Some skeptics believe that, if there is a God, he probably sits around on a cloud removed from the lives and problems of the humans he created. Not so.
God has your best interests in mind and is involved in your life even from before birth. You might feel alone and unable to reach him, but he hears your prayers and answers them with firmness and compassion.
A soldier serving in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War caught a glimpse of God’s intentions before dying on the field of battle.
July, 1863
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
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| Photo by Alexander Gardner (1821-1882), public domain |
General Robert E. Lee shifted in his saddle and surveyed his soldiers and the opposition amassed near the small college town. The Union Army of the Potomac had a new commander, General George Meade. Meade brought a cadre of 94,000 men along with their new Spencer repeating carbine rifles to bear against Lee’s 72,000. The Union’s lines ran south-to-north along Cemetery Ridge and turned east to form a fishhook. On July 1, Lee’s soldiers attacked the left flank, pushing the lines back into the town or the hills.
On the second day of the campaign, fierce fighting broke out on high ground. Union troops held firm to Little Round Top, Peach Orchard, and Wheat Field. At Devil’s Den, a Confederate sharpshooter tucked himself into the rocks and harassed the charging Union troops, which gave the Confederates an opening to rally. To counter this pesky sharpshooter, Captain Augustus Martin of the Union V Corps artillery ordered a percussion shell strike. The blast killed the sharpshooter.
On July 3, Lee spearheaded 15,000 men into the Union lines at Cemetery Ridge. General George Pickett led 4,300 men in the now-famous Pickett’s Charge as part of this offensive. But Union artillery tangled their lines, which allowed them to flank the Confederates on three sides. The retreat left thousands of men dead, wounded, or stranded as prisoners. More than 7,800 men died in three days.
The Union had broken Lee’s drive into the North. The war had turned.
How many men—in Blue and Gray—had prayed for victory, for safety, for peace, or for an end to the war? How can God respond amid the wounded flesh and scorched earth of war?
A sliver of an answer was found on the battlefield. During the following days, the pungent odor of sulfur and gunpowder dissipated as the armies tended to their wounded and dead. Ammunition was collected. Foodstuffs and valuables were claimed as spoils. And a folded sheet of paper was found on a Confederate soldier who died near the fabled Devil’s Den. History books will never list his name, but his insight into prayer—and the God who hears and answers—endures like one of the monuments erected to commemorate the battles.
I asked God for strength, that I might achieve,
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do great things,
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy,
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men,
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life,
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for, but everything I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.
The soldier’s observations were not forged in an afternoon; they were forged over months of seeking God in prayer.
God is more concerned about the intent of your prayers than the content of your prayers. The soldier called out to God when he could have complained or cursed. God saw the soldier’s heart and lavished his gifts on him.
God is open-handed out of love. God did not wait for the soldier to realize the wrong intent of his prayers. God responded out of his character. He is the One who does “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20 NIV).
Civil War coins, belt buckles, uniforms, and weapons have all but disappeared, but the words of this soldier have endured. They stand like a battlefield monument to remind all who read them of the character and heart of God. God is listening to your prayers and answering according to his plan for your life. He is working to bless you.
What the Bible Says
Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.
James 1:5–6 HCSB
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”
Matthew 7:7–8 NIV
Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will prepare their heart; You will cause Your ear to hear.
Psalm 10:17 NKJV
Something to Ponder
Even Jesus prayed for the “wrong” things.
The end of Jesus’ earthly ministry was coming. After the Passover Feast, Jesus led his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane and asked them to keep watch while he prayed, “O my Father, if it’s possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39 NKJV, emphasis added).
The cup did not pass. Jesus was arrested, tried, wrongfully convicted, and executed according to Roman law. God was working out his ultimate plan to accomplish your salvation.
In the same way, pray for what you desire, but do so with an attitude of, “nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” God will take care of the rest.
Take it to Heart
Look at the lessons the Confederate soldier learned. For which of his requests have you prayed—strength, health, riches, power? Have you felt that God wasn’t listening or responding? Take a few minutes to pray for the qualities the soldier received—humility, wisdom, joy. Allow his learned lessons to remodel your prayers.
One More Thing…
Devil’s Den got its name before the American Civil War. This collection of granite-like rocks has peaks that resemble a bat’s ears. Emanuel Bushman, a local resident, recorded stories of a monstrous snake that lived in the cracks and crevices. They named the snake the Devil because it eluded those brave enough to hunt for it. The outcropping soon became known as Devil’s Den and is now immortalized in Civil War history.
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Written by W. Mark Whitlock. Content Copyright GRQ, Inc. Material appears in the book, The Indispensable Guide to Practically Everything About Prayer published by GuidePostsBooks. Purchase the book here.
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