All hell is breaking loose around you but you have joy; glorious, unspeakable joy. Who else wants that? You’ve been beaten up really badly. You’re in a little dump of a cell with no daylight. Your feet are in heavy stocks, but you’re praying and singing. Who else wants to pray with that kind of joy. It’s available. The question is, do you want it?
Silly questions
On the surface it’s a silly question. The reality is, however, that you may love your misery. You may get a kick out of feeling as if all the world is against you. Your sense of self-importance gets a boost. It’s you against them.
Jesus also asked what might have seemed like a silly question. He asked a blind man what the man wanted Jesus to do for him (Luke 18:35-43). Yet, evidently Jesus thought it was an important question, otherwise, why ask it? It really wasn’t a silly question. The man was blind and a beggar. What did he want? There are responsibilities that go with seeing.
That glorious, unspeakable joy
So, who else wants to pray with glorious, unspeakable joy, whether you’re praying in song, silence, many words, or few words? Who else?
Who else wants to join Paul and Silas (Acts 16:19-25), to whom I made reference at the beginning of this blog? Who else wants to sing and pray at midnight?
The midnight hour is significant. It’s a metaphor for times when you can’t see your way out, for when things are at a low point. And so it was for Paul and Silas. However, in putting the emphasis on the midnight, we sometimes forget the details—badly beaten up, in stocks (really heavy stuff), in the inner part of the prison.
In that situation, Paul and Silas chose joy. They sang and they prayed. They knew something.
“Although you have not seen [Jesus Christ], you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls (1 Peter 1:8–9).
That’s what they knew. They knew what Peter knew. Jesus Christ had already come and died. Jesus Christ was risen, the Captain of their salvation. The victory had already been won. They could see the glory. Jesus Christ was coming again. Nothing could harm them where they truly lived—their souls. Thus, when they prayed, it was resurrection praying.
The “salvation of your soul” goes beyond your external circumstances to where you live, within. Thus, when all hell is breaking loose around you, you can sing and pray resurrection prayers that are filled with glorious, unspeakable joy. Do you want to do this or do prefer to wallow in the misery of the moment? You get to choose.
Who else wants to pray resurrection prayers of glorious, unspeakable joy.
Removing your boundaries to a full and free life through honest, whole-hearted praying.
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