A Study on Prayer - #5

The Urgency of Prayer

(Raleigh Ave. B.C., July 16, 2025)

“Prayer is not a substitute for work. It is the work for which there is no substitute.”

I have quoted that before. Prayer is absolutely essential in our lives. But it seems that the majority of even Christians do not take it seriously, as is evidenced by the sparse attendance at the weekly prayer meetings of most churches.  So many Christians just don’t care or have let other priorities push prayer to the side.

Amos 6:4-6 speaks about the careless attitude of many believers.

“Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory and stretch themselves out on their couches, who eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall, who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp and like David invent for themselves instruments of music, who drink wine in bowls and anoint themselves with the finest of oils, but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph.”

This is a picture of self-indulgent complacency, a lack of care for the condition of other people or of the spiritual lostness of the majority of people. All of their personal comforts are higher priorities – soft couches and beds, good food and drink, great entertainment, engaged in matters which have no eternal worth, spending excessive time and money on their personal appearance by purchase of the costliest of cosmetics. God desires that we spend our time and resources on matters of eternal importance. Prayer must be at the top of our priority list.

WE need to be fervent and urgent in our prayers. Our knee-jerk reaction to crises and other matters of great concern must be prayer. 

Here are some great illustrations of people of faith who did just that.

King Hezekiah:  (2 Kings 19:1-4) – When the Assyrian army had Jerusalem under siege. King H’s knee-jerk reaction was to go to the temple and pray and to call holy men to pray too – Isaiah.  God answered and overnight God annihilated 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. Prayers answered!

Hezekiah’s Illness: (2 Kings 20:1-6) – His initial reaction to this bad news of his imminent death was prayer. The news seemed to be irrevocable, as it came via the great prophet Isaiah! But Hezekiah did not resign himself to hopelessness. He prayed that it might be God’s will to extend his life.  God answered and gave him 15 more years of life. Prayer answered!

Esther 4:16-17 – When Esther was made aware of the desperate situation, she and all the Jews were in, that her husband, the king had allowed the enemy of the Jews, Haman, to issue a decree which called for genocide of the entire Jewish race world-wide, she called a fast (PRAYER TIME) and had her cousin Mordechai do the same. Three days of desperate praying to save the Jewish peoples from annihilation. God answered and gave her a plan of action. The Jews had a great victory over their ancient enemies.

David at Ziklag: He and his men had just returned to the city where they lived with their wives and children. 1 Samuel 30:1-8. David’s knee-jerk reaction was to pray. Some would think, “This is a no-brainer! Let’s go get our families.” In reply, God told David to go get them. They went and rescued their wives and families.

Our knee-jerk reaction should be to fall on our knees in prayer to the only One who can deal with our needs.

Paul wrote the church in Philippi about our knee-jerk reaction to stressful situations.

Philippians 4:7-9 –   

“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say, Rejoice! Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Paul is saying that when we face stressful things – things which bother our minds and our hearts, we should not let anxiety and worry rule our thoughts, but should instead rejoice because we are PEOPLE OF FAITH.  It is unreasonable for us to forget that our Lord is standing right beside us waiting for us to bring this matter to Him in prayer, that He is perfectly capable and willing to deal with any unsettling matters we are dealing with. And we do this with THANKSGIVING – “LORD, I have this great concern, and I thank you that you are here for me and that you want me to put it into your hands.” And what will God do? He will give us an inner peace that is attainable only to those of us who know Him and trust in Him. Peace in the midst of the storms.

Finally, Paul gave Timothy clear instructions about praying.

1 Timothy 2:1-6 –  

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.”

Supplications: A specific form of prayer characterized by earnestness, humility, and often urgency in making requests of God for oneself or others.

Prayers: A general term for any communication with God including praise, thanksgiving, and requests.

Intercession: Prayer on behalf of someone else, to avert judgment or to ask for God’s intervention in a specific situation, like when Moses prayed for God to heal his sister, Miriam, whom God had struck with leprosy.

And the focus of our prayers for “all people”, kings, and rulers is that they come to know God and the truth of His Word.

This kind of prayer is pleasing to God because God wants ALL PEOPLE to be saved – commoners and kings, the poor and the rich. And the results of these prayers – a peaceful, quiet, godly, and dignified life IN EVERY WAY.

So we know this – that when we pray for any lost person, that prayer is in line with the will of God.

Final Words of Recommendation

1. Keep a written list of prayer requests and use it daily in your quiet time.

2. Memorize scriptures which grab your heart – keep reviewing them daily in order to keep them in mind. This habit will greatly bless your prayer life.