1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity

HOW TO GET THROUGH TO GOD
Introduction:
All around the world; throughout ages, the masses are always looking for better ways of satisfying the
deep longings of the heart, seeking to know how best they can gain inner peace, joy and satisfaction. If we
were willing to walk with the Lord in strict and unquestionable obedience to His revealed will, following
in simple child-like faith, we would realize, in a dreary and dark world, that we will have to make simple
bargains for life; for we shall not need to walk alone. With pain, tears and sorrow ravaging our souls, I am
certain there is something better. I am assured by God‟s Word; there must be a better plan for all of His
children.
“How to get through to God” is yet another exposition on prayer which is all you needed for that your
spiritual need; entrenched deep within your heart.
It is my sincere and heartfelt prayer that in this one week we will experience a deeper relationship with
God as we apply our hearts to prayers. It is indeed, my conviction that this piece, I composed under the
very influence of the Holy Ghost, whom I utterly depended upon entirely to dictate the penning of every
word, will work in you, His dear children, a real transformation as we look forward to the soon return of
our Saviour. It remains my prayer that the power of the Holy Spirit will be felt at the disposal of every
audience that will attend daily in search of our Lord.
Brethren, God still answers prayers. God still honours His promises. God is still in His Throne.
Do you desire for a change in your prayer life? Do you crave a more than just a mere Christianity but
deeper relationship with your God? Do you long to experience more of God‟s riches in prayer? Do you
ask yourself how you can have peace of mind, rest and joy in your life? Do you hunger from deep within
you for a victory against some sin which has gripped you, ravaging and eating you from within? Is your
spiritual life languishing as we move down the stream of time to close of earth‟s history?
I want to recommend to you, God; I want to recommend to you, prayer. Learn how to get through to
Jesus; in all areas of your life. Heaven is always seeking to reach out to us; to get through to us. Will you
choose to also reach out to Your God?
Every day will end in a paragraph I have named, “Let us pray here”. It is here we will explore our needs
and pray for them. It forms a guideline of prayer based on the day‟s study. You do not want to miss any
single program for the entire week, with its culmination in a CASO Main Rally at Murang‟a College of
Technology, 15th February, 2014; the Sabbath ending with a Night of Prayer.
This is how we will do it. I will recommend that as many members as there are, acquire this copy. Let
them read it in advance. Let the facilitator also do, so that he will be in a position of only giving a
summary of each day and leading God‟s children in more prayers. That we way we will draw greater
blessings. Let each member find the joy of participating, contributing in possible discussions, in inviting a
friend, praying for and with the crowd and also enjoy the privileges of sharing requests aloud and
privately with a close friend in prayer.
Welcome, again, to a thrilling week of prayer, as we share in the joy of answered prayers.
Ayub Gathu Njoroge
Former CASO Music Director
1. MY RACE WITH CATS IN THE DARK.
I read the story behind the writer of the song; “I must tell Jesus”. Rev. Hoffman was a
minister in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. Among his noticeable delights was that of visiting with
his subjects of the church, the flock upon whom God had made him overseer, in their
households. His passion to love them, point them to Jesus of hope, pray with them and
encourage them could go unmentioned. As opposed to his previous visits, this one seemed
unique in its own way. To this woman she was visiting, God had permitted visiting of
sorrow, emotional trauma, pain, agony and disappointments of life, perhaps like most of us
have to go through. When the minister visited with her, she had an obvious desperation
written boldly upon her brow. She bowed in discouragement of the heart that reflected on
the outside. She sank in shame, sobbing now from deep within her inner being, to even think
the minister considered her for a visit that dark early morning. Her countenance was not
better either. It had folded in wrinkles of evident life of toil and hardship. A look on her face
indicated how much she had been suffering and this morning perhaps more. She thought
hard. It was clear there was a problem.
The story has it that after the mother had finished talking her hopelessness out, the pastor
uttered a word: “You have what you can do. You must tell Jesus”. The woman who this long
buried her face in her arms, lifted it up, looked straight to the pastor. She had a glimmer of
hope now, her face sparkled, and she said, “I must tell Jesus.” As the pastor went home, a
vision of that bright face kept coming to sight again and again that when he got home he
wrote what is one of my favourite hymns, “I must tell Jesus”
The case of this woman is a familiar premise to each one of us, however unique our
experiences. There are times when we go through similar experiences, if not the same, like
her and often we too tend to give up. But wait a minute! Every of our crises of life is a call
to pray.
