A Magnolia's Heart Beats

WFW - Earnest Prayer

One of the ways we can pray is earnestly. God promises that when we do pray earnestly that He rewards us.

We must have faith if we are going to earnestly seek Him in prayer.

The Greek word for faith here is pistis and it means:

1) conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervour born of faith and joined with it
a) relating to God
1) the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ
b) relating to Christ
1) a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God
c) the religious beliefs of Christians
d) belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same
2) fidelity, faithfulness
a) the character of one who can be relied on

Our faith comes through the belief that God sent His only Son Jesus to die for our sins.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." ~ John 3:16 (NIV)

Our faith is also evident in our relationship to God in the way that we pray.

"In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." ~ Ephesians 3:12 (NIV)

Although we cannot see Him, we trust Him and we know that all things come from Him.

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." ~ Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)

With a strong foundation of faith in our lives, we can come before God earnestly.

In Hebrews 11:6, the Greek word for earnestly is the verb, ekzēteō. It means:

1) to seek out, search for
2) to seek out, i.e. investigate, scrutinise
3) to seek out for one's self, beg, crave
4) to demand back, require

The etymology (root word) for earnestly is as follows:

The Greek word ek means:

1) out of, from, by, away from

and

The Greek word zēteō, which means:

1) to seek in order to find
a) to seek a thing
b) to seek [in order to find out] by thinking, meditating, reasoning, to enquire into
c) to seek after, seek for, aim at, strive after
2) to seek i.e. require, demand
a) to crave, demand something from someone

When we seek out and search for God's answers in prayer, really craving and needing something from Him and expressing our petitions to Him in this way, whether for ourselves for others, we can be sure that He will hear us and reward our earnest, faith-filled prayers.

How does He reward us? While it is ultimately up to Him to decide, we may rest assured that our reward is great. Our Father pays our wages, probably in the form of answered prayer or peace regarding the issue we bring before Him. He rewarded the saints of old in so many ways. One such man was Moses. He parted a sea for His chosen people so Moses could lead them to their destination in the face of opposition!

Let's seek God earnestly in prayer for the matters that press so closely to our hearts, with the faith that He will reward us.

E - Eagerly await answers to your earnest prayers. "But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope." ~ Galatians 5:5 (NIV)

A - Anticipate answers to your prayers. "I call on you, O God, for you will answer me; give ear to me and hear my prayer." ~ Psalm 17:6 (NIV)

R - Remember that God's will is always best. "give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV)

N - Never be afraid to ask for anything from God. "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." ~ Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

E - Earnestly pray on all occasions. "pray continually;" ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NIV)

S - Sacrifice time that you would normally do something else to spend time with God in earnest prayer. "So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer." ~ Ezra 8:23 (NIV)

T - Tell others about your requests so they may join you in earnestly praying. "I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me." ~ Romans 15:30 (NIV)

L - Listen for God's voice during earnest prayer. "Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!" ~ Isaiah 30:18 (NIV)

Y - Yield to the Holy Spirit when the words just won't come for prayer from an earnest heart. "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." ~ Romans 8:26 (NIV)

My dear and most gracious Heavenly Father, I thank You for the privelege of coming before You in earnest prayer. I have so much faith in the fact that You are faithful, Lord. I trust in You to provide the answers and make a way for the prayers that are so close to my heart. I pray that my faith will continue to increase in You as I see You act. Thank you so much for loving us, Lord, and sending Your Son to reconcile us to You. May we always seek Your will in every earnest prayer we pray, trusting You to provide Your best for us. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

The purpose of WFW is to share the Word of God through photo's and a verse. Amydeanne, over at The 160 Acre Woods, is our hostess. Be sure to link up and share your own, and drop her a thank you for hosting this wonderful meme each week. It always blesses my heart to read all the posts and see the photos and verses. This is a wonderful way to minister to others and to be ministered to by reading others posts. Please visit by clicking on the button below.