Prayer Reflections

Discerning the Call to Prophetic Intercession

2012-01-23T00:57:00.000-08:00

Discerning the Call to Prophetic Intercession

There's plenty of talk about prayer, prophetic intercession, standing in the gap, making up the hedge, prayer burdens, and, of course, spiritual warfare.

But how do we discern the call to prayer? How do we recognize a proverbial prayer burden?

These questions may seem simple, but far too many saints have come to me carrying burdens they thought were their own when in reality they were feeling the weight of oppression over a person or a city. I know how they feel.

It took me some years to learn to accurately divide soul and spirit.

The turning point for me was during a mission trip to Nicaragua. I woke up feeling severely depressed for no apparent reason. I felt down and out, like giving up, throwing in the towel, calling it quits and running home to pull the covers over my head. It felt like my best friend had just died. I sat there for about 20 minutes trying to figure out what was wrong with me and crying out to God to help me escape these oppressive feelings.

As I persisted, I heard that still small voice in my spirit saying, "Despondent. This is how the people of this nation feel. Pray."

Despondence is a feeling of extreme discouragement, dejection or depression. Once the Lord gave me that insight, I joined with others in a circle to pray against the oppression with the weapons of our warfare, which are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds (2 Cor. 10:4).

That was a memorable lesson for me, and it was later reinforced by the teachings of E.M. Bounds, a saint who lived from 1835 to 1913. He may or may not have known it, but he was prophetic. He was certainly a man of prayer. He said things like this:

"We have in the Holy Spirit an illustration and an enabler of what this intercession is and ought to be. We are charged to supplicate in the Spirit and to pray in the Holy Spirit. We are reminded that the Holy Spirit 'helpeth our infirmities,' and that while intercession is an art of so divine and so high a nature that though we know not what to pray for as we ought, yet the Spirit teaches us this Heavenly science, by making intercession in us 'with groanings which cannot be uttered.'

"How burdened these intercessions of the Holy Spirit! How profoundly He feels the world's sin, the world's woe, and the world's loss, and how deeply He sympathizes with the dire conditions, are seen in His groanings which are too deep for utterance and too sacred to be voiced by Him. "He inspires us to this most Divine work of intercession, and His strength enables us to sigh unto God for the oppressed, the burdened and the distressed creation. The Holy Spirit helps us in many ways. How intense will be the intercessions of the saints who supplicate in the spirit. How vain and delusive and how utterly fruitless and inefficient are prayers without the Spirit!" E.M. Bounds understood prayer burdens. He understood how to recognize them.

Do you?

Sometimes God places someone on your heart and you pray. That kind of prayer burden is not difficult to recognize.

But many times there's a spiritual weight that comes with a prayer burden like the one I felt in Nicaragua. I'd describe it as:
A heaviness of heart
A restless mind
A spirit of mourning
Depressed emotions that seem to come on us out of nowhere

When this happens, we may think it's just our own emotions. So what do we do?

We focus on ourselves rather than pressing into intercession. A wise prophetic friend once explained it this way: "When these feelings come to us, the flesh wants us to focus on me, me, me and turn it inward. The Spirit wants us to focus on them, them, them, and turn to intercession." With that in mind, let's consider some Scriptures that compare the flesh to the Spirit to drive this wisdom home:

Jesus said to watch and pray. He said the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Matt. 26:41). Jesus also said, "The Spirit gives life, the flesh counts for nothing" (John 6:63, NIV).

The apostle Paul said, "Let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves" (Gal. 5:16, NLT).

What does your sinful nature crave? Self-gratification.

Paul also said,

"For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. ... So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you" (Romans 8:5-9 KJV).

A few chapters later, Paul said, "Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof" (Romans 13:14).

He also said, "For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would" (Gal. 5:17). And again, "For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting" (Gal. 6:8).

So what's my point?

When you feel heavy-hearted, when you feel depressed, when you feel oppressed, when you feel out of sorts, don't get into your mind about it.

Even if it is your own personal problem, getting into your mind is not going to solve it. Pray in the Spirit. He is willing to help you with your infirmities and He wants to pray through you to help the infirmities of others.

Remember, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Walk after the Spirit and you won't fulfill the lusts of the flesh. And get passionate about intercession. In closing, I'll leave you with another quote from E.M. Bounds:

"Desire burdens the chariot of prayer, and faith drives its wheels. Prayerless praying has no burden, because no sense of need; no ardency, because none of the vision, strength, or glow of faith. No mighty pressure to prayer, no holding on to God with the deathless, despairing grasp, 'I will not let Thee go except Thou bless me.' No utter self-abandon, lost in the throes of a desperate, pertinacious, and consuming plea: 'Yet now if Thou wilt forgive their sinif not, blot me, I pray Thee, out of Thy book.'"

Are we ready to pray?

Source: Jennifer LeClaire news editor at Charisma. She is also the author of several books, including The Heart of the Prophetic.

Praying: The price

2011-10-22T23:40:00.000-07:00

Intercession

I looked for a man among them who would stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so that I would not have to destroy it, but I found none. (Ezekiel 22.10)

Intercessory prayer can only really flow out of a deep level of personal identification.

Compare the way we pray for a starving child in Africa to the way we would pray if it were our own child. The difference is not so much the scale of emotion as the level of intimacy.
When distant strangers become intimate neighbours our prayers for them find passion.

The Bible is full of such identification. Jeremiah identified so strongly with Israel's pain that he wrote: "Oh my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. Oh, the agony of my heart the whole land lies in ruins." (Jeremiah 419)

Hosea was even called to identify with Israel's unfaithfulness to the extent of marrying an adulterous wife.

When Nehemiah heard about the disgrace of Israel,

"I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. Then I said: O Lord... I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you.

Sins of the nation

As we seek God for national revival, we have a priestly duty to confess the sins of our nation.

In scripture this is never a detached theological exercise, but a heart-cry, often accompanied by fasting, mourning and the wearing of sackcloth and ashes. In such prayer, we acknowledge that the filth of society infects and affects us too, and we cry out that in God's perfect anger, he would remember mercy and spare us.

Daniel prayed a remarkable intercessory prayer for Israel, owning its disobedience as his own, although he himself was "highly esteemed" by God (Daniel 1011).

"While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill Gabriel came to me in swift flight." (Daniel 9.21)

Sins of the church

Sadly, we must also own the sins of the church since no one part of the body can detach itself from the rest and claim purity. The terrible truth is that Christ's body is riddled with sickness. There is institutional inflexibility, disregard for scripture, a quenching of the Spirit, gross materialism, sexual immorality and division. No local expression can ignore the bigger problems, nor can any denomination, network or group achieve theological purity and holiness by separating off. Unity means loving one another enough to appreciate our differences, share our successes and even carry the shame of each other's sin.

Unity

Charles Finney said that the two prerequisites for revival are prayer and unity.

Without a commitment to work with other churches and bless other traditions, we cannot expect our prayers for revival to be heard. Unity must be our top priority, therefore, for at least three major reasons: God commands unity.

Remarkably, Jesus only ever commanded us to do two things:

"Preach the Gospel" (Mat.28.20) and "love one another" (John 13.34).

It is the depth of our love for each other, not our doctrinal purity, that marks us out as Christians.

Jesus' final prayer for the church was "that all of them may be one... so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (John 17.20-21).

I suspect he knew that Satan's strategy against us down the years would be to "divide and conquer". He definitely knew that God bestows blessing wherever "brothers live together in unity". (Psalm 133)

Revival requires unity

Ed Silvoso, for example, lists unity as the primary step in "preparing an atmosphere for effective evangelism".

As we pray for revival, therefore, it is essential that we allow God to convict us of any trace of competitiveness, jealousy or sectarian prejudice against other flavours of faith.

Unity is good for your health!

Unity does not require uniformity and it is actually a good thing that the church is made up of so many different denominations, streams and traditions. How sad it would be if we had to worship like clones, when God has made us all so different! The unity that "commands God's blessing" is relational, it involves loving - and liking - one another. We will never achieve unity around doctrine and I suspect God doesn't want us to all believe exactly the same things about everything anyway!

Wesley, Whitefield and Edwards are excellent role models for us in this. They worked together wholeheartedly, spoke well of each other unreservedly and agreed to disagree on points of theology and practice. Fellowship with those who think differently is good for us, just as cross pollination is always healthier than inter-breeding.

The prayer that prepares the way of the Lord goes far deeper than saying "please send revival" in a thousand different ways.

It is moved by passion for the church and compassion for the lost. It identifies with the wounds and the sins of others and it wrestles, like Jacob, with God for the blessing. Jacob identified with Israel so completely that God gave it to him as his name. From that moment onwards his identity was utterly, perhaps terrifyingly, caught up in the promise of God for a nation. We too should embrace the name, the identity and the destiny of our communities. But priestly identification at such a level can cost a very great deal; having wrestled in prayer, Jacob limped for the rest of his life.

Praying the price

Prayer warriors will often carry scars that are righteous trophies of battle, the wounds of the faithful.

I'm not talking about hurts and insecurities, which relate to the selfishness of others and need to be healed. I'm talking about the intercessory pain and anguish often experienced prior to breakthrough. The enemy will often target intercessors as they lead God's people into battle, and although they know the joy of breakthrough, they may also carry the scars of the fight.

Moving house is never easy. Lorraine Fenner, who heads up our church's intercessory team, has successfully prayed a number of people into houses that they had been struggling to buy. It is as though her prayers can cut through interminable legal red tape. But ironically, Lorraine's own family lived in cramped conditions for a number of years, unable to move as potential houses fell through at the last moment with depressing regularity.

The apostle Paul experienced such frustration on an even bigger scale. Having been used to perform remarkable miracles, he lived his life with a 'thorn in the flesh' that God would not remove.

It is no coincidence that many prayer warriors have known a great deal of personal pain and this has somehow refined their faith and focused their eyes on eternity in a way that makes Satan tremble.

Such intercessory warriors should be honoured and protected by the church because their ministry is probably the most sacrificial service Christians can give themselves to. That is why the church thrives in the blood of martyrs: martyrdom is the ultimate sacrifice, unlocking the purest power of the cross.

The price paid by those in revival is little compared to that of those who prayed it in and I suspect that particular honour awaits these faithful forerunners in heaven. "It may be that in the eyes of God it is a greater honour to be chosen prior to the outbreak of revival, to be an emissary and a channel of the living God in the preparation time, in the harder time, than in revival time itself. Masses of people then will benefit from the flooding of the rivers of God, but the honour of the battlefield, I suggest, is given to the pioneers who prepare the way for the later flood tides. It may be that you now live in the hour of greatest opportunity from God's standpoint. What an hour in which to be alive!"

Source: Extract from 'Awakening Cry' Pete Greig
http://downloads.24-7prayer.com/pdf/extracts/awakeningcry/Intercession.pdf

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Are you praying for Someone?

