But Dad, You Promised!

 

“But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. ‘O Lord,’ he said, ‘why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?’… ‘Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky.’”

—Exodus 32:11, 13

Looking at the photo above, can you just hear the child’s voice, “But Dad, you prommmmised!” Maybe she had waited for that puppy for what seemed like an inordinate amount of time, and heard Dad say, “Not until we move into our new house in the country.” Or, “When you are eight years old and can take care of a puppy.” Chances are, while Dad may have completely forgotten the promise, the child hasn’t, and she stands in very good stead pleading the promise.

God hears prayer from His children too, especially when they remind Him of His promises. For example, during the escape from Egypt, God’s people had so angered Him by forming and worshipping a golden calf, that He could not even refer to them any longer as “My” people. Moses had to remind God in prayer, as recorded in Exodus 33:13:

“Remember that this nation is your people.”

We can plead our relationship with God.

If we act on the promise we’ve read or heard and believe that promise, God also takes note. Remember Noah? In Genesis 6 and 7, we read how God promised Noah to spare his family even though He intended to destroy the world. In order to do that, God asked Noah to build an ark in which his family could survive.

With no sign of rain whatsoever—in fact, at this point in the history of the earth, it had never rained—Noah built this huge ark on dry land according to all the instructions God gave him. God did destroy the world, but spared Noah and his family, just as He promised. However, if by faith Noah had not obeyed and built the ark, he and his family would not have had a chance of survival.

While reading the Scriptures, listen for God’s voice in the promises you find there. If He makes a promise and you know it resonates with you, plead your relationship with Him as His child, and act on that promise in faith.

Like the little girl who took her umbrella to the prayer meeting because she had been told that the adults intended to pray for rain, expect God’s answer to His promises and to your prayers—in His time and in His way.