Ask for Rain

‘Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime; it is the LORD who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone’ (Zech 10:1).

‘In the ancient Near East, when there was poor rainfall, the natural result was famine and poverty. Thus, to maintain peace and prosperity, the people are urged to be in constant touch with God through prayer. The abundance of grain promised in Zechariah 9:16, 17 depended on rainfall, a necessity to the people of the ancient Near East. The Lord alone was able to supply this, and he did when the people prayed to Him’ (Jeremiah 10:13; 14:22). As discussed in the previous lesson (Abundant showers), rain is one of the main symbols used to signify the outpouring of the spirit of God and revival in the Bible. The focus of today’s study is prayer as the master key to experiencing revival.

In Zechariah 10:1 God clearly commands the nation of Israel to ask or pray for the latter rain or rain in the springtime. Also in the New Testament Jesus gave a clear command to the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the empowerment or baptism of the Holy Spirit, before they embark on the great commission. Whiles they waited in prayer in the Upper room on the day of Pentecost, the promised ‘Autumn rains’ or baptism of the Holy Spirit fell. In fact that was the day the church was birthed. So the church was birthed through the prayer and the baptism of the Holy Spirit and it is the same prayer and empowerment of the Holy Spirit that sustains and moves the church.

Again in Acts 4 after Peter and John were arrested and they were forbidden not to teach in the name of Jesus, but ‘…when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness’ (Acts 4:31). Going through church History you will realize that all the revivals recorded were preceded by a hunger for God through prayer and purity. Mary Queen of Scots is reported to have said this about John Knox the 16^th century reformer: “I fear the prayers of John Knox more than all the assembled armies of Europe.”

Jesus’ ministry was greatly dependent on prayer. A classic example is in Matthew 14. After Jesus had fed over five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, ‘Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there’ (Mat 14:23, 24). According to Mat 14:25, it was at 3 o’clock in the morning that Jesus came back, no wonder he came back walking on water. He was fully charged with the power of the Holy Spirit after praying all night. Luke 6:12 and Mat 26:37-46 are among other scriptures where Jesus prayed for hours on end.

The 21^st century church cannot fulfill the great commission or prepare the world for the rapture by only relying on the experiences of our fathers; the ‘Autumn rains’ have already come and gone. The Lord is commanding us to ‘ask for the rains in the spring time’. He is beckoning us into a deeper place of hunger for Him through prayer and purity. Ask for rain, ask for rain, Oh!!! Church ask for the latter rain, time is running out and precious souls are perishing. The next lesson is ‘After the rain’.