"All I Can Do Is Pray"

Why is it that when situations get extremely difficult, or seem hopeless, or out of our control do many of us respond by telling ourselves and others, “All I can do is pray.” What do we really mean anyways? What are we really saying? Is it a statement of faith? I don’t think so..It’s almost like when say that it’s as if prayer is our last resort to our tiresome efforts of trying to resolve our own problems. In some cases some of us have made prayer exactly that..our last resort. This statement, “ALL I CAN DO IS PRAY..” usually follows a statement like this:

“I’ve tried everything I can think of to change or fix this situation now..”
“My hands are tied. It’s out of my control now...”
“I just don’t know what else to do...”

Seeking God’s will and direction for our problems, concerns, and decisions should be our very first reaction. We should pray and never give up. Prayer should not be the last resort. Just think of how many times we have only made our circumstances worse by moving ahead with our own ideas of how to resolve our situation without seeking God’s face, without praying first. (1 Thessalonians 5:17, Luke 18:1, Proverbs 16:25)

When we are facing troubles or when we are at a fork in the road that is when we need to tune our ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding even more. We need to cry out for insight and ask the Lord for help. We need to recognize and remember immediately that our hope should always be in the Lord. Our hope is in knowing that He leads us down the right path for our lives. He is our lamp. He lights up our darkness. He does not leave us or forsake us in our troubles. He is the answer to every situation. He gives us wisdom and counsel. We don’t have to fix everything on our own and we definitely should not make important decisions in our lives without praying and even fasting first. (Proverbs 2:2-3, Jeremiah 17:7-8, Psalm 23:3, Psalm 18:28)

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask Him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.” (James 1:5-6)

I love how Queen Ester handled the horrific news that was brought to her via messenger from her mentor and cousin Mordecai. She was told that there had been a decree of death pronounced by the king and his prime minister, Haman. They planned to kill millions of people-including women and children. Mordecai directed her to go before the king and beg for mercy and to plead for her people. They both knew that if anyone appeared before the king in his inner court without being invited they were doomed to die unless the king held out his gold scepter. Even the queen had to be summoned. This was a terrible dilemma, but she was determined to lay down her life if she needed to, but first she determined to seek God’s will and direction. Queen Ester proclaimed a three day fast for her and her people. They all got on their faces before the Lord asking for God’s help and favor. They prayed for the queen and for their own lives to be spared. (Ester 4)

After those three days and nights of fasting and prayer she got up, cleaned up, and put on her royal robes. She was prepared to go before the king prayed up and trusting the Lord to go before her. Many of you know the story. The Lord gave her great wisdom as to how to tactfully approach the situation. The outcome was that the truth of the plot against her people was revealed to the king and their enemies were defeated. It’s an awesome story! (Ester 5-9)

“The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” James 5:16

With every situation that presents it’s self we need to go boldly into the throne room giving thanks immediately to our Lord for the answer and direction that He will provide, because He WILL direct our steps, we just need to seek his face. We don’t have to be afraid or over burdened with troublesome feelings or emotions, confusion, or fear over our circumstances. We need to rise up with the Spirit of power and love, trusting Him and immediately drawing close to the Lord knowing that He will draw close to us.

Let us be determined to seek God first, His will, and His way of handling this life’s troubles. May prayer be our first reaction instead of our last resort. In Jesus name amen…