A PARTING PRAYER
Now the temple was crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform. Then Samson prayed to the Lord, “Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other, Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived. Judges 16:27-30
“He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines” (Judges 13:5). Thus begins the story of Samson, the 13th judge of Israel and one of the greatest disappointments in Scripture. Samson was a man of extraordinary gifts who wasted his life and slid from fame to failure.
Because of Samson’s unusual strength, he was famous throughout the land. The human source of power was in his hair, but the divine source was the Spirit of God. As long as Samson remained true to his vow to follow the Lord, his strength remained. But Samson could not help himself. Tempting the Lord by marrying a Philistine woman and befriending Israel’s enemies, the Spirit left him weak and helpless. Judges 16:20 says, “He awoke from his sleep and thought, ‘I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.’ But he did not know that the Lord had left him.”
Samson’s foolish ways finally led him to the temple of Dagon, fettered and blind, a laughingstock of the people. The pagan god Dagon seemed to win the victory. Samson had dishonored God, betrayed the confidence of his people, and shamed his family. Among all the prayers of the Bible, Samson’s final prayer is perhaps the saddest.
In his dying moments, Samson prayed that the Lord would remember him and renew his strength. He asked that he might have one last chance to carry out his calling and avenge the Philistines. God provided the strength and allowed Samson to take with him in his death more Philistines than he killed during his life.
How many Christians, like Samson, have wasted their lives and strayed from God? How many have come to their last moments in life only to return to the Lord, confessing their sin and placing their faith in God once again? Does the Lord still hear their prayers? Look to Samson.
Pray for someone you know who has wasted his or her life and strayed from the Lord.
From The Gift of Prayer