Tag Archives: prayer

A Satisfied Spirit is Persistent

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judge

Do you find yourself annoyed at those who ask for the same thing over and over?  Well yes, we all do.  Jesus used this very human characteristic in the Parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1-8) to show us a picture of prayer.

It sometimes appears that the Widow was using the old adage-the squeaking wheel gets the grease-to her advantage.  Meaning the one who complains the longest and loudest gets what they want.  That wasn’t Jesus’ intent.  If you look closely at verse 1 Jesus says (my words) pray, pray, pray.  Although the widow knew the only way to get the desired result was to seek justice, she also knew she needed God to lend a hand.  She was persistent in her quest.

In 1 Corinthians 15:58 Paul tells us to stand firm and let nothing move us in our work for the Lord.  This kind of persistence leads to having no doubt that our work for the Lord matters.

Galatians 6:9 says do not become weary in doing good.  We are to be persistent in every opportunity to be the ‘light in the darkness’ to both those who believe and those who don’t.

If Paul McCartney had not persisted we might have a song called “Scrambled Eggs, oh my baby how I love your legs”.  Instead through rewrite after rewrite.  We got,  “Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away”.  “Yesterday” has been played on the radio more than 6 million times, more than any other record in history.  It is also McCartney’s favorite song.

The difference between failure and success-between the widow and the judge-between “Yesterday” and “Scrambled Eggs”- is persistence.

Heavenly Father, let us persist in all the ways that will show the world that You will always answer.  Let others see Jesus in us.  Make it so!

Keep The Appointment

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clocks

How often do we keep our God appointments?  Are we more likely to say…If I have time today…Maybe later…and then it’s time to sleep and we have had no or little contact with Him?

1 Samuel 13:14 tells us of the consequences for King Saul when he decided to go his way and not keep the appointment God had given him.

God is out looking for your replacement right now!  This time He’ll do the choosing.  When He finds him, he’ll appoint him leader of His people.  And all because you didn’t keep your appointment with God!    The Message

What was the appointment?  Samuel had told Saul to wait 7 days before attacking the Philistines at Gilgal.  At that time he, Samuel, would sacrifice to God and the battle could begin.  Saul waited the seven days, but in the meantime he was loosing his army to fear.  On the 7th day when Samuel didn’t show up immediately Saul took matters into his own hands and did the sacrifice himself.  Samuel showed up at the end of the sacrifice and said, “What on earth are you doing?”  Saul’s answer was much like our own when we feel we’ve waited long enough and have to take matters into our own hands.  Every time I decide I’ve waited long enough and it’s time to do it my way…there is a consequence.  The results are not the ones I wanted.  Saul’s consequence was not only the loss of his kingship but a serious bout of mental illness.

What is our appointment?  God only wants one thing of us.  He wants a relationship with us.  Each day I set aside specific time to spend with the Lord of my life.  I read His personal instructions to me (The Bible),  I talk to Him about my day, my thoughts, and lift others up (in prayer), and I sit quietly and enjoy the moments with Him (Psalm 46:10).  After reading the verse above, won’t you agree, it’s just to risky to miss the appointment.

Prayerful Acronyms

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prayerDo you find it difficult to stay focused on God during your quiet time with Him?  Does your mind wander to and fro with the cares of everyday living?  Perhaps these suggestions will be helpful.

1) A place that is peaceful and set aside for your prayer time.  I love summer because I can sit in our gazebo and enjoy Creation’s song while praying.  In the winter my desk by the window is my choice.   But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.  Luke 5:16

2) A method that works for you.  On your knees? Standing? Sitting? Journaling? Writing?  That’s my method…writing.  I find it easiest to write my prayers because I am totally focused.  Do take time to reread your words and listen for God’s response.  Write that down, too!  Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker   Psalm 95:6

3) An organized plan.  P-R-A-Y  or  F-A-C-T-S  or  A-C-T-S    Each of these acronyms is designed to focus on those areas that are used in Biblical Prayers.  Matthew 6:8-14

P – Praise      R-Repent     A-Ask     Y-thank You

F – Faith      A-Adoration     C-Confession   T-Thanksgiving     S-Supplication  (The faith section of this acronym is about knowing God’s Word so well it can be used in our prayers.)

A-Acclimation     C-Contrition     T-Thanks     S-Supplication

gods-loveI’ve used ACTS for many years.  It helps me to remember the actions I should be using in every prayer, whether in community or alone.  Talk to Him daily.  He loves hearing from us!

