“Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear” (Isaiah 65:24).
We say that a lot: “Keep in touch!” Or “Don’t be a stranger!” Or even, “Keep me posted!”
That used to mean, “Write a letter.” Then it was telephone, answering machines, e-mail, texting and instant messages, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter—all ways of keeping in touch, of letting family, friends, and even total strangers know what we’re doing or thinking. If a day goes by without some kind of contact, I feel like I may have become invisible. Doesn’t anybody care that I’m here??
As it becomes easier to broadcast our news into the ether, the sense that I am personally thought of and remembered can fade. That’s why I still buy and send real birthday cards, and still call (or even visit!) our daughter. I want her to know that I remember her, am thinking about her, and love her.
You know where this is leading. We have been given a great gift from God—the means to connect with Him, personally, day and night, and the assurance that He’s listening. That gift is, of course, prayer. When we pray, we never have to leave a message, or wonder if it might have gone into His spam folder or been overlooked in His Twitter feed.
On a mission trip to China some years ago, our host Phillip took us to a Tibetan Buddhist temple. It was fascinating, but also very sad. There were acres and acres of mani rocks with prayers painted on them, piles of rocks ten feet high. There were gigantic prayer wheels, hundreds of them each containing hundreds of prayers—spin the wheels to send prayers to heaven. The landscape was littered with strings of prayer flags.
How blessed we are to have a direct line and to know that God is listening. He tells us clearly: “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you” (Psalm 50:15). No matter what the situation is—confusion, fear, grief, or happiness—He’s there and listening. We don’t need to send out thousands of prayers in order to be heard.
That verse concludes with, “and you shall glorify me.” And we do!
Your prayers for our hosts and the people of other countries, our teams, our volunteers, and our staff are all valued and effective. We thank God for you and we glorify Him for the gift of prayer—and for those who pray.
To learn more about MOST Ministries, click here.
To learn more about prayer, check out the videos from our theological conference Be Constant in Prayer.
Photos courtesy of Charlotte Campbell. Featured image (c) Jordan/Lightstock.
