First Step: Pray!

Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. (2 Corinthians 12:8)

Paul did exactly what he told others to do in a time of trouble. Paul believed for himself what he wrote in Philippians 4:6: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

“I pleaded with the Lord three times.” Paul repeatedly prayed about this thorn in the flesh. We might imagine that when the thorn in the flesh first appeared, Paul thought, “This is no problem. I’ll just give it to the Lord in prayer.” But nothing happened when he prayed. So he thought, “This is a tough one,” and prayed again. When nothing happened after praying the third time, he knew God was trying to tell him something.

Some think that Paul is using a Hebrew figure of speech that really means much more than three times. G. Campbell Morgan explained this repetition, “It is the Hebrew figure for ceaselessly, continuously, over and over again.”

Some say it is unspiritual and evidence of little faith to pray for something more than once. That would be surprising to Paul, who pleaded with the Lord three times, and to Jesus, who prayed with the same words three times in His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:39-41).

But there was nothing wrong with Paul’s prayer.

Theologian John Trapp wrote about prayer, “God respecteth not the arithmetic of our prayers, how many they are; not the rhetoric of our prayers, how neat they are; nor the geometry of our prayers, how long they are; nor the music of our prayers, how melodious they are; nor the logic of our prayers, how methodical they are; but the divinity of our prayers, how heart-sprung they are. Not gifts, but graces prevail in prayer.”

Prompt: Pray about the “thorns” in your life again today. Bring them before the Lord and ask for His grace to sustain you. As Jesus prayed, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will” (Mark 14:36).

Based on The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik.