Power in Prayer: Pray with Precision

by Marilynn Chadwick

Precision is important in spiritual as well as earthly battles. A turning point in World War II weapon technology was the development of precision bombing. Through a somewhat crude forerunner of the Global Positioning System (GPS), precision bombing enabled the United States to focus on bombing German military sites, and especially artillery arsenals, decreasing the civilian casualties.

I once heard the story of a young WWII bomber pilot who wrote to his family, "I consider myself a pacifist. Nothing in me wants to harm the German people. But when I remember Hitler and the horror inflicted by the Nazis, I am compelled to destroy the evil." Precision bombing allowed our fighter pilots in WWII to focus their attack on the enemy and, as much as possible, avoid the innocent.

After the shocking events of September 11, 2001, I began reading from 1st Peter, a letter addressed to early Christians who were facing great danger and persecution. Peter shares survival secrets for what to do when times look darkest. "The end of all things is near," he writes. Therefore be "self-controlled and alert" so that you can pray (1 Peter 4:7, GNT).

His encouragement was not to have passion or power as a starting point, but rather self-control and alertness. In order for prayer to be as powerful as the Bible promises, it needs to include precision, skill, and discipline. I envisioned a brain surgeon enduring years of education, training, and practice to develop the necessary precision to operate in the delicate minefields of the mind—knowing just where to cut.

I was eager to learn more about just how and where to precisely focus my prayers. In the quiet of my car that day as the events of 9/11 swirled around us, I purposed then and there that I would begin to pray with more practice and precision. And although I wasn't a soldier, I decided to sign up for my own version of a tour of duty, to be available to God in prayer. Not just for my own needs and worries, but for the worries of the world. And since I hadn't a clue as to what this should look like, I asked God to guide me.

But how could I hear the voice of God amidst all the chaos and turmoil in my head after the terrorist attacks? I continued to search the pages of the Bible. There I discovered a prayer mentor in the prophet Elijah.

Elijah is described in the book of James as "a person just like us" (James 5:17). Yet Elijah "prayed earnestly" that it wouldn't rain for three-and-a-half years and it didn't. Then he reversed his prayer, praying for rain—and "the heavens gave rain." His prayers had impact on an entire nation. The prayers of even one righteous person, James tells us, are "powerful and effective."

The Bible teaches us that no one is "perfectly righteous." Let's remind ourselves of the only solid footing for prayer—the righteousness that comes by faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:22, 23). This understanding is crucial to our confidence in prayer.

To be continued on Monday…