Ellen White says: “The path of sincerity and integrity is not a path free from obstruction, but
in every difficulty we are to see a call to prayer.-- The Desire of Ages, p. 667
In Ezra 8:21-23, Ezra was confronted by a crisis that led him to prayer. We thank God that
when he enlisted His help, it was available for Him. He learned the comfort that prayer
would bring and how much glory God would claim through the answered prayer, for he
mentions that the king already knew that they were Christians, through their testimony and
thus had courage to dare God based on this premise. When I was reading this chapter it came
to my notice that the word God everywhere it is used is preceded by Our to mean that Ezra
owned God, believed His promises and trusted His ability. And beloved, God is able. Read
Heb 2:18, 2 Timothy 1:12, Eph 3:20, Daniel 3:16-18, 2 Chron 25:7-9.
Take note of the sentence, “…and the Lord was intreated of us.” It comes after, “…to seek
of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. We can feel safe
to give to God all our substance.
What ravages your heart? What causes you sorrow? What is that your heavy burden? You
may choose to give to the Lord and he will minister to you at the point of your need.
Recently in December holidays, there was this cat that always came outside my house to
make irritating noises, that I lost sleep severally, waking up to chase it away. I remember
some nights I woke up twice in the night. It was not comfortable to do so. I would chase it,
with fear into the dark, then, annoyingly, it comes back as soon as I slam the door behind
me. Now they became two after a couple of nights. After chasing them a while, I thought,
well, I have a prayer partner to share; to whom I sent this request as a silent concern. This
night it was even terrifying as I chased it without it moving an inch. I went back to the house
promising not chase it any more again. It stroke my mind that perhaps the Lord wanted me
to rise from sleep and pray at that time. Couple of days past and in prayer the cats stopped
making the noise, and one early morning as I rose, they were there right out my cottage.
They looked, strangely, friendly than I thought about them in the night. Oh they belonged to
a lovely neighbor of ours. God used them not to disturb but to arouse me to pray.
Don‟t chase the cats, they are not the problem; something deeper, sweeter lies somewhere
for you. PRAY. Beloved, not all troubles of life come to devastate us. Some come our way
that we can stumble in some lessons of life intended for us by our God, some to bend us low,
some to keep us on our knees, while others, to help us look skyward.
The story in Matthew 17:14-21, has invaluable lessons of faith for us. I lack adequate space
to introduce to the many lessons in it but let me invite you to consider this story. Jesus, with
a few disciples, was in prayer before they met the man in need. Prayer prepares us for good
work requiring our active input in the near or distant future, or perhaps even averting
calamities impending. The man came kneeling. This was a sign of recognizing Christ‟s
power to act. We too can kneel before and able God. He was interceding for the son. There
is power in intercessory prayer. He was heavy with a burden and now made heavier by the
fact that disciples, whom in 7 chapters back had been granted power to offer solution to
similar need, could not do it. We can come to God and let Him understand how much we
have had to struggle with our current need. “Jesus answered and said…” Here is a statement
of hope. As we pray God will hear, answer and say something about that our need. He
condemned the disciples for little faith, but still performed the miracle. Where Christ will
need to perform a miracle in our lives, He will do though He may rebuke us for our liitle
faith. He said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long
shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me, meaning that as we linger closer to God our faith
will develop. This week I look forward to testimonies of growing faith in our Lord Jesus.
The disciples thereafter came to Him to inquire about doing the same. Some miracles of
answered prayer are meant to increase our faith and revive us. The disciples were treading,
now, a path of revival and reformation (to desire to grow and more for their spiritual
growth).
I cannot say enough of this story fraught with remarkable lessons, but one stands out:
Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. Prayer is a requirement of all
Christians if they have to remain so.
Philippians 4:19. Finally, there is this story for you; it tells of God‟s ability. What He has
done to men and women of faith He can do to you. When I visit Arboretum to find very
young men and women seeking God in prayer, I begin to know that there is something in
this God. When I meet a young lady seated, with her legs closed, crossed and bent, her back
curved carefully to tuck her heavy head between her thighs and weighed-down heart, hid by
the well folded body, IN PRAYER, I know that a young man and lady too can seek for God
and Him be found of them:
Dan Crawford told us recently that when returning to his mission field after a furlough, it
was necessary to make all possible haste. But a deep stream, which had to be crossed, was in
floods and no boats were available, or usable for that matter. So he and his party camped and
prayed. An infidel might have laughed aloud. How could God get them across the river! But
as they prayed, a tall tree whuch had battled with that river for scores of years, began to
totter and fall. It fell clear across the stream! As Mr. Crawford says, “The Royal Enginners
of heaven had laid a pontoon bridge for God‟s servants.” –The kneeling Christian, author unknown,
pg 42
When you feel low in prayer; as if your prayers are not going above the roof as some say,
remember you do not need to have them beyond the roof, for your loving Father draws
closer; indeed closer, to the very point you are; no matter, the faintness of your heart and the
feebleness of your prayer. God is so intimate to you beloved.
