Remember Your Loved Ones

In Acts chapter 16 we read about Paul and Silas being cast into prison for the preaching of the Gospel. Verses 25 and 26 are most striking: And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.

Have you ever really thought about these verses? I think they are tremendous! First, notice the reaction of the two men of God upon being thrust into prison. I doubt that we would have been happy with this kind of treatment. But at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God. They did not complain or pity themselves. They could have sat there and felt sorry for themselves. But they prayed and sang praises for the glory of God. Paul knew how to face adversity of any kind. He wrote in Philippians 4:11, I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. That’s a wonderful state in which to live – the state of contentment.

Notice also, that as Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God, the prisoners heard them. I wonder what the response was. I suppose some of the prisoners yelled, “Keep quiet, you noisy fools.” Probably others listened in amazement. Doubtless, some were concerned. But here is the thing I really want you to see: As they prayed, suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken and all the doors opened, and the chains fell from every man.

Think of it: a well-constructed prison was shaken by the power of God as the result of two men praying. That’s real prayer, isn’t it? Do you think God can still answer prayer in such a miraculous way? Why, certainly He can! We read in Mathew 6:6, But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Did you take time to pray today? Did you lay all your burdens and problems at the feet of the Lord? Did you tell Him you would trust Him? God says, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you (Matthew 7:7). These are more than nice words pleasing to the ear. These are promises from God.

Of course, all the promises of God are based upon conditions. The first requisite for prayer is that you must be saved. You must know the Lord. If you have truly taken Christ into your life and you are in fellowship with Him, you are in a position to have the same kind of prayer power Paul and Silas had.

Do you have any unsaved loved ones? Most of us do. Have you really gotten serious in prayer about them? Could it be you are talking more about your need to your friends than you are to God?

When Hudson Taylor was about fifteen years old, his mother went away for a short vacation. In the meantime, Hudson had a holiday. He looked through the library for a book to pass the time away and found an interesting looking gospel.

Little did Hudson know what was going on in the heart of his mother. She rose from the dinner table with an intense yearning for her son’s conversion. Being away from home and having more leisure than she otherwise would, she saw a special opportunity to call on God for Hudson. She went to her bedroom and locked the door, resolving not to leave the room until her prayers were answered. All evening she prayed, until she began to praise God for the conversion of her son.

In the meantime, as Hudson read the tract, conviction came upon Him through the Holy Spirit. He fell on his knees and accepted the Savior and His salvation. While his mother was praising God in her room, Hudson was praising Him in the old warehouse where he had gone to read.

On her return, Hudson met his mother at the door to tell her the good news. She said, “I know, my boy, I have been rejoicing in the glad tidings you have to tell me.”

Here is a splendid example of believing prayer shaking the very foundation of a rebellious heart. I believe many sons and daughters are lost for want of persistent praying to God on the part of parents. Time that might be used in praying is often wasted. Hudson Taylor’s mother claimed the promises of God’s Word, and with a burdened heart she saw the miraculous answer.

There are no limits to what God can do, but you and I must trust Him to do it. We must pay the price, the price of prayer. Yes, I know we are busy. But if we are too busy to pray, we are too busy. Daniel prayed three times a day, and David, it would seem, prayed seven times a day. We cannot read the Gospels and not be impressed with our Lord’s life of prayer. The simple fact is that we must take time for prayer. It is as essential for the soul as breath is to the body. Every child of God must reserve a time of daily communion with God. Drop anything from a day’s program rather than prayer. Be faithful. Wait on God. In Proverbs 15:29 we read, The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.

The important thing is to be on praying ground. Have you definitely received Christ into your life? If you are not enjoying prayer power, it may be that you have never truly received Christ. He wants to save you and give you eternal life. But you must let Him do it.

J. Allen Blair

Discouragement is not on God's agenda!

We're entering a season that is supposed to be the happiest one of the year, but there are many who are discouraged. Dr. Blair's tract will not remove the discouragement, but he has a formula to help. Write for a free copy of this message in print. Dr. Blair has written, “Don't allow yourself to get all shrivelled up in the mold of a selfish life.”

How to Overcome Discouragement is the title and your copy is right here, waiting to be read!

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Eyewitness Account

by Pastor Geoffrey Janes

“I saw it with my own eyes!” “I was there and this is exactly what happened!” “Reporting live from the scene!” We live in a world where instant, live, eyewitness reporting is a part of life. All TV news shows feature an eyewitness report to verify what really happened by someone who was there.

Luke was one of the disciples of Jesus. In writing the book of Luke, he begins his account by stating that he was an eyewitness of the life of Jesus. Having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first (Luke 1:3).

So, Luke sets out to write his account of what happened and begins his gospel account by telling us that he has investigated everything carefully, has done his homework, has collected data, and has done the interviews. He was there!

We can trust the Word of God to be true, because God used men like Luke to write it. Luke probably didn’t witness every event as recorded in the book he wrote, but he did research those things carefully. By the leading of the Holy Spirit, he was able to record the events of the life of Jesus for us to read today. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16). Can we know the Bible is true, and can we trust the words we read in this amazing book? Yes! If you believe what you see on ‘eyewitness’ news reports, then you can believe what Luke and others wrote in the Bible.

Luke gathered his information, and wrote an account of the life of Jesus that thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed (Luke 1:4). The Bible is true, and we can believe every word of it. And as we read it we can be certain of the events that took place over 2000 years ago.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God!

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