the call is dropped or the decision is made to hang up and try later when the signal is better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus\u2019 work on our behalf ensures that prayer to God will never be like that. We won\u2019t cut out or get cut off. He won\u2019t have trouble hearing what we\u2019re saying on his end. Not only that, but the Holy Spirit promises to clear up whatever is muddled on our end so that by the time it reaches the Father\u2019s ears, our prayers and requests are perfectly pleasing to him (cf. Romans 8:26-27). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you get what that means? It means God isn\u2019t waiting for you to step up your prayer life in order for your relationship status with him to improve; in Christ, he\u2019s already done all that is necessary to put you on the best terms possible with him. Your status before God has been established by Jesus\u2019 perfection, not your prayers; by his sacrifice, not your supplications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So let our prayer lives reflect that. Let our prayers reflect a renewed focus. Let them imitate the qualities that Abraham demonstrated in his dialogue with the Lord: Persist, Repent, Ask, and Yield (PRAY).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Persist<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Too often our prayer life resembles the Hail Mary. We throw up a prayer at the last minute and hope a miracle results. Hail Mary\u2019s work\u2026 occasionally. But the more passes a quarterback throws, the more chances there are for receptions. The more persistently you ask of God, the more opportunities you give him to answer. Abraham peppered the Lord with one request after another as he adjusted his prayer. Don’t hesitate to do the same. After all, He won\u2019t answer the prayer you haven\u2019t asked. Think of the infinite means God has at his disposal to grant your every request. As James writes, you don\u2019t have because you don\u2019t ask (James 4:2). Infrequent prayers mean infrequent requests. Be boldly persistent – which also means to keep praying for the same thing until there is a result, or PUSH (Pray Until Something Happens).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Repent<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do not confuse a bold persistence with arrogance, however. Abraham remained humble. He displayed a repentant heart even as he persisted in his request of the Lord, confessing, \u201cthough I am nothing but dust and ashes\u201d (v.27). <\/em><\/strong>Abraham knew full well who the Lord was – that he was able to destroy not only Sodom and Gomorrah but any unholy human in his presence! And that was what he was. His tone and attitude in the midst of his prayer reflected the self-awareness of his own unworthiness. Our prayers should reflect the same repentant spirits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This one seems unnecessary – of course we ask! It\u2019s a prayer, after all, right? But bear with me. Sometimes in our prayers, we end up rambling without really saying much, not even focusing on what exactly we\u2019re asking God to do. We jump right into the prayer and haven\u2019t given enough thought to what we\u2019re asking of God. But it\u2019s a no-brainer, you reason. The person is sick, so we ask God to make them well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But is that it? Is that the only ask we\u2019d have of God in that situation? Can you think of anything else to ask for when a person is sick? Here are a few suggestions: ask for God to be glorified through the sickness. Ask for God to provide strength and perseverance to the sick person. Ask God to stretch the faith of the sick person. Ask for God to use the sickness to impact others. Ask God to work in your own heart the willing faith to accept the outcome of the sickness. Yes, ask – but think through exactly what you\u2019re asking the Lord to do in prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yield<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be all of these things in prayer, and then yield to however the Lord chooses to answer your prayer. That shows that you trust that his answer is the best possible one. God may not answer your prayer the way that you asked him to, because just maaaaaaybe he had a little more insider information than you did. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So did God answer Abraham’s prayer? Abraham asked God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah for the sake of ten people. God agreed. But… God didn\u2019t. Why? Because God couldn\u2019t! He couldn\u2019t find ten believers in the whole city! So he destroyed it. He allowed his response to make it very clear that he does not tolerate sin and that it must be punished (which is exactly what he did for us in punishing Jesus!). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But he also showed mercy and grace, rescuing Lot and his family from the destruction. So he answered Abraham\u2019s prayer in a way that was even better than what Abraham had asked. To have relented against Sodom and Gomorrah could have given the impression that God is actually quite OK with sin, quite tolerant of it, and that it\u2019s not really a big deal to him, as so many in the world today presume. But to destroy all of it would be to miss the opportunity to show that he is also a God of deliverance, of rescue and redemption. Even in the midst of destruction, God desires to deliver. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s OK if you don’t have your Christmas list done yet. In fact, you’re better off giving more attention to your prayer life instead. It will make a much bigger difference. Focused prayer will bless others, grow you, and glorify God.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Genesis 18:20-32) August is here, which means it’s time to ask: are you done with your Christmas wish list yet? Don\u2019t you know there are only 130 days left until Christmas??? What are you waiting for? It\u2019s time to get cracking on that Christmas list! But before you do, have you ever taken the time… Continue reading Focused Prayer<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[244,65],"tags":[245,100,109,36,108],"class_list":["post-985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-focused-series","category-sermons","tag-focused","tag-prayer","tag-preaching","tag-sermon","tag-teaching"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p842FN-fT","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=985"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/985\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":990,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/985\/revisions\/990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}