Fleece Praying

Take a position on "fleece" praying; is it correct in the Church Age?  Should it be taught to congregations?  Is it a lack of faith if "fleece" praying is employed?

While it may appear to some that Earley is advocating fleece praying, if we take a closer look at the context of this quote, we come to understand that he is advocating for specific prayer. I for one do not believe that we should do fleece praying because that is asking God to prove himself when he owes us no proof. When the Pharisees and Sadducees wanted a sign from Christ, He told them, “         He answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.” (Matthew 16:2-4 ESV)

We should however teach those under our charge to pray specific prayers seeking the will of God. In James four he tells his audience that “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” (James 4:2-3 ESV) We in fact should be asking because when we ask in accordance to Gods will it is a good thing. In the garden of Gethsemane Christ prayed that the cup would pass before me, however not my will but your will be done (Matt. 26:39) Also, in 1 John 5:14-15 we know that if we ask those things according to His will He hears us.

It is hard to answer if it is a lack of faith if fleece praying is employed. I say yes and no; let me explain. It is a lack of faith in ourselves and the relationship that we have with God. Paul tells us, “…for we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7 ESV) Therefore is we are walking by faith and our sense of the Spirit is at a high level we should be able to sense what he wants us to do. John MacArthur and Kevin DeYoung both have books about seeking God’s will for your life without having mysterious revelations. I do not believe that we have a lack of faith in God when we pray a fleece prayer, we do not trust ourselves enough therefore are seeking validation. We should not continually implement fleece prayers, but grow ourselves and those around us into a more intimate relationship with the Lord; that way we can know what He is guiding us to do.