This is truly what our families, churches, and country needs this National Day of Prayer
| picture from: http://blogofkayee.blogspot.com/2011/04/raining.html |
Daily Scripture
And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,43 And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down that the rain stop thee not.
45 And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.
1 Kings 18:41-45a
Today's Thought
In the days of Elijah there was a great drought all across the land. It had been a long time since it had rained. Elijah was proving to the King and all of his men that God was the One True God versus the gods that they chose to worship. Elijah began to pray for rain. Not only was he going to pray for rain but he knew and believed it was coming before he even prayed. He even told Ahab (the King) to prepare for rain - before he even prayed. What faith and assurance Elijah had with his God. Rain was needed in the land because of the drought but it was also needed in the land to prove to the unbelievers that their was a True God. I believe we are in a time in our life where we need to see rain. We have been in a drought for a long time now. The last revival America and the world has seen was in 1904 - The Great Welsh Revival. The Welsh revival started in Wales and it spread all throughout the world even to America. Our great land needs another revival. It has been over 100 years since we have seen God's Power rain. Elijah didn't get rain by just believing and having faith....he got it through agonizing prayer. The Bible says Elijah "Cast himself down and put his face between his knees". That is a picture of agonizing and pleading prayer with God. Notice, it took 7 times of praying and searching before God answered. Sometimes we give up after praying once and seeing no results. God wants us to want it with fervency and strong desire. The Bible tells us that if His people will humble themselves and call upon his name and turn from their sins that He will heal their land. He promises us revival if we do our part....humbly pray and purge our life from the sins that hold us back. (2 Chronicles 7:14). I believe revival can come and it must come if we are to see others turn to Christ and see our world change. It will only come through the Believers in Christ doing their part. Our part is being the salt in a dry, and thirsty land. (Read about how to be Salty here)
picture from acahnman blog
I want to be able to cast jewels at Christ feet not hay and sticks. I want to give Him my all, so at the end of time, I am not ashamed at the work I did for Christ. Will you pray for Revival - earnestly pray? Consistently pray? Do you desire to see the Holy Spirits reveal himself with power? Power that is so strong it changes lives, changes government, and changes the world? It has happened before, and I believe it can happen again. The next election is not our answer to better government - Revival is the answer if you want to see changes in Washington. It was said that Billy Sunday’s preaching had a tremendous affect on the passing of the 18th Amendment. Real change is not silencing the sin but praying for God to change those who scream for the sin. May we see God's power again on such men that can change hearts, lives, families, and laws.
This song writting by Aaron Butler is my prayer today.
"I'm tired of the same old thing, of traditions wearing out Your name. I'm tired of man-made worship hour, I'm tired. I'm tired of a song without any praise. I'm tired of a song without any praise. I'm tired of religious formality. I'm tired.
Send the Rain, send the fire, send the wind, send the Holy Ghost in power. Send the rain
We're ready for Revival Lord, We ready to walk through that door. We're ready Lord oh let it pour. We're ready Lord. We're ready Lord enough is enough. We're ready Lord to drink from Your cup. We're ready, Oh, fill us up. We're Ready Lord
Send the rain, send the fire, send the wind, send the Holy Ghost in Power. Send the Rain."
Today's Bible Reading:
1 Kings 18:1-46
"To get a Nation back on their feet, we must FIRST get
back down on our Knees"
-Billy Graham
