"Wrong Prayer"

"Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts."  Zechariah 7:13

Jerusalem was being besieged by the Babylonians.  They were being taken captive and were experiencing the judgment of God.  They had sinned against God.  They had not kept His commandments.  They were worshipping false gods, not Him.  They forsook, rejected and rebelled against the God of Israel.  For years He had dealt with them to repent and turn back to Him.  He sent prophets to tell them to repent but they would not.  Finally, the Lord turned them over to judgment at the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.   

It was at that point, when there was no escape, when defeat and exile was imminent, when the enemy was triumphing that they began to cry out to the Lord.  They cried out to the Lord to "behold their affliction".  They cried out for God's help to defeat the enemy.  They prayed that He would deliver them from their enemy and that He would fight on their behalf.  But He did not.  Why?  It was too late.  Their rejection of God had reached the point of judgment.  I also submit to you that it was also because they prayed the wrong prayer. Their pray was not one of repentance.  It was one of deliverance. 

Their sin against God was what had put them in the path of judgment.  It was not the cry for help and deliverance that would save them, but the cry of repentance for their sin against God that would have.

When we are in trouble, when we are under attack, we often do the same thing they did-- we pray for deliverance.  We don't want to go through the hard time.  We want "out".  So we call out to the Lord for help.  Maybe we are praying the wrong prayer. 

There are times when the enemy attacks and we should pray for the Lord's help and deliverance.  But there are times when our prayer should be a prayer of repentance.  Maybe a sin we have committed is what opened the door to the attack of the enemy?  When you are facing difficulties and are tempted to pray a prayer of escape, perhaps you should seek the Lord and find out what is the appropriate prayer to pray in that situation.

Have a great day.  What prayer should we be praying?

 <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell
and is sent to you free of charge for the asking from 
About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc.Please feel free to call (601) 833-5278 or
Email: mastersbusiness@bellsouth.net

Visit us on the web:

www.mastersbusiness.org