Let’s pray here:
As we pray, God will answer. Have some time alone to confess your sins, then commit your
all burdens to an altogether caring Father. Renew your commitment to God and He will
accept you back, and empower you by His Spirit.
2. DOES HE CARE ENOUGH TO BE NEAR:
The song „Does Jesus Care‟, SDAH 181 had never made more meaning to me than after I
sang it at the foot of that tree outside the hospital where my father lay in his death bed. I sang
the same song in church slightly before his burial, also.
The story is told of a lady. The Sabbath ended well. That day the university enjoyed the
service of an international speaker from overseas. The day climaxed in remarkable joy
resulting from the messages of hope for the day. Charity left the congregation feeling blessed
and more courageous to face life at its best and worst. She was undertaking a degree program
in Dental Surgery. The story of her day rather ends tragically. She was met with a band of
rogue young men. These, it is reported, defiled her, assaulted her sexually, after locking her
in a private cottage for three days, away from reach of any possible aid. The height of
humiliation is that every time the door flew open, a new face came in.
After her release on the third day, she required of the pastor for a talk. The pastor, of course,
visited with her, as soon as word reached him. The pastor met her lay on her couch sobbing,
writhing in pain, bleeding profusely all over, wounds fresh in the delicate tissues of her body,
looking down in shame, with clear indications of desperation on her brow. There seemed as
if all hope was lost in her.
“Pastor, I have three questions” she cried.
“One, Where was God, when this happened? Two, Why me and none else? Three, How long
shall this be?”
What do you make of such a story, about God? Does He care?Especially for those, His
dedicated children?
In getting through to Jesus, it matters to know to whom we are getting through. It makes a
difference to know whose child you are. Is it about a young woman throwing her child in
river to appease God? No, indeed no. It makes a difference whose child you are-Your Father
in Heaven cares, loves you and delights in your peace, joy and happiness. God is eager to
answer our prayers. At times it may seem hard to understand finer details of God‟s
Providence, but we can trust, through simple child-like faith that He has good plans for us
whatever betide. From time to time God‟s people are afflicted differently and many end up
being bothered, is God there? Does he care? A couple losingtheir life bond, right in their
honeymoon, a child dyingafter being born to a lovely couple, just wedded!
It a bitter story from Peter in Kuria, in December, 2011. They were just married then, and
when I visited there last year, he narrated me a sad story of the way he rushed his first baby,
sick to hospital, and it died in his arms as the doctor handled it, only to come back and the
loving wife was not at home, to-date nowhere to be found.
But before we get too depressed about our moments of darkness, let us pause: has God left us
all alone in this dark world to fumble aimlessly, hopelessly, wading and wrestling
desperately alone in the storms of life? Certainly not.
Calvary answers. Read Romans 8:32. God gave His son to die for us not only a miserable
physical death; but a horrible humiliation and suffering. He gave His only son not for an
adopted son, but to enemies who hated him. I want to even suggest to you that it was not easy
for God.
Early writings, pg 151, “Think ye that the Father yielded up His dearly beloved Son without
a struggle? No, no. It was even a struggle with the God of heaven, whether to lwt guilty man
perish, or to give His beloved Son to die for Him”.
So where was God when my son died? He was where He was when His begotten Son hung
between heaven and earth, writhing in agony and pain. Beloved, God is not only eager to
answer prayer but to pour us all of heaven in his Son. He, Himself suffered intensely in the
death of his son. We tend to so easily forget Calvary experience, when we have to meet with
disappointments of life. Never give up. The best in Jesus is yet to come. Hold on a little
longer. The God who emptied Himself, in His Son, of all but love, is more than willing to
grant us great blessings, indeed all that heaven can bestow and all for which Jesus has paid
for.
God cares. He is acquainted with that struggle you have to undergo. I wish to call your
attention to this event of prayer ahead. As you make commitment to attend and bring a visitor
daily, you will be amazed how much God will attend to your need.
Let us pray here:
What struggle do you have to face as an individual? Pray that God will bless you
individually this week of prayer, give you a heart to never let go, but keep holding to Jesus,
in the arm of faith, despite the challenges you have to undergo. Surrender to His cleansing,
and by faith accept His pardon. Let Him take away the guilt, shame and condemnation you
have in your heart.
3. MISERY OF MY FORTY YEARS OF GUILT
Welcome again to another of a thrilling study. I hope you did enjoy yesterday‟s lesson. In Luke
11:13 we read of a father. I pretty well know that not all of us have had the privilege of the
warmth of a loving father or for that matter, a mum. In Calvary though, we see what kind of
parent God is. He is a God interested in the affairs of the men and women He created for His own
glory. He is willing to give us His Spirit. Perhaps you didn‟t know this: All of heavenly gifts
come through the person of His Holy Spirit. Salvation is the gift of the Holy Spirit; repentance is
the gift of the Holy Spirit; eternal life is the gift of the Holy Spirit;conversion, forgiveness, et
cetera.All gifts for that matter.
