22 Sermon Illustrations on Faith in Prayer

A lady lay in bed suffering violent head pains. While thus suffering she said to a friend who was watching by her side, "If only I could get ten minutes' sleep, I should feel better." The friend said nothing but offered up a silent prayer to God to grant the ten minutes' sleep. True, the petition was feeble, and the faith feeble, but the Lord, who is very tender, did not despise either the feebleness of the faith or the smallness of the subject of the request. The patient presently slept and described her sleep as most delicious. Specific prayer availeth much. We must narrow down our prayers if we want God to give us that which we need. Our children feel free to come to us and ask us for even the most insignificant things. The only hope of their getting that which they want is by asking, and asking specifically.

In one of the towns in England there is a beautiful little chapel, and a very touching story is told in connection with it. It was built by an infidel. He had a praying wife, but he would not listen to her, would not allow her pastor even to take dinner with them; would not look at the Bible, would not allow religion even to be talked of. She made up her mind, seeing she could not influence him by her voice, that every day she would pray to God at twelve o'clock for his salvation. She said nothing to him; but every day at that hour she told the Lord about her husband. At the end of twelve months there was no change in him. But she did not give up. Six months more went past. Her faith began to waver, and she said, "Will I have to give him up at last? Perhaps when I am dead He will answer my prayers." When she had got to that point, it seemed just as if God had got her where he wanted her. The man came home to dinner one day. His wife was in the dining-room waiting for him, but he didn't come in. She waited some time, and finally looked for him, all through the house. At last she thought of going into the little room where she had prayed so often. There he was, praying at the same bed with agony, where she had prayed for so many months, asking forgiveness for his sins. And, this is a lesson to you wives who have infidel husbands. The Lord saw that woman's faith and answered her prayers.

While the prayer of faith," said an eloquent Welsh preacher, "is sure to succeed, our prayers, alas! too often resemble the mischievous tricks of children in a town, who knock at their neighbors' houses, and then run away. We often knock at mercy's door, and then run away, instead of waiting for an entrance and an answer. Thus we act as if we were afraid of having our prayers answered."

Pray for unwavering faith,—a strong (as Jabez Bunting, when lying, said), an obstinate faith in God. Seek much faith as not only lays hold of him, but holds him, and won't let him go; that has the grasp of a drowning man. Seek a faith greater than Joshua's, when, laying his hand on the sun, he held it back from going on; a faith in Jacob's, who, strange as it seems, held God from going away, as, endowed with superhuman energy, he wrestled the night through with an angel, and, the stronger of the two, revealed, replying to the prayer, "Let me go, the day breaketh;" "I will not let thee go unless thou bless me." Dr. Guthrie.

A negro slave in Virginia, whose name we will call Jack, was remarkable for his good sense, knowledge of the leading truths of the gospel, and especially for his freedom from all gloomy fears in regard to his future eternal happiness. A professing Christian, a white man, who was of a very different temperament, once said to him, "Jack, you seem to be always comfortable in the hope of the gospel. I wish you would tell me how you manage it, to keep steadily in this blessed frame of mind." "Why, massa," replied Jack, "I just fall flat on the promise, and pray right up." We recommend Jack's method to all desponding Christians, as containing, in substance, all that can be properly said on 330-322

PRAYER the subject. Take ground on the promises of God, and plead them in the prayer of faith—pray “right up.”

# 321. Praying with Submission.

Is it not a sad thing that we should think it wonderful for God to hear prayer? Much better faith was that of a little boy in one of the schools in Edinburgh, who had attended a prayer-meeting, and at last said to his teacher who conducted it," Teacher, I wish my sister could be got to read the Bible; she never reads it." "Why, Johnny, should your sister read the Bible?" "Because if she should once read it, I am sure it would do her good, and she would be converted and be saved." "Do you think so, Johnny?" "Yes, I do, sir, and I wish the next time there's a prayer-meeting, you would ask the people to pray for my sister that she may begin to read the Bible." "Well, well, it shall be done, John." So the teacher gave out that a little boy was very anxious that prayer should be offered that his sister might begin to read the Bible. John was observed to get up and go out. The teacher thought it very rude of the boy to disturb the people in a crowded room, and so the next day when the lad came, he said, "John, I thought it was very rude of you to get up in the prayer-meeting and go out. You ought not to have done so." "Oh, sir," said the boy, "I did not mean to be rude; but I thought I should just like to go home and see my sister reading her Bible for the first time."