He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor." Isaiah 59:16 NKJV

"The Spirit himself makes intercession for us" Romans 8:26 NKJV

"I will pour outthe Spirit of grace and supplication" Zechariah 12:10 NKJV

In the early '70s, my family moved to California from Kuala Lumpur. My oldest sister was in her first year of college. I was an idealistic 14-year-old, enamored by the romantic notions of the hippy movement.

One night, I tagged along with my two sisters to what we thought was a concert in the student lounge. Before the music began, we sat on the lawn of the campus, getting high.

Three people walked over to our little huddle and began to talk to us about God. Something strange and unfamiliar stirred in my heart for the first time.

We wandered into the lounge, listened to some rock band play, and heard a testimony followed by a simple gospel message. I alone stood up to pray, heart pounding, so self-conscious among the seated college crowd.

That was the night I gave my life to Christ. Some 40 years later, I'm writing this in gratitude to that someone who prayed.

Someone had a burden for students.
Someone booked the lounge that night.
Someone invited a preacher and musicians to whom I could relate.
Someone put up posters and invited kids like me to come.
Someone cared about four girls sitting on the college lawn getting high.
Someone spoke simply and clearly enough for a 14-year-old to get it!
Someone sat with me after the concert to follow up after I prayed the sinner's prayer.
I was given a small gospel of John that someone else had paid for.

And three days later, someone wrote a letter and made a phone call, inviting me to go to church that week. My life was changedforever.

Every facet of that evening was an important link in the chain of events that transformed my life and, later on, the lives of my sisters, my brother, and our family.

This is the first time in 40 years that I have wondered, who was it that prayed for me?

Someone.

Now I feel the Holy Spirit asking me, whom are you praying for? Is it a loved one, a friend, a neighbor?

Just think what God would do if more of us prayed, and invited, and brought someone to hear to gospel.

Source: Kathe Laurie website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/

Learning To Pray

2011-10-16T01:47:00.000-07:00

Learning To Pray

The Bible talks about prayer more than it talks about singing, and so it is essential that we teach this new generation how to live life in conversation with the living God. If you think about it that is the most exciting thing you can possibly do. But a circle of plastic chairs in a cold church hall on a Thursday night is not going to get anybody excited. Nor is listening to people screaming in tongues. We need to tell stories of the miracles that happen when we pray that get young people excited. And we need to be honest about the times when prayer doesn't work they can smell a fake at a hundred metres. And we need to be creative about the ways in which we facilitate and lead prayer.

It's interesting to me that the first person that the Bible describes as being filled with the Holy Spirit is not a prophet, not a priest and not a king. It was Bezalel and his job was to make the place of prayer (the tabernacle) a place in which it was easy to connect with God through the use of the arts.

But what if you don't feel like praying

Prayer is a discipline. It's a bit like my relationship with my wife: when we first fell in love it was all just pure chemistry and all we ever wanted to do was spend time together. For a lot of people prayer starts out like that it's just adrenalin. The excitement of knowing that you are talking to the living God! But nowadays in my marriage I have to plan 'date nights' in my diary, and maybe we go out for a meal, light a candle, listen to some smoochy music. By disciplining myself to spend time like this with my wife, we keep the passion alive. It's not a sign of an unhealthy relationship it's a sign of a deepening and a maturing relationship.

It's the same with prayer. By disciplining ourselves to spend time with God, we can move beyond the stages of infatuation, into a deeper, more mature relationship with him. Some people make time to pray at the gym. Others find it helpful to listen to loud music, or to be silent and still. Learn to pray the way God made you.

How can we stay in Gods presence, daily?

I love these stories of brother Lawrence who worked in the kitchen of a monastery and learned to 'practise the presence of God' all the time. If you spend ten minutes in prayer each day, that is just so that you can spend the other twenty-three hours and fifty minutes with a greater awareness of the presence of God.

Prayer is the time that you re-align your thinking to the reality of God's love. It is good and important to have daily disciplines of prayer, but it is also important not to beat yourself up if you sometimes don't manage it. This is a thrilling invitation, not a heavy religious duty. Don't get guilty just get God!

How do you hear Gods voice? How do you know it's God, not your own thinking?

I am terrible at discerning God's voice but I am getting a little bit better and I try to learn all that I can from people who are brilliant at hearing his 'still small voice'. Some people think that God communicates with us like land mail that comes through our door. He sends word occasionally, when we really need it but he's silent the rest of the time. Other people think that God communicates more like a cell phone. He texts or calls several times a week but the rest of the time he's busy doing other stuff. And then there are others who think that God broadcasts more like a radio station he is continually 'on air' and we just have to learn to tune into what he is saying and listen.

I am trying to get a lot better at listening to God in the normal and ordinary things. The Bible is our guide to understanding God's heart and purposes, but I try to listen to him when I'm watching TV, when I'm talking to my friends, when I'm out running in the countryside. Keeping a journal is one of the ways I find it helpful to capture and reflect on what God is saying to me.

I sometimes think it's like when you start a relationship with somebody. At first when they phone you they have to say what their name is but after a while you learn to recognise their voice and they can simply say 'Hi it's me'. As we go on in our relationship with God we get much better at recognising God's voice.

Source: An Interview with Pete Greig who is a founding champion of the 24-7 Prayer International Movement http://www.24-7prayer.com/

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Further Articles related to learning to Pray can be found in Archives:
How to Pray June 2011* Keys to Effective Prayers May 2009 * Teach Me How to Pray Feb 2006 Archives

How to have Prayer Power!

2011-10-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

PRAYER MUST BE A PRIORITY. "That men ought always to pray" (Luke 18:1).

Prayer was a priority with Jesus. Many people pray when they don't know what else to do. The Son of God prayed before He did anything. (Matthew 6:33, Mark 1:35, Matthew 26:40-41)

Is prayer a daily priority in your life?

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How to have Prayer Power!

Whatever your goals and dreams are, you can do much more with God than without Him. Jesus said, "with God all things are possible". The power of prayer has improved the lives of millions of people. Prayer works! Prayer brings blessings and miracles!

By praying, we are relying on God, and not ourselves. We are telling God that our source is Him. Prayer seeks help from God. Humanism seeks to do things without God. When we are willing to pray for everything, we are telling God that He is our source for everything.

God answers prayer! When prayers go up, blessings come down.

Jesus said, "Ask, and it shall be given you." God will give you your hopes, your dreams, and your needs – if you ask!

God created us to be able to talk to him. We do not have to be perfect to pray. God accepts us where we are at, and will help us move in His direction – teaching us to pray His word and agree with Him!

THE BIBLE – is the resource on prayer. The Bible reveals God's will and His promises for us! The Bible has the solution to all problems.

It is important for us to read the Bible to be sure we are praying God's will, and God's solutions!

JESUS – is the teacher on prayer! Jesus is our greatest example for having great Prayer habits and enormous Faith. He reveals to us the secrets on how to tap into God's power and get great results in prayer! To get Miraculous results we must be connected with the Miraculous God!

The most powerful prayers come when we pray God's word and His will. God cannot do anything against His word. Blessings overflow when we get in unity with God. That is the secret.

Question: "What is the power of prayer?"

Answer: The idea that power is inherent in prayer is a very popular one. According to the Bible, the power of prayer is, quite simply, the power of God, who hears and answers prayer. Consider the following:

1) The Lord God Almighty can do all things; there is nothing impossible for Him (Luke 1:37).

2) The Lord God Almighty invites His people to pray to Him. Prayer to God should be made persistently (Luke 18:1), with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6), in faith (James 1:5), within the will of God (Matthew 6:10), for the glory of God (John 14:13-14), and from a heart right with God (James 5:16).

3) The Lord God Almighty hears the prayers of His children. He commands us to pray, and He promises to listen when we do. "In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears" (Psalm 18:6).

4) The Lord God Almighty answers prayer. "I call on you, O God, for you will answer me" (Psalm 17:6). "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles" (Psalm 34:17).

Another popular idea is that the amount of faith we have determines whether or not God will answer our prayers.

However, sometimes the Lord answers our prayers in spite of our own lack of faith. In Acts 12, the church prays for Peter's release from prison (v. 5), and God answers their prayer (vv. 7-11). Peter goes to the door of the prayer meeting and knocks, but those who are praying refuse at first to believe that it is really Peter. They prayed he would be released, but they failed to expect an answer to their prayers.

The power of prayer does not flow from us; it is not special words we say or the special way we say them or even how often we say them. The power of prayer is not based on a certain direction we face or a certain position of our bodies. The power of prayer does not come from the use of artifacts or icons or candles or beads.

The power of prayer comes from the omnipotent One who hears our prayers and answers them.

Prayer places us in contact with Almighty God, and we should expect almighty results, whether or not He chooses to grant our petitions or deny our requests. Whatever the answer to our prayers, the God to whom we pray is the source of the power of prayer, and He can and will answer us, according to His perfect will and timing.

Recommended Resource: Prayer, The Great Adventure by David Jeremiah.
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Power Of Prayer - How powerful is it?

The power of prayer should not be underestimated. James 5:16-18 declares, "…The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." God most definitely listens to prayers, answers prayers, and moves in response to prayers.

Jesus taught, "…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20).

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

The Bible urges us, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:18).

Power Of Prayer - How do I tap into it?
1 John 5:14-15 tells us, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him."

No matter the person praying, the passion behind the prayer, or the purpose of the prayer - God answers prayers that are in agreement with His will. His answers are not always yes, but are always in our best interest. When our desires line up with His will, we will come to understand that in time. When we pray passionately and purposefully, according to God's will, God responds powerfully!

We cannot access powerful prayer by using "magic formulas." Our prayers being answered is not based on the eloquence of our prayers. We don't have to use certain words or phrases to get God to answer our prayers. In fact, Jesus rebukes those who pray using repetitions, "And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matthew 6:7-8).

Prayer is communicating with God. All you have to do is ask God for His help.

Psalm 107:28-30 reminds us, "Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven."

The power of prayer is not the result of the person praying. Rather, the power resides in the God who is being prayed to.

Power In Prayer Continued

2011-09-27T12:22:00.000-07:00

There is power in prayer!

Power Of Prayer - For what kind of things should I pray?

God's help through the power of prayer is available for all kinds of requests and issues.

Philippians 4:6-7 tells us, "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 your minds in Christ Jesus."

If you need an example of a prayer, read Matthew 6:9-13. These verses are known as the Lord's prayer.

The Lord's prayer is not a prayer we are supposed to memorize and simply recite to God. It is only an example of how to pray and the things that should go into a prayer - worship, trust in God, requests, confession, protection, etc. Pray for these kinds of things, but speak to God using your own words.

