Vs.13- “Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:”- Behold means to look upon or direct your attention to. The servant is continuing his prayer and asks the Lord to take notice of him. He said, “Look at me; I’m standing at this well of water and the women of the city are coming to draw water.”
Vs.14- “And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.”- The servant now makes a specific request. He has asked the Lord to make his endeavor fruitful, but now he is asking that the Lord would make it evident that He has answered the servant’s prayer. He is asking God to provide a wife for his master’s son, but how will he know which one is the right one? How will he know if God has answered his prayer? He asks God to make this clear to him. His specific petition is simply this: The servant is saying something like this, “Lord, I am standing at this well trying to do what my master has asked me to do. I am seeking your will and your favor in this endeavor. I am standing here where it is customary for the women of the city to come out and draw water. How will I know that you have heard my prayer? God if you will make my way prosperous, I pray that you will also make it evident that you have heard my petition. Lord will you please do this for me? I am going to ask the women to give me a drink. I pray that you would reveal the woman that is chosen for Isaac by having her offer me and my camels a drink of water.”
One-Line Explanation- The servant asks God to reveal Isaac’s future wife to him.
Lesson: There are great lessons on prayer found in this passage. 1.) He prayed about his position. “Behold, I stand here by the well of water.” The servant is saying take notice of me. Look and see what I am doing and where I am. This is an important statement in a few ways. A.) God knows where we are. God is omnipresent. The Bible says that the eyes of the Lord are everywhere. Nothing escapes the all-seeing eye of God Almighty. This is a negative if you are living in sin; but this is a positive if you are trying to do right and serve God and feel like no one knows or cares about your service. God sees where you are and what you are doing. B.) It is important to speak to God about where you are and what you are attempting. This seems like a contradiction to many. If God knows where I am and what I need then why do I need to tell Him about it? If God knows my needs before I pray then why do I pray? Doesn’t that make prayer pointless? People get so confused about the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man. Sovereignty simply means that God makes the rules. God has ordained that prayer is necessary to get petitions and needs met by God. The Bible says that ye have not because ye ask not. Yes, God knows exactly what you need; but He desires for you to speak to Him and ask Him for help. God know exactly where you are, but it’s a good thing to state your case in prayer. I believe in giving God reasons to answer your prayer. You are revealing how serious you are about getting your petition answered by giving God reasons for answering your prayers. God knew where the servant was, but in essence the servant was saying, “God, I am at this well; and I’m not here on vacation. I came here because my master sent me. I am here by your divine direction. I am not here by chance or by accident. You have sent me here for a reason and I am asking you to make my way prosperous. I am asking you to prosper my way since it is you that brought me here in the first place.” I pray this way all of the time. I pray for our church and say things like, “Lord you called me to preach when I had other plans for my life, you led me to this place and to start this church. God this was not my idea. Lord do you see me here trying to do right and serve you? Do you see me struggling financially? Do you hear those that criticize and complain and condemn me while I try to do your will? Lord, you brought me here and you know where I am. You led me here. Lord, this is your plan and your idea. I pray that you would prosper this work and make your servant prosperous. I pray that you would bless this church with souls, with unity, and with power.” The servant stated where he was to the Lord. I think it is perfectly within reason to state your position before God in asking a petition. C.) The servant was reminding himself of his position. He may be saying to himself, “Why am I here?” The answer is because ultimately God led him there. Pastor, do you feel like you are serving in obscurity? Christian, do you wonder why God has you going through the valley that you are going through. I have asked myself many a time, “Why am I here?” Why do I struggle to build this church? Why do I work so hard with seemingly little reward? The answer is simply because God put me here. I am doing God’s will and He will lead, guide, and direct my steps. The answer to that question is important. Why am I here? Jonah could have asked that question while he was in the belly of the whale and the answer would be because he rebelled against God. Normally it is only you that can answer that question. If you are in a difficult situation, but you know it is God’s will then take comfort. God will help you and direct you. Just stay where God put you. If you are in trouble because of your own sin, then repent and get back in God’s will. It’s just that simple. 2.) He prayed Precisely. I am reminded of the story my wife’s grandfather tells. One day a tractor fell on him out in the country and he feared for his life. He began to pray that a car would drive by his location. God answered his prayer. A car came down the road and passed right by him. He then prayed that a car would drive by and STOP! A little later someone came by and helped him out of his precarious situation. He now says, “I learned to pray specifically!” It is true that God can answer your prayer anyway He sees fit, but it is not wrong to pray specifically. For example, don’t pray, “Lord save my family.” I believe you should pray for each and every lost individual family member by name. I don’t just ask God to bless our church. I ask God to give us souls for our labor, more baptisms, add people to our church membership, and bring tithers. We are seeking property for our church and I am praying to God for a specific piece of land right now. I pray for every church member specifically and individually. The servant was very specific in how he desired God to answer his prayer. Let us learn to specify and clarify what it is we want God to do for us. 3.) He prayed for Proof. There are some out there that say you shouldn’t do this, but I find illustrations all throughout the Bible. I believe you need to be careful about your spirit and attitude behind the prayer, but I think it is ok to ask God to make it evident that He has answered your prayer. Gideon specifically asked God to make a fleece wet and then dry to make it evident to him that God was leading him. God also allowed Gideon to hear the enemy claim that God was with Gideon to embolden and encourage him. When Korah rose up in rebellion against Moses; Moses said, “If these men die the common death then the Lord has not sent me.” (Num.16:28-29) Moses said this was done so that the people would know that God sent him. The book of Ezekiel proclaims judgments on many different nations. The reason given is that ‘ye may know that I am the Lord.’ I ask God to answer my prayers in such a way that He gets the glory and that it is evident that it was the Lord that answered the prayer and did the work. It was evident that God brought victory to the Israelites over the Egyptians. Could the Israelites bring the plagues and open the Red sea? God received the glory when Gideon’s army defeated the Midianites. His army was grossly outnumbered and yet they never swung a sword. It was God that received the glory for that. My prayer is that God would answer my request in such a way that it is evident to me and others that His hand is in it. A.) I ask God to answer in a way that is evident to me. If I am seeking God’s direction in my life or I desire favor in an endeavor; I want it to be evident to me that God is leading and God is helping. B.) I ask God to answer in a way that is evident to others. I love to see other Christians encouraged because they see God answering prayer. I love to see unbelievers dumbfounded because they can’t explain how something happened that you prayed for. I desire God to answer prayers in such a way that it is evident that He is the one that brought it to pass. How does God do this? i.) With timing. On numerous occasions I have had money given to me or the church right when we needed. If it came a day later it would have been too late and we wouldn’t have made the payment. Why does God wait so long? I believe its God showing us that it is Him that answered the prayer and provided for the need! ii.) With miracles. I have heard testimonies of numerous people who had terminal cancer or some incurable disease and they called for the elders of the church like the Bible commands in the book of James and they were anointed with oil and God miraculously healed them. The doctors can’t explain it, modern medicine can’t explain it, science can’t explain it; it must have been God! I like to see the miracle of a changed life. There are numerous people that were drug addicts, hateful, wretched, vile, filthy, and yet when they met Jesus they were changed. Many a person has tried going to a psychologist, they tried self-help groups, they tried religion, and none of it worked; but when they met Jesus their life was radically transformed. People can’t explain that! It had to be God.
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