Sermon in James series. How to prayer with faith. James 1:5-8

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ASK LIKE YOU MEAN IT

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I. Maturity vs. needs.

II. Wisdom for the asking.

III. Getting by asking.

A. Obvious problem: ASKING doesn't always produce GETTING.

B. James says you must know the one we are asking help from.

IV. Asking in faith.

A. We must believe God is hearing and can answer.

B. We must believe God's way is best.

V. When faith falls short.

A. There are reasons why God may not answer our prayers.

B. Lack of faith hindered Jesus' ability to do miracles. Mark 6:4-6

C. Bible dilemma: Him or us?

VI. Wavering waves of weakness.

A. Rollercoaster Christians.

B. Faith in prayer means constant trust in God.

C. Affects more than prayer - unstable in ALL he does. James 1:8

VII. When we need a little help to believe.

A. When we believe, mountains can move. Mark 11:23

B. Story of man with demon-possessed son. Mark 9:21

C. Is he a double-minded person?

VIII. Are YOU wavering or solid?

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When Melancthon was entreated by his friends to lay aside the natural anxiety and timidity of his temper, he replied, "If I had no anxieties, I should lose a powerful incentive to prayer; but when the cares of life impel to devotion, the best means of consolation, a religious mind cannot do without them. Thus trouble compels me to prayer, and prayer drives away trouble."

Prayer is not conquering God's reluctance but laying hold of His willingness (v. 22, 23), "If" hinders more than any other word

A local option contest was going on in W -- , and Mrs. Kent was trying to influence her husband to vote "No License." Willie Kent, six years old, was, of course on his mamma's side. The night before election Mr. Kent went to see Willie safe in bed, and hushing his prattle, he said: "Now, Willie, say your prayers." "Papa, I want to say my own words, tonight," he replied. "All right, my boy, that is the best kind of praying," answered the father. Fair was the picture, as Willie, robed in white, knelt at his father's knee and prayed reverently: "O dear Jesus, do help papa to vote No Whiskey tomorrow. Amen." Morning came, the village was alive with excitement. Women's hands, made hard by toil, were stretched to God for help in the decision. The day grew late and yet Mr. Kent had not been to the polls. Willie's prayer sounded in his ears, and troubled conscience said: "Answer your boy's petition with your ballot." At last he stood at the polling place with two tickets in his hand -- one, license; the other, "No License." Sophistry, policy, avarice said: "Vote License." Conscience echoed: "No License." After a moment's hesitation, he threw from him the No License ticket and put the License in the box. The next day it was found that the contest was so close that it needed but one vote to carry the town for prohibition. In the afternoon, Willie found a No License ticket, and, having heard only one vote was necessary, he started out to find the man who would cast this one ballot against wrong, and in his eagerness he flew along the streets. The saloon men were having a jubilee, and the highways were filled with drunken rowdies. Little Willie rushed on through the unsafe crowd. [Illustration] Hark! a random pistol-shot from a drunken quarrel, a pierced heart, and sweet Willie Kent had his death wound -- They carried him home to his mother. His father was summoned, and the first swift thought that came to him, as he stood over the lifeless boy, was: "Willie will never pray again that I vote No Whiskey." With a strange still grief he took in his own the quiet little hand chilling into marble coldness, and there between the fingers, firmly clasped, was the No License ballot with which the brave little soul thought to change the verdict of yesterday.Mr. Kent started back in shame and sorrow. That vote in his hand might have answered the prayer so lately on his lips now dumb, and perhaps averted the awful calamity. Fathers, may not the hands of the "thousands slain" make mute appeal to you? Your one vote is what God requires of you. You are responsible for it being in harmony with His law as if on it hung the great decision. -- The Issue

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Governor William E. Russell, of Massachusetts, who died at the age of thirty-nine, but had in that short life been mayor of his city and governor of his State, and had gained national fame, early began to think and act right. As a schoolboy, when boating with five companions, his craft was overturned and he swam a mile to shore. Asked by his mother about his struggle to reach land, he said, “I thought of you, prayed to God, and kept my arms and legs in stroke.” (Text.)