Prayer changes outcomes

CALL TO PRAYER

Date: 26/03/2022

By: Owusu Clifford S. 

Title – Prayer changes outcomes

2^nd Kings 20:6 – I will add fifteen years to your life, and I will rescue you and this city from the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my own honour and for the sake of my servant David.

Prayer is the single most powerful weapon every Christian possesses. The Bible says that the prayers of a righteous man are effective and powerful (James 5:16). For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (2 Corinthians 10:4). Prayer is a spiritual weapon. Whether used in thanksgiving, in exaltation, or in a request, the power of prayer is limitless. It is only in a moment of prayer that Christians are able to take charge and take dominion to override spiritual orchestrations. In today’s Call to Prayer, we will look at how prayer changes even the most difficult situations.

King Hezekiah was one of the famous kings of Judah as elaborated in the book of 2^nd Kings 18 – 20. He was one of the few kings in Judah to walk in the ways of God during his reign as a king. This is what 2^nd Kings 18:6 says about Hezekiah: “He remained faithful to the LORD in everything, and he carefully obeyed all the commands the LORD had given Moses.” He fought and won battles and consulted the prophets of God before he embarked on any battle. The Bible testifies that He followed the ways of his ancestor David and there was no king like him among the kings who reigned in Judah before or after him (2^nd Kings 18:5). His passion for God was glaring and evident in the things that he did.

In 2^nd Kings 20, the Bible talks about how King Hezekiah became very ill and was at the point of death. Specifically, 2^nd Kings 20:1 reads, “About that time Hezekiah became deathly ill, and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to visit him. He gave the king this message: “This is what the Lord says: Set your affairs in order, for you are going to die. You will not recover from this illness”. The prophecy (revelation) was spot on, neither ambiguous nor incomprehensible. Knowing the prophet Isaiah as a man through whom God speaks, Hezekiah would have surrendered because he knew he was definitely going to die. His death had already been sanctioned and sealed in the spiritual realm. But when the revelation was made known to Hezekiah, the Bible talks about what he did in 2^nd Kings 20:2; “When Hezekiah heard this, he turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord”. Hezekiah realised that at that moment the only action required is prayer. He would not tolerate the fact that his time on earth had come to an end, and even though God had said it, he had to engage in a battle for his life, and in that battle, prayer was the only weapon.

Sometimes, it is not every situation that you must accept and tolerate as a child of God. You have to stop crying about everything. It is time to say “no” to certain things. You do not have to tolerate every negative thing that has been said or declared about your life. You have a very powerful weapon and it is PRAYER. For lack of knowledge of the power of prayer and how to engage and fight battles in prayer, most Christians are living a defeated life, struggling in situations, falling back into the same sin all the time. You should not always accept situations as part of your life. God is ready to listen and act on your behalf, yours is to come to Him in prayer. The battle is not for you to fight but the battle is the Lord’s (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Now, when Hezekiah prayed about his impending death, the response was instant. God added fifteen years to his life when he prayed. A moment of prayer was enough for God to change His plans concerning Hezekiah’s life. The only thing that could override the death revelation that had been sealed in the spiritual realm was prayer. Now the question is: what would have happened if he had accepted that he was going to die and had not prayed? There is power in prayer. Revelations and prophecies are not automatic. Prayer or prayerlessness mostly determines the outcome of a revelation. It is time to talk less and act in prayer. Pray without ceasing because prayer is not ordinary and in prayer, extraordinary and unimaginable things can happen.

Prayer point:

Let us thank God for His word today and the answers to all our prayers. Let us pray for the grace and strength to pray without ceasing.

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