Gabriel Agbo | Pray the word of God

For our prayers to be effective, we must pray God’s words. Praying God’s word is knowing what the words and promises of God are, then offering them back to him in prayer. To do this, we must read, meditate, search and appropriate his Word. The power and the glory of God come when we appreciate and personalise his words. The Word of God is the will and mind of God. And He does nothing outside His will. “ We can be confident that he will listen to us whenever we ask him for anything in line with His will.” 1John 5:14. Now, how can we know His will? That is through His written word, the Bible, and through his revealed word – Rhema - (this includes prophetic words, visions and dreams, etc). Let’s see in the Bible a few examples of those that prayed the word of God and achieved maximum results.

Jehoshaphat Prayed the Word

When Judah was faced with the danger of imminent attack by a group of enemy nations, King Jehoshaphat prayed the Word of God. He prayed the promises of God to their forefathers and God came swiftly to their rescue.

“ Jehoshaphat stood before the people of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the temple of the LORD. He prayed ‘O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? Your people settled here and built this Temple for you....” 2 Chronicles 20:5-9

Great! Jehoshaphat knew the Word and promise of God and simply threw them back to Him. It is not that God forgot His words and promises. No. But He will always want us to affirm our faith in His words and walk in His will. Jehoshaphat was reminding God of His promises to Abraham and also to King Solomon during the dedication of the Temple. Let’s see them here:

Promises to Abraham

“ As the sun went down and it became dark, Abram saw a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. So the LORD made a covenant with Abram that day and said, ‘I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River – the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” Genesis 15:17-21.

Promises to Solomon

“ So, Solomon finished building the Temple of the LORD, as well as the royal palace. He completed everything he had planned to do. Then one night the LORD appeared to Solomon and said, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this temple as the place for making sacrifices. At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or I might command locusts to devour your crops, or I might send plagues amongst you. Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land. I will listen to every prayer made in this place, for I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be my home forever. My eyes and my heart will always be here.” 2 Chronicles 7:11-16, 1 Kings 9:3

Jehoshaphat knew all these promises and promptly threw them back to God at the time of need. And, because God cannot deny His words, He immediately responded and saved Judah from the imminent danger. He took over the battle, the three nations killed themselves, and Israel had victory. Praise God!

Daniel Prayed the Word

Another good example is Daniel. He knew and prayed the word of God for the deliverance of the children of Israel from Babylonian captivity, and he received the attention of heaven swiftly: “... I, Daniel, was studying the writings of the prophets. I learned from the word of the LORD, as recorded by Jeremiah the prophet, that Jerusalem must lie desolate for seventy years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with Him in prayer and fasting. I wore rough sackcloth and sprinkled myself with ashes.” Daniel 9:1-3.

Now, Daniel and the children of Israel were taken into captivity in Babylon. There, Daniel read from the writing of Jeremiah and understood that it was time for Israel’s captivity to end. It was meant to last just for 70 years. Then, he began to pray on that divine promise and consequently got favourable results. Let’s see the promises that Daniel prayed:

“ The truth is that you will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised and I will bring upon you home again. For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. I will be found by you,’ says the LORD. ‘I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you again to your own land.” Jeremiah 29:10-14.

These were the promises Daniel prayed on. If you don’t know the Word and promises of God for your life, you will overstay in captivity. True. You must strive to know what the Word of God says concerning you, concerning your family, your country and the church. You must know what the Word of God says concerning your health, your finances, your children, and your marriage and then pray on them, if you must get the desired results.

Jesus prayed and acted the Word

Jesus also understood this principle, that was why He said that He does nothing except what He is directed to do from above. He would always seek for the will of His father to be done. In fact, at a stage He said that He was going, walking (acting) according to how it was written of Him. That means that everything about Him has been written down, planned in heaven. His was just to follow the divine script. No wonder He always got the maximum result from His prayers. When we know and pray God’s Word and promises, like Jesus, all things will become possible to us. Until next week. God bless you!

Rev Gabriel Agbo is the author of the books/audiobooks: The Power of Midnight Prayer: Unlocking spiritual forces for divine intervention; Receive Your Healing; Breaking Generational Curses: Claiming Your Freedom; Never Again!; I Shall Not Die; Move Forward; Power of Sacrifice and many others. Email: gabrielagbo@yahoo.com