Praying With Purpose: Paul Is Praying

“And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,” Acts 9:11

Paul is praying? The last that Ananias heard about Paul was that he was pursuing! He was persecuting! But now he is praying. Paul had just met Christ on the road to Damascus and it was a life changing event. In fact it was a world changing event. But before he could change the world, he had to do some changing himself. This is what prayer is all about.

We have been taught that prayer changes God’s mind. But that’s not the purpose of prayer. Prayer is all about changing us. It is about is making our wishes, what God wishes. Paul has just had his theological world turned upside down, and in order for him to adapt he is going to have to change and that only comes through communion with God.

God would take Paul into Arabia and teach him the truths of the Gospel. As he returned back to Jerusalem many of the disciples feared him but they saw that Paul was truly a converted man and accepted him into the fellowship. Not only does prayer change us, but when it does, it changes situations as well. Some situations in life will change only when we change. We have to

· Change our minds

· Change our ways

· Change our plans

And this can be very difficult without discipline and submission. These can only be achieved by spending time in prayer.

Not only was Paul praying but Ananias was praying too! You see the Christian world would not be what it is today if Ananias was not praying. It was through his submission and discipline that he had the courage to act obediently to Christ. Not only was prayer changing Paul’s mind towards Christianity, prayer was changing Ananias’ mind towards Paul. In all of this, both Ananias’ wishes and Paul’s wishes became what God wishes.

How about you today? Can people say about you and I “Behold he or she is praying.” I think that if we are, people will not need to ask…they will know!

Pastor Robby