Drawing In The Sand

With a six-foot staff in his hand, Honi drew a circle in the sand. Then he dropped to his knees and raised his hands to heaven. With the authority of the prophet Elijah who called down fire from heaven, Honi called down rain.

Lord of the Universe, I swear before your great name that I will not move from this circle until you have shown mercy upon your children. Then it happened. As his prayer ascended to the heavens, raindrops descended to the earth. The people rejoiced over the rain, but Honi wasn't satisfied with a sprinkle. Still kneeling within the circle, Honi lifted his voice over the sounds of celebration.

Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain that will fill cisterns, pits, and caverns.

The sprinkle turned into such a torrential downpour that the people fled to the Temple Mount to escape the flash floods. Honi stayed and prayed inside his protracted circle.

Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain of benevolence, benediction, and grace.

Then, like a well-proportioned sun shower on a summer afternoon, it began to rain in perfect moderation. Some within the Sanhedrin threatened excommunication because his prayer was too bold for their taste, but the miracle couldn't be repudiated. Eventually, Honi the Circle Maker was honored for "the prayer that saved a generation." The circle he drew in the sand symbolizes the power of a single prayer to change the course of history. It's also a reminder of this timeless truth: God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God.

We need to learn how to pray like Honi and draw our own lines in the sand. The lines that we should not cross and the lines that help us to pray boldly. We need to tell God, "I will not leave this place until you bless me!"

Scriptures for cross Reference:

John 8:3-11

3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst 4 they said to him, “ Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5 Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6 This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “ Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “ Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”]]

Jeremiah 17:13 (TEV)

LORD, you are Israel's hope; all who abandon you will be put to shame. They will disappear like names written in the dust, because they have abandoned you, the LORD, the spring of fresh water.

Exodus 32:15-16