"The Power of Persistent Prayer"

In our series, on Wednesday evenings, entitled "A Walk Through The Bible" we have been studying the life of David from the time he was a young man, and up until the time that he became the king of Israel. David has been called "a man after God's own heart." One of the reasons he is so known lies in his unfailing dedication to talking with God. David made an inquiry of the Lord before entering into, virtually, any undertaking. We can take a lesson from David's success in this regard.

Other great men of the Old Testament, such as Moses, Joshua, Samuel, Daniel, etc. all began life as unlikely candidates to have ever been chosen to grace the pages of God's word. One common thread that linked them all together was their faith in God and their devotion to prayer.

In studying the pages of the Bible one can determine that the course of history has been changed through the power of prayer. Abraham interceded for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and they could have been saved had there been just ten righteous people to be found. In Luke 18:1-7 Jesus told a parable of a city judge (who represents God, the Father) whose mind was changed through the, continual beseeching of one woman. This parable was preceded with the declaration that "men ought always to pray and not lose heart." We should always "pray without ceasing," as Paul ordered the Thessalonians in chapter five and verse 17. We should always pray fervently and persistently. There are times when there seems to be no hope outside of God's will and in those times we must "pray without ceasing."

I know that each of you was distressed to learn that our Bro. Richard Botts suffered a serious heart attack on Tuesday and has remained in the Critical Care Unit of the St. Thomas - West facility. I will decline to give many details regarding his condition at this time but, just suffice it to say that Bro. Richard is in dire circumstances and is in need of the fervent and persistent prayers of every one of us. Never forget that every one of us needs every other one of us. Please offer a prayer, to God, on behalf of Bro. Richard Botts. Also, remember the individuals on our sick list as well as our extended prayer list. They all need our prayers.

"And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up." James 5:15