Your Bible Boost
Pastor Leonard Navarre
Prayer WORKS!
We don’t even know his name! It’s a very special story from the Old Testament. However, it proves that God does hear our prayers and intervenes when He feels it’s in our best interest. This story provides for each of us direction and purpose as we pray.
The man is simply known as the “chief servant”. Let’s get a little background into this story. Remember from the Old Testament the story of Abraham wanting to find a bride for his son Isaac? It’s located in Genesis 24. Abraham instructs his “chief servant” to embark on a journey back to Abraham’s homeland to find a wife for his master’s son. The trusted “chief servant” returns to Mesopotamia looking for a wife for his master’s son, Isaac. After making his way to the town of Nahor (which by the way is named for Abraham’s brother) the chief servant settles down at the well of the city. You do remember, that drawing water was the job for the women and the chief servant thought from the well’s vantage point there was not better place to find potential brides for Isaac.
BUT WAIT! There is one very important point that we have to make before the chief servant finds a bride for Isaac. Before the chief servant settled down to wait – HE PRAYED! Yep! Right there at water well central, the chief servant prays. He invokes God’s intervention in the bridal selection process. Hear what he prays, Genesis 24:42, “oh Lord, God of my master, Abraham, if you will grant me success for my journey.” Yes, the chief servant his asking for God to LEAD AND ANSWER in the selection process. Look closer. As the chief servant prays God is ALREADY moving to answer the prayer. Genesis 24:45, “before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar…”.
WOW! Asking then receiving. Seeking and then finding. God’s direction sought and God’s direction found. Listen folks, we can learn a very important lesson from this chief servant story. We don’t know his name, BUT we do know his attitude. His attitude speaks to me and I hope and pray it speaks to you. Before action, PRAYER! I can think back many times when I failed to seek the Lord’s guidance and direction. Maybe you have done the same thing. We have major decisions but we go everywhere but to God in prayer. We consult books, philosophers, traditions, pals, even clergy. Without seeking God’s intervention we have blundered and made mistakes. I know I have.
So, I can learn from this no named “chief servant”. When he prayed and consulted with God, great and marvelous results occurred. Maybe I, well WE, need to remember to consult our Lord God on decisions rather than books, magazine, horoscopes, newspapers, even friends. God is the ONE who knows all things and holds all things within His great providence AND knows the very best for me.
As I bend my will and decisions to HIS divine intervention, maybe, just maybe I can feel and say what the chief servant said in Genesis 24:27, “as for me, the Lord has LED ME on the journey…” (emphasis mine).
Or as the old hymn says, “lead on O King eternal…your cross is lifted over us, we journey in its light; the crown awaits the conquest. Lead on, O God of might!”
I encourage us to follow the “chief servant’s” example and pray for God to lead us on our life’s journey!!!
