Three step Prayer

When I first learned to pray, it was from the older generation in a very conservative church. I was eleven, and I well remember yawning, doodling, mind-wandering prayers on Sunday morning that would be easily 10-15 minutes long. These prayers had big fancy words (to an eleven year old) and were often prayed in the old english style of speaking with 'thee' and 'thy' commonly used.

Now, I'm not here to pick apart the way people pray, because I believe that is between them and God. However, I want to appeal to the younger generation, or those who have given up on knowing 'how' to pray.

Come away with me to the book of Isaiah. It is not a book that many people read regularly, and in my youth, I confess I didn't read it at all. I couldn't see the relevance, or what it could offer to me. However, as I have walked with God (imperfectly) through these last 30 years, I have learned that there is something for us to learn in every book of the bible. In chapter 37 of Isaiah, we enter the middle of a story. The King of Israel at the time is Hezekiah. He is a good king, not perfect, but wanting to follow the ways of the Lord. This doesn't insulate him from the trials and tribulation of being a king of Israel during this time period.

In his years on the throne, he has had success and failure. He is presently without an heir, his wife having not been able to conceive. Hezekiah is, at this point in the story given a letter from an opposing king. This is not a friendly letter. In verses 10-13 we can read the threatening contents of the letter. Phrases like: "don't let your god deceive you" and "you know very well that wherever we go, we take the nations as our own" and "look what has happened to the other nations...did any god help them?"

Now haven't we all been in a similar situation? Is king-Financial Burden coming after you? or maybe it's king-Parenting challenge, or king-Marriage-crisis and I know everyone has had king-Temptation send that threatening letter!

Hezekiah, in verses 14-20 gives us a wonderful pattern to follow when we feel Satan breathing his foul breath of fear on us. The first thing Hezekiah does is go to the Lord. Not to his wife, or his trusted advisors - he knows that this is a problem for God to deal with - no one else has the necessary strength and skill to help him. Hezekiah approaches God and "spreads the letter out before the Lord." (v.14) And here we see a pattern we can follow.

1. "You alone are God" (v. 16). Hezekiah reminds himself, of who God is. What his character is. We can do the same. When you are facing some difficulties, remind your heart that you follow a God who cannot lie, never casts a shifting shadow and is a good God who does good things.

2. "You alone created" (v.16). Spend some time after you remind yourself of God's character to reflect on what God has done. What mountains have you climbed with his help? What valleys has he walked you through, safely to the other side? His creation shows us a little of what God is like too. I believe God loves color and diversity. I also think that the joy and peace and sometimes laughter I experience while observing nature tells me that God also values these things as well.

Once our heart are properly aligned with God, understanding who he is and reminding ourselves what he has done in the past, we can move to the last part of Hezekiah's prayer.

3. "Bend down, O Lord, and listen" (v. 17). Hezekiah approaches the God of the Universe and ask him to lend an ear, to come close as a caring father would and stoop to listen to his fearful child's request. And we too have this confidence that when we approach God, as his blood-bought child, he will stoop down to listen. He cares not if we use simple words. He want his children to come with confidence, knowing that he cares and will help us if only we ask.

We do well to remember Hezekiah's pattern for prayer, and employ it often and earnestly. Knowing God's character gives us confidence. Recounting his faithfulness gives us hope and assurance that when we bring to him our fears and requests he will hear, and be faithful once again.

"The only safe place for a sheep is by the side of his Shepherd, because the devil does not fear sheep. He only fears the Shepherd."

~A.W. Tozer