Saying Your Prayers

"In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength." (Isa. 30:15) In the Old Testament, when the Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah to the Israelites, He would encourage them to trust completely in Him to fight their battles for them. Yet, despite His Word, they refused to listen to Him.

In verse 16 we read: "But ye said, No; for will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee; and, we will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift. One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one." When calamity comes, whose counsel will you take? Just like the Israelites at that time were faced with annihilation from their enemies all around them, we are faced with enemies seemingly too big to handle. We are in the end times, exactly as foretold in the Word of God. Wars and rumors of war, earthquakes, floods, fires and pestilences are upon us.

Fear is all around us and daily expounded on by the news media. The people of old SAID: No, we will handle it our way. Not only did they think it. They spoke it, and therefore they received what they spoke (verse 16 above). You get what you ask for, i.

e. speak! The Lord gives His Word which tells us what to do. Yet, He will not negate your words. In other words, He answers your prayers! You may "pray" for healing, safety and provision in church or in your quiet time with Him, but do your everyday words reflect your faith that you have already received His answer? "For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not .but watereth the earth.

give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." (Isa. 55: 10; 11) Wow! That's a fresh new revelation from the Lord for me today! As I'm writing this I realize that those verses don't just mean that whatever the Lord says, he will do, as I have always thought they referred to! Yes, it means that as well. But. can you see it? He is telling you by His example not to speak anything you do not want, expect or mean to happen! Why? Because it will do what it says out to so! Your words express what you believe in your heart will happen.

What you speak is tantamount to the most fervent "prayer." In fact, it is the essence of true prayer. If you ask Him in your prayer closet to heal your cyst, but constantly tell your family and friends about the pain and the doctor's negative prognosis, what are you doing? You are taking your fervent prayer back out of His hands and telling Him that you can do it in your own might! The more you come to know His Word and thus His Will, the more you can speak His perfect purpose for your life into being! Fear is a strong motivator to get you to react against the Word of God. But, fear is the exact opposite of faith, and without faith we cannot please God. (Heb. 11:6) Have you been preoccupied with work, worries about the future, and bad reports? Then I encourage you to return your attention to the Lord.

Then He will give you rest. In His rest your spirit will grow quiet and gradually gain more and more confidence that He will do what He promises. "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

" (Ps. 55: 22).

Ann Stewart is the author of "With Wings As Eagles," An autobiographical account, it motivates, inspires and encourages others to stand victoriously in their trials. http://www.as-the-eagle.com/challenge.html.