Why Do I Struggle To Pray

Introduction

Good morning. If you will, open your Bibles with me to Isaiah chapter 37. Isaiah chapter 37. As you turn there this morning, I’ll go ahead and put the title screen up and we’ll see where we’re going to study this morning. The question that we all have is about how can we be better as Christians? How do we know where we stand before God? Yes, looking in the Word. But one of the most poignant questions to understanding where we stand with God, how God is influencing our lives, and how we can be more pleasing to Him is why do I struggle to pray? If our prayer life was good, if we thought of the best example of someone who is a Christian who lives out all that it means to submit to God, to deny himself and follow after Jesus, we would find somebody who prays.

And not just somebody who prays, but somebody who prays like Jesus did. Whether in temptation when Jesus called back to the words of life, or in or in the many instances in the New Testament where you see Jesus finding a time to pray. Or perhaps even in Matthew chapter 6, a passage we’ll look at in a few moments this morning, where Jesus gives the model prayer. Prayer is the essential lifeblood of one who says they are in a relationship with God. We understand that any relationship that’s going to work, even here, even now, has to take good communication. That’s sometimes a big problem, isn’t it? Good communication. We all communicate. The question is, do we know what we’re communicating? Do we care about how we’re coming off?

Or do we even give it forethought at all? So when we think about prayer, I think if we were to ask the question, who has a perfect prayer life, nobody would say, that’s me, because then I’d have to preach a lesson on humility, and that would be a problem. That’s as funny as it’s going to be this morning. I’m just letting you know right now. But if you think about the honest truth of what it means to pray, to have a developed, mature prayer life, not only will we not struggle to pray, but we won’t struggle with what to pray for any more than the scripture reveals that God assists us in that effort to be with him. Look at Isaiah chapter 37, and here we have the perfect example, the model idea of how we wish that prayer operated, and how many times it does.

This is great news. Isaiah 37 is a wonderful chapter. As we’re about to read verse 1, and I’ll read it right now, as soon as King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes and covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of the Lord. What was that it that Hezekiah heard that caused him to tear his clothes, cover himself with sackcloth, and go into the house of the Lord? Well, if you read Isaiah chapter 36, a passage we’re going to examine in just a moment, you learn that the big, bad, ruthless Assyrian Empire is marching on its way to Judah. Here we are in Old Testament history where you have Israel to the north, those ten tribes, and they’ve had not a single good king.

In the south, you have Judah, who had maybe a few, and Hezekiah is arguably one of the best of the good, righteous kings that Judah had. And here you see Hezekiah acting righteously. He has a problem. Assyria is coming, and they’ve not only wiped out other people, they’re right on the doorstep of little Judah. Assyria was going to absolutely annihilate them by any human reasoning. And so Hezekiah did the only thing that a follower of God knows to do, which is to take the problem to God. If you pick up the reading with me in verse 14, as more threats have come down from the Assyrians and more words from his prophets have come and revealed, where is God going to weigh in on the subject?

Note what Hezekiah does in verse 14. Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord. Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God. You alone of all the kingdoms of the earth, you have made heaven and earth. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear. Open your eyes, O Lord, and see and hear all the words of Sennacherib, the leader of Assyria, which he has sent to mock the living God. Truly, O Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all nations and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire. For they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone.

Therefore they were destroyed. So now, O Lord, our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord. As you come down to the end of the chapter, you’re going to see that God delivers on Hezekiah’s prayer. So basically, this is the model idea of how prayer successfully works in a physical way in our lives, because you have the three steps that cause people nowadays most likely to pray. When have you thought about it? Do you hear the most about prayer in a good way in our society? It takes what to happen? An absolute tragedy or calamity. So here is that tragedy about to happen. Assyria, one of the most ruthless empires that has ever existed, is on its way, and Assyria, this great big power, is coming after the little two tribes, the tribe or the nation of Judah.

They stand no chance. They are on the precipice of absolute disaster. Not only would they be destroyed, but their promised land would be destroyed as well. And as Hezekiah well and maturely notes in his prayer, who else would others look upon as having been defeated? God. And so Hezekiah prays. He has a problem, and he prays to God. And he exalts God. If you look at the beginning of verse 14 and 15, he recognizes who God is. He praises him, exalts him as above all that our creator is. And then what happens as a result? This is the reason this is a wonderful prayer example, because, as we’ll read at the end of the chapter in just a moment, God gives the victory. This is great.

This is powerful. This is how prayer works. But sometimes, I think when we start to study the idea of why do we struggle to pray? Why do we not advance in our prayer life? It might be because we don’t always have the same pattern that Hezekiah does. Yes, we know that God is there. Yes, we have our struggles that we may or may not bring to God. But sometimes we don’t always have that resounding defeat. But let’s finish out the story and see exactly what was happening. In Isaiah 36 and verse 1, you see exactly how bad this was going to be. In the 14th year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them. The victory was already underway.

The march through all the nations to even get to Judah has been accomplished. And then note the arrogance and the pride and the forecast of what was to come from Assyria, beginning in verse 13 of chapter 36. Then the Rabshaka stood and called out in a loud voice in the language of Judah, hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria. Thus says the king, do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you. Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, by saying, The Lord will surely deliver us. This city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. Do not listen to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of Assyria, make your peace with me and come out to me.

Then each one of you will eat of its own vine, and each of one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern until I come, and take you away to a land like your own land. A land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards. Beware lest Hezekiah mislead you by saying the Lord will deliver us. Has any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpod? Where are the gods of Sebaphriam? You try to say that. Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their lands out of my hand?

That the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand. You see the language over and again from the Rabshaka, he’s saying, People, do not trust Hezekiah. He will not save you. Your God will not save you. We’ve defeated all these other peoples and kings and their gods. In fact, if you just give in, we’re going to treat you really well. You can come and you can enjoy your land, everything’s going to be good. And even when that time’s up and we steal your land from you, when we take it via war, most likely, then we’re going to take you to our land, and we’re not going to treat you like slaves, we’re going to treat you well. You can see that almost none of this is true.

And certainly we know as children of God that this was not true, that the Assyrians were not king over God, but rather God reigned and rules over the kingdoms of men. But this would be a scary moment. When the Assyrians were coming, and I think we share moments like this in our life when we don’t understand what’s happening, or we don’t see the way out. When we don’t understand how we can escape this current struggle in life, whatever it may be. But we do know that we should pray and trust in God. We know this. We know life’s going to be hard. We know that we need to trust in God. I don’t think that’s a surprise to anyone. And you see, that’s what Hezekiah did.

In chapter 37 and verse 1, you have that reaction we already read. And what does he do? He seeks the word of the Lord. Pick up with me in the reading in verse 3. They said to him, thus says Hezekiah, this day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace. Children have come to the point of birth, and there is no strength to bring them forth. It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the Rabshaka, whom his master sent, the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left. When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, Isaiah said to them, Say to your master, thus says the Lord, do not be afraid, because of the words that you have heard, with which the young men of the king of Assyria have reviled me.

Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by his sword in his own land. God says, Trust in me, do not fear. I will deliver you. The specifics are found in verse 7 of how exactly that would come to pass. And we see that come to pass at the end of the chapter. The Assyrians were coming, so Hezekiah trusted in God, and God delivered. This is a powerful example of prayer working and of the blessings of being a child of God. Note exactly what God does in verse 33. Don’t take my word for it on their victory. See what God does in verse 33 of chapter 37.

Therefore, thus says the Lord, concerning the king of Assyria, he shall not come into the city, or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield, or cast up a siege mound against it. By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into the city, declares the Lord. For I will defend the city to save it for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David. Verse 36. And the angel of the Lord went out and struck down a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. Then Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed and returned home and lived at Nineveh.

And as he was worshipping in the house of Nizrach his God, Adramelech and Sharazer, his sons, struck him down with the sword. And after they escaped into the land of Ararat, is Ezarhadon, his son, reigned in his place. This is exactly what God said would happen. If you think of a Bible story, this is the go-to of Bible stories, because here is God watching over his people, Judah, Hezekiah, and there’s a problem. These Gentile, these awful bad Assyrians are coming in. Hezekiah prays about it, is concerned only knowing that he can trust in God for this victory, and God delivers. This is powerful, this is wonderful. And we need to have trust in God in general. This would be a great lesson on faith, a great lesson on trust, and a great lesson on how powerful God is.

