1 Kings 18:41-45 KJV
“And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man’s hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.”
There is no basis for a man to step into a place of travailing if he had not picked up the burden or intentions of God. It is after a man has picked up the agenda of God and his heart is filled, that he can actually press into the place of travailing and be able to birth the purposes of God. If there is no such burden in his heart, there is nothing to pick in the place of prayer to pray.
The scripture we read tells us that in that land, there was no rain for a while and in the midst of the drought, somebody heard the sound of abundance of rain. Elijah was able to pick the mind of God for that season even when others may be wailing.
Everyone can come and drop their burden at the feet of God, but then we have some people who do not just drop their burden at the feet of the father but they also picked the burden of the father.
That “sound of abundance of rain” became the purpose and agenda of God. That was what God wanted to carry out and that was what Elijah took to the place of prayer. He didn’t come to the place of prayer without knowing what God wanted to do.
We must come to a place of knowing what God is doing in our life per time so that we can be prepared enough to align to what God is doing.
Elijah was sure of what God wanted to do in that season of droughts because he had layed hold on the intention of God, that was why he was able to stay in the place of prayer even when there was no sign of rain. He had heard the sound of abundance of rain so he wanted to see the rain.
It was not prayer ability that kept Elijah praying, it was that he is expectant and he wants to see result. The concept was that Elijah came to a place to travail and the expectation of every travailing is that you go home with result.
Elijah kept praying not because he can pray for a long period but because he was pregnant and wanted to walk out with his possibilities. Elijah’s servant kept going out to check if there is sign of rain and for the six times, he will come back and say there is nothing. From there is nothing, to there is little to a great rain. That is what we do in the place of travailing, it will look like nothing is happening but if you stay put in the place of prayer, there will be little or a gathering and a full result.
Many people stopped at the point of little and they could not press further. That is why it is not prayer ability, it is that you have heard God and you are convinced because you know you have heard God. Prevailing is birthing God’s possibilities and purposes. Nothing could have discouraged Elijah but he knows that he is not praying to give up but to give birth. My brethren, I can hear the sound of abundance of rain over your situation, but there might be a need to stay in the place of prayer, the place of travailing.
Sometimes we get tired in the place of travailing. What helps people to be fervent in prayer is not really because they have the strength to pray, but because they have had the privilege to know the plans and purposes of God for their life. They had the privilege to know what God is doing in that season of their life, the workings and the act of God. They have heard and seen, so it’s easy for them to wait since they know what God is doing. Don’t pray like a man who is not persuaded of the will of God and the possibilities in God. Without a persuasion, one can get weary in the place of prayer. That was what kept Simeon and Elizabeth. They held on to what God told them. Elizabeth was a widow who stayed in the temple for 84 years. She didn’t walk away at any point. She was there waiting for the hand of God, for the supernatural move of God. Simeon was told by God, that he will not see death. What kept Simeon and Elizabeth at these different points in their lives?
At some points in our lives, we are all waiting, waiting for the hand of God. What will help you to keep waiting is if you have heard from God concerning that matter. Nobody can talk you out of what you have seen and persuaded of. Thank God for the ability to pray, but thank God for a man that has seen and heard what God is doing. It is good to pray for long hours but what is the essence of praying for long hours without being persuaded of what you are praying for? Your waiting is to give birth to what you have carried into the place of prayer.
Despite the surrounding negativities, because you have heard, your faith is unshaken. The reason why you can push in the place of prayer is because, there is an expectation and the expectation of the righteous shall not be cut off. There is confidence in knowing.
Once we press and we get to know the heart of God concerning a matter, we can’t take “no” for an answer. Delay is not denial. The voice of God has the prevailing power over situations and circumstances, so we are gonna wait, we’ll keep waiting. You can’t abandon your duty post nor stop believing. Men ought to pray and not to give up.
Acts 12:5, this scripture reveals that Peter had given up, removed his girdle and his shoe. These things represent some meaningful things. The shoe connotes ministry, the purpose of God over your life.
Acts 12:11-15 And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews. And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda.
And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel (KJV).
We may be praying without persuasion and with expectation, despite the prayer ability. Such believer do not understand the will and plan of God. The disciples were praying. Many people pray. The reason why people become frustrated is because they have endured for so long and the night may be so long.
However, we do not know how the night season may be as some people may have become frustrated. Regardless of this, we must understand what God is doing. That is what keeps men to wait and see. That is what kept the prophetess and Simeon who waited upon the birth of Jesus. Simeon must have been a very old man because of what the Holy Ghost revealed to him. While we are praying, what is keeping us in prayer must be able to sustain us.
This is why we must understand that men that had the ability to pray may stop praying at one point. Prayer warriors gave up. We must come to that point that the prayer ability is not the one that can sustain us but that we are able to see what the Lord is doing. The disciples ought to have seen what they want in prayer in order not to doubt Peter’s arrival at the door.
We must be part of the prayer group that see what God is doing. We should not be moved by the noise and shout people do in prayer meeting these days. It is prayer strength to nod your head while praying and groaning. However, we should not be moved by that if what we are saying is not in our heart. It was not the prayer of the early church that brought Peter’s deliverance. It was the mercy of God that brought Peter out., obviously.
It was God having mercy on Peter. How I wish the man praying is not frustrated. He believes the Father beyond that he has asked Him to do. How I wish we know that all flesh shall call on the name of the Lord and come to Him. When you have prayed on a matter for a while you have a very high tendency to slip into this situation. It is not your prayer strength that is the matter. The matter is, have you heard God concerning that situation.
The things we are praying for can come in seasons. It is important they can come in six months or more. What if we know we are not yet in that season and what about if we believe that in two years from now we would be entering into the dimension He has prepared for us. Sometimes, when people tell us some things when we are passing through those situations they are motivation. They are speaking not because they have heard from God. They are seeing into the season of our lives. We cannot hasten beyond the harvest time of a crop.
We need to align to the will, plan and purposes of God. It is done by prayer. We should pray that He should show us what He is doing. Men should pray. We must pray that the Lord should show us what He is doing. We must not give up on our lives. We must not give up on anyone because we have a short understanding. Tears do not change season. It is God that brings season to pass. We must change our prayer point. We must ask God what He is doing with our lives. Sometimes, we get stuck for months and years. We should look at the prayer investment of Elijah. The servants kept saying there was nothing during the prayer intervals. It was on the seventh time he began to see. Prayer investment was seen after the seventh time. We cannot actually say that there is nothing.
The fact that we are not seeing those hands arising from the sea does not mean that there is nothing actually happening. Every prayer investment was filling. If Elijah had stopped the cloud would have stopped forming. Right now it may look as if nothing is done. We must look at what God wants to do. We must keep the vision. It is for an appointed time. We must wait in faith and not in unbelief. We must not let our pain direct our lives.
Pain do not lead us. It is the Spirit of God that lead us. We must enjoy the season. We must be productive. We must keep running. We must do it with expectations and assurance. We may not know the time but He will do it. Get productive with the will of God in life. Keep running, keep building, keep stretching. Build confidence, build expectations, build that assurance that God is coming. He would come right in time.
We do not have equal times and seasons. Ministry enter seasons per time. Life enters seasons per time. If men can’t wait for their season, they will start cutting corners, manipulating people and changing messages to suit the audience. When strategy starts coming into church for the sake of who and where to invite from to bring in members, we are already compromising. It is not about being a mediocre, it is about waiting for the season. The Lord strengthens us to pray and he supplies same strength for waiting. Many claim that they can’t wait but those wait on the Lord, will renew their strength.