David come to deliver food to Eliah and obtain news about the battle. His older brother is hanging out with some of the veterans in the army. David’s frame of mind was a bit more objective because He had just come from Bethlehem, a place where he spent his quiet time with God and where the roots of his faith had been established. So while the men of war saw nothing but hopelessness, David saw it through the eyes of God. In fact, he probably saw God on the battlefield Himself.  There seems to be no other way to explain how David saw the true point of view that God shared with him.

Reminds me a bit on the founding of modern day missions.

Five Williams College students met in the summer of 1806, n a grove of trees near the Hoosack River, then known as Sloan’s Meadow, and debated the theology of missionary service. Their meeting was suddenly interrupted by a thunderstorm and the students: Samuel J. Mills, James Richards, Francis L. Robbins, Harvey Loomis, and Byram Green took shelter under a haystack until the sky cleared. “The brevity of the shower, the strangeness of the place of refuge, and the peculiarity of their topic of prayer and conference all took hold of their imaginations and their memories.”

In 1808 the Haystack Prayer group and other Williams students began a group called “The Brethren.” This group was organized to “effect, in the persons of its members, a mission to” those who were not Christians. In 1812, the ABCFM sent its first missionaries – to the Indian subcontinent.

Samuel Mills became the Haystack person with the greatest influence on the modern mission movement. He played a role in the founding of the American Bible Society and the United Foreign Missionary Society.

They were young men who decided to pray and offered themselves first to meet the giant forces of the pagan world. Wisdom probably does not dwell in war camps themselves with all the multitude of military might, but rather in the solitary hills of prayer.

Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard David talking to the men. He became angry with David and said, “What are you doing here? Who is taking care of those sheep of yours out there in the wilderness? You smart aleck, you! You just came to watch the fighting!” – 1 Samuel 17:28 GNT

Somehow I have found prayer to be an easy practice in my life. I am thankful that the Holy Spirit has enabled me to pray in the Holy Spirit since I was fourteen years old. I should say that between 12 -14 there was nothing. That probably was the case because I had not given my life to Jesus until I was 14. I do get motivated by stories of Martin Luther being so busy that he had to spend four hours every morning in prayer.

I am challenged to remember to have other pray for me – that does not come so easily. I need to let others understand that my walk with God depends entirely on God.

Not only has God made the accomplishment of his purposes hang on the preaching of the Word, but he has also made the success of that preaching hang on prayer. God’s goal to be glorified will not succeed without the powerful proclamation of the gospel. And that gospel will not be proclaimed in power to all the nations without the prevailing, earnest, faith-filled prayers of God’s people. – John Piper

I will admit that most of my prayer time is spent on my relationship with God and the needs of my own family.

I urge you, friends, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love that the Spirit gives: join me in praying fervently to God for me. Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to God’s people there. And so I will come to you full of joy, if it is God’s will, and enjoy a refreshing visit with you. May God, our source of peace, be with all of you. Amen. – Romans 15:30-33 GNT

Paul has two prayer requests – one that he would be kept safe from those who wished him harm or would put him in harm’s way. Secondly, that the gift he was bringing to Jerusalem, that he had been collecting along the way, would be acceptable.

Paul is teaching me to be aware of my desperate need for God to work His efforts for the gospel.

When I consider who Paul is and the gifts and skillsets he naturally possesses – I mean he had most of it together – and then to see him ask for payer – humbling. It was how he survived.

“You don’t need self-discipline to pray continuously; you just need to be poor in spirit.” In other words, to be motivated to pray, don’t focus on more discipline; focus rather on how needy you and those you pray for really are. Unless God works, nothing will happen of any lasting spiritual significance. – Paul Miller

I love Paul’s invitation to me to pray “by our Lord Jesus Christ.” When I pray in the name of Jesus, with the confidence that He has the power and authority to answer my prayers – I know I am taking the first steps towards praying according with His will.

As a follower of Jesus, I can go directly to the God of the universe through the authority of His Son, who has all authority in heaven and on earth!

I also love Paul’s invitation to pray “by the love of the Spirit.” This refers to the love that the Holy Spirit produces in those who walk by the Spirit. Prayer then is a by product of the fruit of the Holy Spirit we call love.

I am safe in saying that if I love others, I will pray for them. If I cared about someone’s eternal destiny, I would pray about that. I believe the Holy Spirit prompts our hearts to pray for those who need prayer.

I cannot say that I noticed the Trinity in action here before.

Charles Spurgeon wrote this in the context of Lamentations chapter two where we are encouraged to cry out to God.