But we know all these things.

1. We Don’t Always Make the Time

That God will deliver? That when times are hard that we should pray, I don’t think any of that’s new. And yet, if we’re honest, if I’m honest, I realize I still, despite all of that knowledge, struggle to pray, both at all and a number of times a day or a week, and also with the quality of my relationship with God. Am I saying a prayer just out of repetition? Or because it’s mealtime or bedtime? Or do I actually crave, need, and use this wonderful tool that God gives us to come before his throne and to speak to him? If we know we should trust in God, why do we still struggle to pray? I think the first one is the most obvious. Unlike Hezekiah in verse 1, who immediately does what?

Tears his clothes, covers himself in sackcloth, and goes to the house of the Lord, he is immediately sorrowful and recognizes God as the fix. We don’t always make the time. Of course, we’re familiar with Ephesians chapter 5, and we need to not only understand what the will of the Lord is, but we need to do what with their time? We need to redeem the time, make the best use of the time because the days are evil. I think it’s twofold. We don’t have the time because we’re so busy. But the only reason that would ever impact a relationship with anyone is if we don’t make the time. If we thought of prayer as more than some sort of wish list for a genie in the sky, then we would crave this communication.

Have you ever been separated from a loved one, whether it be family or a spouse or you name a best friend? What do we do to try to stay connected with family or friends, loved ones? We reach out to them. Nowadays you have all kinds of methods. You have Skype for people you don’t care about, you have email, you can call them, you can do all manner of communication. You reach out and you make time for people you value. If we don’t make the time for God because we’re too busy or just didn’t think of it, what does that say for our relationship with God? If we know prayer is important because there’s great power in God who we pray to, and we know that this shows our relationship with God.

2. Perhaps We Don’t Know What to Say

How are you doing? How am I doing on my side of this relationship with our Almighty God? If I’m not making the time, I can tell you, just like in any human relationship, it’s not going well. Consider, secondly, why we might struggle to pray. Perhaps we don’t know what to say. Maybe if we knew what we were doing, if we understood what we were going to do, we would pray more because we would know how to approach God. It is intimidating in some senses to pray before the creator of the world. And sometimes maybe it’s not that we don’t know what to say. We don’t think what we have to say is worthy. Maybe we think that this great grand creator of the world doesn’t care about my drive to work or my drive home or my job or my friends or my family.

In Matthew chapter 6, though, notice the model prayer of Jesus. If Jesus prays it, certainly it’s something we could apply in our lives and in our prayer life. In Matthew chapter 6, not only does Jesus eliminate this excuse entirely, he teaches us what to say and gives us a pattern upon which we can develop our prayer life with God. In Matthew chapter 6, beginning in verse 9, pray then like this. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. And of course, in verses 14 and 15, you see the necessity of our being forgiving towards others as well.

Whether that’s part of the prayer or an additional note, it’s important as well. But doesn’t Jesus’ model prayer remind us a little bit of Hezekiah’s in Isaiah 37? How did Hezekiah begin his prayer? Much like Jesus did, where in verse 9, Jesus says, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. How did Hezekiah begin his prayer? Recognizing the Lord of hosts, the Lord of all the cherubim. Our God is great. Our God is worthy to be praised. Maybe sometimes our prayer life struggles because we don’t know what we’re going to say, because we don’t think of God. We don’t think of prayer as a chance that we can not only build our relationship with God, ask God to protect us from our struggles in life, but recognize that prayer serves another ideology too.

If we’re going to pray to our Creator, doesn’t that seem like the perfect time to offer Him the praise, glory, and honor that belongs to Him? John Wilman in his prayer this morning prayed that exact idea that all praise, honor, and glory go to God. Maybe if we focus more on the God whom we’re praying to than the words we’re saying, it would come more naturally. If we had faith and trust built in, who God is and what he wants from us, we would have the understanding that Jesus and Hezekiah did. But of course, Jesus continues in verse 10, your kingdom come, your will be done. And again, what was Hezekiah’s pray consisting of? Constant mention to the Assyrians are mocking you, God. They have said that they’ve destroyed all the gods of all the people that led them to Judah.

