A friend told a story about prayer. He said that one time, he was driving his car down a mountain road when suddenly his brakes gave out. He didn’t bother with a long flowery prayer following the format of the Master’s Prayer given in Matthew 5. Rather, he got right to the point:
“Help!”
That definitely sums up prayer, and our Father LOVES to hear His children ask for help. In fact, Yehovah is described hundreds of times in the Scriptures as our Helper!
On the other hand, it’s highly offensive to Him when we ignore Him and seek help from any other sources, whether from idols, from other men, from military might, or even from money or possessions.
My life has been a bit overwhelming with challenges this fall, leading me to sometimes wake in the middle of the night. My brain tries to figure out solutions at 5 AM, but try as I might, I simply cannot solve all the world’s problems. <wink!>
One of my favorite Scripture passages is Philippians 4:6-7, which says,
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Messiah Yeshua.”
Sometimes we carry too much weight, too many burdens. Life can be heavy! Of course, psychologists say that anxiety can bring on depression, but honestly, wouldn’t anyone carrying too much weight start to feel heavily weighed down, or depressed?!
The old King James Version translates Philippians 4:6 as, “Be careful [or full of care] for nothing.” The etymology of “care,” according to the Etymonline app, is an Old English word (caru, cearu) meaning “sorrow, anxiety, grief,” and also “burdens of mind; serious mental attention.” The English word “carry” has the same root.
Yehovah is telling us not to carry all these burdens and be weighed down with all this anxiety, grief, and mental mess. He wants to be our Helper! He wants to give us grace, which is a Hebrew word implying His “protection” over those He finds valuable (source).
“Hear, YHVH, and have mercy on me; YHVH, be my helper!” (Psalm 30:10).
Philippians 4:6 continues by telling us to bring everything to our Helper through prayer, rather than struggling along with heavy burdens of care on our own.
Three types of prayer are mentioned.
Prayer
First, let’s define the word prayer, or פָּלַל (palal, Strong’s #6419). I was fascinated to follow this word through the Hebrew Tanakh (Old Testament) and to discover that this word usually means one person is interceding on behalf of another. It can even imply that someone falls on his face before a judge or king, pleading with the authority to come and help.
Abraham is an excellent example.
“Now therefore, restore [Abraham]’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours” (Genesis 20:7).
Moses is another amazing example.
“Then the people cried out to Moses, and when Moses prayed to YHVH, the fire was quenched” (Numbers 11:2).
“Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against YHVH and against you; pray to YHVH that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people” (Numbers 21:7).
Yehovah invites us to come before Him, falling on our faces to intercede for the problems of others especially, but we can certainly bring our own problems to Him as well.
He wants us to holler, “Help!” when the brakes on our life have given out and we are in danger of going over the cliff. He is so pleased when we fall on our faces before Him out of love for others, telling Him about their needs and begging for Him to intervene in their situation.
Supplications
Philippians 4:7 continues that we are to bring our supplications (with thanksgiving) before Him as well.
Supplications, or תַּחֲנוּן (tachanun, Strong’s #8469), are related to the word grace, which, again, means to ask for a ruler to provide protection, to rescue, to give, help, and to treat as valuable. We are asking for compassion to be shown to us.
Yeshua illustrates supplications with this story:
Then [Yeshua] spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”
Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1-8)
When I bring my supplications to my King, I imagine myself compiling a legal document with all the ways in which I need help or justice. I list out the issues, one after another. Just as a lawyer might prepare a petition for a court, stating how his client needs help, I bring the list of my needs to Him. He is a just judge!
Our prayer lists are often so sloppy.
Betty – sister has cancer
Keith – recover from Covid
Madison – her daughter has wandered away from truth
Janet – traveling this Tuesday
I suppose that’s okay, but how would you word this if you were presenting a case before a judge?
“Honorable Sir, on the 14th of November, Betty’s sister was diagnosed with cancer. She loves you, Father, honoring your Sabbath and loving all those around you. She shares Yeshua with all her neighbors, and she brought me a meal when our baby was born. Your Word says that you heal all our infirmities and carry all our sicknesses, through the shed blood of Yeshua your Son. You invite us to ask us for whatever we need. We do not know your will for Betty’s life, O Great and Wise King, but because you have invited us to ask, we bring this need before you.”
Do you see how simply realizing we are presenting a petition before the Heavenly Court helps us state exactly what we need — and why we believe it is His will, according to His written promises, to give it to us? We are asking for His grace, or His protection, in our times of difficulty and need, humbly submitting to whatever His righteous decision will be.
Requests
Finally, Philippians 4:7 says we are to bring our requests before Him. A request, or שְׁאֵלָה (shehaylah, Strong’s #7596), is to seek what is not known, to inquire, or to draw out. It can also mean to increase or gain abundance by drawing out.
I think a request is often in the category of financial needs. (“Father, you know that the radiator on the car just went out, and we are lacking the funds to replace it right now, so we ask for your help with that $600 bill.”)
We can also request help when we don’t have all the information to make a good decision. As the apostle James wrote,
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).
I love realizing that we are working as ambassadors in this world for the King of Kings. Our job is to wisely manage the resources (homes, children, marriages, finances, farms, animals, business, etc.) that the King has put into our stewardship. In addition, as we are going about our daily responsibilities for Him, we are to testify about what Yeshua the Messiah has done for us and how He has shown us great love and grace (protection!).
Mike Huckabee was recently appointed the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Do you think our new President will ask Mr. Huckabee to travel to Israel using his own funds? No! If Mr. Huckabee has any need for an airplane ticket, a hotel room, a new suit to wear to important meetings, or funds to treat dignitaries to a fine meal at a restaurant, he is only to submit his request to the President. All his needs will be provided from the funds of the U.S. Treasury.
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Messiah Yeshua” (Philippians 4:19).
And of course, if Mr. Huckabee isn’t sure what decisions should be made between Israel and the United States, he is also to go to President Trump and to Congress for advice. He never speaks on his own wisdom. As a prophet or a messenger, he only speaks the words of the one he represents.
This is why he inquires before speaking. This is why King David was famous for inquiring of Yehovah before making decisions (and I wonder if this is why David was known as a man after God’s own heart).
Prayer – Interceding and Pleading for Oneself or Others
Supplications – Asking for Protection from a Judge
Requests – Presenting a Petition for Needs or Wisdom
This is just a quick summary of prayer, but I hope my study will encourage you to come, as the author of Hebrews writes, boldly before your King!
“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace (protection) to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:12).
Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture in this blog post taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved
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