The Believer’s Prayer                                                        April 3, 2010

Acts 4: 23-31

This prayer takes place when Peter and John return to their own people with a report on all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.  They prayed to the Sovereign Lord who made the heaven and earth and the sea and everything in them.  They mentioned the words of David where he asked why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?  The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.  They mention Herod and Pontius Pilot meeting together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against God’s holy servant Jesus, whom God anointed.   They did what your (God’s) power and will had decided before hand should happen.  In other words God knew beforehand what would happen and it did.  They prayed for boldness to speak out, to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of Jesus.  And after they prayed the place where they were meeting was shaken, which was a sign that the prayer had been heard.   They were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the words of God boldly. 

I believe this passage has a lot to say to us today, not only with the national situation the way it is, but also locally.  We need to boldly proclaim God’s word and not sit back and blend in because that’s the easier way.  We also need to be praying for our leaders, our President, senators, congressmen, governor, local officials and especially our pastors.  Even if we don’t agree with everything our leaders are doing or saying, God has allowed them to be put in their positions and we need to pray for them and not criticize. 

Dear heavenly Father, I pray that the whole community will be prayer warriors, that we will cease grumbling and criticizing, and that we all would more boldly speak out your truth, in Jesus name,  Amen.