Worship in Song       Pray On by Babbie Mason

Heavenly Father, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Your sight.  Thank You for the ultimate Sacrifice so that I can come before the Throne with a clean heart.  Grant my petitions and those from others, too.  You are my God and King.  Hear my prayer, Oh, Lord!  In the Precious Name of Jesus I ask You to make it so!

What if….

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What if, when you woke up this morning, all you had was what you thanked God for yesterday?  Would that change how you communicate with God?  That profound question was another step in the journey God has taken me on to developing a more thankful heart and attitude.

It all started when I was made aware of a book called “One Thousand Gifts”.  This book tells the story of a woman’s journey from an unthinkable incident that colored her whole life to a thankful heart and soul.  As a result I added the ‘gifts’ page to this blog.

Prayer is necessary to a productive Kingdom life.  Since I find it difficult to stay focused I write my prayers and use a model called ACTS.  The A is for Acclamation (praise).  C for contrition (remorse for sins).  T for thanksgiving.  S for supplication (requests).  Because I truly want to develop a thankful heart I include at least five thank-praises for what my One and Only has done or given.

It is mandated in the Word to give thanks!  Take a look at these scriptures and pictures…

I Chronicles 16:34  Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever.

I Corinthians 15:57  Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

A fond memory of my dad holding his first grandchild.

Philippians 1:3  I give thanks to my God upon every remembrance of you.

I Thessalonians 5:16-18  Be joyful always, pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s Will for you in Christ Jesus.

Ah, Lord, God, how can I say thanks…You have given me life, joy, hope, a future, family, friends, music, cats, a believing husband…What more can I say than thanks!!!!!!

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Matthew 6:9-13

New International Version (NIV)

The front side (recto) of Papyrus 1, a New Tes...

The front side (recto) of Papyrus 1, a New Testament manuscript of the Gospel of Matthew. Most likely originated in Egypt.

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,[a]
    but deliver us from the evil one.[b]’

For yours is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever. 

I do wonder why that last line is so often left out.  It’s definitely the perfect closing and every 2nd grader who has learned to write a letter has learned it must have a greeting, a body, and a closing.  Ah, well, I digress…..

How often have you said these Words in worship or prayer or song and that’s just what they are..words?  We’re going to take a couple of minutes and just look at a couple of hidden gems in this beautiful prayer.

 Jesus did not say ‘Every time you pray you MUST use these words.  He said, “This, then, is how you should pray:” meaning this is a template, blueprint, or even an outline of how to do it.  We are first, to recognize God for who He is and what He does.  Next, we are to ask for what we need…food, forgiveness and freedom (from evil).  Lastly, we are to once again give God all glory and honor for who He is.

Notice, in verse 11, He tells us to ask for our DAILY bread.  Look a little closer.  If we reverse the two words they become…bread DAILY.  I don’t think this is a mistake, nor would it be out of line to look at the words in this way.  God wants us to ‘pray without ceasing’, asking Him, talking to Him, giving Him credit every hour of every day, day after day.

Let’s take a look at verse 12.  The word debts can be transliterated sins.  Let’s think this through.  Here’s another verse that when reversed adds  more understanding.  What if we say it like this.  “As (in the same way) I forgive others, Father, forgive me.”  Can you imagine the change in our hearts if we thought about that when we say forgive me.  I don’t want to forgive the cruelty shown me by a church leader, but I expect You to forgive me anyway.  I’m not going to forgive the abuses of my childhood, but I expect You to forgive me anything.  I know in my heart that God has forgiven me completely but His expectation is that I will forgive all the hurts, wrongs, stabs in the back…just like He does. 

In the verses following this prayer I’ll paraphrase what He is saying:  Those who forgive will be forgiven by Me.  Those who don’t, won’t.  Those are pretty powerful words for those of us who believe.  Jesus was making a point that He wouldn’t have had to make if we were to remember what He said about forgiving…basically- JUST DO IT!  It will be the most difficult thing I’ve ever done, but, I really don’t want to have to stand before a disappointed Father and explain why I chose not to forgive.  Not gonna happen.

Heavenly Father, Savior, Forgiver of my sins, teach me to forgive and not hold grudges.  Help me to let go of things others have said and done and let You handle the situation.  When I am asked to forgive just let me do it.  Let my life be an example of forgiveness for those around me.  Teach me Your ways, Lord.  Make it so!