“If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; 19 but God
has surely listened and has heard my prayer. 20 Praise be to God, who has
not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
(Psalm 66:18-20)
This past month I was on a national “Pastors Prayer Forum” prayer call organized by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. One of the prayers prayed that rang true in my heart was when someone asked that the church in Canada would be one of holiness and prayer.
The two go hand-in-hand because holiness is God’s ultimate goal for His people and holiness is necessary for our prayers to be heard. King David understood this and declared that if he had cherished sin in his heart, the Lord would not listen to his prayers.
This same principle comes through in the famous revival prayer found in 2Chr.7:14 : “If my people will….pray… and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear their prayers…”. James alludes to it as well when he instructs the church how to pray for the sick: “Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (Jm.5:16).
Let us continue to pray that God will revive the FMCIC in holiness and prayer that He might pour out His Spirit upon us and use us to bring many to Himself and glory to His name.