The Word of God is full of accounts describing the power of prayer in various situations. The power of prayer has overcome enemies (Psalm 6:9-10), conquered death (2 Kings 4:3-36), brought healing (James 5:14-15), and defeated demons (Mark 9:29). God, through prayer, opens eyes, changes hearts, heals wounds, and grants wisdom (James 1:5).

The power of prayer should never be underestimated because it draws on the glory and might of the infinitely powerful God of the universe! Daniel 4:35 proclaims, "All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: 'What have you done?'"

PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING. “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise; be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.” Psalm 100:4. “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving and make a joyful noise unto Him with psalms. O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our maker.” Psalm 95:2,6.

It is powerful and a very special experience to begin prayer time with thanksgiving and praise. Also, mingle requests with praise and thanksgiving. The prayers in the Bible by men such as Daniel, Elijah, and others always began with praise, thanksgiving, or confessing who God is. “We do not pray any too much, but we are too sparing of giving thanks. If the loving-kindness of God called forth more thanksgiving and praise, we would have far more power in prayer.

Our Goal is to keep ALL Prayers:

Simple - Talk with God as a friend. Nothing complicated or memorized.

Positive - Positive Prayers are faith-filled and line up with the Bible, Negative Prayers are fear-filled and do not line up with God’s Word.

Powerful - Filled with the anointing of God. Affirm and confess what God says.

Proven - Backed up by God’s word – the most Powerful and Proven force in the Universe. Learn to speak and pray God's Bible Promises for your life! Get Victory in every area of your life!

Spiritual Awareness and Protection

Once you become an effective prayer warrior by praying in God's will you will attract the attention of the spiritual forces of evil in the spiritual realms.

It is written in Ephesians 6:12: "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

You must, therefore, become spiritually aware so that you may recognize when you are under attack from the evil ones. You must also learn how to defend yourself against any such assaults.

Speak the Word over your circumstances and use it as you pray concerning every aspect of your life.

Source: Got Questions Ministries - Bible Questions Answered http://www.gotquestions.org/
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If you found this article helpful and need to know more about Spiritual Awareness please take time to read articles listed below. The Archives are found on left side of this Blogg. Be blessed and Empowered Today!

April 2006 Archive: SPIRITUAL WARFARE - WE WIN THROUGH PRAYER! - Wait On The Lord - Gods Weapons Of Warfare - Fight against the Kingdom of Darkness effectively

Jan 2007 Archive: When overwhelmed in Spiritual Warfare

Feb 2007 Archive: UNLEASHING THE POWER OF GOD - Spiritual Survival! Feb 2007

May 2007 Archive: Affirmations Using God's word

Also you may find helpful "Prayers to pray using Scripture' these can be found in my other Blogg called "Reflection Jewels' 2009 archive the link for this is at top of page on left hand side.
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"Pull Out Your Sword"

"... and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" Ephesians 6:17b

My little granddaughter spent the night with me the night before last. When we got up yesterday morning, after we had a quiet moment to wake up and a time of prayer for our families,
I decided to tell her about the armor of God (in three year old terms).

So I told her that we are soldiers for Jesus and we needed to put on our armor.

We physically went through the motions of putting on each piece. Afterwards, I told her that every time the devil tried to "make" her not mind her parents, or get angry, or be unkind for her to "hold" her sword out and tell him, "Devil, I am not going to disobey my mama; I am going to obey her". So all day long, each time I would see her doing any of those things, I told her, "Pull out your sword" and she would. After she did she would do the right thing.

I was thinking about that this morning, mostly thinking that there's a lot of Christians (and most of them adults) who need to be doing the same thing.

They need to be pulling out their swords (the sword of the Spirit- the Word of God) and using it against the enemy. There are many of them who fall prey to his temptations.

We have been given spiritual weapons in which to fight against our enemy and not only fight him, but prevail. The Lord has provided the weapons. He even says that He will fight our battles for us.

Jesus already got victory over him and has made us more than conquerors through His victory. And He left us an example of how to use the weapons that He has provided.

Therefore, when we are in the time of temptation, we don't have to give in to it.

And just like my granddaughter, after she pulled out her "sword", she did the right thing.

So when the temptation to be angry, unkind, bitter, unforgiving, to cheat, to lie or steal, or whatever the temptation is- you need to "pull out your sword" and say... "It is written".

Have a great day. Don't forget about your weapons and use them.

Source: From Coffee Break a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell About the Master's Business Ministry, Inc. http://www.mastersbusiness.org/

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Affirmations/scriptures to speak out can be found in May Archive 2007 - Also you may find helpful "Prayers to pray using Scripture' these can be found in my other Blogg called "Reflection Jewels' 2009 archive the link for this is at top of page on left hand side.

God Is With Us In The Storms:

2011-07-21T13:04:00.000-07:00

Many times in the last few years I have posted messages warning us to prepare for storms that may come in life many took heed by maintaining diciplines of spending time withAbba, praying and reading the word. Many ask why are these things happening to me? Many times there is no answer.
Recently my attention was caught by the next few messages I have posted below by Greg Laurie. These messages are encouragements that no matter what your situation is 'God is with you'. It also shows storms can come to correct, protect or perfect us. As you read may you be blessed, encouraged & able to go on to encourage others.

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My Grace is Sufficient for You

You know the drill. Things are going well, no crisis, no conflicts to speak of, pretty much smooth sailing. Then seemingly out of nowhere, a storm hits. Maybe it's a crisis, or a hardship. Maybe it's a personal tragedy. So what do you do when a hurricane-force storm hits and water is filling your boat?

Answer: You take heart. Because you are not alone.

When Paul was at sea on his way to Rome and the mighty tempest hit him and the others on board, he was able to courageously encourage others.

He told them, "But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down. For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me" (Acts 27:22-23).

God was with him

How was Paul able to be so confident?

He was conscious of the presence of God in the face of danger. He knew that God was there with him.

And God is with us in our storms as well. God will always give us what we need when we need it. You remember that Paul had what he called his "thorn in the flesh," which was presumably some kind of physical disability or illness. He asked the Lord three times to remove it (see 2 Corinthians 12).

God's answer was, "My grace is sufficient for you" (2 Corinthians 12:9), which is another way of saying, "I will be with you, Paul. Instead of a healing, I will personally be there in a special and sufficient way." Now it is the Lord

A. B. Simpson wrote these words:

"Once it was the Blessing, now it is the Lord.

Once it was the Feeling, now it is His Word.

Once His Gifts I wanted, now the Giver alone.

Once I sought Healing, now Himself alone."

God is with you right now, regardless of the storm or even the shipwreck. We may not hear an audible voice, but you may hear that "still small voice" of God's Holy Spirit. Or He will speak to you through His Word.

Then you, like Paul, can reassure others that "the Lord is in control."Time and time again, God reminded Paul of His presence.

1.     He was there when Paul was in jail in Jerusalem, as Jesus told him to "be courageous!" (Acts 23:11)

2.     It happened in 2 Timothy 4:16-17 when Paul said, "All deserted me . . . but the Lord stood by me."
3.     And it happened here in Acts 27, in the midst of the storm.
When the boss calls you in his office . . .

You can take heart in the face of danger or uncertainty because you are aware of God's presence with you.

When your boss says, "I'm really sorry, but I'm going to have to let you go!" Or when the doctor says, "The test results are back and I need you to come in." Or when the telephone rings and someone says, "There's been an accident."

You are not alone. The Lord is standing next to you. He cares. Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).

Source: Greg Laurie: Daily Devotion June 5 2010 website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/
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Storms that Correct

And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, "My child, don't make light of the Lord's discipline, and don't give up when he corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child." — Hebrews 12:5–6

Storms will come in life in the form of a hardship or crisis or even tragedy. There will be times when we can anticipate the storm, when we see the clouds start to darken and hear the thunder in the distance. At other times, a storm will arrive unexpectedly. But there is no getting around the fact that we will go through storms.

We will bring some storms on ourselves as a result of our actions. We will do something wrong, it catches up with us, and we face the consequences. A classic example of this is Jonah. God called him, an Israelite, to go and bring a message of repentance to the great city of Nineveh. But the people of Nineveh were enemies of Israel. So Jonah reasoned that if he preached to the Ninevites, they would probably repent and God would spare them. On the other hand, if he didn't preach to them, they wouldn't repent, and God would destroy them. That would be one less enemy Israel would have to worry about. So Jonah boarded a boat that was traveling in the opposite direction.

A terrible storm arose, which was so severe that even the seasoned sailors began to call upon their various gods, hoping for deliverance. Ultimately it was determined that the storm they were facing was a result of Jonah's disobedience. So Jonah was thrown overboard, and you know the rest of the story.

That is what we would call a correcting storm. Correcting storms are reminders that God loves us. If God didn't love Jonah, He wouldn't have sent a storm. But He wanted to get Jonah's attention and get him back on track. So if you find yourself in the midst of a correcting storm, know that it is because God loves you.
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Correcting Storms

As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn't discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all. — Hebrews 12:7–8

When storms come into our lives, some of them can be considered correcting storms. After Jonah disobeyed God and tried to run the other way, a great storm arose, and God took hold of the reluctant prophet and put him back on course. That storm was the result of Jonah's own disobedience to God and the call on his life.

Many times we bring storms on ourselves when we do the wrong things and then experience the repercussions. And sometimes God will allow us to reap what we have sown so that we ultimately will change our ways.

But when we go astray and then face God's discipline, it is a reminder that we are His children. Hebrews 12:7–8 tells us, "As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father? If God doesn't discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children at all."David wrote, "Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me" (Psalm 23:4). The staff is that long, crooked instrument the shepherd used to pull a wayward sheep back into line. But the rod is a club. And sometimes the shepherd would use the rod to break a sheep's legs, if necessary. That may seem drastic, but it is better to have a broken leg than to become a leg of lamb. If that sheep wandered away from the others, he was easy prey. So the shepherd protected that wayward sheep and the others that may have followed it.

In the same way, when we are going the wrong direction, God will discipline us. This is the purpose of correcting storms in our lives.

Source: Greg Laurie: Daily Devotion December 13 // 2010 website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/
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Storms that Perfect

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. — James 1:2–4

Some storms in our lives are not the result of our disobedience to God; they are the result of our obedience to Him. A good example of this is Job. What was Job doing wrong when all of those calamities befell him? Nothing. In fact, he was doing so well that God was bragging on him in the presence of the angels and Satan: "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?" (Job 1:8).

Then the attacks on Job began. These were allowed by God to bring about change in his life. So Job went through a perfecting storm. James writes, "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing" (James 1:2–4).

The end game of a perfecting storm is to make us more like Christ.
We may think that when a bad thing happens, it will always turn into a good thing, because Romans 8:28 says, "All things work together for good to those who love God. . . . "

While there are some bad things that God turns into good things, there are also some bad things that are always bad things. Let's remember the verse that comes after Romans 8:28: "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son . . . " (verse 29).

