Bold Prayers and Chariots of Fire

I’ve been struck lately by Elisha.  His mentor, Elijah, is much more well known.  Hello, taken into heaven in a chariot!  But in Elisha, we see something important about prayer.

As Elijah is about to be taken to heaven, Elisha keeps following him.  Elijah asks what can be done for him, and Elisha goes big and asks for “double the spirit of Elijah”.  (He told Elijah this, but let’s be clear – this is a prayer to God and a request only God can grant.)

Elijah said, “you’ve asked a difficult thing” – “if you see me when I am taken away … then you will get your request.”  2 Kings 2 records Elisha seeing the chariots and Elijah leaving, but a reading of the next couple chapters leaves no doubt this prayer was answered.  God worked through Elisha in amazing ways!  Go read it for yourself!

Lesson 1 – Pray Bold Requests for Your Spiritual Life.  It’s totally fine and we should be praying about our physical concerns, but a greater emphasis on requests in the spiritual realm seems to be one mark of maturity in prayer and more in line with what we see in Biblical prayers.  Spiritual insight, spiritual wisdom, and on and on – we should be praying for these, God will answer!  I’ve been praying a couple years for a deeper understanding of grace and the gospel – He continues to answer!

Later on in 2 Kings 6, Elisha and his assistant are surrounded in the city of Dothan by an enemy army.  Elisha is not concerned, but his assistant is quite alarmed.  Elisha told him to not be afraid, and then prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!”  Elisha wanted him to see what God was doing – and yes, God was at work!  “When he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire.”  Lesson 2 – We need to Pray Bold Requests for the Spiritual Lives of those around us.

Prayer Prompts

• Every morning this week – Pray “O Lord, open ____ eyes and let them see!”  Fill in the blank for loved ones, for friends, and/or people that God is bringing to your mind.  Pray they see God at work, feel His presence, experience His love …

• Every evening this week – As suggested by a good friend of mine, pray Psalms 51:12 for someone.  “Restore to ______ the joy of their salvation, and make them willing to obey You.”  Fill in the blank with someone in your life that may be struggling or has lost their way.