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In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.’ The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said: ‘Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’ Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: ‘Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.’ Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’ (Isaiah 6:1-8)
Happy Friday, dear Friend! I pray the Lord richly bless you and yours on this final work day of the week or day off, or just another day; make it a special day by praying for the needs in your church's bulletin's prayer list. If you don't have one, one will be made available this Sunday in your church! (How's that for a gentle reminder to be in worship this weekend? ;))
This passage teaches a lot about prayer. For the last few Fridays we have been examining prayers from the Bible and how they can bless our own prayer life. This one is awesome as it shows the intent of prayer: We are to go right before the throne of God as we share with God our adoration, our confession, our thankfulness, and our supplications. Those are the basic components of a good prayer: A.C.T.S. is one way to remember that. The adoration part is our personal worship as we seek to lift God's name high in our lives and in the lives of those around us. As the prophet Isaiah prayed during a most difficult time in his life and the life of the nation, he was ushered into God's presence. He saw the Lord! We should see Jesus as we pray in His name. Which is why I believe Jesus asked that we find a place where we could pray. The model Jesus gave us was that He always found a secluded spot where He could be alone in His time of prayer. We should do that as often as we can.
The worship of God in Isaiah' prayer allowed him to hear a worship song, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory." Amen. Our prayer can include our singing praises to God, declaring as the prophet did, that God is all around us and great is His glory. Taking time to pray will expose us to that glory.
Isaiah took this time of prayer to confess. "Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!" Wow. Now, that's a confession! We too, should confess our sins to the Lord in our prayers. What is awesome that during this very prayer, an angel, a "seraph" cleansed the prophet of his sins, as God does when we confess to Him.
Isaiah's thanksgiving and supplication merged into one in the powerful part of the closing of this prayer time. God asks, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" And Isaiah said, as many of us have said to Him, "Here am I; send me!"
When Isaiah said amen, God revealed to him all that needed to be done, as usually happens to us when we pray with expectant and worshipful hearts; God will say, "Now my child, this is what you need to do for me..." and our response should be, "With Thy help, O Lord," and then we go to be faithful and fruitful.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, lead me into Your presence as I pray now and later today. Open my eyes to see Your glory all around me. Hear my private confession of my sins; remove them and make me clean. Receive my thankfulness for all You have provided for me. And remember those for whom I am praying; bring comfort to the hurting, healing to the sick, hope to the hopeless, and strength to the weak. Use me and my hands, legs, and arms to bless You and this I pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Be an answered prayer for someone today!
Eradio Valverde Prayers for me as I prepare to preach on the 30th of this month on the closing part of the Lord's prayer. This Sunday, Pastor Matt Pennington brings us to the rest of Jesus' prayer, so pray for him. This all happens at First UMC in Gonzales, Texas. Pray for your pastor (s) and your church! Pray for one another, and certainly pray for yourself!
