P.U.S.H. - PRAY UNTIL SOMETHING HAPPENS
Updated: May 19, 2021
“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:4"
Whoever is born of God is destined to overcome the world by persistent prayer of faith.
“P.U.S.H.” is an acronym for Pray until Something Happens!
Jesus taught His disciples the importance of a persistent prayer (P.U.S.H.) of a believer (whatsoever is born of God) in a parable (Luke 18:1-8.) In that story was a widow who had the task of convincing a wicked and nonchalant judge to help her get justice.
The unjust judge after a long resistance budged to her request not because he feared God or cared for man’s judgement but because she kept bothering him. Jesus Christ concluded that if an unjust king who did not care for others can can show kindness to a persistent widow, the Just God will surely bring justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night.
Jesus' only concern was if He would still find faith (in people) on earth when He returns.
In essence, without faith in God, we cannot breakthrough in prayer for God expects every believer to live by faith. It takes faith to attract, connect and please God (Heb.11:6.)
You are not a believer if you don't live by faith. The standard for the righteous is to live by faith. The admonition of the Lord to every believer remains to, “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philip.4:6-7.” As a believer, you can always chose peace over depression!
Bible is filled with many stories of believers who prayed till something happened in their lives.
We can learn some fundamental principles of P.U.S.H. from these great people of faith.
1) P.U.S.H. thrives on a revelation of God (John 15:7)
When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” Genesis 28:16-17
What revelation of God are you standing on for your victory?
Jacob’s personal revelation of God inspired his faith to wrestle with an angel of the Lord throughout the night as he insisted, “If you do not bless me, I will not let you go”.
The reason behind his relentless battle was his fresh revelation of God from his dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending on it. Suddenly he realised that the Lord’s presence is everywhere and that the Lord’s promise covers him as a descendant of Abraham and Isaac (Gen.28:12-16.)
You too need to recognize that the Lord is with you and that His promise covers you.
Jesus Christ's purpose for dying on the cross was to connect all believers to the blessing of Abraham, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith (Gal 3:13-14.)
Revelation of God does not only boost your faith in God but also your confidence in whom you are in the Lord. You suddenly become strong as you realise that, If God be for us, no one can be against you (Rom.8:31)” Revelation is a solid ground to wage a relentless P.U.S.H. warfare.
2) P.U.S.H. requires faith (Rom 10:17)
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11:1-3
Which word of God are you converting into your weapon of faith?
Jesus won His contest with the stubborn enemy with the word of God, “For it is written…”
The purpose of receiving revelation from the word of God is to embolden your faith in God and His promises. It is to help you engage in the battle of life trusting the Lord will reward you.
Heb.11:6 teaches that without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
The widow started the process of "answer prayer" by activating her faith to make the request.
God creates everything by the Word of His mouth. His Word is supreme in the universe.
Nothing and no one can undo what He has spoken till it comes to pass.
Prayer is most powerful when we take back the word of God to him.
Faith says, “God is whom He says He is, that He has done what He said he has done and that he is able to fulfil all He promises”.
Only a person of faith can say, “God said it, I believe it and that settles it.”
3) P.U.S.H. demands belief in the promise of God (Matt 21:22)
Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly[f] I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Mark 11:22-24
What promises of God are you basing your prayer requests?
Abraham’s total belief in God’s promise empowered his faith to hope against all human hope.
He knew his old body, like that of his old wife, was dead to produce baby, yet he chose to believe in God’s promise (Rom.4:16- 24.) He refused to focus on facts that can ruin his faith in the all powerful God. His revelation of God convinced him that, “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? (Num.23:19.)” He knew that God’s word has life and power within it to fulfil God’s promises. In Isaiah 55:1, the Lord said, “so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Jesus confirmed this when He said, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (John 6:63.)” Believing in the potent spiritual power of the word of God above that of sight and flesh positions every believer for a prayer that supernaturally make things happen.
