OPENING STATEMENT: If you have your Bibles would you please turn with me to the Book of Isaiah chapter 38. The Title of my message this morning is WHY PRAY? Have you ever asked yourself this question, why pray? Why bother praying since, whatever will be will be? Let me give you the short answer: WHEN YOU PRAY, GOD MOVES!

“In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.” (Isaiah 38:1 NKJ)

• pay attention to Hezekiah’s response to God
• He does not get mad at Isaiah or God
• How many times do we get mad at God or the messenger or the pastor when things don’t turn out the way we want?

² Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, ³ and said, “Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. (Isaiah 38:2-3 NKJ)

• As a matter of fact, he does not even ask God for anything. Not even his healing.

“Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition, and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.” – Mother Teresa

• I am not saying Prayer is not asking. The word says we don’t receive because we don’t ask and when we ask we don’t receive because we ask with the wrong motives. That’s sounds like a catch 22.
• Prayer is deeper than just asking. It is surrendering to God!

WHEN YOU SURRENDER IN PRAYER, GOD MOVES!

• Hezekiah turns his face to the wall and listen to this: He appeals to the memory of God with a simple short prayer.
• Hezekiah puts himself in the hands of God, at his disposition.
• How many of us has ever viewed prayer in that light? Putting ourselves in the hands of God, at his disposition.
• Hezekiah’s prayer is short and simple, but God honored it.
• God delights in the shortest and simplest of prayers!
• No need to impress God with prayers that are filled with lofty religious words.

“Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the one who hears it and not in the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference.” – Max Lucado

• So what is prayer? Prayer is simply connecting and communing with God!
• It is sometimes talking, sometimes listening. It can be with words or no words at all. It can be at home, in the car, at work, in the bathroom.

⁴ And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying, ⁵ “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I HAVE HEARD YOUR PRAYER, I HAVE SEEN YOUR TEARS; (Isaiah 38:4-5 NKJ)

• “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book” (Psalm 56:8 NLT)
• God is keeping track of every single one of your prayers, your pain, your sorrows

Now, God sends Isaiah back to Hezekiah with this message:

“Surely I will add to your days fifteen years. ⁶ I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city.” (Isaiah 38:6 NKJ)

• God not only heals Hezekiah but He also adds15 more years to his life
• Then God went above and beyond by promising to defend the city against the enemy
• Now does God stops here? Nope…This time He even gives a sign to Hezekiah.

⁷ And this is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing which He has spoken: ⁸ Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down. (Isaiah 38:7-8 NKJ)

• God turns back the clock, just for Hezekiah. Some believe that it was a solar eclipse

WHEN YOU PRAY, GOD MOVES!

Why was God so extravagant in the way that He answered Hezekiah’s simple prayer?

JUST BECAUSE HE CAN!

“Now to Him who is ABLE to do EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY ABOVE ALL that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJ)

• Most of us are familiar with this scripture, but that’s only part of the scripture.
• There’s a missing part. And we have a tendency to leave out.

Here’s the full quote:

“Now to Him who is ABLE to do EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY ABOVE ALL that we ask or think, ACCORDING TO THE POWER THAT WORKS IN US” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJ)

• “According to the power that works in us”
• The key word here is ACCORDING. It comes from the Greek word “katho” which means “to measure out” or “to release”
• How do we measure out or release God’s power? Through prayer
• So when we put that word in context with Ephesians 3:20 we get this: Our God is able to answer our prayers in an exceeding, abundant, above all manner…when we measure out His power that is already at work in us.
• I believe God has already done His work and He has deposited His power in us and now He is expecting us to measure it out through prayer!
• His power was deposited in us according to Acts 1:8 – “you shall receive POWERwhen the HOLY SPIRIT has come upon you” (Acts 1:8 NKJ)

Why hold back on your prayer life when you have the power of the Holy Spirit in you

Why hold back on your prayer life when your God has the ability to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that you can ask or think

• Why not pray? Over your pain, your sorrows, over your finances, over your marriage, over children, over your community, over your nation
• Why not measure out God’s unlimited power through a simple prayer?

WHEN YOU PRAY, GOD MOVES!

Let’s go back to Hezekiah’s story as we wrap up

• On his death bed, his body has gone septic from an infectious boil
• Now Hezekiah did not have what you and I have today: The indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. Yet he prayed and God heard him.
• In verse 21 Isaiah orders his servants to apply an ointment from figs over the boil.
• Our job is simply to pray. The method that God chooses answer is up to Him.
• Sometimes the answer comes with bells, whistles and fireworks. Sometimes it could be as simple as go see a doctor.
• In Hezekiah’s case, God used Hezekiah’s servants and a fig newton
• Sometimes God’s answer is Yes, No, or Wait a while!

WHEN YOU PRAY, GOD MOVES!

CONCLUSION

What is the Holy Spirit saying to you through this message?