May the mumbling commence!
Praying is listening. Praying is accepting your blessing. Praying is doing what the Lord has called you to think and say and do. Read from Numbers chapter twenty-three:
Then Balaam said to the king, "Stand here by your burnt offering while I go to meet the Lord."
So the Lord met Balaam and gave him a message. Then he said, "Go back to Balak and give him this message."
So Balaam returned to the place where the king and the officials of Moab were standing beside Balak's burnt offerings. "What did the Lord say?" Balak asked eagerly.
This was the prophecy Balaam delivered:
"Rise up, Balak, and listen! Hear me, son of Zippor.
God is not a man, that he should lie.
He is not a human, that he should change his mind.
Has he ever spoken and failed to act?
Has he ever promised and not carried it through?
I received a command to bless; he has blessed,
and I cannot reverse it!
No misfortune is in sight for Jacob;
no trouble is in store for Israel.
For the Lord their God is with them;
he has been proclaimed their king.
God has brought them out of Egypt;
he is like a strong ox for them.
No curse can touch Jacob;
no sorcery has any power against Israel.
For now it will be said of Jacob,
'What wonders God has done for Israel!'
These people rise up like a lioness;
like a majestic lion they stand.
They refuse to rest until they have feasted on prey,
drinking the blood of the slaughtered!" (Verses 15-24)
What the Lord commanded Balaam to say – that is what Balaam said. We must listen and follow our Lord. Neither can we reverse the direction of the Lord. Often times, prayer is about changing our own direction – aligning ourselves with our Lord.
Even Jesus knew about this facet of prayer. Whenever he was about to make an important decision, he went to the Lord in prayer. Read from Luke chapter six:
One day soon afterward Jesus went to a mountain to pray, and he prayed to God all night. At daybreak he called together all of his disciples and chose twelve of them to be apostles. Here are their names:
Simon (he also called him Peter), Andrew (Peter's brother), James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (the Zealot), Judas (son of James), Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him). (Verses 12-16)
Let us listen. Let us accept our blessings from the Lord. Let us adopt attitudes, thoughts, words and actions that the Lord is calling us to have and do. And, in the midst of all this, let us give thanks – ever and always. Thanksgiving is more than a day on the calendar. It is a way of life – a way of prayer.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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