I explained on Tuesday how God wants to find you faithful and grateful. Did you know that He also wants to find you dreaming, singing, and on your knees? In regard to dreaming, I’m not talking about the selfish kind but the godly kind! Psalm 37:4 (ESV) says, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Enjoy the Lord, and make Him your delight. And as you do, an amazing thing will happen. He’ll put His will and plan in your heart (Philippians 2:13).
I hope you know you don’t have to be a musician to sing to God! God knows your heart and desires your worship. Read through Psalm 95:1-2. What about God finding you on your knees? This is called prayer! Here we are back to the foundation! Want to do great things? Let your prayers be effectual, fervent, righteous.
Effectual—James 5:16. Prayer isn’t just about talking to God; it’s about listening, too! You have to be still and let God speak to your heart. Fervent—James tells us that it is not only effectual prayer that avails much, but fervent prayer. Elijah is our model. After calling down fire with a prayer that took only seconds, and after telling Ahab it was going to rain, scripture records that there, on the top of Mount Carme, Elijah placed his head between his knees and prayed for rains. God answered his prayers! Righteous—James calls Elijah a man of like passions, a man with the same vulnerabilities we have. That explains why, after calling down fire from heaven, and hacking up four hundred fifty prophets of Baal single-handedly, frightened by the words of a woman, Elijah ran seventy miles only to end up in a cave depressed, discouraged, and defeated.
Here’s a guy who’s just like me. One minute he’s up on the mountain; the next minute he’s in a cave. One minute, he’s victorious over Baal; the next minute, he’s done in by despair. Yet James refers to Elijah as a righteous man. Why? Because in the New Testament particularly, righteousness is not dependent upon the way we behave. It is dependent upon what we believe. Both your behavior and beliefs are important, but you can’t rely completely on anything but God! When you do, your behavior will begin to reflect that. Pray and worship in your heart, and don’t be afraid to express that outwardly!