I was reading in Genesis this past week. When Abraham was old, he sent the chief servant in his household to go back to his relatives and find a wife for his son, Isaac. (Genesis 24)
When the servant arrived at his destination, he stopped at the well outside of town. This was where the women came to draw water in the evening. He prayed, “O LORD, God of my master Abraham ….” Then he spoke the prayer to God about how he would know the right choice for Isaac. The Scripture records, “Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder.”
We know from the rest of the story Rebekah became Isaac’s wife. Before the servant finished praying, the answer to his prayer walked into his presence.
Daniel had a similar experience. “While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the LORD my God for his holy hill- while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me….” [Dan 9:20-21]
When we pray, do we expect God to respond? Or is our prayer simply telling God what we think He doesn’t know and reminding Him of what we think He should do to fix the problem.
How shocked would we be if the answer to the prayer appeared before we even finished praying!
