PRAY IT! Genesis 41:41-57

Someone you know just got a big promotion.

Do you
A.  Rejoice, it's an answer to prayer!
B.  Respond with jealousy and negativity because it's not your blessing...
C.  Briefly acknowledge the blessing and then immediately begin to warn your friend about how this promotion could go to their head if they are not careful...

Someone you know just started a new relationship.

Do you
A.  Rejoice, it's an answer to prayer!
B.  Respond with jealousy and negativity because it's not your blessing...
C.  Briefly acknowledge the blessing and then begin to warn your friend about the pitfalls and traps of relationships...

As we read Genesis 41:41-57, could it be... nothing bad seems to happen to Joseph.  Whoa!!!  Joseph, in fact, is just blessed.  God rewards Joseph for his righteousness and bestows upon him a new position, a new name, a new wife, and a new life in Egypt via the Pharaoh.  Are you thrilled, as you read about his success, or skeptical of the blessing?  Is your inclination to celebrate, or to warn him how the blessing could be dangerous? 

Sometimes, if we are not careful, we can spend a lot of time in prayer for someone/something and skip over the praise when the prayer is answered, falling into a rut of criticism, negativity, and/or jealousy.  We trust God with the requests; do we trust Him enough with the answers as well?  God is the one who bestowed the blessing.  God is also equipped to help us manage the blessing once it has been received.

This passage can inform our prayer life in so many ways.  A stronger emphasis on praise, perhaps, is the most important.  Praise can elevate us out of the rut of our negative/worrying/untrusting responses. 

Here is a great psalm of praise, if you're looking for one.  If this doesn't do much for you, a quick topical search through your Bible will yield lots of results!!!

Psalm 150
Praise the Lord.

Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with timbrel and dancing,
praise him with the strings and pipe,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. 

Praise the Lord.

This is a great psalm of praise, I think, and one thing I like about it is its focus.  It has all the bases covered.  What are we doing?  Praising.  Who are we praising?  God.  Where are we praising Him?  In His sanctuary.  Why are we praising Him?  For His might and greatness.  With what are we praising Him?  In this case, every musical instrument known to man, and then some (timbrel, anyone?  According to google, it's like a modern-day tambourine...)

In addition to praise, as you pray today, what types of reward would you like to see given to the righteous actions and decisions that are made in your life, in the life of your families, and in the life of your church?  As you pray today, I encourage you to ponder this question, and submit to God a very specific and intentional request on behalf of you, your family, and/or your church.  God is under no obligation to reward or righteousness, but we have the freedom and the command from our Father to ask for what we need or would like to see.

 Dear God,
Please help me today to adequately praise you for the blessings you provide, both for myself and for others around me.  I praise you right here and now.  I praise you for your goodness and your provision.  I praise you with my whole heart.  Please reward the righteous actions of ______(example:  my friend) by blessing _____(her) with ______(a promotion) so that ______(she) can _______(use influence to promote healthy change in her work place).
Amen.

Join us tonight, at the PoC Prayer Service, tonight at 7pm!

Blessings,
Pastor Celia