God's end game is not to make us happy, but to make us holy. And I believe that if we are holy, we will be happy, ultimately. It is not all about happiness; it is about becoming more like Jesus.
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Perfecting Storms

For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. — 2 Corinthians 4:17–18

Probably the most common storms we face in life are perfecting storms. These storms come into our lives as a result of following Jesus. But God has a work He wants to do and a desired result that He wants to produce in these storms. As 2 Corinthians 4:17 reminds us, "For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!"

Storms will come, and in the midst of them, God is doing a work. Sometimes you can see the work, and sometimes you can't. Sometimes that work is simply to conform us into the image of Jesus Christ.

Quite honestly, a lot of storms are inexplicable. And when you get to heaven, you will understand why God allowed that storm and why that particular difficulty lasted so long. We can't control our universe. (I have tried, and it doesn't work.) We can't say when a storm will start or when a storm will stop. All we can do is react to that storm.

One of the greatest examples of this is found in the life of Joni Eareckson Tada who, as a young girl, dove into a shallow lake and suffered a spinal cord injury that paralyzed her from the neck down. Despite this severe, lifelong disability, Joni has encouraged millions of people. Now she is battling breast cancer. In an interview she said, "I keep thinking God is up to something big. How can I showcase Him to others?" She knows that her life is on display, and others are watching and learning by her response to these storms.

One day, every storm will have an end. And then, in the big picture, we will see God's ultimate plan and purpose.

Source: Greg Laurie: Daily Devotion December 15 // 2010 website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/
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Storms that Protect

Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. — Matthew 14:22

Sometimes a storm will come into our lives that is protecting us from something worse. This is hard for us to wrap our minds around. Is it possible that a hardship ever could be better than a success? Sometimes it can, because there are things we learn that we would not have learned otherwise.

That is the type of storm the disciples faced when Jesus made them get into a boat and go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Trouble was brewing. Jesus had just fed the multitude, and He "perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king" (John 6:15). Effectively the people said, "You are going to be our king whether you like it or not, because you are the kind of king we want. Raising the dead? That's nice. Restoration of sight to the blind? That's good. Free meal? Now we are talking." They essentially were using Jesus.

So He sent the disciples away, because He knew this would destroy them. On more than one occasion, they had argued about who would be greatest in the kingdom. For their own protection, Jesus had to get them out of there as soon as possible. He was basically saying, "Guys, I am delivering you from major success, which only would destroy you at this time in your lives. So get into the boat."

We need to remember that He who stirred up the storm is also the hiding place in it. God will allow calamity in your life to show you His power. Storms will come. There is no getting around them. Jesus knew a storm was coming when He sent the disciple away—but He was with them in that storm. And He will be with you as well.
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Protecting Storms

Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home. . . . Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. — Matthew 14:22, 24

The Gospel of John records the story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand, which was Jesus' most popular miracle. The people loved it so much that afterward, they came by force to make Jesus their king. But Jesus knew their hearts were wrong. He knew they didn't really want Him to be their Lord and Master; they just wanted a free lunch from that point on.

He also knew it would destroy His disciples, who already were having visions of grandeur. On more than one occasion, they argued about who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. If the people had taken Jesus and made him king, the disciples suddenly would be elevated to positions of prominence. So Jesus got His boys out of Dodge as quickly as possible. He put them into a boat and sent them to the other side. And as they were crossing, a storm came up.

The disciples were experiencing a protecting storm. And what was it protecting them from? Themselves. Sometimes God will bring difficulty into our lives to keep us from something worse. Be thankful that God doesn't answer all of your prayers in the affirmative: Lord, if You really love me, this person would marry me. . . . Lord, if You really love me, I would have gotten that promotion. . . . Lord, if You really love me, I would win the lottery. God knows what is best. He loves you too much, and therefore is not going to let certain things happen. Maybe God knows that thing you want so bad would actually destroy you if you were to get it.

Are you facing a storm in your life today—a storm that is not of your own making? Just maybe it is a protecting storm.

Source: Greg Laurie: Daily Devotion December 14 // 2010 website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/
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Through Rough Waters

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. Isaiah 43:2

When the disciples faced a violent storm on the Sea of Galilee, they cried out to Jesus, and He stopped it. But first He rebuked them. He asked, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" (Matthew 8:26). In other words, "Hey, guys, where is your faith? Haven't you learned anything?"

We find a little detail in Mark 4:35 that we don't have in Matthew's account of the story: "On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side.' " Jesus did not promise the disciples smooth sailing. But He did promise a safe arrival. They needed to know it would be rough. But Jesus did say, "Let us cross over to the other side." And that means they would get to the other side.

Jesus promises to be with us as well. God says, "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you" (Isaiah 43:2). In the storm you are in right now, God is with you. He is walking with you through it.

But if you abandon your faith, if you turn against God, you won't make it. God has given you a free will, and you can choose to walk away from Him. However, if you want to make it, then you will. It won't be through your effort, but because God will give you the strength to make it. And He is looking for your cooperation.

Storms will come into every life. The rain will fall and the wind will blow. You might have a rough voyage, but you will get to the other side.

Source: Greg Laurie: Daily Devotion December 16 // 2010 website: http://www.harvest.org/devotional/

Hope for the Storms

2011-07-21T12:50:00.000-07:00

Reflective Thought: When you go through difficulties in life, there are things you will learn and discover that you would not learn anywhere else! Know that you are not alone, and God will get you through whatever you are facing.
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Hope for the Storms (Greg Laurie)

Matthew's Gospel tells us, 'Now when He [Jesus] got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea...' (Matthew 8:23–24 NKJV)

Sometimes when storms come into our lives, when hardships come, we may think it is because we are doing something wrong.

But notice these disciples were in the will of God. The storm came as they were obeying Jesus, not because they had disobeyed Him.

And sometimes calamities will come because of your obedience, not your disobedience.

This reminds us that storms will come into our lives.

The storm the disciples were facing was a serious one—so serious in fact that these seasoned sailors began to fear for their lives. In the original Greek, the word that is used to describe this storm is also used to speak of an earthquake. So it was a mega-storm.

One translation from Mark's Gospel says the boat was filling with water, and they were in great danger. These were guys who knew how to navigate rough seas and knew how to use their equipment. And they were panicking. Meanwhile, Jesus was sound asleep in the lower part of the boat.

Does it ever seem to you as though God is asleep, that He is not paying attention?

It can be rather disheartening when someone falls asleep when we need them. In the technical sense, Jesus, weary from a hard day's work, was asleep.

But in the broader sense, God never sleeps. Psalm 121:4 NKJV says, 'Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.'

God is always on watch, always on duty, always paying attention. Jesus was asleep because He rested confidently in the will of God the Father.

The disciples cried out to Jesus, 'Lord, save us! We are perishing!' (Matthew 8:25 NKJV) And that is what we need to do when we find ourselves in the midst of a storm.

We are not going to offend or hurt God by crying out to him.

Tell him how you are feeling. Sometimes I think we feel as though we need to sanitise all of our prayers.

God wants to hear you speak from your heart. He wants honest prayer.

Even Jesus, hanging on the cross, cried out, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'

You can be sure the disciples had tried everything possible to get out of the mess they were in. But after exhausting all their efforts, they knew Jesus was their only hope.

Sometimes in life, God will allow us get to the end of our rope to come to the end of ourselves so that we will cry out to Him. And when we cry out to Him, He is always ready to answer.

God says, 'He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him.' (Psalm 91:15 NKJV)

Although the shrieking of the storm did not wake Jesus, the cry of His disciples did. He heard their cries, and He responded by rebuking the storm. Suddenly everything calmed down. Matthew's Gospel tells us that it was 'a great calm' (8:26).

God has His purposes in the storms of life. Maybe you are in a storm right now and have cried out forit to stop, but it hasn't. In fact, maybe it has gotten worse.

You are wondering why God is allowing it. There are no easy answers to that question, but know this:

where there are no trials in life, there will be no triumphs. It has been said the hammer shatters glass, but it forges steel. And often in the hardships of life, great things will come.

Many times when you go through difficulties in life, there are things you will learn and discover that you would not learn anywhere else.

Psalm 23 is a well-loved passage of Scripture that opens with a pleasant scene: 'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters' (vv1–2).

It was written by a shepherd named David, who knew a little bit about sheep. But David continues, 'Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me' (v4).

'Hold on,' we say. 'I signed up for green pastures and still waters—not for dark valleys. I don't do valleys.'

While there will be those times God will take us to green pastures and still waters, He will lead us into valleys as well. And it is through those valleys we learn important lessons, because fruit does not grow on mountaintops; it grows in valleys.

And here is the secret of making it through the valleys of life, the storms of life: Know that you are not alone, and God will get you through whatever you are facing.

David said, 'I will fear no evil; for You are with me' (Psalm 23:4).

That is the hope & the promise: God is with you. And He is with you in your storms.

Used with Permission: (Part Message) UCB Today June 11 http://www.ucb.com.au/national/ucb-today

THE SKINNY ON PRAYER

2011-07-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

THE SKINNY ON PRAYER

I have placed this link below by Skit Guys (Mini-Movies) As it gives one something to reflect on. May it bless you & inspire you to pray!

http://www.worshiphousemedia.com/mini-movies/22268/The-Skinny-On-Prayer

Prayer is our way to communicate with God, but as Christians we often treat prayer as something to be checked off a list and we miss the part where we are building our relationship with the Creator of the universe.

To Walk With God - Daily

2011-07-12T01:14:00.001-07:00

To Walk With God - Daily

In the days ahead many will be stirred by proclamations, both true and false, of ominous events set for fulfillment on specific dates. However, we are not being prepared for a "date" but for a marriage.

It is the depth of our day-by-day relationship with Christ that defines walking with God at the end of the age.

The confidence we have as we face tomorrow is rooted in the quality of our walk with God today. Thus, as these days unfold, the way of the Lord will be revealed for what it truly is: a narrow path upon which we walk with God. It is an indisputable truth: the only way to prepare for Jesus' second coming is to faithfully obey what He commanded in His first coming – and His first command was "Follow Me" (John 1:43).

What does it mean to "follow" Jesus but that we walk faithfully with Him throughout our life? The fact is, we anticipate the nearness of the Lord, but we do not know when He might return. While I believe we are very near to the end of the age, still it may be many years before some of the unfulfilled prophecies come to pass. Regardless, our call is to follow the Lamb – to walk with Him every day.

If we study the Scriptures, we will see that, from the beginning, the Lord always provided for those who walked with Him in His presence. No matter what occurred in the world, God's servants were not held hostage to the fears and anxieties of their times. Their walk with God prepared them for all things.

Jesus said the days prior to His return would be as the days of Noah. Let us look again at Noah's life. God did not give Noah a predetermined date specifying when the flood would come. The Lord gave Noah two things: a task, which was to build the ark, and time to get the job done.

