Thursday, January 14, 2016

Prayer weighted down by the Tail Feathers of Pride

Beginning to sink, he cried, saying,
Lord,
save me.
Matthew 14:30
 
"Sinking times are praying times....  
 
 Peter neglected prayer at starting upon his venturous journey,
but when he began to sink his danger made him a suppliant,
and his cry though late was not too late.
 
In our hours of bodily pain and mental anguish,
we find ourselves as naturally driven to prayer
as the wreck is driven upon the shore by the waves.
 
 Heaven's great harbor of refuge is All-prayer;
thousands of weather-beaten vessels have found a haven there,
and the moment a storm comes on,
it is wise for us to make for it with all sail.
Short prayers are long enough.
 
 Our extremities are the Lord's opportunities.
 
There were but three words
in the petition which Peter gasped out,
but they were sufficient for his purpose.
 
Not length but strength is desirable.
A sense of need is a mighty teacher of brevity.
If our prayers had less of the
 tail feathers of pride
and more wing they would be all the better."
Charles Spurgeon