Ever heard of a "one-hit wonder"? The term refers to a popular musician whose sophomore effort tanks in sales and fails to garner attention. Several artists fall into this category, but since today's message has nothing to do with the entertainment industry, we won't worry about these types. Let's concern ourselves with God instead. Believe it or not, many people see God as a one-hit wonder. Although they've heard of the great things He did in the Bible, they don't understand why they haven't seen such acts in their lifetime. They may wonder why God hasn't split any more seas or why they haven't heard of any other walls miraculously falling like the one at Jericho did.
Gideon had a similar attitude. When an angel approached and greeted him with, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior,” he questioned whether God was truly with him and his people (Judges 6:12). He said, "Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian” (Judges 6:13). His were the words of a man who'd heard of God but struggled to see evidence of His might. He lived in a time when his people were being severely oppressed by their enemies, and to him, God seemed like a one-hit wonder.
Nevertheless, God proved to Gideon that the power He'd displayed in the time of his ancestors had not run dry. He took an army of 30,000 men, cut it down to 300, and gave them victory over a much larger enemy force. Just as He did then, the Lord is willing to do the same with us today. He doesn't want any of us thinking He is the God of yesteryears. He wants us to know He is more than capable of saving people from whatever steals their peace. This is why He is repeatedly called "the Alpha and Omega" in the Bible - the beginning and the end. He is timeless, as is His word, His power, and His plans for each of us.
For those who don't realize this, it is because they haven't experienced God's might in their life and haven't seen His power in the lives of those they know. Yet, He's still doing the things He did in Biblical times. People are being brought back to life in the name of Jesus. If that is too hard for you to believe, then let's consider a different miracle that might be easier to wrap your head around. Right in our fellowship, there have been recent testimonies of how fervent intercession has brought the sick back from the brink of what doctors called imminent death. Could a one-hit wonder make that happen?
I've been privileged to see God prove that He's not a one-hit wonder. He recently stunned me when I'd prayed to eat something from a little restaurant down the street. Why did I have to say this prayer? Why didn't I just whip out my wallet and get what I wanted? I'd paid a bunch of bills, and my bank account looked like a dusty street from a wild west movie with nothing but tumbleweed rolling through it. If I were going to eat out, God had to make a way. Later that day, a huge box of pizza and fried chicken were on the kitchen counter. I thanked God for the provision, but since those weren't what I'd prayed for, I kept trusting Him to deliver. And He did the next day when some loved ones ordered dinner from the very place I'd prayed about, all without me expressing my desire to them.
That same dish showed up for three more days despite the funds in my bank account not increasing. It got to a point where I had to thank God and ask Him to kindly stop as I was quite satisfied. I didn't understand until later that the Lord wanted me to know that He will not only fulfill prayers one time, but will fulfill them over and over again. He wanted me to learn that He was not and never would be a one-hit wonder. And if I trusted Him, He'd give more than I could ask for or even imagine. Psalm 145:19 - He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.
That's the God I serve. A God who didn't stop doing great things when the last sentence of the Bible came to an end. He's still answering prayers - even those that don't have any urgency to them. For those who would have faith and reject the lies of satan that creep in to suggest that God won't do what we've prayed for, the Lord will do and redo and overdo to preserve the honor of His name. When we pray in accordance with His will and in Jesus' name, which I did, our joy will be complete (John 16:24). That said, remember that God can also choose to take His time in answering some prayers; He gets to decide when and why. But that doesn't mean He's not able to fulfill our prayers.
If you think God is a one-hit wonder, I encourage you to ask Him to reveal Himself to you, and please don't waver as you wait for Him to do so. I have learned that God can be trusted because He wants us to know how real He is, and in many cases, He's willing to do that one thing that will catch our attention. I believe He wants us to swing our head in His direction and focus on Him. And that we will do by His grace, IJMN, Amen. Please come back at Noon EST when we will praise the Lord, then stand in the gap to pray for others. After that, we will pray with the scriptures I used to lay the foundation when making the request that God kindly answered over and over. Praise the Lord!
PS: 20 more P&Ps to go and we'll be at 500, folks!! God is good.
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