Sadhu Sundar Singh on Prayer

      More on prayer--this time from Sadhu Sundar Singh, (1889-1929), an Indian Christian missionary.  You can download a free pdf book by Mr. Singh, At The Master's Feet, here.

        "The essence of prayer does not consist in asking God for something but in opening our hearts to God, in speaking with Him, and living with Him in perpetual communion.  Prayer is continual abandonment to God.  Prayer does not mean asking God for all kinds of things we want; it is rather the desire for God Himself, the only Giver of Life.  Prayer is not asking, but union with God.  Prayer is not a painful effort to gain from God help in the varying needs of our lives.  Prayer is the desire to possess God Himself, the Source of all life.  The true spirit of prayer does not consist in asking for blessings, but in receiving Him who is the giver of all blessings, and in living a life of fellowship with Him." 
                                                                                                                     Sadhu Sundar Singh

What the Bible Has To Say On Prayer

Top Bible Verses on Prayer: 1 Samuel 12:23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: 2 Samuel 22:4 I will call on the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 1 Chronicles 16:13 O ye seed of Israel his servant, ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones. 2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Job 22:27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows. Psalms 5:3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. Psalms 9:12 When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble. Psalms 21:2 Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withheld the request of his lips. Selah. Psalms 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry. Psalms 34:17 The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. Inspirational Bible Verses about Prayer

Psalms 37:4 Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

Psalms 38:15 For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.

Psalms 40:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

Psalms 40:2 He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

Psalms 40:3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

Psalms 42:8 Yet the LORD will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.

Psalms 50:15 And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

Psalms 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

Psalms 55:17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.

Psalms 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

Psalms 62:8 Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.

Psalms 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Psalms 66:19 But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.

Psalms 86:7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.

Psalms 91:15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him.

Psalms 107:13 Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses.

Psalms 107:19 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.

Psalms 107:28 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.

Psalms 116:4 Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.

Psalms 118:5 I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place.

Psalms 119:13 With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth.

Psalms 130:2 Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.

Psalms 138:3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.

Psalms 140:6 I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.

Psalms 145:18 The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

Psalms 145:19 He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

Proverbs 8:17 I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.

Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight.

Proverbs 15:29 The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.

Proverbs 18:24 A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

Isaiah 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

Isaiah 28:23 Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.

Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Isaiah 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

Isaiah 58:9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;

Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

Isaiah 65:24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Jeremiah 29:12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

Jeremiah 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

Ezekiel 22:30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.

Matthew 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Matthew 6:5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

Matthew 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.

Matthew 6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

Matthew 6:8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Matthew 6:9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread.

Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Matthew 6:13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Matthew 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Matthew 7:8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Matthew 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Matthew 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Matthew 17:21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

Matthew 18:18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Matthew 18:19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

Matthew 21:21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

Matthew 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Mark 9:29 And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

Mark 10:27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Mark 11:17 And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Mark 11:24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

Mark 11:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Mark 11:26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Luke 11:9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

Luke 11:10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Luke 11:11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

Luke 11:12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?

Luke 11:13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

Luke 18:1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

Luke 21:36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

John 3:27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

John 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

John 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

John 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

John 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

John 16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.

John 16:24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

Acts 6:4 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.

Acts 16:25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.

Acts 16:26 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.

Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

Romans 12:12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Ephesians 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Philippians 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Colossians 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

1 Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

James 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

James 5:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

James 5:17 Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.

James 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

1 John 3:21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.

1 John 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

1 John 5:15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

Psalms 18:6 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.

Prayer Quotes

     This is such a busy time in my life so I'm not keeping up with much of anything, it seems!  I had put together these prayer quotes some time back to inspire me to pray without ceasing, so I thought this would be a good place (and time) to post them.  It will give me something to ponder in my busyness.  Sorry about the format and variations is size and fonts.  I cut & pasted most of these from the internet and as of right now I don't have time to correct the display.  Maybe one of these days.  :o)
      Prayer is the most important thing I/we do.  It is good to remember why.

Ole Hallesby is correct in calling prayer “a labor for which there is no substitute in the kingdom of God . . . the most important work we have to do.” Later he underscores the effectiveness of prayer saying, “God takes immediate cognizance, therefore, of man’s prayer in his government of the world. Something does take place as a result of man’s prayer, which otherwise would not take place. In fact, as we have seen, man’s prayer is one of the most effective means by which God directs the world forward towards its goal, the kingdom of God.”

