Colossians 4:12 “Epaphras… always laboring fervently for you
in prayers …”
After being expelled from Yale University in 1743 the prospects of
David Brainerd’s fulfilling his call to the pulpit were growing slim.
Especially since a law had recently been passed that stated no
minister could be installed in a church unless they were a graduate
of Yale, Harvard or a European university. Brainerd was crushed
when his appeal was rejected and his expulsion became final. Yet,
despite this ruling, he continued to labor earnestly in prayer for
God’s direction. As providence would have it, Brainerd was later
licensed to preach during the Great Awakening and appointed by a
group of ministers as a missionary to the American Indians.
Brainerd labored night and day in prayer and on foot taking
the gospel to the American Indians. He would often do so while
enduring physical and weather related hardship. On one such
occasion Brainerd hiked for miles through deep snow, praying
for those he would visit, coughing and spitting up blood from
his illness, asking God for their souls. Like Epaphras, he truly was
“laboring earnestly” for the souls of men. Soon after that event
Brainerd died of tuberculosis. When awakening comes, the result
will be lives that are devoted to living out the revived life. Keep
praying. It is worth it.
Prayer Points
• Ask forgiveness for any apathy toward prayer and the sharing of
Jesus with others
• Ask the Lord to give you a heart for prayer like Epaphras and
Brainerd
praync.org
No comments:
Post a Comment