And what are we to do with that? Hezekiah is telling God, Avenge yourself. Teach these people who you are. Jesus recognizes that God is above all. Your will be done. And of course, he doesn’t leave out what he needs. Give us this day our daily bread. I know if you’re really hungry, which we might be, we do have a 12 o’clock meeting after right after services this morning, so I hope everyone brought some snacks. When we’re hungry, that does kind of take up all of our attention. But think about what Jesus prayed for. Give us this day our daily bread. Is there anything kind of more trivial, at least in American society, than having just another meal? Jesus wasn’t afraid to pray for that for two reasons.

One, because it was necessary and on his heart. And on the other hand, why? Because God is the giver of all these good things. If we truly remember that God cares, knows, and delivers all that is good, there will be nothing that we think isn’t important enough for our God. And of course, the verse continues in verse 12 and 13. Forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Jesus highlighted in this moment that was not in the type of Assyrian moment of weakness that Hezekiah was focused upon. Jesus focuses on what really matters, and that’s spiritual life, our spiritual walk to lead us out of temptation, to give us the courage, the strength, and the faith to overcome the wiles of the one seeking to pull us away from God.

3. We Struggle to Pray Because We Don’t Really Believe

I think while we struggle to pray, pray merely in the first one, and then we could all acknowledge we could do better about making more time to pray. And we could all kind of develop how we talk to our creator God. I’m most afraid that perhaps, maybe, we struggle to pray because we don’t really believe. I think the thought might be that this is silly. Of course, a room full of Christian people who have gathered at 9 o’clock on a Sunday morning, believe in God, but that’s not what I’m saying at all. We don’t necessarily have the belief that Hezekiah did, that if and when Hezekiah prayed to God for delivery from the Assyrians, that God would do it. Maybe we don’t pray about certain things because we don’t really think that God either cares, or more importantly, that it will make a difference.

Sometimes, if I’m honest, and if we’re honest, I think, we don’t pray to God for things, or we pray with the mindset that he’s probably not going to answer this. I’m just going to throw it out there and I’m going to make it work. Rather than the attitude that the New Testament Christians had over and again, and particularly Paul, that God gives us everything. All good things come from God’s guidance, his hand in our victory. We have to recognize, as Philippians chapter 4 and verse 6 leads us to understand, that without God, we are nothing. We cannot make it through even this life, even one day on our own. We need the Lord. In Philippians chapter 4, note with me in verse 4. Rejoice in the Lord always.

Again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand. Do not be anxious about anything. That’s a pretty sweeping statement. But in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. What is it that we’re to pray for? Yes, with thanksgiving, but all things, let our requests be made known to God, so that what may happen, verse 7, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. God doesn’t say, just kind of do it on your own. He says, Trust in me. Peace comes from being a follower of mine.

Follow after Jesus. And now it makes a little more sense when I am honest with myself about why I struggle to pray. That it might be because I truly don’t believe that God cares or that he will do something about this life. Look in 1 Timothy chapter 2. You want to think about praying for something hard that we don’t think will ever change, even in America today, let alone what Paul was faced with, turn to 1 Timothy chapter 2. Now note specifically what Paul says. Now, I do not believe that there is an ounce of Scripture that is delivered by the inspiration of God in particular through Paul in the case of 1 Timothy 2, that is wasted, that he puts in there just to kind of mess with us.

But if you were to think of one big group of a giant mess that even prayer probably couldn’t answer, it would be dealing with government, right? In 1 Timothy chapter 2, now keep in mind that’s our government. Think about the Roman government that Paul was under. In 1 Timothy chapter 2 and verse 1, first of all, then I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be made for all people, for kings and for all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. I have to ask the question after reading that. Do we think Paul or God and his inspiration of this scripture, moreover, is wasting our time by putting that in there. If Paul is telling us we need to pray, one of the words found in verse 1.

