I have been so helped, and exhorted, lately as I have considered a key moment early in the life of the Apostle Paul. When the Lord appeared to him on the road to Damascus, Paul, at that time Saul, was blinded by the vision, and so he was led into the city, where he ate and drank nothing for three days. Then the Lord appeared to another brother there, Ananias, in a vision and told him to go to Saul, saying,

…“For behold, he is praying.”
— Acts 9:11

So Ananias did go to him, laying hands on him and baptizing him, so that Saul received his sight again and was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then immediately, Saul rose up and began to proclaim Jesus as the Christ (Acts 9:12, 18-20).

What has impressed me so much is the reason why the Lord sent Ananias to Saul: because He saw that Saul was praying. It was not because Saul had seen a vision, or because he was a chosen vessel, or because he needed healing. Even though all of those things were true, the Lord sent Ananias because Saul was praying.

In a similar way, in the Old Testament the Lord sent an angelic messenger to the prophet Daniel after he had prayed for three weeks, to give him a remarkable vision of Israel’s future history and of the end times (Dan. 10). In that instance we are told that as soon as Daniel began to pray, “his words were heard,” and that is why the messenger came:

From the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.
— Daniel 10:12

These examples in the Bible show us that, while we may not see just how the Lord moves in an unseen way in response to our prayers, He surely is moving. Moreover, the Lord indeed hears our words and even beholds us as we pray, and that is why His messenger eventually comes to us.

It is vital for us to learn this lesson: whether the Lord’s messenger comes to us or not does not depend primarily on our situations or needs, on our side, nor on the Lord’s purpose, on His side. Rather, the question is, does the Lord see us praying and hear our words of prayer?

We may face difficult, even impossible, situations, in our own lives, such as family, work, financial, or health situations. Will the Lord send His messenger to you?

“For behold, [your name here] is praying.”

Or we may face difficulties in the Lord’s work, and cannot get through in the gospel or in helping the saints touch Christ anew. Will the Lord send His messenger to you, to work among the saints in a fresh way?

“For behold, [your name here] is praying.”

Or we may see, as we surely should see in these days, a nation sinking in sin, lawlessness, and corruption, where the gospel is so limited, and God’s word, the Bible, is no longer honored as it once was. Will the Lord send His messenger to you, to rise up and deal with the situation?

“For behold, [your name here] is praying.”

If the Lord does see us praying in such a way, and does hear our words of prayer, we may be assured that, in due time, He will send His messenger, human, angelic, or otherwise, to us and even to our situation.

And when that happens, it will change everything.

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— 5 October 2022 —