Dr. Tommy Barnett, pastor of First Assembly of God Church in Phoenix, Arizona, said, “The presence of God in the midst of a church is directly proportional to the amount of prayer that takes place there.”

E.M. Bounds said, “if the devil can get the church to withdraw from prayer by believing reasonable excuses, the church is under his dominion.”

John Wesley said, “God does nothing except in answer to Prayer.”

Charles Finney said, “Prayer meetings are the most difficult meetings to sustain because they are the most spiritual meetings of the church.”

C. H. Spurgeon "If you want that splendid power in prayer, you must remain in loving, living, lasting, conscious, practical, abiding union with the Lord Jesus Christ."

"Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work" - Oswald Chambers

"Beware in your prayers, above everything else, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things 'above all that we ask or think.'" Andrew Murray

 "You can do more than pray after you have prayed; but you can never do more than pray until you have prayed."  A.J. Gordon

"Prayer strikes the winning blow; service is simply picking up the pieces."  S.D. Gordon

"One should never initiate anything that he cannot saturate with prayer."

"Prayer does not change the purpose of God.  But prayer does change the action of God." Chuck Smith

 "Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers." Sidlow Baxter

 “Prayer is where the action is." John Wesley

 "Satan does not care how many people read about prayer if only he can keep them from praying. Paul E. Billheimer

"Talking to men for God is a great thing, but talking to God for men is greater still." E.M. Bounds

 "The men who have done the most for God in this world have been early on their knees. He who fritters away the early morning, its opportunity and freshness, in other pursuits than seeking God will make poor headway seeking Him the rest of the day. If God is not first in our thoughts and efforts in the morning, He will be in the last place the remainder of the day." E.M. Bounds

"The prayer power has never been tried to its full capacity. If we want to see mighty wonders of divine power and grace wrought in the place of weakness, failure and disappointment, let us answer God's standing challenge, "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not!'" (J. Hudson Taylor) 

 "Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance, but laying hold of His willingness."  Martin Luther.

 “The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying.  He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but he trembles when we pray.”  Samuel Chadwick

 On persevering prayer: "I look at a stone cutter hammering away at a rock a hundred times without so much as a crack showing in it.  Yet at the 101st blow it splits in two.  I know it was not the one blow that did it, but all that had gone before."

 "Prayer is the greatest of all forces, because it honors God and brings him into active aid."  E.M. Bounds 

 Prayer should not be regarded "as a duty which must be performed, but rather as a privilege to be enjoyed, a rare delight that is always revealing some new beauty."  E.M. Bounds

 "I never prayed sincerely and earnestly for anything but it came at some time; no matter at how distant a day, somehow, in some shape, probably the least I would have devised, it came." Adoniram Judson 

"Prayer breaks all bars, dissolves all chains, opens all prisons, and widens all straits by which God's saints have been held."  E. M. Bounds. 

"A life growing in its purity and devotion will be a more prayerful life."  E. M. Bounds

  "Four things let us ever keep in mind: God hears prayer, God heeds prayer, God answers prayer, and God delivers by prayer."  E. M. Bounds 

"The secret of all failure is our failure in secret prayer." The Kneeling Christian 

“Time spent alone with God is not wasted.  It changes us; it changes our surroundings; and every Christian who would live the life that counts, and who would have power for service must take time to pray.”  M.E. Andross

 Make time to pray.  “The great freight and passenger trains are never too busy to stop for fuel. No matter how congested the yards may be, no matter how crowded the schedules are, no matter how many things demand the attention of the trainmen, those trains always stop for fuel.”  M.E. Andross

 “There is no other activity in life so important as that of prayer. Every other activity depends upon prayer for its best efficiency.”  M.E. Andross

75. "...[the] power of prayer can never be overrated. They who cannot serve God by preaching need not regret. If a man can but pray he can do anything. He who knows how to overcome with God in prayer has Heaven and earth at his disposal." Charles H. Spurgeon

 "It is not enough to begin to pray, nor to pray aright; nor is it enough to continue for a time to pray; but we must patiently, believingly, continue in  prayer until we obtain an answer;  George Müller

“Prayer can never be in excess.” C. H. Spurgeon
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“The trouble with nearly everybody who prays is that he says ‘Amen’ and runs away before God has a chance to reply. Listening to God is far more important than giving Him our ideas.” Frank Laubach

