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Still need to get the book? Click here to order or download your copy (less than $10 for the hardcover and less than $2 for the Kindle version). We will meet here each Tuesday morning at 9:00, through August 6. If you can’t join us on Tuesday mornings, no worries. Anytime during the week, when it’s convenient for you, read that week’s chapter in the book and the corresponding blog post. Then join the conversation down in the comments section. Need to catch up? Read Week 1 here, Week 2 here, and Week 3 here. "Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever! Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from trouble and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.
So He bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help. Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! For He shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron." Psalm 107:1-16 Let’s review the rules we've looked at so far:
Now we come to Red Sea Rule #4
It flows naturally from this idea of keeping our eyes on the Lord, and it is an easy rule to remember because it is only one word: Pray! Have you ever heard that instruction before? I hope so. But do you ever need to be reminded of it? If you are like me, you do. It is a lot easier to worry than it is to pray. I need to be reminded of this simple instruction. How about you?
Red Sea Rule #4: Pray!
Do you ever wonder how prayer works?
I wonder about that all the time. Why does God seem to answer some prayers, but not others? Lately I’ve found myself making some requests to God and then saying to God, Come on, God. Come through on this one! Sometimes He does come through the way that I requested. Sometimes He doesn’t, and I wonder why.
In The Red Sea Rules, Robert Morgan makes an intriguing observation. "There’s something about praying with another person that intensifies prayer and sends it to heaven with greater velocity." —Robert Morgan, The Red Sea Rules. It’s good for us to pray together. God wants us to share our needs and join together in presenting our requests to Him. There is something about praying with others that God values. But if you ask me exactly how that works, I cannot give you a satisfactory answer. Does God sit up in heaven and tally up the number of people praying for any one particular thing? Then does He do the things that get the most votes? Is that how prayer works? I’m quite sure that’s not the way God operates. But I cannot tell you exactly how He works either.
I have no hesitancy in admitting to you that I can ask more questions about prayer than I can answer. However, here is what I do know from God’s Word: God invites His children to pray. The God of the universe who knows everything that is happening to every atom in every star in the farthest galaxy wants to hear from you and me. Think about that! If you’re a child of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, then the Lord of all encourages you to tell Him all of your needs. He wants to hear from you!
He wants to hear from us
Your prayers and my prayers are important to God. Therefore, whether you understand how prayer works or not, pray! When you are stuck in a hard spot and feel like giving up, what should you do? Pray! When you face important decisions but don’t know what path to follow, pray! When you’re filled with worry about the future, pray! Red Sea Rule #4 is so simple yet so very important. Pray!
Let’s take a look at a few places in the Bible where God encourages us to pray. We’ll start with one of those great summary statements. This passage is this week's memory verses.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 Anything and Everything
There is a lot that could be said about those two verses, but I’d like you to think about just two of the words found in those verses. The first one is anything. "Do not be anxious about anything." That’s a pretty broad statement! ANYTHING! Anything that frightens you or causes you worry is covered by that instruction. And Paul follows it with the word everything. "...in everything, by prayer and supplications, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." EVERYTHING!
You and I can talk to God about anything and everything, and He’ll listen. It can be a huge problem or a minor irritation. God wants to hear from you. So pray!
You are invited to the Inlinkz link party! Click here to enterPsalm 107: God wants to hear from you. So pray!
Let’s look at some examples of how we can put that into practice.
Psalm 107 is a poem that is very carefully structured. It starts with 3 verses that tell us to give thanks. Then it provides us with four situations in each of which we are told that the people pray and God answers their prayers.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! For He shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron." Psalm 107:10-16
Here is a very different kind of situation. These people had rebelled against God. They were suffering the consequences of their disobedience. But did that mean that God didn’t care about them? No. Almost the exact same wording is used to describe what happens.
"Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress" (Psalm 107:13). Isn’t that good news? God listens to our prayers when we are facing trials. Even if the reason we are having such a hard time is that we have made stupid mistakes, God is still willing to listen to us and to work in our lives. Aren’t you glad to hear that? I know I am!
The third situation is described in verses 17-22:
"Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction; they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He sent out His Word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of His deeds in songs of joy!" Psalm 107:17-22
And the writer delivers the same message to us in verses 23 through 32:
"Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters; they saw the deeds of the Lord, His wondrous works in the deep. For He commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight; they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits' end. Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and He brought them to their desired haven. Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! Let them extol Him in the congregation of the people, and praise Him in the assembly of the elders." Psalm 107: 23-32
The Psalm ends with this conclusion:
"Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord" (Psalm 107:43).