I even want to suggest, as a matter of fact, even the gift of victory against the same sin which for
long has held you captive, the Holy Spirit can offer deliverance. Beloved, you can gain victory in
Jesus. This week we want to seek for such victories; we shall ask, believe we have them and live
our prayers. Beloved, here‟s is what we all need for this victory: the infilling, indwelling Power
and Presence of the Holy Spirit.
For long I thought I would never have gained victory in some sin which had long burdened me. It
was a besetting me; I repent, overcome and recurrently repeat it. I never gave up till I realized the
secret. Perhaps it is what you need. I chose a 21 day period to majorly seek for the Holy Spirit.
And here is how I did it. I would repent specifically for the sins I knew. You know you can‟t hide
anything from God‟s Presence. Tell God what you know you have done deliberately and tell Him
also of the ignorant sins you may have committed-always, assume you did. Be willing also to
abide by conditions of receiving, which sum at obedience unquestionably, by God‟s grace, to His
revealed will. You may opt to stop praying for anything else, but the Holy Spirit, for an initial
period you may choose, after which you will do this constantly for your life.
A pastor in Boston, Massachusetts had an 8 months old child who had severe fever. That
morning it was snowy and the snow, waist-deep. The child healed after some time, but was too
weak for he had not eaten anything. He looked at mummy‟s face and said, “Apple”. Mum knew
there was no apple in the house, she turned and gave the husband a searching look, her child
following the mum‟s eyes to dad. She went to the dad holding one hand on one knee and the
other, in the other knee;“Apple”. Dad put heavy winter attire and wallowed in the snow hopping
and popping. Somewhere he got an apple and came back exhausted and handed her daughter the
apple.
Why? You know the answer. He loved the daughter. How much will God do if we hold to his
promises?We have the promise, beloved, of the very Heart that gave His Son for us all.
In 2 Chronicles 16:9, the bible has a promise for you. God is looking; always looking
downwards, hoping to see someone looking upward. Will you look upward to meet an onlooking face of Your Creator?
I can see someone asking; “how comes I haven‟t been able to get through to Him? My urgent
prayers have not been answered?”Let us read Isaiah 42:16. In my life, I have not received 90% of
my answers to prayers, exactly the way I expected them. We cannot expect our finite minds to
dictate the Infinite mind and love of God. We are earthly, sinful and limited. God says, “I am
your Creator. I know what‟s best for you.”
God will answer our prayers, at times, exactly the way we ask or will give us, many times,
altogether something better. When we stand before God in the last day; when we will behold the
face of Jesus, we will say,“Lord, you knew far much better than me.”
Without any human pressure on God, He, by Himself, gave us thousands of promises in His
Word, before we asked, because He knew exactly what we need and would need, and because of
His love towards us. He would have given us only one. But He loves us so much to offer us so
little.
But wait a minute. Will He honour all? Numbers 23:19.God [is] not a man, that he should lie;
neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do [it]? or hath he
spoken, and shall he not make it good? He promised them unbidden. Yes, He will. Read also 1
kings 8:56, 1 Corinthians 1:20, Hebrews 6:13
A lady approached a pastor claiming to have been confessing and repenting for 40 years now, but
with guilt and condemnation still. The pastor asked her, to bow with Him, on their knees to pray.
They did. With a broad smile after, calculated to give hope, the pastor told her, “Rejoice, you are
now forgiven.”
Her brow inscribed with hopeless desperation, she said,“Pastor that‟s what I cannot simply get.
That‟s why I came”.
“Do you believe the bible?” asked the pastor.“You believe 1 John 1:9?”continued the pastor.
“Have you confessed your sins?”
She said, “Yes, indeed”.“Then you are forgiven.” Again she repeated, this time more
hopelessly,“That, simply,is what I can‟t get.”
The pastor repeated the questions, three times, receiving the same answers, then told her, “If the
Holy Spirit convicts you of one sin you have not repented, will you confess.” She said.“Yes I
will.” 1 John 5:10. “Confess and ask God to forgive you for making Him a liar for 40 years. She
cried on her knees, bitterly in tears,“Oh, I have being making you a liar. God forgive me. Now I
ask, now I believe, and now I claim forgiveness. I know God you have done it.”
The Holy Spirit breathed into her, tremendous assurance of forgiveness. There was a unique
sparkle on her countenance; a glimmer of hope was restored, and she sensed freedom, joy and
peace she lacked for 40 years.
Beloved your „forty years guilt‟ can be gone today. There is hope for you. Jesus can drive it
away; and you have peace that passes understanding again.
