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FRUITFUL PRAYER LIFE

LIVING A  FRUITFUL PRAYER LIFE (2)

Scripture Reading: Exodus 17:11-13

Let us start today’s devotional with a story from Fr. Michael Akpan. “Jane was a wonderful woman. Wherever she found herself, people loved her. To many she was a helper in times of trouble. In her parish she was a member of the Blue Army and the Charismatic Renewal. It was evident that she was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. Many went to her for prayers. She was a ready and able intercessor. She gave spiritual support to friends and relatives. When her husband lost his job, Jane spent several nights in prayer and a new door for a better job was opened for him. She used to gather her husband and their five children in prayers every morning and evening. She used to have revelations about several issues during her private prayer sessions. Three days to the initiation of her second son into a cult, Jane had a dream after she had prayed. In the dream she saw people asking her son to write his name on a sheet of paper which had blood on it. In the dream a voice told her that her second son is about to be enlisted into violence. She woke up and prayed against it and the next morning she confronted her son on the issue. As she began praying with him, her son broke down in tears and told his mum how he started getting involved with a particular group of friends in school. That was how her son was delivered. As a nurse in the state hospital Jane prayed often for sick persons and they became well. Years later,  she made some new friends, most of whom were members of her parish. Initially she felt uncomfortable about these new friends, but gradually she felt relaxed in their company. She began spending more time with them. She gradually fell in love with  some novels which were given to her by one of the new friends. Her daily bible reading dropped. She began boycotting prayer meetings and claimed that she was busy with other urgent matters. Her behavior started changing. She will pick a quarrel with her husband at the slightest provocation. To avoid her, her husband started coming home late at night drunk. Two years later he was diagnosed of a severe liver disease. The doctor said he will die in less than four months. As if the problem at hand was not enough, her twenty year old daughter packed out of the house to live with an unknown man away from home. That year, this same  daughter had an abortion that almost took her life. In the midst of these problems, JANE DID NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO. SHE HAD LOST INTEREST IN

PRAYER. She knew something was wrong, but she could not pray again.” 2 Samuel 1:27 says “How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!”

Child of God, what is your own story? What is the condition of your prayer life?  2 Kings 19:19 says, “Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that You alone, O Lord, are God.” (NIV) When Hezekiah was threatened, he ran to the temple to pray, and earned victory from the Lord. Prayer is the secret of living victoriously. It is time you redoubled your efforts in prayer. The circumstance in which Samson found himself after Delilah had cut him off from the source of his strength, provoked him in the spirit that he prayed. Are you losing victory in any area of your life, or are you receiving threats from evil powers? Is the devil destroying what you labored for? Reactivate your faith, reconnect to God the source of your power again, go down on your knees again, lift up  holy hands in prayer, employ the weapon of fasting, and hold onto God’s word again like King Hezekiah and Samson. Do not behave like Jane who could not pray in her greatest time of need. You are not only authorized to speak to God, you are invited to approach God in prayer.

Prayer Points:

Confess your sins and weakness to God.Take the Prayer against the Force of Darkness.Take the Prayer for Spiritual Renewal.Take the Prayer of St. Padre Pio.

Exercise: Run away from friends that cut you off from fellowship and private prayers.

Memory Verse: 1 Peter 4:7

Join St Michael's CBIU today in her monthly prayer meeting , immediately after 6:30pm mass. Rebuild your prayer life again.