Communicating with the Lord doesn’t need to be done in some special building…with just the perfect words. No, talking with God should be as natural as breathing…as fluid as movement…and as comfortable as your own skin. Any time or place can become your Bethel…your House of God.
Tag: prayer
John 17: 20-21 ” My prayer is not for them alone, I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me.”
Jesus was praying for those who would believe in Him in the future through the words of His Disciples. This prayer, from the Upper Room, was one of the last that He prayed that night with them. Jesus was praying for the Believers to come…those who after listening and reading the Gospels would accept Jesus as their Savior. In other words – He prayed for you in mind that night.
Luke 18:7 ” And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?”
Paul said to pray without ceasing…to pray continually, even if it seems nothing is changing. For each prayer chips away at the darkness, and if we persistently continue to pound at the door of Blessings, the Lord will throw open the windows of Heaven, allowing them to shower down.
Psalm 46:10 ” Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
When was the last time you were quiet before the Lord? No hurried laundry list of a prayer…no whining to Him about all the injustices you’ve endured…just disarmed silence, and one simple request to Him. “Show me Your glory Lord.”
Philippians 4:6-7 ” Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
When I start to worry and fret over something, the Lord will interrupt my little party with…”Have you prayed about this?” Then He’ll ask, ” What is the best thing you can do about it?” This will abruptly take my focus off me and put it where it needs to be. By giving the burden to the Lord in prayer, I can then gain calming understanding and discernment over the matter…and with peace and a clear head, I can look at this thing that’s been causing so much anxiety within me and view it much more objectively. Sometimes, the best thing I can do is just pray…but there are times when the Lord will open my eyes to an opportunity where I can make a difference.
Hebrews 12:10-11 ” Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
When they handed me that little bundle of joy in the hospital, I sure wish they’d given me a operator’s manual too! Suddenly you’re responsible for a tiny human’s moral and spiritual nurturing and training. What a huge task to undertake, but with lots of prayer and Godly wisdom from others you do the very best you can. Discipline is hard on both parties…those receiving, as well as those giving, but in the end if that little one has grown up to be an upright, just, and Godly person, it’s all worth it.
Nehemiah 4:22 ” …Have every man and his helper stay inside Jerusalem at night, so they can serve us as guards by night and workmen by day.”
This week as I was driving to work, I came upon three brood mares grouped together in a pasture, each standing guard over a new-born foal curled up at their feet. It was such a powerful picture that I asked the Lord what it meant. He then gave me this verse in Nehemiah and the analogy that we are all workmen for God during the day…we serve, minister,and help, but we should also be guarding our Jerusalem at night. We should be praying and interceding for our loved ones, and those in authority over us. At night, we should be covering our home, our family, our church, our city, our nation with protective prayer… In God’s army we are to be workmen during day, and guards by night.
Psalm 102: 17-18 ” He will respond to the prayer of the destitute; He will not despise their plea. Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord.”
Psalm 102 is titled – A prayer of an afflicted man…When he is faint and pours out his lament before the Lord. The writer of this Psalm wants the generations to come after him to know that God not only hears our prayers, but answers. The Lord has heard my cry for mercy, He has not sneered at me and turned away. Hence, I will declare His righteousness to a people yet unborn, that they in turn may rejoice and trust that the Lord will always hear their prayers. A people not yet created…that’s you and me!
Psalm 141:1 ” O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to me. Hear my voice when I call to You.”
Awhile back one of our elderly neighbors was dying at the nearby Hospice. The Lord prompted me to drive over to visit him. As I did, I argued with God finding lots of reasons why I shouldn’t go…this man was unchurched, in a coma, and there would probably be a lot of family in the room, so how was I going to talk to him about God? I slipped into his room to find it empty of family, and as I approached the bed he suddenly opened his eyes and looked at me. I knew I had precious time to speak, so without much fanfare I point-blank asked him if he died today did he know he’d be going to Heaven? He replied that he wanted to go to Heaven, but didn’t know how to go about it. I lead him in a very simple prayer of forgiveness, and as we said Amen, he suddenly looked up as if recognizing someone standing behind my chair, his face aglow with peace and joy. I turned around quickly, expecting to see family or a staff member…but there wasn’t anyone there. He died later that day, safe in the arms of his Saviour.
Safetypinlove 