Your Prayer Makes a Difference
We all know that God does not listen to sinners,
but He listens to anyone who worships and obeys Him."
(John 09: 31)
One of the most commonly asked questions about prayer is, "does my prayer really matter?" And it is not surprising that we find ourselves a lot of times in the midst of such questions. Yes, there is a point in what we are thinking. If God knows everything about us, then why do we need to pray? If everything is under God's control, then how does our prayer matter anyhow? In a world that is evolving with the greatest plans of God, how do our prayers make a difference? And then, this childhood question surfaces... "Is God listening to my prayers?"
The passage that we have read today relates to an incident that could shed some light on the answers that we struggle to find. On the other hand, these findings would also reveal something more than what we have been thinking about prayer all these days, probably.
A man who was born blind was given the most cherished gift of his life - his sight. As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been born blind. Jesus spits on the ground and made some mud with it and put the mud on the man’s eyes. Then he told the man, “Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam.” So the man went, washed, and came back seeing. This is indeed headline-making news! Imagine if this would have happened today, how viral the news would have spread. The neighbours and some people who had earlier seen this man begging said, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?” Some said, “He is the one,” but others said, “No, he only looks like him.” The man himself said, “I am the man.” They asked, “How did you get your sight?” He answered, “The man named Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. Then he told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.” They asked him, “Where is this man?”
Since the people could not accept and agree with whatever was going on with this man born blind and now able to see, they took him to be questioned by the Pharisees. Even after so many clarifications were made on this miraculous healing, they could not still believe that this man was healed by Jesus. Not believing in what this man had to say about Jesus and this miracle, they began to mock him and questioned about his faith in Jesus. It is then that this man says, "We all know that God does not listen to sinners, but He listens to anyone who worships and obeys Him."
These few words from an earnest and honest heart declare one of the very important secrets that we need to know about prayer. God listens to anyone who worships and obeys Him! Amen. Every word and thought of prayer that has gone from you was never wasted. It was heard. It was well-received. It was counted. And, either it was answered or the answer is on its way! The Lord God, who created the heavens and the earth was listening to you. But what is the assurance of this has happened? How can you know that your prayers were heard? Just because of what this Bible passage says? Or just because of what this man has proclaimed? It is not just that. It is something beyond this and something very practical.
There are three important elements of our lifestyles that would assure us that our prayers are being heard. A life of Holiness, a life of Worship and a life of Obedience. This is what we learn from the Bible verse that we are meditating today. (John 09: 31)
We all know that God does not listen to sinners, (a life of Holiness)
but He listens to anyone who worships ( a life of Worship)
and obeys Him. ( a life of Obedience)
First of all, let our lives be holy in front of the Lord. We are humans and we make mistakes. We sin. But having the faith in the grace of Lord Jesus and the forgiveness of our sins through His precious blood would sanctify us and make us holy. The fellowship of the Holy Spirit will guide us to live a life that is free from sin. Today, take time to repent. Ask the Lord to forgive your sins, wash you with His cleansing blood and give you a new life that is filled with holiness.
Second. Begin to live a life of worship. Let every day and every minute that you spend be a worship to the Lord. It is not the words, it is not the singing, it is not the music and it is not the lifting of hands, but it is your lifestyle. When people meet you, let them see the characteristics of Christ Jesus in you. May your thoughts always keep Him at the most important place as you continue to trust Him while giving Him all the glory of whatever you have. That is the life of worship.
Third. Learn to trust the Lord with all your heart and begin to obey His words. One of the biggest obstacles to obey the Lord is our lack of trust in Him. When we trust Him with our whole heart in everything, we begin to understand that the obedience to His words and commands is the best lifestyle to choose. We learn obedience when we trust! So, let us trust the Lord with our whole heart and obey His words.
But above everything, let us remember that our prayers matter. This is how our prayers make a difference. They not only change our lives, but they bless the ones around us too. Our prayers are important. Indeed, we are nothing compared to God's greatness. We are feeble. We are little. But what we pray about has nothing to do with us, but it has everything to do with the One who is listening to it. Our prayers make a difference! And the Bible assures us, "and this is the boldness we have in God’s presence: that if we ask God for anything that agrees with what He wants, He hears us. If we know He hears us every time we ask Him, we know we have what we ask from Him." ( 1 John 5: 14, 15). If God is listening to your prayer, then remember He is going to answer it! Your prayer would make a great difference in this world.
I pray that all of us would find one of the greatest answers that we ever searched for. Next time when we tend to ask "is God listening to my prayer?" we have to remember that we need to see our lives first. Am I living a life of Holiness? Is my life Worshipping the Lord? Am I Obeying His words? These three important parts of our lifestyle should give you the answer. These are not rules that would keep us away from the beautiful intimacy we could have with the Lord, but these are encouragements to live a God-fearing, Christ-filled and Spirit-led life. Indeed, your prayers are going to be answered in the most wonderful way, because God is listening to them. Let our lives become so intimate with God that we would always keep communicating with Him and live a life of blessing to those around us.
May God bless you.
Yours in Christ,
"This is my desire"