If you’re smart, the writer is saying, you’ll learn from the experiences of God’s people that are described in these four situations. Pray! If you’re suffering from something natural like a sickness or if you are suffering because of someone else’s cruel action, pray! Even if you are suffering the consequences of your own foolish decisions, God is still ready to hear from you. So put Red Sea Rule #4 into practice. Pray!
Psalm 142: An example of how we can pray
It’s kind of a messy Psalm. David seems to jump all over the place in this poem. When I stop to think about it, I have to admit that this is the same way that I usually pray. When I’m facing a trial and am really worried about something, my prayers are usually pretty messy too. I say one thing to God and then I say something else to Him and then I go back and repeat what I have already said. I am so glad that Psalm 142 is in God’s Word! Listen as David talks to God and see if you can identify with what he’s saying: "With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before Him; I tell my trouble before Him." Psalm 142:1-2
Do you hear the emotion in those words? "I cry out... I plead for mercy..." What would be a modern equivalent? I yell, Hey God! Or how about "I pour out?" How might we say that today? I dump everything on God. Those are strong words. It almost sounds like David is angry with God until we read what David says next.
"When my spirit faints within me, You know my way! In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me." Psalm 142:3
That’s a positive statement. It’s very short, but it is still positive. David is saying that even when he’s down and emotionally exhausted—even then, he knows that it is God who knows the way out. God, You know my way! David is confident in God. But as soon as he says that, he once again gets swallowed up in his problem.
"In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me. Look to the right and see: there is none who takes notice of me; no refuge remains to me; no one cares for my soul.." Psalm 142:3b-4
Do you hear the despair in his voice? Here is someone who is scared to death. People are out to get him. He’s lonely. He longs for someone—anyone—to come and be his companion in his fear. But then David tells us what he actually says to God.
"I cry to You, O Lord; I say, 'You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.'” Psalm 142:5
That’s another positive statement. God, You are my refuge. I believe that God! That’s why I’m praying to You. I do believe that You are my refuge. But as soon as he says that he goes back once again to describe the turmoil that churns up within him.
"Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low! Deliver me from my persecutors, for they are too strong for me!" Psalm 142:6
Here for the first time in the whole Psalm he actually asks God for something. "Deliver me." That’s the whole request. He doesn’t go into great detail, it's just God, please deliver me!
In verse 7 he repeats the request, and then he expresses his hope for the future. "Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to Your name! The righteous will surround me, for You will deal bountifully with me." Psalm 142:7
David looks to the future and hopes that there will come a time when he can get together with other people who love God. If that happens, he will be glad to tell them about how God has been good to him and rescued him. The poem does end on a note of hope, but in light of what he has said earlier it doesn’t come across to me as a real strong and stirring statement of hope.
What a roller coaster ride David is on! He goes up and down and up and down. He is relying on God. He does have hope for the future. That comes across. But you can tell as you read this Psalm that even when he declares his faith in God he’s still feeling the full force of his worries and his fears. How often are we overcome by our own Red Sea experiences and we too, like David, are up and down and up and down—one moment relying on God (and yes we have hope, we declare our faith in Him) but still there is the full force of worry and fear? Wrapping it all up
So, what do we learn from Philippians 4:6-7 and Psalms 107 and 142? Pray! Talk to God about what you’re thinking and feeling. You can be as emotional as you want with God. Pour out your heart to Him. You don’t need to hold anything back.
Your prayer doesn’t have to be eloquent. It’s OK to pray messy prayers! Just pray! When you make your requests to God, you don’t have to go into great detail. God really does not need our diagnosis of the situation. He knows what’s going on. He knows what’s best for us. All we really need to say is what David says in Psalm 142. God, please deliver me. So pray! That’s Red Sea Rule #4. Pray! You can go on at length if you want. God is more than willing to listen. Or, you can pray a real short prayer. That’s OK too. Just pray. Pray emotionally. Pray honestly. Pray through all your ups and downs. Just be sure to pray. This week's discussion questions:
Can I challenge you to memorize Philippians 4:6-7 with me this week?