First, from our text we gather—that it is never too soon to pray. “Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord.” You are lying on your bed; the gracious Spirit whispers—”Arise, and pray to God.” Well, there is no reason why you should delay till the morning light; “in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord.” We are told there that it is never too soon to pray. How many young persons imagine that religion is a thing for age, or at least for maturity; but they conceive that whilst they are in the bloom of their youth, they need not attend to its admonitions. How many have we found who count religion to be a crutch for old age, who reckon it an ornament to their grey hairs, forgetting that to the young man religion is like a chain of gold around his neck, and like an ornament set with precious jewels, that shall array him with honour. How many there be who think it is yet too soon for them to bear for a single moment the cross of Jesus. They do not want to have their young shoulders galled with an early burden; they do not think it is true that “it is good for a man to bear the yoke in his youth;” and they forget that that “yoke is easy,” and that “burden is light.” Therefore, hour after hour, and day after day, the malicious fiend whispers in their ear—”It is too soon, it is too soon! postpone, postpone, postpone! procrastinate!” Need we tell you once more that oft-repeated axiom, “Procrastination is the thief of time?” Need we remind you that “delays are dangerous?” Need we tell you that those are the workings of Satan? For the Holy Ghost, when he strives with man, says, “To-day, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your heart.” It is never beloved, too soon to pray.

Next: we cannot pray too vehemently, for the text says, “Arise, cry out in the night.” God loves earnest prayers. He loves impetuous prayers—vehement prayers. Let a man preach if he dare coldly and slowly, but never let him pray so. God loveth crying-out prayers. There is a poor fellow who says—”I don’t know how to pray.” “Why, sir,” He says, “I could not put six or seven words together in English grammar.” Tush upon English grammar! God does not care for that, so long as you pour out your heart. That is enough. Cry out before him. “Ah!” says one, “I have been supplicating to God. I think I have asked for mercy.” But perhaps you have not cried out. Cry out before God. I have often heard men say they have prayed and have not been heard. But I have known the reason. They have asked amiss if they have asked; and those who cry with weak voices, who do not cry aloud, must not expect to get a blessing. When you go to mercy’s gate, let me give you a little advice. Do not go and give a gentle tap, like a lady; do not give a single knock, like a beggar; but take the knocker and wrap hard, till the very door seems to shake. Rap with all your might! and recollect that God loveth those who knock hard at mercy’s gate.

And now our last remark is—we cannot pray too simply. Just hear how the Psalmist has it: “pour out your hearts before him.” Not “pour out your fine words,” not “pour out your beautiful periods,” but “pour out your hearts.” “I dare not,” says one, “there is black stuff in my heart.” Out with it them: it is better out than in. “I cannot,” says another, “it would not run freely.” Pour it out sir; pour it all out—like water! Do you not notice something in this? Some men say—”I cannot pray as I could wish; my crying out is a feeble one.” Well, when you pour out water it does not make much noise. So you can pour out your heart prayer uttered in a garret that nobody has heard—but stop! Gabriel heard it; God himself heard it. There is many a cry down in a cellar, or up in a garret, or some lonely place where the cobbler sits mending his shoes beneath a window, which the world does not hear, but the Lord hears it. Pour out your heart like water. How does water run out? The quickest way it can; that’s all. It never stops much about how it runs. That is the way the Lord loves to have it.

Most of this dialogue comes from Lamentations 1:19

All through the night get up again and again to cry out to the Lord; Pour out your heart and beg him for mercy on your children – Children starving to death on every street corner!

Praying early in the morning, or ending the day with prayer as I go to bed are the two most likely times that I will pray.

It often happens that I lose myself in such rich thoughts [literally, “that my thoughts go for a walk”] in one petition of the Lord’s Prayer and then I let all other six petitions go. When such rich good thoughts come, one should let the other prayers go and give room to these thoughts, listen to them in silence and by no means suppress them. For here the Holy Spirit himself is preaching and one word of His sermon is better than thousands of our own prayers. Therefore I have often learned more in one prayer than I could have obtained from much reading and thinking.

I repeat again what I said above when I talked to you about the Lord’s Prayer: If the Holy Spirit should come when these thoughts are in your mind and begin to preach to your heart, giving you rich and enlightened thoughts, then give Him the honor, let your preconceived ideas go, be quiet and listen to Him who can talk better than you; and note what He proclaims and write it down, so will you experience miracles as David says: “Open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law” (Ps. 119:18). – Luther