Hannah poured out her heart before the Lord
She wanted a baby and promised the Lord if He gave her a child,
she would dedicate that child right back to God
That child was the great prophet Samuel
whom God used to help keep King David close to Him 1 Samuel 1
Esther found out that wicked Haman wanted to kill Mordecai
and kill all the Jews, of which she was one
She called them to pray and fast
and their prayers were honored by our Lord God Almighty
Not only was Mordecai elevated in the Kingdom,
but all the Jews were spared
and the wicked Haman was hanged on the gallows
he had prepared for Mordecai
Elijah and Elisha prayed many prayers which were answered,
prayers of miraculous provision,
vats were filled with oil, 2 Kings 4:1-5
people were raised from the dead, 2 Kings 4:18-37
Elijah had the showdown with the prophets of Baal and God answered Elijah so that all could see God’s power and His authority 1 Kings 18:39
And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said,
The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God. 1 Kings 18:39
What of the many battles that were fought and won through prayer, meaning, it would have been impossible without God to have won them
And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
2 Kings 6:17
Amazing!
The walls of Jericho came down through prayer,
a specific kind of prayer,
an obedience and honor to Lord who also honored that prayer
and made walls come down without any human effort,
simply faith and obedience Joshua 6
The prophets had an ongoing conversation of prayer with God
Petitioning on behalf of the people
God was not confined nor was He restricted by their faith
He often performed signs and wonders far above
what they thought was possible and then their faith was strengthened
When Moses put his staff in the water to part the Red Sea,
the people were not believing,
it was on Moses’ faith
but then it isn’t clear that God told Moses
exactly how He was going to work each step of the way
Moses knew God was mighty,
even the Egyptians knew God was fighting on behalf of the Israelites
And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily:
so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel;
for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians. Genesis 14:25
Unfaithful Jonah prayed from the belly of a whale
and was spit out upon dry ground
That must’ve been because he was so tired and depleted
that God knew he wouldn’t have the strength to get to shore
And the Lord spake unto the fish,
and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. Jonah 2:10
God thinks of everything even when we don’t
And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said,
Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.
And I knew that thou hearest me always:
but because of the people which stand by I said it,
that they may believe that thou hast sent me. John 11:41b-42
God hears our silent prayers
He knows our every thought and care
The power of prayer is in knowing God is able to answer
and that He will answer
Sometimes we don’t know how He will answer
And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do:
for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
Be not ye therefore like unto them:
for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of,
before ye ask him. Matthew 6:6-7
Jesus then told us to pray the Lord’s Prayer
“for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask Him”
He hears our prayers
He may prompt us to pray a certain way,
maybe prompt you to pray a scripture or remind you of a previous answered prayer,
He also may remind you if you have any hindrances to prayer,
such as ought in your heart or if you need to make a relationship right
or just answer us and surprise us in how
The important thing is that we know He hears us and regards our prayers
If we pray according to His will, we know He hears us
And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask,
we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. 1 John 5:15
So, go forth in faith, knowing that He is listening to your prayers
and will be faithful to answer them how He sees fit,
in ways that will greatly strengthen your faith,
glorify Him and show you His power