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7
portions of this post are quoted from www.efcbemidji.org
24 Comments
6/25/2019 09:55:27 am
Yes! Boma. Prayer IS the mater key—AND the key to the Master! "Sometimes our problems appear to be so ginormous 🤯 that trusting God with them seems beyond our ability. We make an effort to turn the problem over to God, but we soon find ourselves paralyzed with fear and worry all over again. How do you trust God with difficulties that are so overwhelming?”
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6/25/2019 09:53:19 am
I am loving your posts on this book! I am waiting... for my copy to arrive. ;-)
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6/25/2019 09:58:26 am
Oh, yea! April. :) I hope it arrives quickly. I am just loving this study too. It's been so good for me. I'm thinking when the 10 weeks are done I may need to take these posts and put them into an eBook format. But WoWZers! Would that ever be a boatload of work!!! LOL
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6/25/2019 09:56:38 am
I love this encouragement to pray! Oh, what a privilege it is to be able to "come boldly before the throne of grace", real and raw, sharing our hearts with a personal and compassionate God! I enjoyed your look at Psalm 107. What a picture of grace! I know I've experienced God's saving grace countless times when my troubles were my own fault. It's a humbling gift. He is so good.
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6/25/2019 10:06:14 am
Jana! I LOVE what you wrote here! What a privilege to come boldly, whether it's a well-put-together kind of prayer or a messy kind of prayer. Whether it's our own doings that got us into this mess, or not. How ever we come to Him, He hears. He wants to hear! He wants us to come to him. GRACE!
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6/25/2019 10:20:43 am
I pray all day! I #neversayamen Red Sea Rules is a great little book.
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6/25/2019 10:33:13 am
Susan, I love that hashtag #neversayamen What a great concept! Always in an attitude of prayer. I also love how we can pray about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING. He want's us to talk to Him about anything and everything. Even if it's something stupid I did! LOL <— that happens! Seriously though, such a privilege! Red Sea Rule #4: Pray!
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6/25/2019 11:03:35 am
I love your discussion of Psalm 104. Yes, so true, the bottom line is that God wants you to pray. So pray!
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6/25/2019 11:28:46 am
Laurie, I don't think I had ever caught onto that in Psalm 107 before. Whether it's something totally not of my doings, or it's totally me doing something stupid or wrong, God wants to hear from me about it (anything & everything) AND He wants to deliver me! That's so encouraging! GRACE! Pray!
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6/25/2019 06:08:19 pm
Hi Patsy, I was just reading about the parting of the Red Sea. I have a couple of posts coming up about that. And I noticed the author's words about prayer. I just answered some others in context to unanswered prayer, He says yes and amen but there is the sower and the enemy, and sometimes waiting for His timing, thanks, God bless.
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6/25/2019 07:31:19 pm
The parting of the Red Sea has always been such a fascinating story to me. The predicament the Israelites found themselves in there, and at the hands of God. For His glory!
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Kathleen Alvito
6/27/2019 09:07:29 am
This resonates with me. I pray about something then go onto something else. Then I go back to the first thing to make it clearer to God what I meant, then I go on, then I go back and reiterate what I think the options are, and so on and so on. I love that David was all over the place, too. I am so loving this book. Thanks for the study.
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6/27/2019 09:18:12 am
Me too Kathleen!!! I pray that way too. God loves messy prayers as much as He loves the well-put-together prayers. The point here is just to PRAY!
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6/28/2019 01:47:31 pm
The book continues to be such an encouragement to me Tiffany, and I know if will be to you as well.
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6/27/2019 12:09:20 pm
I so admire you doing such an indepth study on your site. laurensparks.net
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6/27/2019 12:49:31 pm
Thank you Lauren. It is as much for me as it is for anyone else. I need it!
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Debbie
6/28/2019 10:27:17 am
This study continues to be a blessing.
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6/28/2019 11:23:46 am
Thank you Debbie! It's been a blessing to me as well.
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6/28/2019 01:42:27 pm
This week’s STUDY QUESTION #1: Can you think of a time when you cried out to the Lord in a moment of desperation or need? Jot down your recollection of the occasion.
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6/29/2019 07:16:27 am
How do I go from panic to praise? That’s the question we’re asking today.
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6/30/2019 01:58:25 pm
Study question #3: Does God welcome crisis-time praying? Base your answer on I Peter 5:6–7.
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7/1/2019 02:15:31 pm
Study question #4: Think of and jot down one or two practical ways in which you can implement a stronger set of prayer habits during this period in your life.
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