“O Lord, God of my master, Abraham,” he prayed. “Please give me success today, and show unfailing love to my master, Abraham. See, I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’—let her be the one you have selected as Isaac’s wife. This is how I will know that you have shown unfailing love to my master.”
Genesis 24: 12-14 (NLT)
Abraham’s servant needed to fulfill the job he had been given. He needed the right woman to meet him at the right time at the right place. It was an impossible task to complete on his own and before he met anyone, he invited God into the process by praying specifically about what he needed for his mission to be successful. We can do the same when we are faced with life’s challenges.
A Specific Request
This post was inspired by a recent Sunday School lesson on finding a bride for Isaac. This servant traveled 500 miles to find the right woman out of the many who lived in Abraham’s former country of Haran. Not only did she have to be from Haran, she also had to be from Abraham’s family. The servant did not know anyone there, so how could he find this woman? He couldn’t. But he knew God could and sought His help through prayer. The servant was very specific about what he needed, down to the very words this woman needed to say that would confirm that she was the one God had chosen for Isaac.
What a timely lesson! It encouraged me to pray specifically for what I need God to do in my life and the lives of my loved ones. Through Jesus Christ, we can seek out God for His sovereign hand to intervene in our lives in miraculous and unimaginable ways. Our prayers do not need to be generic but can be tailored to petition God for the specific personal needs we have. The word of God tells us to bring our situational requests to Him instead of becoming overwhelmed:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Philippians 4:6 NIV)
An Invitation Through Specific Prayers
This servant had every reason to be anxious as he traveled a far distance to some unknown land to find the right woman. But he chose to pray and petition God to help him instead. We can choose to do the same thing when we are confronted with situations that are beyond us and need divine intervention. Maybe we need to connect with the right person, the right job, the right house, the right school or some other great need that is beyond our capabilities to make happen. We can choose to fret about how this will happen or we can invite God into it by specifically praying for Him to step in and orchestrate divine connections and miraculous moments.
In the end, God came through in magnificent fashion and answered the servant’s prayer exactly how he asked. Just a side note: this specific prayer had no selfish undertones nor was about glorifying man. The servant petitioned God knowing that an answer would reveal the kindness, love and faithfulness of Almighty God. It wasn’t just about getting what he asked for but also became the opportunity for the Lord to show who He is and what He can do for those who trust Him and seek to glorify Him.
So what are you needing today? What difficult situation is consuming you and your loved ones? How can you take it and use it to shape specific prayers to invite God into it? Not just for your own needs but for the opportunity to worship and glorify God for His kind, loving and faithful hand in your own life.
Considerations 