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By Mike Caton

Exodus 32:14, “Then the LORD relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.”

Many years from Moses’ day, James, the half-brother of Jesus, will write, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective,” 5:16. Moses has been pleading with God for mercy on his people; both God’s people and the people Moses was selected to lead. Moses was not a perfect man, but he was a man who clearly loved the Lord and his people, and he was a man who was clearly devoted to the Lord. No doubt, Moses had a special relationship with the Lord, no doubt he saw, heard, and experienced things that no one else did. But this is really a testament to Moses’ faith and commitment to the Lord.

It seems clear here that our prayers can change God’s mind. But we need to be careful with this thought, our prayers are not going to cause God to do something that is against his nature. Here we can see the justice of God at work, as he spoke about destroying the Israelites. That was exactly what they deserved. But Moses was pleading for mercy and grace, and God is a compassionate God. This does not mean God simply ignores or forgets their sin, the punishment will still come, the price for that sin still has to be paid, and we will see that soon enough. And remember, all of the sin of humanity was piled on Jesus when he died on the cross for all of us. That was the ultimate price paid for each and every sin. From these Israelites wanting an idol to worship here, to their rejection of God’s plan to enter the promised land, to Moses in Numbers 20 when he disobeyed God, to David, to Solomon, to Judas, to Peter, to you and to me, Jesus’ death paid that price. Those sins were not ignored or forgotten, they were paid for.

So, remember this when you say your prayers. You are asking the God of the universe to intervene in some situation. If we doubt God can or will intervene, why bother to pray? But we need to remember God is not going to go against his nature to satisfy us. We need to pray in God’s will, in his plan, for things that would honor him. And when we see those prayers answered, we need to thank him and acknowledge him for his blessings. And let’s be honest, sometimes the answer God gives us is no. I’ve read, sometimes God does not calm the storm, he calms his child in the storm. Perhaps what we need is more faith, more trust in God and that is what this incident is teaching us, if we are willing to learn the lesson. It is not always about our situation being changed, it is about us being changed, about growing closer to the Lord. And sometimes God has something far better in mind for us than what we can imagine. That too requires our faith to be strong. But regardless of the situation, regardless of our desire in the situation, we need to trust God to do the right thing. And he always will.

Father, thank you for hearing and answering my prayers. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Mike Caton is the preacher at Mount Olive Church of Christ in Belhaven. He volunteers at the Ponzer Fire Department and works as a full time AEMT with Hyde County EMS. Follow Mount Olive Church of Christ on Facebook for daily devotions.

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