The church was earnestly praying to God for him (Acts 12:5, NIV).
Suppose it had been announced that I was to tell the people of this city how they could go to any bank here and get all the money they needed any day in the year, and suppose, also, that I knew that secret and could really tell it, do you think that the people of this city would consider the information important?
It would be difficult to think of anything that they would consider more important. But praying is going to the bank, going to the bank that has the largest capital of any bank in the universe, the Bank of Heaven, a bank whose capital is absolutely unlimited… You can go to the Bank of Heaven any day in the year, and any hour of the day or night, and get from that bank all that you need…
What the Bible teaches along this line has been put to the test of practical experiment by tens of thousands of people, and has been found in their own experience to be absolutely true… The prayer that God answers is the prayer that is to God the Father, that is on the ground of the atoning blood of God the Son, and that is under the direction and in the power of God the Holy Spirit.
– R.A. Torrey (adapted)
Eli’s Reflection: The analogy of prayer being like going to a bank might make it seem like you get whatever you ask for, whatever it might be, and under any circumstances. Is that how it is? Read the last sentence in Torrey’s devotional again.
Article supplied with thanks to Dr Eliezer Gonzalez.
Video and article supplied with thanks to Dr Eliezer Gonzalez.