 "Time spent in prayer will yield more than that given to work. Prayer alone gives work its worth and its success. Prayer opens the way for God Himself to do His work in us and through us. Let our chief work as God's messengers be intercession; in it we secure the presence and power of God to go with us." Andrew Murray

"The main lesson about prayer is just this: Do it! Do it! Do it! You want to be taught to pray. My answer is pray and never faint, and then you shall never fail…" John Laidlaw

 "A man who is intimate with God will never be intimidated by men."  Leonard Ravenhill

 "Prayer is the secret of power."  Evan Roberts

 "Since the days of Pentecost, has the whole church ever put aside every other work and waited upon Him for ten days, that the Spirit’s power might be manifested? We give too much attention to method and machinery and resources, and too little to the source of power."  Hudson Taylor

"There has never been a spiritual awakening in any country or locality that did not begin in united prayer."  A.T. Pierson

 "Intercession is truly universal work for the Christian. No place is closed to intercessory prayer. No continent - no nation - no organization - no city - no office. There is no power on earth that can keep intercession out."  Richard Halverson

Thanksgiving Blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving!  

May you have a blessed day filled with memories and reminders of all you have for which to be thankful!  It's a wonderful world created by a good God.  He knows what is best for His creation and he commands us to give thanks in all things.

     Have you ever read the Passion Translation by Brian Simmons?  I find it very helpful and inspiring when I'm trying to understand a passage.  Of course, I don't use it for memorization but it certainly sheds new light on passages I have read for years in the more traditional translations.  Today I was reading in Galatians.  When I came to Gal. 5:22-23 describing the fruits of the Spirit I was especially encouraged and enlightened.

     Here is the New King James translation: 

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴ And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

    And here is the Passion Translation: 

But the fruit of the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all of its various expressions.  

This love is revealed through:

      Joy that overflows,

     Peace that subdues,

     Patience that endures,

     Kindness on display,

     A life full of virtue,

     Faith that prevails,

     Gentleness of heart, and

     Strength of spirit.

Never set the law above these qualities, for they are meant to be limitless.

     Isn't that beautiful?

A Nice Break But Time to Get Back to Work.

     We just returned from an inspiring and restful week at a beautiful retreat center in Titusville, Florida, owned by the Park Avenue Baptist Church.  Jack Taylor, Peter Lord and Charles Carrin shared their wisdom and walk with the Lord as we got to know people from all over the U.S.
    The afternoons were free so we had time for long walks on the beach.  Canaveral National Seashore was only 15 minutes away but was so secluded we felt as if the whole beach belonged to us--until we came upon nude bathers.  That was a bit of a shock!  I had no idea nude bathing was allowed on U.S. beaches.  We didn't let it spoil our fun though.  It seemed to us they were the ones who should be embarrassed, not us, so we continued on our walk.  Below is a photo of the beautiful seashore and below that is a photo of the weather we returned to.  Quite a contrast, but both beautiful.

       Now it's time to get back to work.  I have no idea how I'm going to get everything done for Christmas right now, but it seems to always happen, so I will try not to stress about it.  Every year, I make the resolution to do less and enjoy Christmas more, but it never seems to work that way.  

     To me it seems rather pointless to drag out all the decorations for only a few weeks of enjoyment. We always seem to be in such a flurry of activity that I wouldn't call it 'enjoying' anyway, but since all our family will be here for Christmas and one of our granddaughters asked if I would get a huge tree and let her help me decorate, how can I resist?  Hopefully, the memories we will be making will outweigh the effort it takes to make them.  :o)

     Do you enjoy the preparations of Christmas, or are you like me and wish we could skip the fuss and relax?

Darren Canning: "This Is The Hour Of the Coming Waters!…"

This is a great reminder from Darren Canning (posted on The Elijah List yesterday) that it is praise and thanksgiving which brings us out of darkness into His glorious light.

"This is the Hour of the Coming Waters! How You Can Become a Conduit of It in Your Lifetime"

Darren Canning, Ontario, Canada

In a recent dream I was standing on the edge of a great lake in Canada. I was astonished to see that the waters had receded so far that the shoreline had moved by hundreds of feet. I heard somebody in the dream say, "The waters have gone down by 150 feet," and they said this with a lot of fear as if the waters were gone forever.

