Higgy's Prayer Blog

This past week while reading the book of Ezra in the New Living Translation, a certain phrase kept popping up in chapter 7 that captivated my attention:  'for the gracious hand of his God was on him'.  I stopped to ponder what  merited the gracious hand of God upon one's life.  I thought, "If possible, I want this in my own life"; so I asked the Lord to show me the secret to Ezra's life.  Isn't it amazing how one can read right over profound revelations so simply written that one never sees them at all!  I sensed the Spirit of God impressing me to reread verses 6-10.  In verse 10, the secret was discovered!  For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statues and ordinances in Israel.  The NLT states this was the reason God's gracious hand was upon him.

I do believe the secret is found in the determined set of the heart to do right, don't you?  This had to be his a lifestyle, the priority of his life through his years in Babylonian captivity.  His faithfulness to God in what may have seemed to others a futile habit, counted big in God's sight because when the timing for the return to Israel was right, guess who God put in the role as leader? Ezra, the scribe skilled in the law of Moses, whose heart was rooted in the Scriptures, whose life exemplified obedience, and who took responsibility for teaching the Scriptures to others. Added to this blessing is the fact that everything he requested for the trip home was granted by a pagan king!  Ezra gave credit where credit was due in verses 27-28: "Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to adorn the house of the LORD which is in Jerusalem, and has extended lovingkindness to me before the king and his counselors and before all the king's mighty princes. Thus I was strengthened according to the hand of the LORD my God upon me!"  There is so much to learn from this brief insight into the heart of a man whose ways please God!

Last Friday, I shared this insight in a Bible study with my dear friends in an assisted living center, all of whom are confined to wheelchairs.  I carefully explained that they, like Ezra, could set their hearts to read their Bibles each day and ask God to help them understand what He was telling them.  I challenged them to obey what they read and be reminded that Jesus said that all the commandments were summed up in two ways:  Keep on loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength....and keep on loving your neighbor as yourself.  They nodded their heads to indicate they understood! However, when I mentioned the word 'teach', their reaction was, "Oh, we can't do that!"  I responded, "Oh! Yes, you can!"  I shared that if they would set their hearts on reading the Word each day and be careful to do what it said, their actions, reactions, and attitudes would have such a Christlike quality, their very lives would daily 'preach sermons'!  I assured them they did not need a degree from seminary....just a childlike heart to pay attention to what God says, do it, and live it out!  Almost to a person, faces brightened as truth began to dawn, and a glimpse of what God could do through them, in spite of their confinement, began to take shape.

As i got into my car to leave, the thought came, "If those dear people could reach out to grasp a challenge, how much more should I?"  With a sober mind and a humble heart, I left that day with a determination to study the Word more diligently, obey what it says, and  seek to live it out so others may be introduced to the incredible joy of Jesus everywhere I am.

Often I  respond to written prayer requests from people who  give their email address the encouragement of Proverbs 3:5-6: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. 

I have been pondering lately the three conditions that are required in order to receive His direction, realizing more clearly that each has its own challenge.  I'm working toward experiencing wholehearted trust....asking Him to help me truly understand what goes into being 'wholehearted'.  I find it  easier to acknowledge Him because of the growing knowledge of His incredible Names and try to remember to do that in every area of my life.  But the one that is the hardest is the mental thing!  Quite frankly, it's tough to divorce myself from thinking my own thoughts when it comes to leaving the issues of life in His hands.  How is He going to answer my prayers, when He will do it, and what will the outcome  be?  All too often I find myself involved in mental gymnastics as I seek to figure out how God will "fix" that which concerns me.

Why is it that we try to figure God out?  The Word says His ways are past finding out (Romans 11:33)!  It is obviously a foolish waste of energy to attempt to put such a great God in the small box of my expectations!  He won't fit!  When God is not acting in the manner I expect, I can become frustrated and anxious- once again, proof of my leaning to my own understanding!  Tells a lot about my maturity, doesn't it?  Again, I wonder why He takes so long in some cases when the answer is perfectly obvious to me.  Says a lot about an obnoxious attitude that robs me of the quietness and confidence that could be mine if I would simply trust Him to be the God He is. Only He knows how often an answer has been delayed because I consistently seek to figure things from my perspective instead of simply trusting Him with the issue! 

In His lovingkindness, He brought to my attention Proverbs 20:24, NLT, a  timely word to enable me to jumpstart the growth toward wholehearted trust:  The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?  Isaiah 30:19-21 swiftly came to mind as I was reminded that the issue of circumstances, regardless of how difficult or how stubborn, really doesn't matter.  What does matter is obedience to the Lord's instructions: "This is the way, walk in it!"  He rarely gives insight up front.  That comes much later and is called hindsight!  Did I understand His message?  You bet!  His instruction was short, sweet, and to the point, and I am trusting Him to help me work out the application from this point on!

Thanks, loving Father, for yet one more reminder that You are God who has so graciously taken the responsibility for me and all things in my life; and You never make a mistake, Your timing is perfect, and You love me unconditionally in spite of myself!  Today, I ask that the sum total of my expectation be found in You alone as Psalm 62:5 KJV instructs.  O, help me learn to truly rest in You, leave life up to You, and profit from what I learn of You through each and every circumstance!  Papa-God. You are so precious to me!

I love You,

Your fledgling daughter