The Almighty could have destroyed wickedness in a heartbeat. Yet, the Scriptures tell us that the "patience of God kept waiting...during the construction of the ark" (1 Peter 3:20). The priority of God was focused not on what was to be destroyed but on what was being built.

Too many of us are so focused on what the devil is doing that we fail to see what God is doing. The focus of the Lord is not on how dark evil becomes but how Christlike the Church becomes! There is a grace streaming from God's heart. In the midst of great darkness, the Lord has purposed to bring glory to Himself and protection to His people.

God told Noah to build the ark. When the task was completed, then the flood came. We also have a task, a vision from God: build the house of the Lord and participate in the harvest of the nations. Jesus did not say, "When evil gets worse the harvest begins." He said, "when the crop permits...the harvest has come" (Mark 4:29).

Certainly, God's highest plans will not be diverted by the increase of wickedness. One may say that God's justice demands He destroy the wicked! Yes, but His nature demands His good plans and promises concerning His glory in the Church first be fulfilled!

Look again at Noah. Noah lived at a time when "every intent of the thoughts of his [man's] heart was only evil continually." His world, like ours, "was corrupt in the sight of God, and...filled with violence" (Genesis 6:5, 11).

Yet, during these same days, "Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord" (Genesis 6:8). What was unique about Noah? How did he find the preserving grace of God in his life? The Scriptures tell us, "Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God" (Genesis 6:9).

I love this Scripture: Noah walked with God. What does it mean to walk with God? It means that we stay yielded to His Word and attentive to His presence. Though we do not see Him, we know Him. We have found our place of security in the Almighty. Our peace comes from Him, not people, places, or things.

The name Noah means "rest." As the Lord's servant, Noah not only knew his mission in life, but he found His place of rest in God alone. Step-by-step, day-by-day, Noah lived in the Lord's presence. Noah walked with God and was intimate with Him.

But to know someone deeply does not happen quickly. It takes time to penetrate through the veil of unknowing into the place of enduring friendship and intimacy. This is why walking with God is so pleasing to Him, for it creates a time-tested relationship between God and man. We no longer are controlled by the opinions, criticisms, and approval of the world around us. Only as our walk with God matures does intimacy with the Creator truly begin and peace about the future increase.

Consider Abraham. Abraham was called the friend of God (see Isaiah 41:8). When he was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be blameless" (Genesis 17:1). Walking with God leads to purity and intimate friendship with God. It is the source of becoming blameless.

Abraham's descendants, Isaac and Jacob, also walked with God (Genesis 48:15). The lifelong companionship between the Almighty and these patriarchs set the standard for all who followed, from the kings and the prophets of Israel to each Christian who walks with God today.

My Own Experience

We should not be hard on those who have falsely affixed a prophetic event or even the Second Coming to a specific date. It is usually the sincerity of these people that propels their prophecies into regional or national prominence. I, myself, was swept up in a similar experience in the mid-seventies.

Those were days when threats of nuclear war seemed everywhere; many Christians were predicting divine judgment for America. During those days, I came across an article about a huge comet that was due to appear on Christmas Day, 1973. Previously unknown, the comet was named Kohoutek after the Hungarian astronomer who discovered it. The signs of the times confirmed my fears, but when I read in a religious publication that Kohoutek meant "the wolf that devours the lamb," I felt certain that this was a "sign in the heavens" confirming that the end was near.

Compelled by my inner convictions, I began to warn every church in Detroit, all 1,200 of them, that the world would end that Christmas. I even managed to become a guest on the most-watched morning talk show in Detroit, where I warned as many as three million people of God's imminent wrath.

Christmas came and went and nothing happened. The comet was an over-exaggerated astronomical flop. I had been so sure of my insights, so fearfully compelled by the signs of the times, yet so wrongly informed. Then in late January, I happened to meet a woman fluent in Hungarian. I asked her to translate Kohoutek into English. She thought it meant something like "add a tomato to the stew."

God knew my motives were right, even though my knowledge was wrong. Out of that humiliating experience I began to research other "end of the world" movements in Church history. In my study, I discovered two significant items that occurred in Europe. Masses of people were convinced the year 1666 would see the rise of the Antichrist. This thought led to waves of fanaticism and fear which spread from country to country.

I had also been reading a devotional containing a series of letters written by a man named Brother Lawrence, a monk who served Christ as a dishwasher in a monastery. The simple, yet profound, sense of God's presence that accompanied Brother Lawrence made this book, The Practice of the Presence of God, an enduring Christian classic. But what changed my life was that his first letters were written in the year 1666, during the time when Europe was awash with fear of the Antichrist! For all the turmoil in the world around him, at least one soul dwelt in the peace of Jesus Christ.

Brother Lawrence serves as a model for our generation. For when the terrors and confusion of the end of the age increase, it is only in the Lord's presence that we shall find a calm harbor. And to truly know Him then, we must walk with Him now.

Enoch Walked With God

One of my favorite texts is from Genesis 5:22-24. It reads, "Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years...and he was not, for God took him." Hebrews 11:5 tells us that Enoch had "obtained the witness...he was pleasing to God."

Enoch walked with God 300 years. Every day, Enoch arose and sought the Lord, walking faithfully with the Almighty. Eventually, Enoch became so pleasing to God that, without passing through death, He was taken home to be with the Lord.

So also with us, when we faithfully walk with God we bring great pleasure to our Father. The Scripture says that Enoch "obtained the witness" that his life was "pleasing to God." God communicated His pleasure to Enoch. To know the pleasure of God is to taste the nectar of Heaven itself.

Whatever may happen in the future, the God of the future is walking with us today. And while we may not be able to see into tomorrow, our faithfulness to Christ today is our best security for whatever lies ahead.

As the first person raptured by Christ, Enoch sets the standard for all whom Jesus will one day gather to Himself. They simply and passionately walk with God.

Source: The preceding message is adapted from a chapter in Francis' book, The Days of His Presence. Francis Frangipane - Ministries of Francis Frangipane

How to Pray

2011-06-02T00:43:00.001-07:00

Recently many have asked me "How do I pray?" Every one approaches this in a different way so I have posted the message below 'How to Pray" that has some excellent suggestions I use myself.

You can also find in the archive link below the following articles:

"Keys to effective prayers" & more scriptures/Affirmations May 2009
"Teach me how to pray" & "A Model Prayer" 2006
"One Hour prayer Guide" June 2009

For those struggling in trials "Learn to Lament" 2006 Will be of blessing.
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How to Pray

In Chapter 5 of the book Private Worship: 'the Key to Joy," Nancy shares some of the insights on prayer she has gained over the past 50 years in her walk with the Lord.

If praying to God is foreign to you or you don't know exactly what to say, these principles may be of help.

Praying the Scriptures

I learned long ago that if I wanted anything at all to be accomplished in my life, it must be brought before the Lord in prayer.

I also learned, however, that there is an appropriate way to pray and an appropriate time to pray laid out for us in Scripture.

When I followed the Lord's prescribed instructions, tremendous results occurred. When I didn't, everything would fall apart! Again, God makes the rules; our duty is simply to follow them.

Someone taught me years ago that when I prayed the Scriptures, God would do powerful things, not only in me, but also in the ones I was praying for.

Bob Sorge, again in his book Secrets of the Secret Place, states that "when we pray with God's Word on our lips, we know we are praying prayers that are living and powerful." Without question, we are specifically praying "according to His will."

Hebrews 4:12 validates this. "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."

And, it's true! "When the language of our prayers is shaped by the Scriptures, we gain confidence in knowing that we are praying according to the will of God."

This way we by-pass our own self-centered, pity-party prayers and step into God's thoughts, His mind and His wisdom. Now, there's no reason to be afraid of repetition. God knows our heart and what is important to us, and by repeating the same prayers we become like that persistent friend in Luke 11 who would not take "no" for an answer. (The ineffectual prayers that we must watch out for are those mechanical prayers that the Pharisees prayed in order to be seen, heard and thought of "as godly." These were not genuine prayers from their heart, nor from the Spirit of God.)

Also, when you go into your prayer closet, always be sure to have your Bible handy. Then, you not only can pray the Scriptures, but the Lord can also speak His will back to you through the Scriptures.

Since it's always been very difficult for me to memorize Scripture, I found writing the Scriptures out and then praying them, to be extremely helpful and beneficial. So, the following Scriptures are simply suggestions for prayer. They are not intended to be an in-depth thesis on prayer and worship. They are simply some personal thoughts and ideas that have helped me in my almost 50-year walk with the Lord. If they minister, wonderful! If not, skip them and continue reading. Just as in worship, it's imperative to allow the Holy Spirit to direct your prayers.

Remember, we are not under the law but under grace. Therefore, I do not mean to imply a "methodology" or a "ritual" here. We certainly don't have to "work our way to heaven." However, I do believe God has given us His Word and He is very pleased when we pray it back to Him.
Personal Prayers

Some personal prayers that have ministered to me over the years are:

• Psalm 139:23-24 - Search me and know my heart and my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in Your way.

• Job 34:32 - That which I cannot see, please teach me.

• Psalm 45:17 - I desire to make Your Name be remembered in all generations.

• Psalm 17:2 - Let my sentence come forth only from Your presence.

• Ephesians 4:29-31 - Let no corrupt communication proceed out of my mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace to the hearer. Let me not grieve the Holy Spirit, whereby I am sealed. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from me with all malice, etc.

• Ephesians 4:32 - Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as Christ has forgiven me.

• Hebrews 4:16 - Let me come boldly to Your throne in time of need and find mercy.

• Psalm 119:133 - Order my steps in Your Word. Don't let sin or self have dominion over me.

• Romans 4:21 - I choose to be fully persuaded that what You have promised me, You will perform.

• 1 Corinthians 2:2 - I pray that I would know nothing but "Christ crucified."

• Philippians 4:19 - That You would supply all my needs according to Your riches in glory.

• Matthew 22:37 - I desire to love You with all my heart, with all my will and with all my soul, so that I can then love my neighbor as myself.

• Romans 12:1-2 - I offer my body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable which is my reasonable service, and I choose not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed into Your Image (and show forth Your Life) by the renewing of my mind, so that I can, then, prove in my actions what is the good, the acceptable and the perfect will of God.

• Psalm 138:3 - Make me bold with Your strength in my soul.

• Galatians 1:16 - May You reveal Yourself in me, so that I might speak as You would have me.

• Joshua 9:25 - I am in Your hands, do what You will with me. Have Your way in me.

• Philemon 14 - Without Your opinion, I will do nothing.

• Acts 2:28 - That You would make me full of joy with Your countenance.

• Colossians 3:4 - Christ, You are my life.

• Philippians 1:21 - For me to live is Christ.

Family Prayers

In addition to your own daily prayers for each member of your family, here are some further Scriptures you might want to pray for them. (Again, let the Holy Spirit pick which ones.)