For kings and those who are in high positions in verse 2, the only understanding that a child of God can have is that this prayer can work. We have to believe in God, otherwise the whole idea doesn’t make a lick of sense. And one of the reasons I think we don’t believe is we misunderstand. There is not truly power in prayer. The power of prayer is in the God whom we access via prayer. You think about a light bulb in a house, a lamp. A lamp is wonderful, and it can look nice, and you can even have a nice LED bulb on there to save money. And you can turn the switch, but it won’t come on until what? Until it’s connected with the powers. Until it’s connected to electricity or it has its battery powers.

4. We Need to Be Like Jesus

I don’t know what kind of lamp that would be. But as long as it accesses the power, then the lamp can shine bright and cast its light over the darkness in our homes. So the question would be then, how can I improve my prayer life? First of all, this one’s pretty easy. We need to be like Jesus. Don’t you love that kind of answer? In Luke chapter 5, and in verse 16, we see what Jesus did. It wasn’t just that he knew how to pray in Matthew chapter 6, or that he took prayer seriously, like he did in Matthew chapter 26. But note how Jesus is described in Luke chapter 5. Now here’s this great example of a miracle beginning in verse 12, where Jesus does something fantastic to show who he is.

And Luke 5 and verse 12, while he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, I will be clean. And immediately the leprosy left him. And he charged him to tell no one, but go and show yourself to the priest and make an offering for your cleansing as Moses commanded for a proof to them. But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. And note verse 16 with me. But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.

Jesus was a busy man. Jesus was a highly sought after man, particularly in verse 15. There’s no way of getting around it. It says, Great crowds gathered to hear him. Here is this great moment for the Son of God to preach who he is, to show and capitalize on the miracle that he worked by cleansing the leper. And yet, what does Jesus do? Something he’s noted as doing so much so that verse 16 says he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. If Jesus recognizes and practices the importance of taking time to pray, how much more do I need to do that? If I don’t, if we don’t set aside time to pray, what does that say for our relationship with God and our understanding of following after Jesus?

5. We Need to Pray Hopefully, Not Hopefully

We have to set aside time to pray because we are not better than Jesus. We need to follow his example and learn from his relationship with God. But secondly, we need to pray hopefully, not hopefully. Yes, that’s not a typo. I said that correctly. And yes, I’ve been waiting all lesson to get to this point. We need to pray hopefully, not hopefully. In Romans chapter 15 and verse 4. A powerful example at the end of the book of Romans on how we are to understand Old Testament passages. What are they there for? What do they exist in so doing? And Romans 15 and verse 4. For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.

Perhaps you’ve heard this point over and again. Biblical hope is not, hey, I hope this nice cold weather stays for Christmas, because we know it probably won’t. It’s Florida, it’s not going to happen. Hope is in the Bible terms a fixed expectation and assurance. Do you think Paul is saying in Romans 15 and verse 4? You know, all these Old Testament scriptures we wrote, these are great for encouragement. They’re going to get you through. That way you can just kind of hope that maybe there’s a chance to please God in there somewhere. Not at all. You study Hebrews 11, you study the New Testament. You see time and again, the most ardent followers of God had a hope in God, and that means they trusted in him, like Abraham did, like David did, like Hezekiah did, that he could and he would deliver.

And that’s often not how I pray. Maybe you’re like me. And you pray. And you kind of just pray and you hope that God will come through. Because we know and there’s lessons that are worth preaching on. What if God says no? What if God says not now? How do we deal with that? It’s easy to see Hezekiah’s example in Isaiah 37 and say, he prayed, God delivered, case closed. That’s wonderful. But what about when I don’t get the report that I was looking for? Or the job I think I need, or my family is crumbling in a way I don’t understand and can’t seem to hold together. What then? We have to pray hopefully, with the fixed assurance that God hears, that God cares, and that my relationship with God transcends this physical life with all of its struggles and heartaches.

And can I add one more note on that? Prayer doesn’t just tell about our relationship with God, it reveals our relationship with other people. If we think we love others, and we never mention them to our Heavenly Father, we don’t pray hopefully for them. How much do we really care for those people that we say are our brothers and sisters or our family and friends? Our prayer lives reveal not only our standing before God and standing with Him in a communication way. It reveals our faith. It reveals our hope. And it reveals our love for God and others. Consider one final idea, and the lesson will be concluded this morning. How can I improve my prayer life? Yes, I need to set aside time. I need to pray hopefully with the fixed assurance that God is there.

