Fleece Praying

Fleece Praying 

 

Earley  in his book Prayer: The Timeless Secret of High-Impact Leaders appears to advocate "fleece" praying, stating "Before you get hung up on the legitimacy of putting out a fleece..." 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?

 

When one thinks of the term fleece praying, it may be misunderstood as doubting God, but this is inaccurate. When Gideon asked God to provide a sign through the use of a fleece, Gideon was actually asking for confirmation so that he would know that he was understanding God correctly and not due to a lack of faith. “Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised — look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said” (Judges 6:36-37).[1] One can actually appreciate Gideon’s commitment to ensuring that he was actually hearing correctly from the Lord, for to do anything less could have led him and his men into a suicidal mission. Earley wrote that Gideon wanted to be certain of his call which is correct.[2]The Bible lets us know that the devil masquerades as an angel of light.[3] Therefore, asking God to give confirmation so that you would be sure of His answer is wise because He will never have us to do anything that is contrary to who He is.

I believe that due to us living in an age of mass deception, we should teach the Church Age to ask God to give us spiritual discernment and confirmation if needed so that we will be careful not to mistake His voice for that of our own or that of a wolf. “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).[4] Many people are being deceived in this final hour due to false prophets and their prophecies. This is a time that we need to hear the voice of God clearer now than ever before. Jesus warned about this and that even those who were God’s chosen would have to be careful of deception in this final hour. “For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:24).[5] This is why fleece praying when done out of the need to be sure of God’s message to you is biblical. However, if fleece praying is done out of doubting God’s promises that have already been confirmed then it should not be done. “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord” (James 1:6-7).[6] When we pray, we must believe that God will answer, or He will not give us what we have been praying for. Fleece praying because of doubting is a waste of a prayer. You must pray and not doubt or doubt and not pray. Either way, both prayer, and doubt cannot occupy the same space. One will cancel out the other.

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[1] Judges 6:36-37 (New International Version).

[2] Dave Earley, Prayer: The Timeless Secret of High-Impact Leaders (Chattanooga, Tenn: Living Ink Books, 2008), 118.

[3] 2 Corinthians 11:14 (King James Version).

[4] John 10:27 (New International Version).

[5] Matt. 24:24 (New International Version).

[6] James 1:6-7 (New International Version).