Date: Thursday, 5th December, 2024
Text: Isaiah 57:1-2
Author: Pastor Adedeji Fadehan
Exhortation:
When you pray there are three possible responses you can get from God. You can get a ‘Yes’ from God like the case of blind Bartimaeus. He specifically requested the Lord to restore his sight and he got his desire granted same hour- Mark 10:46-52.
Another possible response you can get is ‘Wait it is not yet time for your desire to be granted,’ Abraham and Sarah waited for 25 years before their promised son was released to them by God- Genesis 21:1; Hebrews 6:15.
Elizabeth and Zachariah also waited till it was 6 months to the conception of Christ according to divine agenda; at which time both of them were already old and stricken in years- Luke 1:5-29.
Another answer you can possibly get when you pray is God telling you, ‘No, I have a better idea.’ A classic example is when the Lord was about to be crucified, three times he prayed that the cup of suffering should pass over him, but God (The Father) declined because he had a better idea- Matthew 26:36-45. Had it been the Father granted his request, no soul would have escaped eternal destruction in Hell.
Many have become discouraged because when their loved one was sick and they had prayed, fasted, reminded God of all his promises, cast out every devil and engaged all angels, yet the sickness got worse and eventually led to death. But God is still good in every situation.
So many people have lost the battle against terminal diseases despite serious prayers being offered to God on their behalf. Does that mean God has failed? Does it imply the scripture is no longer potent? Definitely no!
We have a reassuring message in today’s text which says, “The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; the devout are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death.” Isaiah 57:1-2
God can decide to lose a battle in order to win a war. God prefers to allow an early departure that leads to eternal glory than late departure that leads to everlasting destruction. God is good.
Prayer Nugget: Father, thank you because you are always good to your own people in every situation. Hallelujah!