Ephesians 1:17-19 - I pray for Your Spirit of wisdom and revelation for ________. I pray that the eyes of his understanding would be enlightened, so that he might know the hope of Your calling, the riches of Your inheritance, and the exceeding greatness of Your Power towards them who believe.

• Ephesians 3:16-19 - I pray ________will be strengthened with might by Your Spirit in the inner man; that You might dwell in his heart and that he might be rooted and grounded in Your Love and able to comprehend the breadth, the depth and the height of Your Love, so that he might be filled up with the fullness of You.

• Philippians 3:10 - I pray that________may know You and the power of Your resurrection and the fel low ship of Your sufferings, so that he might be made conformable to Your Image.

• 2 Timothy 2:25 - I pray that You would give_________ repentance to the acknowledging of the truth.

• Think also about praying: Acts 16:31; 1 Kings 8:23-53; Daniel 9:3-19; and, Colossians 1:9.

Other Suggested Prayers for Loved Ones

Someone once gave me this list to pray for others. As I tried it, I was amazed to see so many I prayed for changed.

• Pray that God would "lift the veil" and give them a personal revelation of Jesus.

• Pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to hover over them and give them supernatural protection.

• Pray that God would put godly people in their path.

• Pray that God would expose all pride and rebelliousness.

• Pray that God would expose all their hidden thought patterns–religious prejudices, known strongholds and evil spirits, etc.

• Pray that God would bind Satan from taking them captive.

• Pray that He would place His armor around them, and that He would do all He could to bring them to Himself.

P.S. I might also suggest making a special prayer notebook or prayer journal with all of your own special Scriptures. Then, you can take it into the prayer closet with you.

My prayer diary goes everywhere with me. Those who have seen it laugh, because it is so dog-eared and so beat up. Never mind, I know what it says and it helps me remember the Scriptures.

Lingering in His Presence

David Wilkerson, again one of my favorite pastors, says, "After I end my prayer time, I linger in my secret closet of prayer. I bow before the Lord and say, 'Jesus, I'm here just for You. I don't bring any more requests or petitions. This is Your time and Yours alone. I'm here to listen to Your heart.'"

He goes on to say, "I simply stay in His presence, loving Him and waiting on Him. I know He will come to me and speak His Mind."

When their times of worship and prayer were over, the priests of Solomon's temple went out to minister to the congregation. Just so may we go forth to share the fullness of the Lord received in our worship of Him at the altar of our hearts. And in so doing, and by His continuing presence in us, we will bless all those with whom we come in contact.

Source: Nancy Missler - King's Highway Ministries http://www.kingshighway.org/PRAYER/How_to_Pray.html

The End of the World!

2011-05-24T01:31:00.001-07:00

Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ~Matthew 24:42

"The end of the world didn't happen [Saturday], but Jesus IS returning. ...

God will bring this present world to a close. Time will come to an end. .... None of us know for certain when we will breathe our last breath, and we are all a heartbeat away from eternity. Whether you stand before God on May 21st, or whether you stand before Him 50 years from now, is irrelevant in the scope of eternity.

The important thing isn't when you stand before God; it's where you stand with God." -

"The truth is, we never know when Christ will return. It could be in the next moment." .........

"Are you ready to stand before God?"

Source: Will Graham (part message) May 24 'A New Day on The Jersey Shore

Are You Ready

2011-04-21T02:06:00.000-07:00

Do you know Jesus? If not please read below. Please know God loves You.

Who is this Jesus?

2010-01-31T02:24:00.003-08:00

Do you know Jesus?

What would you say if someone asked you "Who is Jesus?" Are you prepared to give an answer?

It is important to know our own testimony of what Jesus has done & be able share the basics of the path to salvation.

How do we do that? We start by reading our Bible & meditating upon God's word - spending time waiting upon Him & listening.

Please note there is a new Christian website set up called http://www.whosjesus.com/

Please when you have time to spare go to this site & browse reflectively - there is a small booklet, videos & many testimonies. May you truly be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have
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God Wants to Answer Your Prayers

2009-12-13T09:52:00.000-08:00

If you are discouraged or wondering if God has forgotten you there is a message waiting for you in August 06 Archive!
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God Wants to Answer Your Prayers - Pastor Mark Stephens

The world needs a positive influence from Christians. Jesus said in Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

It's important to know that a positive influence glorifies God! IF we're going to stay positive, we need to commit ourselves to prayer. We must not underestimate the importance of prayer in maintaining a level of peace when we are surrounded by negativity.

Philippians 4:6, 7 says, "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 your minds in Christ Jesus."

In this verse, Paul tells us to present our problems to God instead of worrying about them-then God's peace will come into our heart and mind.

We have to resist the temptation to worry. Why? Because God told us not to be anxious about anything. We were not designed to carry anxiety and burdens. Yet, if we're not careful, we can allow our minds to become disappointed, discouraged, and depressed. We can allow worry to enter in instead of what God has said.

Worry is designed to distract you from the Word of God. The devil tries to get us to spend our time worrying about things-and often, about things that haven't happened yet and probably never will happen. If he is successful, we will become more and more negative, and our faith and prayer life will become ineffective.

God wants to answer your prayers! He wants you to bring your concerns to Him-to cast your anxiety on Him.

1st Peter 5:7 says, "Cast all your anxiety [worry, care] on him because he cares for you."

John Wesley, the eighteenth century founder of Methodism, once said, "It seems God is limited by our prayer life-that He can do nothing for humanity unless someone asks Him."

In Mark 11:24, Jesus Himself said, "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

Look at what else Jesus said about prayer in John 14:13, 14 "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it."

Also John 15:7, 8 says, "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit." The fruit that Jesus spoke about is "answered prayer." God gets the glory when we receive answers to prayer!

Answered prayer is one of God's greatest blessings to enable us to remain in peace-too maintain a positive attitude.

Remember the verse from Philippians 4? "Don't be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" When we pray, we give Him not only our petitions, but also our burdens. In exchange, He gives us His peace that passes our human understanding and the promise that He will take care of us and answer our prayers. He relieves us of the anxiety, worry, and care associated with our problem so that we can stay positive and thank Him for the answer, while we are expecting it to come to pass!

Praying in faith will bring you into victory on the other side of every test and trial. On the other side of every sickness, disease, financial problem, or whatever you're facing-victory awaits you!

The following verses will support that truth:
Hebrews 4:16: "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

Hebrews 10:23, 35 says, "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised). . . Cast not away
therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward."

The Bible patriarchs of old, who won tremendous victories in prayer, practiced these verses before they were ever written! They brought their requests to God boldly, obtaining mercy and grace from Him in their time of need. They judged Him faithful and held on to their confidence and godly hope until they saw their answer come.

In the nineteenth century, George Mueller founded a great chain of orphanages on nothing but prayer. He lived by faith, refusing to inform anyone of his needs. Instead, he mentioned them only to God on his knees in prayer. At one point in his ministry, he housed more than 10,000 orphans with no steady financial resource. He trusted God daily to meet their needs. Rev. Mueller estimated God "had answered over 50,000 of his prayers, many thousands of which were answered on the day he made them and often before he arose from his knees." His fruitful prayer life can be traced back to his commitment to the Word of God.

Rev. Mueller wrote this poem concerning prayer:

I believe God answers prayer, answers always, everywhere;
I may cast my anxious care,
burdens I could never bear,
On the God who heareth prayer.
Never need my soul despair
since He bids me boldly dare
to the secret place repair,
there to prove He answers prayer.

George Mueller performed exploits for God in his ministry to orphans. At times, there wasn't a bite of food in the entire orphanage for hundred of children. But Mueller and his staff would pray. Again and again, he records "money or supplies had arrived with only minutes to spare before the children sat down at the table."

Why do you think he could make such an impact on mankind? Because he was saturated with the Word of God and had a strong faith and confidence in his prayer-answering God!

2nd Chronicles 7:14 God declared to Israel, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

This is no less true for you and I today. Considering the unprecedented decisions made every day, we should pray for our nations and for those in authority on every level, national, state, and local.

In fact, Paul wrote, "I exhort therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty" (1 Timothy 2:1, 2).

Far too often, Christians fail to pray for those in authority-those that make decisions that affect all our lives-yet Paul says to do it first when we pray! Many don't fully comprehend the huge benefit that comes from such obedience: a quiet and peaceable life!

Reflective Thought: We must not neglect this important matter of prayer. We need to believe that God wants to answer our prayers, and then do something about it - we must pray!
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Prayer For The Stressed

2009-09-11T02:35:00.001-07:00

Many are feeling stressed from undergoing trials so please find below a prayer for you to pray. Some new scriptures & prayers are also posted today in "Reflection Jewels' (link top of page on left side). Sometimes events in life are overwhelming - despite this always remember God is still on the throne and He is still in control. May the messages below minister to your need.
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Be Encouraged Today... Even In Your Storms

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

I do not know what your needs are today but Jesus knows. You may be discouraged today. You may be going through the hardest trial of your life. I want to encourage you today! Whatever your situation-- the Lord can meet your need! Trust Him-- He loves you.

In this stressful world in which we live, there is a resting place. Aren't you glad? That rest is found safe in the arms of the Lord Jesus Christ. When troubles come, we can run to our Rock-- the Lord is our Shelter from the storms. He does not always make the winds and the storms cease but He will give us adequate shelter until the storm passes by and will lead us on-- and where He leads, we will follow. We are His sheep and Christ Jesus is our Loving Shepherd. Blessed be His name!

Sometimes, the Lord makes the storm to cease,

Psalm 107:29 says: He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.

Other times, the Lord will shield us from the storm as it rages:

Psalm 27:5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.

Still other times, He will walk us through the trials and storms in our lives to bring about a greater work on the inside of us:

James 1:3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

2 Cor 1:3,4 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforted us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

No matter what our need may be today, there is safety in His everlasting arms. The Lord can meet our every need and He will see us through. He gives rest to the weary. Strength to the feeble. Hope to the depressed. Comfort to the hurting. He loves us at all times. No problem is too big for God... and no problem is too small that He does not hear our cry. The Lord can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

We are to cast upon Him our every burden:

Psalm 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

Author Unknown: Source - Cobblestone Road Ministries
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Prayer for those who are stressed (Author Unknown)

Lord, I need your help. I am feeling the strain of stress. My body is agitated by worry and fear. I confess to you my inability to handle it alone.

I surrender my mind to you. Take charge of the control centre of my brain. Think your thoughts through me and send into my nervous system the pure signals of your peace, power and patience. I don't want to have a divided mind fragmented from your control.

Forgive my angers rooted in petulant self-will. Make me a channel, a riverbed, of Your love to others suffering as much stress as I. Help me act on the inspiration You gave me rather than stifling Your guidance.