6. Truly Trust in the Power of God

I have to truly trust in the power of God. And that’s hard. In Isaiah chapter 37, if you’ll turn there with me, we’ll conclude there. In Isaiah chapter 37, we can read passages like this one in which the Assyrians were coming. They were bigger and badder, meaner, in far greater number than the people of Judah, and we could say, you know what? God delivered them. That’s what God does. That’s the God of the Old Testament. We see the New Testament. That’s the God of the New Testament. How do I grow my faith and my prayer life to go from not really trusting to fully trusting? The first and most obvious answer is we have to read more about our God. You cannot come away from reading the Old Testament scriptures, the New Testament scriptures, particularly in Jesus’ life, and think of prayer as something empty, vain, and that God doesn’t truly listen to.

What we will find in the scriptures is that God, time and time again answers the prayers of those who call for him, and if he does not, he has a plan anyway. Joseph was thrown into a pit, he was sold into slavery, he was thrown into jail for righteousness, and God still had a plan for him. God still loved him. Even in the case of David, a man after God’s own heart who committed murder and adultery, yet he repented. He confessed to sin and God forgave him, albeit with consequences that did follow. We will see time and again that God answers prayer. If you don’t believe that, look at your email thread this past week. We have two girls who were in a car accident. And the impounding lot thought that there would be a fatality.

That’s answered prayer. That’s a God who listens, who cares, who loves.

And when people arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies. But it doesn’t stop there. God didn’t just give them the victory. How did he give them victory? Go back to verse 6 and 7 of this chapter. What did God say he would do? He said, Do not be afraid, because of the words that you have heard, with which the young men of the king of Assyria have reviled me. Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will do what? He will hear a rumor and return to his own land, and I will make him fall by his sword in his own land. God says he’s going to go back to his land, he’s going to fall by his sword, and he’s going to die in his own land.

And what happened? The 185,000 Assyrians fell as they were dead in the night because God conquers. And in verse 37, what happened to that great, powerful, boastful king of Assyria? Then in verse 37, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed and returned home and lived at Nineveh. And as he was worshiping in the house of Nisrach, his God, Adramelech and Sharazar, his sons, struck him down with the sword. Our God keeps his promises. Our God is great. Our God is good. And it’s all the time.

Conclusion

But our prayer life cannot suffer because we don’t get the answers we want. Because our prayer life should flourish. Because our God has shown time and time again that he cares, that he loves, and that he wants us to speak to him. What a powerful, mighty God we serve. Amen. Let us go to that God in prayer. Our dear God and most gracious and loving Heavenly Father. We’re so humbled by all that you have done to reveal yourself. You created the world. You promised so many things that we can check, we can understand the prophets pointing to Jesus, pointing to even that there would be a people through whom Jesus would come, a land that they would occupy. And the promises you made to Adam and Eve and the sons of Israel and us today that if we will simply trust in you and obey you, we can have true, open fellowship with you.

Thank you for sending your son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins in our place that we can be called children of yours, that our sin could be forgiven, that the death which sin brings no longer has to cling so closely to us, but we can run the race of endurance, trusting in you, loving you, seeking you. Forgive us of when we sin and when we don’t do your will. Forgive us of when we get too busy with this life. Help us to be more active and courageous and bold in not only serving you, but speaking to you in prayer. We’re so humbled and thankful for this avenue. We’re humbled and thankful to you for all the answered prayers in every conceivable fashion, that we might exist here and have worshiped you for so many years without extreme problem or concern of violence.

We’re thankful for those peaceful times, and we pray that they continue. We’re thankful to you for the spiritual blessings in Christ, for the spiritual blessings of having brothers and sisters in Christ with which we can encourage one another. And this very week and month, we’re so thankful to you for answering the prayer on behalf of Brielle and Janelle, giving them safety. And we pray that you be with them as they recover, recognizing that when people don’t trust in you, bad things happen. But when we trust in you, your children will prevail because you and you alone give victory. Keep us until the end. Help us to worship you, to praise you, and to give you the glory and honor that you and you alone deserve. We pray all these things in Jesus, your son’s name.

Amen.