Acts 10:4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.”
How did the prayer of Cornelius catch the attention of heaven? The prayer of Cornelius mustered such traction in the heavenlies that he had an angelic visitation. His worship ascended into heaven like a “memorial offering”. The Greek word for “memorial” simply means “something that enables someone to remember”. It was like an aroma/perfume that would remind us about someone or something. The worship from his ‘prayer altar’ was sincere, dedicated and unassuming and hence ascended to heaven like incense from the address of Cornelius. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly (vs 2).
A recent survey confirms that 6 out of 10 people pray, which is about 60% of the population of the world. Prayer to some god, deity or a supernatural being is being offered in almost every nation, tribe and clan. Sadly most prayers do not even go past the roof of their homes as they are praying to the wrong source, chanting with corrupt motives and hidden sins. They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. They have ears but cannot hear.….And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. (Psalm 115:5-8). The Lord hid His face from the petitions of the stubborn stiff necked Israel because of the iniquities (Isaiah 59:2). However, the fragrance of the prayers of Cornelius filled heaven as a memorial offering. The Bible describes him as a devout, God-fearing and generous man who was faithful in his devotion, diligent in his dedication and deliberate in his giving.
Prayers that turn into ‘memorial offerings’:
1. Devotion: Devotion is our loyalty and commitment to our prayer time. Loyalty and love in seeking the Lord and prioritizing prayer above all other important appointments and assignments, will grasp God’s attention.
2. Dedication: Dedication is our persistence and perseverance to the hour of prayer. Perseverant prayers are not ‘panic prayers’ or ‘problem solving prayers’, but ‘purposeful, devout prayers’. Our dedication to our set time of daily prayer will draw the presence of the Lord into our prayer closet even before we open our hearts to praise Him.
3. Donation: Donation and giving will turn into memorial offering when we follow the two caveats – Firstly, ‘giving without publicizing’, When you give to the poor, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing (Matthew 6:3) and ‘selfless giving’, Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay him for his deed (Proverbs 19:17). The two thumb-rules are ‘giving in secret’ and ‘selfless generosity’.
Dedicated and devout prayers from our address will become aromatic memorial offerings and captivate the attention of God.
Acts 10:4 One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
Prayer: Father God, help my prayers to be devoted and dedicated and my giving selfless to be translated into sweet-smelling memorial offerings before you. Amen.
Leave a Reply