Take charge of my tongue so that it becomes an instrument of healing. Make me a communicator of love and forgiveness as I cheer others on to their best.

I commit my schedule to you, Lord: help me to know and do your will. Guide me in doing your will on your timing so that I don't burn out doing the things I don't really want to do, or fearing to do what is your best for me.

Set me free from the tyranny of acquisitiveness and the lust of seeking my security in things rather than in my relationship with you.

I long to be the person you created me to be and not anyone else. Forgive me when I take my signals of success from others and not you.

Most of all, Lord, help me to catch the drumbeat of your guidance and live by your timing. Here is my life - invade it, fill it, transform it.

And I thank you in advance for the healing of my life and for giving me strength to conquer the stress of daily life. Amen.

Wings To Fly!

2009-09-06T11:58:00.000-07:00

Reflective Thoughts:

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:6-9)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NASB)

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (Jam 1:2-3, NIV)
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The Butterfly (Author Unknown)

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If we went through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly!
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What an awesome God. (Author Unknown)

God's accuracy may be observed in the hatching of eggs.
For example:
-the eggs of the potato bug hatch in 7 days;
-those of the canary in 14 days;
-those of the barnyard hen in 21 days;
-The eggs of ducks and geese hatch in 28 days;
-those of the mallard in 35 days;
-The eggs of the parrot and the ostrich hatch in 42 days.
(Notice, they are all divisible by seven, the number of days in a week!)
The lives of each of you may be ordered by the Lord in a beautiful way for His glory, if you will only entrust Him with your life. If you try to regulate your own life, it will only be a mess and a failure. Only the One Who made the brain and the heart can successfully guide them to a profitable end.

God's wisdom is seen in the making of an elephant.. The four legs of this great beast all bend forward in the same direction. No other quadruped is so made. God planned that this animal would have a huge body, too large to live on two legs. For this reason He gave it four fulcrums so that it can rise from the ground easily.

The horse rises from the ground on its two front legs first.
A cow rises from the ground with its two hind legs first.

How wise the Lord is in all His works of creation!

God's wisdom is revealed in His arrangement of sections and segments, as well as in the number of grains.

-Each watermelon has an even number of strips on the rind.
-Each orange has an even number of segments.
-Each ear of corn has an even number of rows.
-Each stalk of wheat has an even number of grains.
-Every bunch of bananas has on its lowest row an even number of bananas, and each row decreases by one, so that one row has an even number and the next row an odd number.

-The waves of the sea roll in on shore twenty-six to the minute in all kinds of weather.

All grains are found in even numbers on the stalks, and the Lord specified thirty fold, sixty fold, and a hundredfold - all even numbers.

God has caused the flowers to blossom at certain specified times during the day, so that Linnaeus, the great botanist, once said that if he had a conservatory containing the right kind of soil, moisture and temperature, he could tell the time of day or night by the flowers that were open and those that were closed!

Thus the Lord in His wonderful grace can arrange the life that is entrusted to His care in such a way that it will carry out His purposes and plans, and will be fragrant with His presence.

Only the God-planned safe life is successful. Only the life given over to the care of the Lord is fulfilled.
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"He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:29-31

One Hour Prayer Guide

2009-06-06T04:23:00.000-07:00

Below is a suggestion of one way to spend an hour with Abba - It is broken into twelve five minute segments - Each segment also has a scripture to reflect upon - Note these are only guidelines & each must follow what they are comfortable with many find after a few times they increase time in each segment & start finding these prayer times are very special. There is also a brief article in February 2006 archive "Tell me what to pray' that is encouraging for those new to praying.
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Spend an hour with God?

Its easier than you think. Break it up into 5 minute blocks and focus on the following during each 5 minute segment:

1. PRAISE

Start your prayer hour by praising the Lord. Praise Him for things that are on your mind right now. Praise Him for one special thing He has done in your life in the past week. Praise Him for His goodness to your family. (Psalm 34:1)

2. WAITING

Spend this time waiting on the Lord. Let Him pull together reflections for you. Think about the hour before you and the things you want the Lord to do in your life. (Psalm 27:14)

3. CONFESSION

Ask the Holy Spirit to show you anything in your life which might be displeasing to Him. Ask Him to point out attitudes that are wrong, as well as specific acts for which you have not yet made a prayer of confession. Now confess that to the Lord and claim 1 John 1:9 so that you might be cleansed for the remainder of the hour before you, and then pick up and read the Word. (Psalm 51:1-19)

4. READ THE WORD

Spend time reading promises of God in the Psalms, in the prophets, and passages on prayer located in the New Testament. Check your concordance. (Psalm 119:97)

5. PETITION

This is general request for others, praying through the prayer list, the prayer cards, or personal prayer interest on behalf of yourself and others. (Hebrews 4:16)

6. INTERCESSION

Specific prayer on the behalf of others. Pray specifically for those requests of which you are aware. (Romans 15:30-33)

7. PRAY THE WORD

Now take the Scriptures and start praying the Scriptures as certain sections of Psalm 119 lend themselves beautifully to prayer expression. (Psalm 119:38-46)

8. THANKSGIVING

Spend these minutes giving thanks to the Lord for things in your life, things on behalf of the church, things on behalf of your family. (Philippians 4:6)

9. SINGING

Take your hymnal and sing a prayer song, sing a praise song, sing a song regarding soul winning or witnessing. Let it be a time of praise. (Psalm 59:17)

10. MEDITATE

Ask the Lord to speak back to you and keep a paper and pen handy, ready to relate the impressions that He makes upon your life. (Psalm 63)

11. LISTEN

Spend time merging the things you have read from the Word, the things you have prayed, the things you have thanked the Lord for, the things that you have been singing, and see how the Lord brings them all together to speak to you. (I Samuel 3:9-10)

12. END WITH PRAISE

Praise the Lord for the time you have had to spend with Him. Praise Him for the impressions that He has given you. Praise Him for the prayer requests He raised up in your mind. (Psalm 145:1-13)

Source: Spiritual Formation - Becoming Like Jesus http://www.christianchallenge.us/Spiritual_Formation/Prayer/onehour-prayer.html

Original Source: 1 Calvary Baptist Church, Prayer Wheel, http://www.calvarynow.com/partner/0,,320286,00.html
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May this message below encourage you further - you will also find an article in September 2006 Archive 'A Model Prayer" compliments this article:
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"How To Talk To God In Prayer"

The Scriptures tell us in Luke II: 1-2 that Jesus' disciples came to Him and asked Him, "Lord, teach us to pray."

And then in Matthew 6:9-13, which is a corresponding passage, Jesus gives the "model" prayer that we incorporate into our worship services each Sunday. I am of the opinion that many times the recitations, etc. that we utilize in our worship can become ritualistic (which is not necessarily bad) and so routine that we do not think about what we are saying (or praying). What follows is an attempt to bring us back to consciousness and "prayerful" meditation about the significance of the Lord's Prayer.

Yes, the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Lord teach us to pray." This simple prayer which Jesus taught His disciples can show us too, how to talk to God in prayer.

Our Father, who art in heaven - Jesus taught His disciples to call God our Father.

It is this intimate Father/child relationship that makes prayer possible. As children of God, we come to His throne expectant and unafraid because we are accepted in His beloved Son (Hebrews 4: 15-16).

Because we are His children, we can come often and speak with our Heavenly Father, for He delights to hear our prayers!

Hallowed be Thy name - Worship!

To honour and adore God is the highest privilege of the Christian. We who have experienced this miracle of His saving grace can praise Him for His love. Every day, we can offer praise and thanksgiving as He showers us with His blessings. I Chronicles16:29 says "Give unto the glory due unto His name. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness."

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven - is the next phrase.

As Gods children, we long for His righteous reign throughout the earth. But His reign must first begin in our own lives. We are made sensitive to His will for us as we prayerfully read and meditate on the Word of God. As we pray, God measures our spiritual condition and brings our desires into conformity with His will. From these first three petitions, the Lord teaches us that His glory and kingdom must have pre-eminence in our prayers and lives.

God promises those who put Him first - "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matt. 6:33).

Give us this day our daily bread - We are dependent upon God for all our needs, both spiritual and material. Daily bread, in Bible times, referred to daily necessities. He is speaking of necessities, not superfluous wants (although there is freedom to ask for anything). Like any loving Father, He desires to richly bless us. Nothing is too great for His power and nothing is too small for His love. My advice is to share the most intimate details of our life with Him.

Phil.4:4-7 says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors -

As we speak with our loving Father and read His Word, realizing that He expects us to be gracious to others, we must confess all sin, including our unforgiveness toward others. Unconfessed sin hinders our communication with God.

The Psalmist said, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."

Our hearts must be clean before He can hear and answer our prayer. Of course, He always hears the sincere prayer of confession because He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil - The Lord has promised to protect His children in the hour of temptation.

We're told in I Corinthians10:13 that ".. .there is no temptation taken us but such as is common to all; but God is faithful, Who will not permit us to be tempted above that which we are able, but will, with the temptation also make a way of escape, that we may be able to bear it."

Let us, therefore, pray for wisdom to see His way of escape. As we learn to pray to the Father, we will enter the glorious doxology which closes the prayer.

For Thine is the Kingdom - we know that God has control over all matters and we can trust our deepest needs to Him.

And the power - He has power to accomplish all that we ask, for "He is able to do above that which we are able to think or ask.

And then the phrase... And the glory forever. Amen. -

We worship Him as the Almighty God, the Giver of every good and perfect gift.

This is how the Lord taught His disciples to pray and by His example He showed them the need for time alone with the Father in prayer.

We, too, must set aside a time to talk with God and read His Word. Many Christians find that the morning is the best time for this. Others say that late evening is the. best.

The following suggestions are given for your time with God:

1. Understand the necessity of prayer.

Our Lord taught that prayer is not an option, it is a command. It is not something to do when we feel like it, it's a God-given responsibility. We must make the time to labour in prayer. Jesus said, "People ought always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke 18: I).

2. The Bible and prayer goes hand in hand.

Pray as you read and meditate on God's Word. As you read the Bible, praise God for what He has revealed of Himself and pray for strength and wisdom to obey His commands. What you read will give fresh insights as you prayer for yourself and others. Try using some prayers of the Bible as patterns (Matt. 6:9-13; Ephesians I: 15-23; 3: 14-21 and many of the Psalms).

3. Draw up a prayer list.

A list of prayer requests reminds you of specific needs and will keep your mind from wandering. By recording how God has answered a request, you will be encouraged to keep praying. But don't let this steal your spontaneity. Remember, you're praying, not just compiling a list, although I believe that a prayer list (journal, diary) is an important aspect of prayer.

4. It's good to have a prayer partner to help you pray consistently.

Ask the Lord for a friend with whom you can share and pray. Meeting regularly provides mutual encouragement.