Let the more important passages of Scripture……be committed to memory, not as a task, but as
a privilege. Though at first the memory be defective, it will gain strength by exercise, so that after
a time you will delight thus to treasure up the words of truth. And the habit will prove a most
valuable aid to spiritual growth. {Child Guidance pg 511}
Let us pray here:
Pray that you may get acquainted with God’s rich promises just there for you by daily, studying
His Word. Make this a commitment today. When you pray today about any need you have
believe that He who promised is True and Faithful.
4. IT IS SO, EVEN IF, IT IS NOT.
I got to know this story that truly thrilled me a lot. Some two daughters of a minister had an
argument over something, to establish if it was so or not. One claimed it was so while
another denied and the same continued a while till one furiously said; “me, I say it is so
because mum said it was so,even if it is not so.”
God wants us to believe that it is so for the simple reason that He said it is so. In Matthew
18:3, simple child-like faith is what God wants from us. I need such a faith; and it is the faith
we all ought to have as we approach life‟s challenges. From time to time we are met with
immense difficulties, afflicted differently, and we can choose to rest assured by the word of
God, since the promise of our victory is so in in His word.
I want to introduce you to what I will call solution-centred praying. Many times our prayers
classified would fall under problem-centred umbrella. The Lord in His word recommends
speaking positively, thinking positively and praying positively. Philippians 4:8
I have realized wonderful comfort in thinking of heaven with all its glories and splendour
amid the trials and tragedies of a dark earth. My heart soars up like, on an eagles wings to the
good that God has in store for me. Beloved, oftentimes we tend to forget the God of the
prayer and fall in focus our attention much on our problems. We do it wrong when we pray
our minds fixed to the problem. As a matter of fact someone said; Do not tell God how big
your problem is, tell your problems how big your God is. And that‟s positive praying; to be
exact solution-centred praying. It is in the bible; Proverbs 23:7. Solution-centred thoughts
make our life positive, otherwise problematic. A prayer that is problem-centred will turn out
fruitless.
We never know how much Jesus delights in answering our prayers till we behold Him in
prayer. I was facilitating a session of prayer and fasting at arboretum a couple of days ago,
and some inquired to know what we can do to increase concentration in prayer. One way,
among many, is to imagine the solution. Read 2 Cor 3:18. Every time I prayed for the healing
of my mum I would imagine God working of her body at the same time I was praying. When
I pray for the Holy Ghost upon me, I picture the symbol of a dove descend upon me. Do not
look so much into the problem at the expense of the solution you‟re seeking for.
Report on suicide indicates that a substantial percentage of all that have been victims ever
thought about it. What we behold, think, meditate upon and pray that we become. When I
was learning to ride a bike in 1995, I kept beholding on water paddles on the road, fearing for
a fall into them, and of course caring not to. Oh, inevitably many a time I would end up
falling there. At times I would knock down a person, aheadof me, whom I kept looking at
thinking I would fall on him, and caring not to.
Each of the promises in God‟s word is a solution to a problem. Claim them in prayer. Charles
Spurgeon says; it is effective praying challenging God by His own word. Prayer should not
focus on the problem but on solution.
For instance, look at a man praying: “I have a temper, I do not know if I will get to heaven.
My dad was tempered, oh I feel discouraged.”Or yet another young man, who went to see a
pastor, for a prayer to quit addiction. On their knees he started praying: “I am a bother to
people for smoking, I simply can‟t get the habit away I am so used to it……” The pastor
interfered and stopped him saying, pray like this: “God I know you love me, you want to
deliver me. I am weak but your grace is sufficient…” That‟s positive praying.
In Gen 31 and 32, Jacob claimed not only the solutions but believed that God had answered
and lived and acted the prayer. All his actions were solution-centred. 2 Chronicles 20,
Jehoshapat confronted by enemies, claimed solution-centred promises. He asked God to
fulfill His promises, believed what God had promised, claimed them by faith and celebrated
the expected answers in the praises of a mighty choir. You know the result. Tremendous
deliverance. In Mark 5, “if i may but touch His garment, I shall be whole” is a solution
centred prayer. She thought of healing and pictured the results. God wants us to claim His
thousand promises and by his grace conform to their corresponding conditions to receive.
Jesus set the example in John 11:41. He said “thank you, you have heard me. He knew in
Isaiah, is a promise to deliver captives, and claimed that by faith. In Beyond SDA church,
Keroka, I was about to minister the word, when all of a sudden a number of new powerful
speakers blew. I asked them to pray that they would be restored. After the prayer, with the
congregation, I sat quietly to plead with God to honour His promise in Psalm 50:15. Shortly
after all of them, previously confirmed blown, worked. As I marched to the pulpit, I
immediately introduced the sermon title without remarking about what transpired. When
people looked in amazement I chose to tell “Didn‟t you believe God would honour our
prayers? He‟s done it. Let‟s go on. We expected results”. That day a large number gave their
lives to Lord in an altar call.
