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Any promise of God needs someone to hold onto that promise. Prayer without a promise has no grounding and there will be no fruit to your prayer. On the other hand, a promise without prayer has no purpose at all. Promises are activated by believing prayer.


Any promise of God needs someone to hold onto that promise. Prayer without a promise has no grounding and there will be no fruit to your prayer. On the other hand, a promise without prayer has no purpose at all. Promises are activated by believing prayer.

Promises have been put in the Word for the purpose of holding fast to them, and prayer is one of the primary ways in which we do this. Promises are prayer tools. You never, ever let go of them because if God promised it, it will surely come to pass.

God gave Elijah a promise, and this man held onto that promise until he saw the answer. Even then he didn't need a huge indication. A cloud the size of a man's hand was enough to send him outrunning the king's chariot to get in out of the rain!

James 5:7-8, uses the account of Elijah's prayer for rain to classically illustrate to us the kind of prayer which precedes and prepares the coming of the Lord.

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain.

You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
James 5:7-8
Here James exhorts us to be patient for the coming of the Lord. An analogy can be drawn between this verse with the patient husbandman waiting for the harvest, and God, the Lord of the harvest, waiting for a harvest of souls from all over the earth (Matthew 9:38).

The early and latter rains mentioned here are the spring and summer rains which bring the crops to ripeness. In the same way, the rain of God's Spirit falling on the field of human souls causes these souls to beready for harvest. It is this harvest for which the coming of the Lord is patiently waiting.

A few verses later, Elijah's prayer for rain provides an excellent example of how to pray for the rain of God's Spirit:
The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.

And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
(James 5:16b-18)
Elijah was just as human as we are, and for three and a half years his prayers kept the rain from falling. But when he did finally pray fervently for rain, it fell from the skies and made the crops grow.

Let's see what the Bible has to say concerning the rain of God's Spirit. Here are some important aspects to consider:
  • What is the rain? Hosea 6:3 says "He comes as the rain." God's very presence is the rain we are asking for.
  • How does rain fall? Like dew, rain, snow, or any precipitation with varying degrees of intensity, God's presence can fall in different ways and measures.
  • The rain falls over areas of the earth on both the just and the unjust (Matt. 5:45). It is His presence alone which refreshes and revives the just (Acts 3:19) and prepares the unjust for harvesting (John 16:8-9).
  • Although there was a promise for rain, Elijah had to pray, as we have just seen. Zachariah 10:1 says to ask for rain in the time of the latter rain. Do you see it? Even though we have a promise of an outpouring of God's Spirit and even though it is the right time, we still have to ask.
  • Elijah was persistent in his prayer for rain (Luke 18:1).
When fervent, persistent prayers are made for a specific harvest field such as youth, business persons, specific nations and the like, those prayers function as evaporation, and accumulate over that field like a cloud. When that cloud reaches the point of saturation, it will turn into precipitation! The rain of God's presence will fall on that field and do just what James 5:18 says; it will cause it to be ready for harvest!

You can see why Elijah's example of praying for the rain is extremely important in preparing the way for Jesus' return. This rain is necessary to prepare the people of God as well as the harvest of souls for which He is patiently waiting.

Let us, as people who have been made righteous, pray earnest, heartfelt, and continued prayers, making tremendous power available, dynamic in its working. "Lord, send the rain!"

Source: For Such A Time As This by Patsy Cameneti
Excerpt permission granted by Blaze Publishing House

Author Biography

Patsy Cameneti
Web site: Cameneti Ministries
 
Patsy is compelled to help believers find their place in Christ. Her message, which often emphasizes prayer, is marked by a personal pursuit of God that has inspired many believers to also develop their own walk with God in a real and purposeful way.
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