“Prayer is not an option but a necessity” – Billy Graham
Billy Graham went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, aged 99. Many tributes are being made for the man who God used to reach thousands of people across the world for the sake of the Gospel.
Known as “America’s pastor”, Billy Graham gave an interview in 2010 in which he said,
“If I had it to do over again, I’d spend more time in meditation and prayer and telling the Lord how much I love him and adore him and looking forward to the time we are going to spend together for eternity.”
It is clear from he had a passion for the importance of prayer, both in strengthening his own relationship with God, but also in praying for others and for the nation. Here are some other comments he made about prayer:
“Prayer is the most powerful weapon we have in our spiritual arsenal to stand against the world’s greatest enemy, the one who presents himself as an angel of light [2 Corinthians 11:14].”
“God Himself is the power that makes prayer work.”
“Pray because Christ died to give us access to the Father. Pray because God is worthy of our praise. Pray because we need His forgiveness, cleansing, guidance, and protection. Pray because others need our prayers.”
“Prayer is not our using of God; it more often puts us in the position where God can use us.”
“To get nations back on their feet, we must first get down on our knees.”
We hope these quotes serve as an encouragement to you today. What a privilege it is that we can come before our Heavenly Father in conversation with Him through prayer, knowing that He hears us. Let us make prayer today a central part of our Christian walk and the foundation for seeing God work his perfect plan our personal lives, in our homes and in the lives of others.
And on the same basis, let’s make prayer central to our support for Israel and the Jewish people. It is indeed a necessity and not an option in the days in which we are living if we truly want to seek God’s purposes. Billy Graham also said, “The Jews are God’s chosen people. We cannot place ourselves in opposition to Israel without detriment to ourselves.”
The following prayer points are to assist you as you pray. For the stories behind these prayer points, please view the CUFI Weekly News Round-up, by clicking here.
• Praise the Lord for the way in which Danny Danon and Nikki Haley responded to Mahmoud Abbas at the United Nations. Pray for both of these Ambassadors in their role for Israel and United States, respectively.
• Pray against the anti-Israel bias at the UN and especially that TRUTH will overcome the lies against Israel.
• Pray for the Jewish baby burned on her back and thighs after acid was poured on her pushchair in Lyon. Pray for healing and the Jewish community in France.
• Praise the Lord that Israeli intelligence was able to foil a bomb plot on a plane headed to Australia last year – reported this week.
• Pray for the IDF soldiers injured after a bomb exploded at their patrol point at the Gaza border.
• Pray for CUFI’s continued campaign against the so-called, “Israel Apartheid Week’
• Praise the Lord for the example and testimony of Billy Graham and for the many lives impacted by his ministry. Pray that lives will continue to be touched as the world hears about his life and words.
And “pray for the peace of Jerusalem”
