Judgement / obedience / Prayer / Suffering

Christianity is a Marathon and not a Sprint

Hebrews 10.36 encourages, you need endurance in order to do God’s will and so receive what is promised.

Endurance is one of those qualities we admire in others but struggle to manifest in ourselves. We see the marathon runner and we marvel at their endurance then say they are crazy to train then run that kind of distance. We hear the testimony from the mountain climber and wonder what it would be like to stand on the top of the world only to hear of the cost and dismiss it as too hard.

Endurance is modeled by the few but desired by the many. (more…)

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May 6, 2017
Prayer

2017 National Day of Prayer

Isaiah 1.15 observes, when you spread out your hands in prayer, I look the other way; when you offer your many prayers, I do not listen, because your hands are covered with blood.

Today is the National Day of Prayer. Historically, it is the time when we as a nation turn to God to repent from our sins against Him and to seek His help for our many struggles. President Washington instituted such a day both to beg God’s help for our nation and to thank Him for the help He had already given.

It was president Truman however who signed the bill into law that officially gave us this day of remembrance. Again, it was both a somber day remembering the world and its rebellion against God as evidenced by its most recent world war and a celebration that God had delivered us, this nation, from our enemies. (more…)

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May 4, 2017
Prayer / Uncategorized

Praying with Results

Daniel 10.12 encourages, don’t be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day you began to pray for understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your request has been heard in heaven. I have come in answer to imageyour prayer.

Imagine praying and an angel or Jesus Himself showing up to say your prayers have been heard and I have come in response. That would be pretty incredible. That was Daniel’s experience.

Why did God listen to Daniel? Daniel did two things any of us can do and if we do them we can be confident that our prayers too will be heard. (more…)

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October 27, 2016
Prayer

Believing God Hears Us

John 11.41 observes Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me.”image

One of our hindrances to prayer is our belief that God hears us. God the Son had no such hindrance with believing that God the Father heard His prayers. Why? (more…)

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March 21, 2016
obedience / Prayer

The Key Work for Beating Temptation

Luke 22.46 challenges, get up and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. image

God takes sin seriously. Sin is everything we do that defies the will of God.

This defiance is measured by God by our words, attitudes and actions toward Him and others. God has demonstrated His commitment to punish sin since humanity began their rebellion against God. (more…)

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March 8, 2016
faith / Prayer

Receiving What We Want in Prayer

Matthew 21.22 promises, you can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it. image

This verse makes many Christians nervous because on the surface it appears God is promising us anything we ask for in prayer. This is what we want His words to mean for there are many things we wish we had but don’t have but if having them was only a matter of asking for them then that would be awesome.

Our experience however tells us this is not what He meant for we have all asked God for things in prayer and did not receive them. So what does this verse mean? (more…)

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January 22, 2016
faith / Prayer

Learning to Pray by Watching Your Children

Luke 18.42 comments your faith has healed you. God begins His teaching in this section by telling us toimage pray with perseverance.

When Jesus makes His comment it is to a man who persevered in crying out to Him despite rebuke and demands to stop, in the end, His perseverance was rewarded. What’s interesting is that God said it was the man’s faith that healed him. Jesus did not say it was his persevering prayer or the power of God but faith that caused his healing. (more…)

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December 5, 2015
Prayer

Aligning our Prayer with God’s Purpose

Matthew 26.39 records, He fell with His face to the ground and prayed, My Father, if it is possible, imagemay this cup be taken from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.

The goal of our prayer should be for the wisdom and strength to do God’s will. True prayer seeks God for the resources to do God’s will because doing His will always exceeds our resources.

God promises to always be with those who do His will because we need Him to complete His will. (more…)

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October 27, 2015
Prayer

Why Pray when God Already Knows Everything?

Matthew 6.8 reminds us your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.image

One of the foundational beliefs about God is that He knows everything. If He didn’t know everything how could He really be God, goes the logic.

God confirms this suspicion when He reminds us that He already knows what we need before we ask Him in His teaching on prayer. This information seems counterproductive to encouraging prayer. (more…)

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October 7, 2015