The Prayer Of Dedication

The Prayer of Dedication Exodus 3:10-15 ESV (10) Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt." (11) But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" (12) He said, "But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain." (13) Then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" (14) God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" (15) God also said to Moses, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

In our study of prayer, we come now to the prayer of dedication or consecration. In simple terms, it is when God calls you to a specific task and your willingness to obey. We all know the story of Moses and the burning bush. If we think of prayer as a conversation with God, then the prayer of dedication is God’s employment interview. Isaiah 6:1-8 ESV (1) In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. (2) Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. (3) And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!" (4) And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. (5) And I said: "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!" (6) Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. (7) And he touched my mouth and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for." (8) And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

Isaiah had a similar experience with the Lord concerning his call to a prophetic ministry. We see a few things in common here: 1. God revealed Himself 2. Moses/Isaiah were humbled in the presence of Almighty God.

3. Both men gave excuses as to why they were unworthy. 4. God gave a pledge of security to both men and sent them out. 5. Both men obeyed the voice of the Lord. The last example of a prayer of dedication is found in the life of Jesus. Matthew 26:36-39 ESV (36) Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, "Sit here, while I go over there and pray." (37) And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and troubled. (38) Then he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here, and watch with me." (39) And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will."

This example is a bit different in that I believe Jesus knew what God’s will was because He had been doing it for three and a half years. The struggle for Jesus was that He was in human form and subject to the same elements that all humans are. Jesus knew it was going to require every bit of strength to get through the next twenty four hours. It wasn’t that Jesus didn’t know the will of God – He did, but in His prayer He was willingly laying His life down so that the will of God could be accomplished. What can we learn from this? If God has called you for a specific purpose or mission and in your flesh you don’t want to go or don’t feel worthy – then you pray “not my will, but Yours be done.” This is not the prayer of faith or the prayer of intercession. When we know the will of God we can pray boldly and with confidence according to Mark 11:24.