Deal First With God || Further Notes on Prayer

"What a friend we have in Jesus,

All our sins and griefs to bear.

What a privilege to carry

Everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit,

O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry

Everything to God in prayer."

- Joseph Scriven

I recently wrote a post on how prayer should be our first resort, and the passage from my morning devotions today seemed to fit so well with that post that I decided to share it with you all.

Deal First With God

 

"It is modern man's habit to speak much of his troubles (which he generally

calls problems). Endless time and energy are expended on 'sharing' when

prayer is really what is needed. Hannah's strength lay in her habit of taking

things first to God. In her grief over her childlessness she wept and could

not eat, but when Elkanah asked what her trouble was there is no record of

her telling him. He guessed it, as a loving and understanding husband may,

but Hannah stood before the Lord and prayed to Him, weeping bitterly.

Eli the priest saw her lips moving in silent prayer and took her for a drunk.

She explained that she was pouring out her heart before the Lord --

but she did not say why. She did not think it necessary to pour her heart

out to the priest. Nor did he inquire. He simply asked God to answer her.

 

"The lessons of prayer are deep. We will not learn them until we form the

habit of dealing first directly with God. Usually we will find we need not

bother husbands, priests, or other busy people who have burdens to bear.

We will be free to bear others' burdens, which we are commanded to do.

We are also told to bear our own. Nowhere are we told to lay our burdens

on others, or to oblige them to bear ours."

 

- Elisabeth Elliot, The Music of His Promises