Praying Alone Day-Six Devotional Series

You have made a vow to fast and pray for 10 days for God to intervene in the coming national election. Many times you will pray alone in your quiet place. In the last devotional, you learned the strength of corporate prayer.

Which way is best to pray? Privately or with a group? Technically, both are best at different times. Just as you must walk on both your left and right legs, so you must pray both alone and with other people.

Left, right . . . left, right . . . left, right, it takes two legs to get anywhere. Those who hobble along on one leg don’t get very far, nor do they go very fast. So, you must learn to pray both with groups and by yourself.

Technically, you are on a solo journey of faith, praying in the morning or evening—or—both—for God to intervene in the election.

Solo prayer is about the private prayer closet. The New Living Translation translates it, “Go away by yourself . . . pray to your Father in private” (Matt. 6:6, NLT). The Holman Christian Standard Bible says, “Go into your private room” (Matt. 6:6, CSB). Because prayer is an intimate conversation with God, find your personal—usually quiet—place where you can meet alone with God.

Jesus practiced solo-praying, “As He was alone praying” (Luke 9:18, NKJV), and again, “He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone” (John 6:15, NKJV).

Remember when you are talking to God, you may be alone, but you are never lonely. The Lord will be there with you to hear you and encourage you. He answers prayer when there is no one but you and God in the conversation.

We are usually driven to prayer because of our need. That happened to Beth, my 12-year old middle school granddaughter. She was part of a puppet team at her church that planned a trip to a juvenile detention center. They were going to present the gospel through a puppet show to change the lives of young boys who had gotten into trouble with the law.

No one told Beth to fast, but she knew about the bestselling book that I had written, Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough, that won the silver medallion (second place) for the evangelical Christian Publishers Association. She decided to fast alone; she did not even tell her parents or friends what she planned to do. She planned to fast and pray that some of the young boys would pray to receive Christ. Finally Beth said to her mother, “I plan to do a one-day Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement fast), from sundown to sundown.” So she told her mother, “I am not eating this evening; I am fasting for some boys to get saved when Power Source (church youth group) presents the gospel at the juvenile detention center.

So on the afternoon of her fast, Beth ate a snack in her bedroom before the evening meal, but at sundown she did not eat; she only drank something for the evening meal. That evening she prayed especially for the gospel presentation.

The next morning she did not eat breakfast, only drank a glass of orange juice (because her grandfather drinks orange juice in the morning when he is fasting). During lunch time she got permission to remain in her homeroom and did not go to the lunch room. She confessed, “All I could think about all afternoon was food.”

God in heaven sees the simple things we do for Him. While Beth’s fast may sound simple, this was a huge step of faith for a small girl. And doesn’t God see the step of each of His children and reward them accordingly?

So what were the results? Several boys prayed to receive Christ at the end of the program.

You are over half way through your fast. Don’t give up! What God had done for Beth, He can do for you. Let’s believe that God can intervene for the coming national election; let’s continue to fast and pray until the answer comes through – Elmer Towns©

-My Time to Pray-

• Lord, when I pray alone, may I feel Your presence and may I pray with great faith?

• Lord, no one knows my heart but You; I pray to change my nation.

• Lord, I call upon You for revival in my church and nation.

If you have never really accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, would you do it right now? Do not delay or put it off. If you would like to receive Christ by faith, pray this simple prayer in your heart:

Dear Lord, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I believe Jesus died for my sins on the cross, and rose again the third day. I repent of my sins. By faith I receive the Lord Jesus as my Savior. You promised to save me, and I believe You, because You are God and cannot lie. I believe right now that the Lord Jesus is my personal Savior, and that all my sins are forgiven through His precious blood. I thank You, dear Lord, for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer, God heard you and saved you. I personally want to welcome you to the family of God and rejoice with you.

To email Dr. Towns - eltowns@liberty.edu.