A story.A young boy responded to the altar call alone in church, in a series of meetings in
America, with a desire to claim one of God‟s promises. The pastor inquired: “young boy can
I help you?”He answered, “I have temper, pastor” the Pastor replied: “I have a promise for
you. Ii is in Is 26:3. Do you believe in God and His promises?”
“Yes pastor.”
“Please write the verse on a paper. In an instance of temper, pull it out. What do you want
instead of temper?”
“Peace.”
“Okay read it, thentell God, Lord I ask you to give me perfect peace. I believe your promise
of perfect peace. Thank you Lord I know you are giving me perfect peace”
Let us analyse this prayer. What is the mind thinking about? Peace. What is he praying
about? Peace. What is the heart meditating on? Peace.
After two or three nights again he came to the pastor back. Not sure he is the one; he asked
him if he was the one. The pastor immediately thought to confront him for he thought he
knew what he was coming to tell him; it didn‟t work. He asked him; “Did you read the paper
with your promise in verse? Did you believe the promise? Did you live the promise after
prayer.” He said Yes to all the questions. The pastor continued;“and what happened son?”
“I haven‟t lost temper since then.”
The promises of God claimed is the life of Jesus claimed in words.
May God enable us to completely change our view from self to Jesus and thereby be changed
into His likeness; and into his life.It is my sincere hope that we will learn to focus our
thinking, our prayers,and our conversations on the positives in Jesus. May men and women
interacting with us not hear us dwell on things gone by; the negatives of life, but pointing
them in conversation, in songs and in prayers, in our daily activities, to him who is altogether
lovely, gracious and kind. For by beholding we are changed into his image.
Let us pray here:
Let us ask God to help us to choose right what we watch, read, listen to and talk; that all
will be positive and make us live positive.
5. MEET PRAYER AT THE HEART OF THE LADDER
Welcome to the fourth day of our prayer week. I trust you have found it interesting to learn
truths you possibly never knew. Find it in your heart to try every lesson you have this far
learned with your life.
I happened to attend an evangelistic campaign in Njoro late last year. I met the pastor, who
was also the guest speaker, and a discussion ensued, based on the evident low turnout seen.
The Pastor told me, “The church is so reluctant about going out to win souls.”
But wait a moment, is it so? I want to suggest that without anything to witness for, you can‟t
share Jesus. There is no way one would share emptiness. Without an experience with Jesus; I
am empty. CASO, as a very active group in soul winning, will clinch greater heights in this
noble work if we all, will burn with a desire to labour, asking God to train us and place
something in our arms to do, as He opens us more doors of utterances. I want to share with
you, basic steps that are principles too, in witnessing for Jesus:
One, have a picture of Jesus. This principle finds root in the Scriptures. I‟ll mention a few
examples. Isaiah 6 presents to us this principle. He said “I saw the Lord” and later said,
“Here I am, send me”. Another example is that of Jeremiah 1, who said“the Lord talked to
me”. Paul heard the voice of God. Jesus talked to him and he captured a picture of him as a
babe, suffering for him, despised and crucified just for him. He chose to serve him. And you
know the result. Paul was a mighty soul winner.
But wait a minute. Here is Peter again. It was this man that denied Jesus. It was him that slept
at a critical time when Jesus needed him most. It was him that scattered the flock of Jesus
after His death (John 21). God still loved him; He came to him, called him, gave him a
second chance, renewed him by His grace and empowered him by the Holy Spirit. If we will
be willing today to have the same power at our disposal, heaven stands ready to shower us
with His power. Beloved, we cannot afford to bow our heads in shame, discouragement and
sorrow for the lives we have led in the past. We can trust our past to the God of Peter for His
forgiveness. God can make you up again. He can make us the men and women He wants us
to be, we always desire to be and we always strive to be. He can create in us a new heart,
change our priorities, and give us power to overcome the habits that have long locked us in
slavery.
I knew of a family that had brought up an adopted son as their guardian. He had never been
in church the whole of his life. One day they chose to take him to church. The pastor stood to
preach and in fine details talked of a man, a simple story of a babe in Jerusalem all through
his childhood, early life, His ministry, onto His trials, His famous march to Calvary amid
insult and mockery, then to the cross where He hang between heaven and earth. This man he
called Jesus.The story touched the very heart of the young man and the simple description of
the love of Jesus converted him. He sobbed. He wept. He angrily rose to his feet, and shouted
aloud, “can‟t someone be found to go out and take this man out of the cross?” The guardians
also rose up, seeking to pacify him, told him, “it is just a story”
Is the Calvary story another story for you? Do you know of the love of Christ for you? Do
you long to share of His love for you, with others? Start here. Do not wait for convenience.
