Isaiah 31:1 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help And rely on horses, And trust in chariots because they are many And in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
Actions speak louder than words, as the saying goes. It is certainly true in the Christian life, though sadly we are by nature prone to judge ourselves and others by the words that we say rather than by the deeds that we do.
Most if not all who profess Christ will readily agree that prayer is a critical element of the Christian life. Yet when push comes to shove and difficulties emerge, prayer is our last resort rather than our first line of defense. We will try many schemes of our own devising, we will put our trust in our own skill, strength, knowledge or wisdom. We will develop strategies and rely on them, we will call for the help of other men or women. Only when all of these approaches fail and we reach the end of ourselves do we finally lay the matter in desperation before the Lord!
The Bible has some rather hard things to say to us when we find ourselves in this situation. It says we are "stupid", "senseless" and "foolish". In our text, a curse is pronounced upon those who seek help from the enemies of the Lord, or who rest their hope of protection and security in this world and do not seek the Lord for it.
Believer - no matter what you may tell yourself you believe about the importance of prayer and of seeking the Lord as His child, a prayerless life reveals the truth of the matter. If we do not pray, it is clear that we feel no need for God's help, for His grace, for His mercy. Then we have become foolish indeed and we are in a woeful place.
Only you and the Lord know the condition of your heart, but the Bible is very clear about how to recover from a prayerless condition and that is to make diligent use of the means of grace, including prayer. Seek the Lord for the desire to seek the Lord! Seek Him for a sense of your indebtedness to Him and your utter dependence upon Him!
This week, let us resolve not to be or to become stupid, senseless and foolish but to trust in the Lord, to rest in Him and to seek after Him on all the occasions when we may!