Do not keep quiet in your prayers to God

“Jerusalem, I put guards on your walls. They will not be silent. They will keep praying day and night. Guards keep praying to the LORD. Remind Him of His promise. Don’t ever stop praying. Don’t give Him any rest until He rebuilds Jerusalem and makes it a place that everyone on earth will praise”, (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“Jerusalem, I put guards on your walls. They will not be silent. They will keep praying day and night. Guards keep praying to the LORD. Remind Him of His promise. Don’t ever stop praying. Don’t give Him any rest until He rebuilds Jerusalem and makes it a place that everyone on earth will praise”, (Isaiah 62:6-7).

Some Bible commentators insist that it was Isaiah the prophet who was speaking in verse one of Isaiah 62. There he said: “I love Zion, so I will continue to speak for her, I love Jerusalem, so I will not stop speaking I will speak until goodness shines like a bright light, until salvation burns bright like a flame”. From the tone of the prophet’s voice, we can deduce that he was not happy with the situation in Jerusalem at that time. There was injustice, unrighteousness and as such, the city of Jerusalem became a deserted place.

However, as God’s minister on duty and as a watchman, he did not keep quiet. Expectedly, he brought the matter before God hoping that things will turn around for good. Therefore, at his prayers to God, Jerusalem became ‘Hephzibah’ – which is, God’s delight. The place was no longer deserted; it became a city with a name. In it, people once again felt happy to be associated with her because God made her a delight. Certainly, every reproach was taken away to God’s glory.

Consequently, those who stand in the gap at all levels should not keep quiet, but learn how to take matters to God in prayer. Our God is not a weak One and so those who worship Him must be proactive in their prayer lives. It is their duty constantly to remind Him what and what they will want Him to do for them. When we fail to go to Him in prayer, things will definitely go amiss.

The Bible is replete with examples, where matters were taken to God as a way of getting answer from Him. We may wish to read the following (Gen 18:32; 32:26; Matt 15:27; Luke 18:1-8 and Rev 6:10). But let us single out Luke 18:4-5: “But the judge did not want to help the woman. After a long time, the judge thought to himself, ‘I don’t care about God. And I don’t care about what people think. But this woman is bothering me. If I give her what she wants, then she will leave me alone. But if I don’t give her what she wants, she will bother me until I am sick”. Remember, if the woman in question had kept quiet, the judge may not have attended to her not to talk of solving her pressing problem. But she persevered and the judge yielded. This attitude is what people of God need today. They must constantly remind God what exactly they are going through. Assuredly, God will attend to them, if they do not give up in their prayers. Yes, it is the duty of God’s child to keep reminding Him and never to be silent.

But why must a child of God keep quiet in the face of persecution or oppression? Why must he suffer in silence? At such critical times whether in the office or home or school, it is his right to speak out to God in prayer. If prophet Isaiah could speak on behalf of Jerusalem and things turned around for good; that same God will do something about our situation and enable us to be free and to be a delight unto Him, too. I am persuaded in the spirit that God is making someone already a delight.

Therefore, let us be determined to do the needful, never to keep quiet in trouble or problem around us, but to keep on bringing the matter to the throne of grace. Yes…do not throw away your confidence; it has a great reward, (Heb 10:35).

Ven. Ernest Onuoha
Rector, Ibru International Ecumenical Centre, Agbarha-Otor, Delta State.
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