The greatest burden of the human heart having met Jesus is to share him.
Secondly, your response to the picture of Jesus.The tender love of God will initiate a
response of our reciprocate love to Him. If we feel guilty, shame and condemnation of a past
life, God is willing to forgive. It starts with asking God, “what shall I do?” In 1 John 1:9 is a
promise. Confessing that I am a sinner and that I need Jesus, I accept His love and grace by
faith and be willing to be changed of Him, is all I need for the Lord to restore my relationship
with Him, and for His service. Friends, we cannot turn our backs and undermine the sacrifice
of Christ for our eternity. If sin destroyed the Son of God, we cannot afford to play with it
and watch as others do this too. Someone is asking how can I offer my life unreservedly to
Him? Here‟s the answer. Tell Him to take it. He knows how.
Third, is a desire deep within our hearts to share His love, with others. Ask God to place
something in your arms to do. When I saw my dad die in pain and eight months later, my
lovely sister, whose life was not one to really celebrate about, I was grieved to know there
are many dying without hope; hope for something better. As I thought of my love for her,
and as tears rolled, a voice spoke-the voice of the Holy Spirit. It said, my son, you have many
more dads, brothers and sisters out there all around the world who are perishing in
desperation, drowning in the waves of sin. I want you to go out and throw to them the life
line. I want you to be a tool in my hand to save them. How in the world can I do it? Is a
question we all ask.The Lord had a promise for me. “You will go and I will be with you.”
The same promise was given for the disciples and to you, who is willing to work for God.
The fourth step is intercession. I started reading God‟s word and praying that God would
open doors for me to minister to His children, even particular ones I knew. I would get to the
vehicles in Nairobi town and my heart would go out to them in eagerness to tell them of the
immutable eternal gracious love of God. I wanted the travellers to know that there is a
heaven to come. God loves them and that He wants to be with them. There and then God
started opening doors for me to preach and I have done so all over the nation. God impressed
me with what I could do, in my capacity. In Isaiah, God wondered that there was no
intercessor. As we pray for doors of utterances to open, God will do. We meet prayer at the
heart of the ladder of soul winning.
Step five. Asking for some friend to pray for someone else in need of salvation. This is
supreme luxury of the Christian life. I have visited many colleges, high schools, universities
and churches, and have been moved a lot by young men and women meeting at designated
places at their own places, in prayer bands of five to ten people, interceding on behalf of
friends. As we engage in intercessions, God‟s power will be sent in aid of these souls, angels
of light will be summoned to enshroud them and demons dispersed, to easen their challenges
and temptations, and also help them to make wise decisions. I hope that all the CASO
colleges will be willing to dare this challenge of small groups of prayer bands.
Sixth, taking step to talk to the person. Now here needs care. Initially it is not to dwell on
doctrinal foundations. Doctrines of the bible are good, aren‟t they? But the greatest longing
of the human soul is not to know a doctrine, it is first to know whether the Lord cares.
Perhaps, it is a loss of a life partner, or a child, brother or sister deprived of life in their
prime, while searching for meaning and purpose. Communicate, first the love of God.
Perhaps the student you are witnessing to, has a need of God‟s love, has made a mess of
oneself, acted the fool, and is now downcast, with shame and guilt. The weight of their own
past lies right behind their backs. In schools, students in quest of knowledge and pursuit of
academic credential and discoveries, make many mistakes and would want to know there is
hope for them, hope for restoration of lost love by friends after committing embarrassing
deeds; fornication, falling out of the church, etc. No one wants to be a big nothing. Everyone
wants to feel appreciated, loved and cared for. Each one wants to sense belonging. Even the
average sinner wants to know there is hope. Will you let them see the bleeding victim on the
cross, first?
And finally, nurture. This is needed. Knowing how we have developed our spiritual faculties
over long spans of time, falling and rising, sinning and repenting, will make us tolerant with
friends whose characters spell disaster, hard to cope with, nagging and seemingly careless
about their own lives. We will pray for them, minister to them and continually be willing to
help them even when they disappoint us and they themselves are frustrated by failure and
numerous attempts to do good. Do not let the souls alone. Care for them. They have to learn
to walk. They need your support to stand. May God grant us His all sufficient grace to live
thus, for Christian life is best at service.
Let us pray here:
CASO needs finances to carry out campaigns. We can intercede for sin-sick souls we know
and that he provides the means to reach out to them. Pray also that God may input in us the
burden for souls, and have our permission to first change us, convert us. A life well lived is
the best argument we can set before the world for its conversion. Tell God to offer you an
opportunity to witness to someone you know, and to give you courage to take this step.
