Make Up Your Mind To Pray (Part 3)
“The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” James 5:16
Jesus’s prayer life teaches us some key essentials. He had a time to pray, a place to pray, and He prayed out loud. And then, notice the fourth essential from the prayer life of Jesus. He prayed for people by name. He prayed for His friends and family by name. Luke 22 says, “And the Lord said, ‘Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has desired to sift you as wheat.’” Have you ever had a burden for a loved one? Jesus had a burden in this passage. And notice what He did. Jesus called His friend’s name out. Jesus’ prayer was not unspecific. His prayer was not general. But He prayed out loud, and He prayed for Simon by name.
You may face difficulties and challenges today, but Jesus, right now, is praying for you. You are on His heart. Your name is on His lips, and He is not just praying general prayers for all His billions of children; He’s praying for you by name. He “ever lives to make intercession” (Hebrews 7:25) and He’s calling your name out because He knows when Satan is targeting somebody’s life.
Have you ever wondered who Satan was asking permission from when he asked to sift Peter? Who was he asking? Was he asking God? God wouldn’t give him permission. Many scholars believe that he was asking for evil angels to attack him. He was saying to his evil angels, “I desire to sift that one as wheat. I want you demon spirits to go get this man and stop him and ruin him. He has a great possibility. I sense God’s hand and destiny upon his life, and so I want you to focus demonic hordes of hell on him and stop him before he gets to his purpose and wipe him off the face of the earth.” And demons said, “We will do it,” and they were released, and hordes of hell came against his life.
But here comes Jesus, and He says (paraphrased), “I’m going to pray for you by name. And it’s not that you won’t fall or mess up, but I am praying that you won’t quit and you won’t utterly fall out of the hands of God’s grace. And on the day of Pentecost, you’ll preach, and 3,000 people will be saved.”
Satan studies our genetic backgrounds. He studies our past failures. He studies our children and our children’s children. He puts these demonic hordes into motion and says, “I want to stop them. I sense that there’s a plan and a purpose for their life. Go now and wipe that person out.” But as you pray for your son or daughter out loud and call out their name, strength, power, and grace, come and cover them.
1 John 5:14 tells what happens when we pray. “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” Is it God’s will to save your family? Is it God’s will that your children make wise choices? Is it God’s will that they marry the right person? Is it God’s will? It absolutely is God’s will. Pray daily for God’s will to be done in your loved ones’ lives because God wants to partner with you to see them have a great future.
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