Prayer Partners
The following are extracts from a letter i wrote to a friend on the topic of finding a prayer partner. Just want to share this with you guys.
"...When come to seeking your prayer partners, my favorite reference is always on the passage of Exodus 17:18-13.
For convenience, I reproduced the above verses:
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At Rephidim, Amalek came and waged war against Israel.
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Moses, therefore, said to Joshua, "Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand."
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So Joshua did as Moses told him: he engaged Amalek in battle after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur.
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As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight.
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Moses' hands, however, grew tired; so they put a rock in place for him to sit on. Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset.
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And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
Perhaps, laying down a little bit of background on these verses would be useful to you. Whoever reading this story has to bear in mind that as the children of Israel traveled through the wilderness on their way to Canaan, many of them were weak and sick and were left to keep us the best way they could. Consequently, the Israelites were stretched out many miles through the desert. Then, here comes the Amalekites! Who are the Amalekites? Amalekites is a nomadic tribe of that region and the Amalekites are known for their skills in battle. They took advantage of this situation and attacked and plundered those who fell behind. Under the circumstances, the Israelites were forced to fight even though they were far less prepared for war than the Amalekites. It is also common knowledge that the Israelites had brought out of Egypt as much wealth as they could carry and the Amalekites were willing to take any chances to steal the wealth for themselves.
So, in this passage, Moses tells Joshua to choose his men and fight the Amalekites.
(Ex. 17:9). Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron and Hur climbed a hill where they could watch the battle. AS the two armies began fighting, Moses raised the rod of God above his head and there was an immediate turn in the battle; the nation of Israel began to win. When he lowered the rod because of weariness, Amalek began winning the battle. In this respect, it became apparent to Moses, Aaron and Hur that the determining factor in this battle was whether or not Moses held his staff up. So what happen is Aaron and Hur sat Moses on a rock and each one of them took one of Moses’ arms and held it up. The end result is pretty obvious, even though the army of Israel was at a disadvantage because of their lack of equipment and preparation, they still defeated the Amalekites.
So what is my point? My point is that the battle wasn’t won because of the army’s strength or because of Joshua’s military genius. It is pretty clear that the battle was won on the hilltop as Aaron and Hur held up the hands of Moses. In other words, it was the action on the hilltop that determined the outcome of the battle.
There are 3 principles found in this event.
1) Life’s battles are won or lost in the place of prayer, not on the battlefield of everyday life.
I am always of the view that the real spiritual success or failure of a church/ministry does not depend on the talent of the leaders or the priests, the size or strength of the congregation/ministry. Success will only be obtained PRAYER!!! God does not look at the outward signs, but God wins His battles through men and women who intercede on behalf of the kingdom. Lid, do you know that the intercessory sessions that you are currently heading is in a way the pillar of Lifeline!!! The success of Lifeline is very much depends how much prayers we have offered to God.
In this incident from the Book of Exodus, God wanted to teach Moses, Joshua and us that there was more going on than just a battle between two armies. A spiritual battle was going on as well. God’s message was that in our spiritual conflicts the outcome is not determined by what is seen in the battlefield but rather by what happens in the place of prayer.
Actually the problem is that we often don’t know who the enemy is. The way we reacted as if people are our enemies, our families, our friends etc. But as Christian, the Bible makes it clear that the Devil is our enemy. Sometimes we find ourselves in conflict with each others even in church. Sadly, these conflicts are usually never resolved because we never deal with the real enemy –Devil. There is no way to win a battle if we don’t know who our enemy is. The bottom line is, because our real enemy is spiritual being, the only way we can really deal with him is on our knees in prayer!!!
2) We may become weary!
...we need to remember that when we face life’s battles, we will become weary at times (and I encountered these a lot of times). Even Moses grew weary as he held the rod of God over his head. Though he started out strong, he soon tired and finally dropped his arms completely. Though he knew that the raised rod was the key to victory but he just couldn’t keep it up.
But fortunately, God knows we will grow fainthearted at times, HE knows that sometimes we just won’t feel like it. He understands when we feel like giving up, but this is where the third principle from this story fits in. This is the part I would like you to take note carefully.
3) Finding our own Aaron and Hur
God sent Moses up to that hill knowing that he couldn’t hold the rod up long by himself. It was no accident that Aaron and Hur went along!!! They gave Moses the support he needed.
So, we need to understand that God won’t let us be totally independent of others. God has built His church on a system of independent of others. Each person ministering to others through their different talents and gifts.
All of us need an Aaraon and a Hur, people we can share our needs and burden with.
[Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane revealed His burden and He too needed the prayer support of His disciples, but He found them asleep]
Do you know that Aaron and Hur didn’t serve as Moses’ counselors. They didn’t tell him how to hold the rod so he wouldn’t get tired. But they were his supporters. They really held up the rod by supporting Moses’ arms.
We too often give advice to people on their burden but we won’t give our time in prayer for them. Actually, We need less counseling and more praying. For God is moved by spirit-filled praying and not by good advice.
Question: What kind of people should you look for when you ask God to send you an Aaron and a Hur?
1) Look for people who are spiritually minded and actively seeking God. But please bear in mind whether or not we think they are as spiritual as we are is not an issue here. It is the condition of their hearts that matters.
2) Look for those who accept us as we are, regard of the problems we may be facing. They must see themselves as sent to lifts us up, not criticize us. They must see themselves as prayer warriors and not counselors.
3) They must be able to feel what we feel. They need to know what it means to hurt. They must also have a willingness to give of themselves and ask nothing in return – to love us as Christ does, unconditionally and unselfishly.
4) They must be faithful. We don’t need people who will come when it is convenient. These people must be willing to come when we need them. They must be willing to stop whatever they are doing and come to our aid in prayer!!!"
posted by AVATAR at 10:56 PM
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