On Prayer and the Sovereignty of God

I find myself in the midst of a crisis which calls for MUCH prayer. It reminds me of events not too long ago when we were pleading to God for the lives of our boys on three different occasions. In all three of those situations, we were powerless to do anything, and God was all we needed and could ask for.

So, this is a similar situation for some friends of ours - I know what they are feeling right now - desperation for God to do a good work and thereby glorifying Himself. There are a number of people praying for them. Why? Because we all believe that God listens to the prayers of His saints and may act upon them.

Does this sound strange for the Almighty Sovereign God to act upon the prayers of His saints? It is not. Do not forget, Greg Wood, that God could have ordained your prayers to be that which God would act upon, thus bringing about His good plan. God ordains the end and the means to get to that end. Do not forget that your prayers show your dependency upon God. Do not forget that prayer is great blessing, the blessing of communion with your joyful heavenly Father. God has not put the universe in motion, given natural laws, stepped back, and said "Good luck!" No, He is involved in every aspect of the creation, but especially that of His moral creatures. We are not alone, we are not hopeless.

This truth of the Sovereignty of God gives me faith in Him, reverence for Him, and love for Him - and I hope that it does for you too. He gets the credit for every good in this world, and I can know that everything is done for the good of His saints (Rom. 8:28). Nothing is meaningless. Further, when God ordains a prayer as His means of acting - that prayer will be effective and nothing can stop Him.

Now come Lord Jesus, strengthen your children and their little child. Let your glory be seen and loved. Let your name be exalted. Defeat the RSV. To you, the only wise God, be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen!