"The Power of Prayer"

 "Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment: and a babbler is no better." (Ecclesiastes 10:11 KJV)

  "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7 NLT)

 Whether or not you understand it, prayer really does change things! You might not get what you want, but God will surely give you what you need; without any doubt, He will do for you what is needed, even if it is just helping you see Him more and feel His great love; that alone is enough to solve so many issues in our lives! 

 When we are talking about giving all of our cares to God, what we are meant to do is to trust Him with caring for us, not taking care of some things, we might care about; although they might get taken care of, on their own. The things we are looking for are things which draw us closer to Him; things like doing all that He requires of us and serving others in a way that shows His love is real; just by the way we show how much we trust in Him. 

 Even when things get totally out of control, as they often can do, He is always in control, so we must do all that we can to draw close to Him. Prayer is the most important thing we have to enter into the place where there is peace and comfort, even in the strongest storm. Not that it will solve every problem, but that any problem we might have will seem less threatening, because fellowshipping with Him is the most important thing we can ever do. 

 So, with that, I will take a minute to explain the power of pray, and why it happens to be associated with this verse. The first thing we should remember is that of prayer being something that does not require us asking God for things, as if He doesn't know what we need; He knows what we need more then we even know, ourselves! 

 Think about what it looks like when someone is taming a snake, as you might see those people who play a flute, and the cobra comes up and dances but does not bite. In this case the serpent is not the thing that is the issue, it is the bite; the bite being that which is poisoning us, which is causing us to fear that which is happening in our lives, more than our fear of the LORD! 

 If we are seriously trusting the LORD, then no matter what that serpent has the ability to do, it will not harm us or cause us any fear! Giving everything to God in prayer, actually, positively, without a doubt, includes all of our fears! If God says it is so, that we can trust Him, then we must trust Him, without a doubt, period! That is the meaning of the enchantment; not that you are going change the snake, but that the snake will not bite! 

 Secondly, we must not babble and say things which don't come from the heart! God wants us to talk to Him as we would talk to a loving Father, making our request towards Him, not as if He doesn't know what we need, but because we know that He cares! More than anything, we need more of Him...

"Then teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: "Suppose you went to a friend's house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, 'A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.' And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, 'Don't bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are in bed. I can't help you.' But I tell you this - though he won't do it for friend-ship's sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. "And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will open to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. "You fathers - if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him."" (Luke 11:5-13 NLT)