6. A BARGAIN WITH GOD.
Eight-year-old Walter Davis was playing baseball one day when his legs became limp as a
spaghetti and collapsed beneath him on the ground. It was a devastating attack of polio, and
the doctors told the boy that he would never walk again.
A visitor from the church knelt by Walter‟s bed and encouraged him to have faith that God
would help him to walk again. The child‟s mother gave him similar encouragement and
bagan to work of his legs. Therapy and exercise began to take effects and Walter learned to
walk again. He set a goal for himself to break world record for the Olympics and broke all
previous records.1
What do you think? Isn‟t God able?
Recently I was admitted, sick and in pain and I offered a prayer that God would spare my life
at least longer. But one wonders what assurance I had that God would hearken to such a
prayer.
In the bible is recorded a story of a man that bargained for his life with God. It is in Isaiah
chapter 38. Here we meet a man who averted a word from God. God had pronounced that He
would die. He prayed; in verse 3, Remember now, O LORD, I beseech thee, how I have
walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done [that which is] good in
thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. He had a secret of bargaining for fifteen more years to his
life. And I think we too can go for it. Pay close attention to his prayer. He enlisted the
attention of God based not on his good works but on his pure devoted service to God.
Beloved, God is a Rewarder of them that diligently seek Him (otherwise said, serve Him).
Hebrews 11:6. He has special gifts for them that choose to serve Him even when the mob of
humanity stands opposed.
Recently, I happened to share seat with three nice looking young ladies travelling together
from Kiambu to Nairobi. The driver was over-speeding a lot and one of the ladies clamoured
for attention. “Driver, please take it slow, we‟ve not yet reared our own. You have reared” of
course the rest also joined in unison.
Their cry was fear for death from a road accident like all of us would not entertain an idea of
meeting death that way. But I thought; what all these have to look forward to, in this life is
family and perhaps children. Do we have anything to hold to as we seek to bargain for our
dear lives with God?
I have good news for you. God would desire to offer us long life; and yes a prosperous life
too. If you asked young men and women in the prime of their life and especially while
pursuing academic credentials, the majority would share well founded dreams, impressive
ambitions and high goals to achieve. That‟s right. But many a time there is tendency to lose
the mark in seeking to establish them. God would to have us attach Him to our scholarly
achievement. He would want to know how much we will invest efforts to know Him and
share Him as we grow mentally.
There is a verse in the bible I love, in the bible. Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of
God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Before we get so
depressed about our future, let us remember of the attributes of a Father that delights in our
joys and inner satisfaction. Each of us wants to know that in the future is possibility of a
wonderful family, occupational placements with prospects of rewarding pays, nice economic
benefits and descent life. Here, in this verse is the secret for these our projections.
The song, Because He lives, in our hymnal was written by Bill Gaither when they bore a
child. It grieved them to know that they bore this child at a time when the world seemed so
corrupt. They composed the song at the thought they had assurance in Jesus that the child can
face tomorrow. We have nothing to get so depressed about our tomorrow except we shall
forget how God has led us in the past. Beloved, it is a bargain with God, strong enough to
live a life dictated by His precepts.
I read in Ecclesiates 12:1, in a translation that said, Stop! And consider your God who created
you before you grow any older. It pays to serve God at some stages in life, and don‟t make a
mistake about it, not all times in life offer the best environment to serve Him. Let us seek
therefore to glorify God when we still can, and I suggest to you, that as we finish the week of
prayer, power of God to live right is promised to you as you make a resolve to serve God.
Pause to recount the blessings you have in Christ and take advantage of them to work for
God. God is willing at the end of this week to empower us afresh, with His Spirit, start with
us again and make us new vessels fit for His service. Do not hesitate to offer your life to the
Lord, no matter how your past life has been. It is never too late to start all over again with
Jesus.
Let us pray here:
I know you want to commit your life to the Lord. I know you desire peace deep in your life. You can
have it as you make a choice to offer this your life to God for His leading. He, who is acquainted
with your struggles, will not forsake you in your desire to live victoriously. As we go to prayer, let
God take the lead of your whole life. Offer that your time, commit your relationship to God; commit
to God that your special friend to Him; commit your education. Dedicate all your plans to God in
simple faith that he will lead you in all the paths He would want to have you walk. You may choose
to read Jude 24.
THANK YOU, IT IS THE END
“Prayer is ours to learn in moments of peace and comfort, when we can do it best or learn it in
difficulty in moments of pain.”
Special thanks to my prayer partner first, most of the writing here is what we have shared together and
CASO which allowed me the honour of attaching my name to this event of its global prayer and made it
possible to share this material with many people especially the students, with whom I have an intimate
attachment.