Pray for Rain

Pray for Rain

Let me state the obvious: We need rain. If you live in Dalhart, Texas you know exactly what I am talking about.

Since moving to Dalhart, I have developed the habit of praying for rain. We desperately need the heavens to open and for rain to fall down on our dry land. Psalm 63:1 says, “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; 
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water. (NIV)” This Psalm shows us the way we can pray for rain.

The first priority in prayer should be to seek God with our whole hearts. God reigning in our lives is our first priority. Notice how passionately David pursues his God. He says, “earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you.” There is a great spiritual principle here. When we passionately pursue God, He will meet our needs and work in our lives in ways only He can. Let me ask you a quick question. How passionately are you pursuing God? This is a heart-probing question that we must ask. There is always room for pursuing Him more and focusing our attention and affection on Him. My church, First Baptist Dalhart, or one of Dalhart’s Bible believing churches can help you along this path.

Once we are pursuing Him earnestly we can approach Him with confidence and ask Him to meet our need for rain. Philippians 4:19 declares, “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Seeking God first and then trusting Him for our spiritual and physical needs leads to transformed lives and a changed community.

In his book, The Circle Maker, Mark Batterson tells the story of Honi, the circle maker. Honi lived in the time between the Old and New Testaments. He followed God passionately and persisted in prayer until the rain came. This is an uplifting book that I would highly recommend.  Click here for more details about the book. It is my prayer that God would raise up many in our community who would seek Him with their whole hearts and pray for the rain we so desperately need. Seek Him and pray for rain!

This article originally appeared in the Dalhart Texan and was written by Sean Vickers.

 

A Heart towards God

But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”  1 Samuel 16:7

There is a fascinating account in the Bible in 1 Samuel 16. When it was time to replace King Saul, Samuel went to Bethlehem and called together Jesse and his sons. Each of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel and God would select a new King. As seven sons passed by Samuel there was no suitable replacement found. Samuel asked if all of Jesse’s sons were there. Jesse had one more son, David, who was tending the sheep. They called for David and he was the one and was anointed by Samuel to be the future king of Israel.

This compelling story raises the question: What was the difference between David and his brothers? 1 Samuel 16:7 demonstrates that it was a matter of the heart. We tend to look at the exterior and God looks and the interior, the heart. 2 Chronicles 16:9

What does God see when He looks at your heart?

  • Pride – Proverbs 21:4, Jeremiah 17:9
    Our hearts will naturally focus on me, myself and I.
  • Guilt – Matthew 5:19
  • Brokenness – Psalm 51:17
  • Emptiness – King Saul – 1 Samuel 13:14
  • Belief – Romans 10:10
  • Jesus – Ephesians 3:14-19

What should we do?

  • Examine our OWN hearts
  • Eliminate pride and sin by confession and repentance
  • Turn our hearts toward God
  •  Trust Christ to dwell in our hearts as Savior and Lord