4) P.U.S.H. is done according to God’s will (Matt.6:10)
We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. John 9:31
Are you just praying to satisfy your pleasure or are you praying to realise God’s promise, according to His will, in order to live a life that will bring glory to God?
Elijah took it upon himself to pray down the will of God. James 5:17-18 says, “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” Following that story in 1 Kings 17, you will notice that Elijah was following the will and instruction of God throughout. He was not living in sin no wonder the previous verse (16) of the Bible says the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
It is God express will to answer our prayers (Matt 7:7-11; John 14:12-14.)
Jam 4:2-3 throws light to what hinders most prayers, “You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.” Praying according to God's will is praying purposefully!
5) P.U.S.H. demands to pray without ceasing ( 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. James 5:16
When you seem not to receive answer to your prayer, do you continue to pray or do you just quit?
Daniel prayed three weeks non-stop till he received answer to his prayer (Daniel 10:1-13.)
Daniel refused to quit. Quitters are losers. Winners are not quitters. Persistence is an important factor in prayer. The effectual fervent prayer of the righteous avails much!
The reason you need to continue praying is that the major reason for delayed prayer is evil resistance. In fact Daniel’s prayer was answered the same day but was resisted by the prince of the air over the city. The answer to evil resistance is ceaseless prayer.
Jesus taught His disciples the story of the wicked king and the persistent widow above, “to show that they should always pray and never give up (Luke 18:1)”
Another reason for delay in prayer made according to the will of God is that we may be living in sin or be making a wrong request. It might also mean that the timing is not be right.
God makes all things beautiful in His own time (not in Swiss time.)
Praying without ceasing helps not to miss God’s timing.
6) P.U.S.H. has confidence in God’s answer (Matt 7:7-8)
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:14-15
After praying to God, do you trust or doubt God for an answer?
Every act of fear and doubt calls God a liar. Whatever is not done out of faith is sin (Rom. 14:23.)
Abraham fully trusted God in his impossible situation of having a child at the age of ninety nine from an old woman of eighty nine years (Romans 4:18-22.) He just chose to trust God.
If you doubt that you’ll receive an answer from God, the chances are that you won’t.
For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned (Matt. 12:37)
James 1:6-7 teaches that when you make any prayer to God according to His will, “ you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.”
You see, all things are only possible to them that believe God.
To those who doubt, distrust or suspect God, nothing may be possible since without faith it is impossible to please the Lord. He that comes to the Lord must foremost trust Him (Heb.11:6.)
7) P.U.S.H. demands rejoicing in faith (1 Thess. 5:16; Philippians 4:4)
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Rom.12:12
Can you praise God in faith before receiving answer to your prayer requests?
Paul and Silas rather than sulking from their unfair punishment and harassment choose to focus on praising God. The result was that their chains were broken. When the three Hebrew men were thrown into a fiery furnace by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, when they refused to bow down to the king's image; the three were preserved from harm by the fourth man who looks like a son of the gods (Dan 3: 10-25). These men of faith were busy praising God in the midst of trials and dangers entrusting their lives in His hands. They proactively entered His gates with thanksgiving and stepped into His courts with praise (Psalm 100:4.) They knew that He cannot resist praise and that satan cannot withstand it. Praise is a powerful proof of faith in an unfailing God. If you have done everything you know to do and your expectation still delays, begin to praise the Lord. If you genuinely believe that God is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, you will be able to praise him as if what you are trusting Him for has already happened. You will know that to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen (Eph.3:20-21.)
Conclusion:
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6
As a pregnant woman pushes in order for the baby to come out so also must a believer pregnant with the promises of God “P.U.S.H” in faith until such receives answer to prayer (Heb.11:1.)
You often have to persevere in prayer until you get to a place where you are ‘fully assured that what God has promised, He is able also to perform (Romans 4:21.) ’
It is that conviction that sets your feet into dancing ahead of the manifestation of your prayer.