by Lemuel Niere
“Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” — Philippians 4:6.
As mentioned in my previous post, the apostle Paul lays out five very important steps to move from fear to faith, from turmoil to peace, and from defeat to victory. These are: 1)prayer, 2)supplication, 3)thanksgiving, 4)requests, 5)known.
The second step Paul tells us to take is found in the word “supplication.” The word in Greek is the word deisis, which according to Rick Renner, depicts a person who has some type of lack in his life and therefore pleads strongly for his lack to be met. The word is translated several ways in the King James Version, including to beseech, to beg, or to earnestly appeal.
This word pictures a person in such great need that he feels compelled to push his pride out of the way so he can boldly, earnestly, strongly, and passionately cry out for someone to help or assist him.
One of the most powerful examples of the word deisis, is found in James 5:16. In this famous verse of Scripture, the Bible says, “...The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Here the word deisis is translated as “fervent prayer.”
You see, deisis is a passionate, earnest, heartfelt, sincere prayer. It comes to God on the most serious terms, strongly beseeching Him to move and to meet a specific need that the person praying is facing in his life.
So, when you are facing a problem that deeply concerns you, don’t be afraid to go to the Lord and earnestly beseech Him to meet your need. Paul’s use of this word means you can get very bold when you ask God to move on your behalf. There is no reason for you to be timid or reluctantly shy when you pray. You can tell God exactly what you feel, what you’re facing, and what you want Him to do for you. This is what supplication is all about!
