Prayer Thought: What is Your Last Resort?

What I’m about to write in these next few sentences may be some of the most convicting I’ve written in a long, long time. When we are tired, when we face immense amounts of exhaustion, when we believe there’s absolutely no way the Lord could put even one more thing on our plates for today, tomorrow, the next week, or next month, what exactly is it that we do? I will tell you from my own personal experience that I don’t always do what I know is the very best thing for me to do. I tend to get lost in entertainment, or mindlessly searching for the perfect thing to watch, or maybe even jumping down the rabbit hole doing interesting research on a weird topic like “Where is Joe Pesci Now?” for no good reason, or calling someone I haven’t talked to in a bit. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that when I’m tired or even exhausted by life, many times my M.O. has been to escape to created THINGS. But in reality, when exhaustion sets in, the most important, effective thing we must learn to do is PRAY to the Creator!

“We can be tired, weary and emotionally distraught, but after spending time alone with God, we find that He injects into our bodies energy, power and strength.”

-Charles Stanely

I keep thinking about our missionaries across Europe and all of the ministry efforts they’re undertaking. I continue to think even more about our missionaries in Ukraine and also those we partner with in Russia. I don’t think I can even imagine how drained emotionally, physically, and spiritually so many of them must be! It would seem at times that exhaustion is, indeed, their closest friend. However, when we spend time intimately in the presence of our Heavenly Father, He alone is the One who can right all wrongs, give us clear direction, set our feet on sure and solid ground, and give us the strength and fortitude we need to keep going.

“When human reason has exhausted every possibility, the children can go to their Father and receive all they need…For only when you have become utterly dependent upon prayer and faith, only when all human possibilities have been exhausted, can you begin to reckon that God will intervene and work His miracles.”

-Basilea Schlink

Did you catch that? We tend to exhaust EVERY OTHER POSSIBILITY in our lives before taking our weariness to the Lord. Somehow, we think that with the right effort, power, mental acuity, or brute strength we can help God out as we participate in this life we lead. The main problem with this is attempting to do these things above when we barely have enough strength to stand. There are many famous passages such as Is. 40:30 or Matt. 11:28-29 that direct us to the Lord when we are weary. But, I believe the Psalmist says it best in these couple of passages:

“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek You; I thirst for You, my whole being longs for You, in a dry and parched land where there is no water (Ps. 63:1).”

“My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to Your Word (Ps. 119:28).”

When we are tired and worn out in this life, the very best thing for us to do is for our whole body to long for, to yearn for, to be overwhelmed by a passion to come to the Lord who is our greatest strength in time of need.

We have all heard and even witnessed the power of prayer in our own lives and especially now during the Ukrainian war. The Lord has been and continues to be THE STRENGTH for the people in Ukraine and the other countries who are taking refugees. Let us never tire in prayer that honors God Most High, even when our bodies are tired and weary in the journey.

Prayer Action:

Take some time this week and bullet point some of the things you escape to when you’re tired instead of praying to the Father. Give those over to the Lord and ask Him to give you a heart that comes directly to Him FIRST when life seems exhausting, wearisome, and overwhelming. Praise the Lord that He is the One who gives you strength to persevere. Delight in that fact this week. And pray these things for our missionaries this week as well.

Blessings,

 

 Clay

 

Clayton J. Elliott, Kontaktmission USA
Director of Pastoral Ministries and Prayer
clay@GoKMUSA.org