As I was standing there, I was aware that this fear was in many hearts, so I said to the people near me, "Don't worry, these waters will be replenished. They shall come again."(Photo by Lillis Boyer "Come to the Waters"via elijahshopper.com)

I felt that the number 150 was significant and was somehow pointing to Scripture, so I went to the Bible and read Psalm 150. The passage was quite interesting, and I believe it is a key to the coming rise of the waters of the Spirit.

Psalm 150

Praise the Lord.

Praise God in His sanctuary;
praise Him in His mighty heavens.
Praise Him for His acts of power;
praise Him for His surpassing greatness.
Praise Him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise Him with the harp and lyre,
praise Him with timbrel and dancing,
praise Him with the strings and pipe,
praise Him with the clash of cymbals,
praise Him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

How to Replenish the Waters in Your Life

If we want the waters to be replenished our focus must be always and only on God. We must not look at the drought that is in the land or the people that are not worshipping Him. We must continue to focus on the God that took out Goliath and the God who split the Red Sea. He is the God that opened up the tomb and raised Jesus from the dead. He is the God that showed up in the upper room and filled the 120 with His holy presence so that they would become witnesses to the ends of the earth.

Our life must be a life filled with praise so that even when dark times are in our land, and even when it seems that the darkness is growing darker, our focus is on God and not the darkness at all. We need to fear and worship God above all things. Our hearts must move toward Him: to the God within the Holy Sanctuary, to the God of the mighty heavens above, to the God who acts with great power and who fears no one. When our meditation turns toward Him, then the problems of this world will fade away.

I was watching a film recently about Josephine Bakhita who was made a saint because of her devotion to Christ and love for people. She was born in the Sudan in 1869 and was captured as a slave. Her masters often beat her. At one point in her life she rarely went without an open wound on her body because of the cruelty of her masters. By the grace of God she made it to Italy, and in 1890 entered a convent where she spent the rest of her life serving the Lord. (Photo via Wikipedia)

She was once asked by a student what she would say to her captors if she had the chance. She replied, "If I were to meet those who kidnapped me, and even those who tortured me, I would kneel and kiss their hands. For, if these things had not happened, I would not have been a Christian and a religious today."

This kind of praise and this kind of heart will never be enslaved in this present darkness. This is the heart of those who have truly overcome in Christ.

You Can Become a Conduit of the Waters in Your Lifetime

We must praise Him, and then we must continue to praise Him, and then we must praise Him some more. You will face many sufferings in this present life, but when you do, then do as the Apostle James said and "Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials of many kinds" (James 1:2), because this will help you to overcome each trial.

As you practice praise at all times, and not just when it is convenient, the waters will return and many will be touched by God through your life as they were touched by God through Bakhita's life. Even though she was a slave and had every right in the natural to be bitter and hate, she chose the way of love. She became a joy to many people, helping them to reach the place of intimacy with Christ in their own lives. She helped replenish the waters in her own time. We need to be that conduit in ours.

John 7:38 says, "Whoever believes in Me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them." These rivers are accessed through praise. (Photo by Robert Bartow "River of Gold" via elijahshopper.com)

If I have learned anything about these waters in my own life, it is that as I look to my God my situation always changes. No matter what I face and no matter how difficult it seems, when my face turns to my God I am set free.

I remember many times when it felt like I could not make another single step because of the hopelessness in my heart, but when I turned my eyes upon Jesus and looked full into His wonderful face, my own slavery ended. Peace would come sweeping over me and tears would rush down my face as Jesus entered more deeply into my reality.

I have been blessed to have had a ministry that now has touched thousands of lives. It is not me that these people are longing to see, but God. As I point Heavenward toward Him, then He manifests Himself to the people, and the same God who healed and delivered me, delivers and heals them.

As Psalm 150 shows, the key is always praise; and what seems fitting to me is that this is the last Psalm and it points Heavenward, to the eternal sanctuary, to the God of wonders, and to the God of all power. The waters will be replenished as we worship Him in all things.

And it seems certain to me that this is the hour of the coming waters when the great disparity in the earth will be repaired, when the tides of this present darkness will be turned back as the Church rises into its destiny, spreading the love of Christ abroad to many hearts.

Darren Canning
Ministry of Darren Canning
Email: darrencanning78@gmail.com
Website: darrencanning.org