A Statewide Call to Pray! Day Six!

Rain! Wonderful rain! I love hearing the comments of people enjoying the rain.  The smell. The coolness. The sound! Especially in a drought season, rain is most pleasurable.  Many parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana experienced rain the last two days. But many portions did not!  The drought is still in place!

I was reminded twice this morning in my daily Bible reading of persistence.  In 2 Kings 4:8-37, we read the story of Elisha raising the Shunammite's son from the dead.  Not only was the woman persistent in seeking the prophet and only the prophet, but Elisha was persistent in working with the child until the child sneezed "seven" times and opened his eyes.  In 2 Kings 5:1-19, Naaman, commander of the army of Syria, with protest, washes himself "seven" times in the Jordan before he witnessed healing from leprosy.

When this call to pray began, it was prompted by the words from 1 Kings 18:41-46 where Elijah exhorts his servant to check the weather "seven" times before a small cloud appears.  Reread my blog: A Statewide Call to Prayer Let me share some observations. 

Rain is a beautiful gift that our Lord pours out upon the land.  It replenishes.  It causes growth.  It nurtures and strengthens.  It cleanses.  It fills up.  But rain is also a witness or testimony of the spiritual condition of the land and the people who dwell on the land.

From now on if you listen obediently to the commandments that I am commanding you today, love God, your God, and serve him with everything you have within you, he'll take charge of sending the rain at the right time, both autumn and spring rains, so that you'll be able to harvest your grain, your grapes, your olives. He'll make sure there's plenty of grass for your animals. You'll have plenty to eat. But be vigilant, lest you be seduced away and end up serving and worshiping other gods and God erupts in anger and shuts down Heaven so there's no rain and nothing grows in the fields, and in no time at all you're starved out—not a trace of you left on the good land that God is giving you. (Deuteronomy 11:13-17, The Message)

And when it doesn't rain - well - people do crazy things to get it restarted.  I saw a news report this morning of actor Tom Hanks doing a rain dance with a weather reporter.  We have witnessed "seeding of the clouds."  In Biblical times, the people turned to the perverted fertility gods (Baal, Astheroth, etc) and committed lewd acts to appease them.  The practices have not stopped.  I would encourage you to listen to presentation by Dr. John Benefiel entitled "Binding the Strongman."

It comes down to this: when we need rain, we can either dance around like fools and seek the favor of the gods OR we can humbly bow our knees before the Lord and Creator of the Universe.  Jesus is the Lord and giver of life.  He has redeemed us from the grave.  He is only redeemer of the land when it is scorched and dead.  Let's seek His face!  Texas - let's bow the knee before our only Maker, Redeemer and Sustainer.