Prayer and Promises

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. — John 6:63, ESV 

Darkness will sometimes gather about the Christian, but let the hand of faith reach up and lay hold of the arm of Jesus; for he has promised that if we follow him, we shall have the light of life. Christ is our leader; we cannot lead ourselves; but in order to obtain his help, we must believe. We should pray much; but we do not always have the spirit of prayer, and Satan takes advantage of our weakness on this point. We should never be discouraged, however, but in times of temptation and trial we should hang our helpless souls upon Jesus. We must learn to rest our case with our Redeemer; he has promised to be with us to the end of the world. We should learn to trust the word of God; for heaven and earth could easier pass away than that one of his promises could fail. When you do not feel the spirit of prayer, you should remember that feeling is not faith; you should seek to prove the pledged word of God. I have had to learn by experience that feeling is no criterion for us; we must take the word of God as the man of our counsel. If we had true faith, we could move the world; we could plead with God and with our friends, and many conversions would be the result. 

If we want our faith to grow, we must bring it into exercise; and the nearer and clearer views we get of Jesus, the more we shall see our need of him. God is willing to reveal himself to us in a remarkable manner; the reason we do not see greater manifestations of his power is that we lack faith. If God should answer some of our faithless prayers, it would astonish us. We should go to God in earnest, and mix faith with our petitions; persevering faith will bring us answers of peace. Christ says, “He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Our minds should be filled with the thought of our precious Redeemer, and we would become more and more like him, and thus reveal Christ to the world. 

God has given us precious advantages, that we might understand his will as revealed in his word; and in return shall we not yield our will to him, and with all the heart believe what he has said to us? 

— Signs of the Times, December 15, 1890 

My Father in heaven, I reach up to lay hold of the arm of Jesus through this darkness. My own efforts and feelings do nothing to help me. I seek to follow You and hang my helpless soul on Jesus. Your words are trustworthy, for they are spirit and life. I claim Your promise that those who follow You shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. I fix my faith on You proving Your pledged word, for You can make all things work out for good. Your word is my reliable counsel!