Scripture
Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my grandfather Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac—O Lord, you told me, ‘Return to your own land and to your relatives.’ And you promised me, ‘I will treat you kindly.’ I am not worthy of all the unfailing love and faithfulness you have shown to me, your servant. When I left home and crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two large camps! O Lord, please rescue me from the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he is coming to attack me, along with my wives and children. But you promised me, ‘I will surely treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the sands along the seashore—too many to count.’” Genesis 32:9-12

Observation
Jacob was the meat in the sandwich. To the east was his father-in-law with a shot gun. To the west was his miffed brother. In between these slices of antagonism was Jacob. He could not go home and he could not run away. In that pressure place in the middle he prayed a prayer that made all of the difference. It brought a personal visit of God. It took him past Checkpoint Charlie with Esau. It established him as the father of the Jewish people. What did he pray that had such effect? Even closer to home for us, what can we pray when we are in a pickle that will make a difference to the Lord?

When I study this prayer I can see the framework it is built on that we can build our pickle prayers upon as well.

#1 O Lord, you told me…. Remind the Lord what he commanded you to do.
#2 And you promised me…. Remind the Lord what he promised to do for you.
#3 I am not worthy…. Remember your debt to the Lord’s kindness
#4 O Lord, please rescue me…. Pray the undignified prayer of great godly people: HELP!
#5 I am afraid…. Be honest with your emotions of fear so you walk humbly and not proudly.
#6 But you promised me…. Reheat the promises of God in the presence of God and then take that hot promise with you into the world you are afraid to face.

Prayer is not everything. Jacob had to go and face Esau. Later Jesus would have his all night prayer and he would have to go and face the cross. But prayer created the resource that got them and will get us through. As the familiar saying goes, “Pray as if everything depended on God; work as if everything depended upon you.”

Application
It’s kind of personal, but I have something to insert in each one of those blank lines for myself. I’ll just share that with the Lord.

Prayer
Father, I am so thankful for the humanity of the patriarchs. Let their prayers guide my words so that I may enjoy the blessings they too came to know. Amen.