5. Be careful of distractions.

Because prayer is a spiritual exercise, you can expect it to become a spiritual battle. If you have trouble with wandering thoughts, try changing positions. Praying aloud, starting a prayer list in your Bible, singing a hymn or whatever you find most effective.

But whatever you do - PRAY!

Source: * From the September 2005 monthly publication "Communiqué" of Community Church in Pastor Ken's message

Stay Focussed

2009-05-24T09:22:00.000-07:00

Stay Focussed

There once was a man who had nothing for his family to eat. He had an old rifle and three bullets.

So, he decided that he would go out hunting and kill some wild game for dinner. As he went down the road, he saw a rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it. The rabbit ran away.

Then he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it. he squirrel disappeared into a hole in a cottonwood tree.

As he went further, he saw a large wild 'Tom' turkey in the tree, but he had only one bullet remaining.

A voice spoke to him and said, 'Pray first, aim high and stay focused.

However, at the same time, he saw a deer which was a better kill. He brought the gun down and aimed at the deer. But, then he saw a rattlesnake between his legs about to bite him, so he naturally brought the gun down further to shoot the rattlesnake.

Still, the voice said again to him, 'I said 'Pray, Aim high and Stay focused.'

So, the man decided to listen to God's voice.

He prayed, then aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey. The bullet bounced off the turkey and killed the deer. The handle fell off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it. And, when the gun had gone off, it knocked him into a pond.

When he stood up to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead deer and a turkey to eat for his family.

The snake (Satan) was dead simply because the man listened to God & obeyed Him.

Moral of the story:

Pray first before you do anything, aim and shoot high in your goals, and stay focused on God.

Never let others discourage you concerning your past. The past is exactly that, 'the past.' Live every day one day at a time and remember that only God knows our future and that he will not put you through any more than you can bear.

Do not look to man for your blessings, but look to the doors that only He has prepared in advance for you in your favor.

Wait, be still and patient: keep God first and everything else will follow. Don't worry about tomorrow, God is already there!

His plan for you is good

'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. 'Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13 NASB

Blessings of obedience: Observe and to do all his commandments

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:

And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.

And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
Deuteronomy 28:1-11 KJV
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Power In Prayer

2009-05-10T02:20:00.000-07:00

"I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."1 Timothy 2:1-4
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"Tremendous Power In a Praying Christian!"

In our rapidly changing times people are desperate to know the future. Barely do we adjust to the last changes, when totally new realities explode into our world.

In answer to the common fears spawned by change, society has seen a plethora of occult and demonic sources—fortunetellers, astrologers and psychic hotlines—all pretending to be able to peek into the mystery of tomorrow. Indeed, how many otherwise intelligent individuals glimpse, at least occasionally, at their "astrological signs" trying to get an edge on knowing the future!

Why anyone would consult someone who can't predict their own future is beyond me. These fortunetellers almost always live in abject poverty. Shouldn't their ability to predict the future at least work for themselves? They could invest in the stock market or pick the right lottery numbers. They can't even predict or better their own fortune, yet people go to them for discernment. For Christians, God condemns this demonic, fleshly probing into the unknown.

Indeed, as intercessors, He has called us not to wonder about the future, but to create it through the knowledge of His Living Word and prayer!

Our Father gives us access to the future right now. You ask, How do we know what to pray?

The Lord Jesus told us plainly,
"Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven." Matthew 6:9-10

We can look at the conditions of the world and faint or look at the possibilities of God and take faith. To bring revival is to pray for the reality of God's Kingdom to manifest on earth. Jesus was not offering His disciples a millennial prayer focus, for that rule of God's Kingdom is coming whether we want it to or not! No, but Christ calls us to pray for God's Kingdom to manifest in our world today.

How will tomorrow look if God answers the prayer Christ gave us?

Read the Gospels. What we see in the life and power of Jesus Christ is a faith picture of God's Kingdom. Jesus said that we can have that same full manifestation. In fact, He actually commanded us to pray for Heaven's release!

The reality God has planned will always manifest first in the prayer life of His intercessors.

When you hear from God and then pray His Word, you are impacting the unformed essence of life with the Spirit of God Himself! Thus, God calls us, not only to know His Word, but to pray it. We must go from intellectualizing God's Word to being impregnated by it.

I know churches have special areas where intercessors can pray or people meditate. But maybe we ought to change the name from "prayer room" to "prayer womb."

For everything good and holy that we see manifested in people, in churches and in life is first conceived, and then birthed, in the womb of prayer.

We have answers to prayer all around us. The place you are living in is an answer to prayer. Your church is an answer to prayer, as well as are your pastors, teachers and youth workers. As a church member, your attendance and participation is an answer to the prayer of your pastors and intercessors. When you asked God to lead you to the church you should attend, your current church became God's answer to your prayer!

Paul wrote, "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might" (Ephesians 1:18-19).

If you are a Christian, there is a power accompanying your life that is greater than great—the "surpassing greatness of His power." It is not human power, but the actual "strength of His might."

Think About It: The Strength of God Almighty is Attached to Your Prayer Life!

The power of God's might is His resurrection power. What does resurrection mean? It means that things which look dead, smell dead, and act dead, can be touched by God and raised to life!

God demonstrated this "power toward us who believe" first "in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the Heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:19-20).

Right now, you have resurrection power attached to your prayer life!

You can look on things that are absolutely dead and pray forth eternal LIFE! The power in us is the same potency God demonstrated when He raised Jesus out of the grave; it is resurrection power. Our mission is to bring resurrection life to situations that are dead.

If the devil challenges your prayer, remind him that you are seated with Christ, "far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come" (Ephesians 1:21).

Christ's authority is final. But not only has the Father put "all things in subjection under His feet," but He "gave Him as head over all things to the Church, which is His Body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all" (Ephesians 1:22-23).

Notice the Lord uses anatomical metaphors to explain the downlink of authority:
Christ is the "Head" of a "Body" that has all things put under its "feet."

This is a most profound understanding of our role: What the Head, Christ, has attained, the feet of the Church walk out. In other words, God has positioned the Church as the living bridge between the terrible conditions on earth and the wonderful solutions from Heaven!

As we truly, passionately, and accurately submit to Christ in prayer, the Kingdom of Heaven steadily enters our now prayed-for world.

The key of course, is to know Christ's Word. We do not have authority; Christ has authority. What we have is revelation and submission. But as we submit to the Word, and persevere in prayer, we can see the future conformed to God's will.

Prayer Warriors Are Positioned By God

Jesus told a parable to show that men ought to pray at all times and not lose heart (see Luke 18:1-8). In other words, if you are not praying, you will lose heart. Most of the things I pray for I have to persevere and pray through to get the answer.

God desires to see something deeper come out of my prayer time than just answered prayers. He wants me to become like Jesus, so He arranges battles that are character-forming. Not only will they ultimately change the world around me, but they'll change me first. This is what all true prayer warriors have discovered.

When we picture a prayer warrior, we usually see a great-aunt or grandmother. I think that every family has one. You never find them looking into a crystal ball to know the future for little Johnny—they are at the throne of God creating Johnny's future in prayer. They are not wondering if Mary is going to make it; they are praying her through to victory. They do not have time to lament Harry's drinking problem; they are storming Heaven to see him delivered.

Prayer warriors are the most frightening, powerful, demon-chasing, world-moving beings on earth. In truth, they act like children of God!

If they were to gaze at a crystal ball, it would explode! They look at astrological predictions and rebuke them. They never wonder about the future because they are too busy creating it through their faith in God.

Prayer warriors are positioned by God to pray for their families.

I remember when my Dad came to the Lord. For ten years we would intellectually clash about God during our visits. Finally, on one trip he arrived at our home "armed" with an argument against God. He said, "If there really is a God, why doesn't He always answer prayer?" He was secure in his position, and I was tired of the argument. I went into another room for a few minutes and prayed, "Lord, You've got to give me an answer."

When I returned I could see my Dad felt he won this round. I love my dad very, very much, but I said, "Dad, forget all the people that you think didn't get answers to prayer—you yourself are an answer to prayer! You are alive today because our entire family daily prays for you." (He was very overweight and smoked a pack of cigarettes daily). Then I continued, "But let's experiment. You say God doesn't answer prayer; we say He does. So, for one week we won't pray for you, and we'll see what happens."

I can't remember ever seeing my dad turn so pale. He looked over at my Mom and said, "Hon, tell the boy not to do that." Then, with beads of sweat forming on his forehead, he said to me, "Okay. What do I have to do to keep you praying for me?"

In three minutes, he went from not believing in prayer to begging us to keep praying for him. I said, "Dad, the only way I'll keep praying for you is if you pray right now and give your life to Christ," and my dad at that moment received Christ. The Lord answered my prayer.

Prayer anchors us in God's strength for our battles. Each of us knows prayer works: we are saved because someone else prayed for us! Thus, looking at the miracle of our own conversion, we gain confidence in God's help to transform others.

You Are a Prayer Warrior!

Luke 21:36 tells us to be "praying in order that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man." Every time the Bible talks about standing before God, it is speaking of a position of anointed authority and commissioning. Elijah stood before God as did Gabriel. It speaks of one who stands before God as an attendant to the Almighty. When they decree God's Word, it comes to pass.

Jesus said, "With God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26).
Under that banner, we pray and believe God. The Holy Spirit ever lives to make intercession. All we need to do is open our hearts to Him and prayer is going to come forth.

Look at the terrible issues of our world right now. Every need we see is where God wants us to release, through prayer, His future for that situation. God shows us what is wrong so we can pray for things to be made right. Why waste energy criticizing what's wrong when our prayers can change it!

The Lord our God in the midst of us is mighty. Our weapons are mighty to pulling down strongholds. Stop thinking of yourself as unable to pray. That's a lie out of hell. You are a prayer warrior!

There was a time when that great aunt or grandmother was a younger woman. She might have been just like you, and God showed her the needs around her. His grace came and she made a decision not to judge, but to pray. She didn't start off strong, but she became strong. Now it's your turn to make that decision to be the prayer warrior for your family, church or city!"

Let's pray: Lord Jesus, You said that the armies in Heaven follow You, and Your name is called "the Word of God." Help me to not only believe Your Word, but pray it in the power of the Holy Spirit! I accept that You have called me to be a prayer warrior. By Your grace, I receive a new anointing in intercession. Amen!

Author: Francis Frangipane - Ministries of Francis Frangipane
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Keys to Effective Prayers

2009-04-05T06:43:00.000-07:00

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son that who so ever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

The Duck & the Devil (Author Unknown)

There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm. He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods. He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target. Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner. As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck. Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and killed it.

He was shocked and grieved! In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.

After lunch the next day Grandma said, 'Sally, let's wash the dishes' But Sally said, 'Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.' Then she whispered to him, 'Remember the duck?' So Johnny did the dishes.

Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and Grandma said, 'I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper.' Sally just smiled and said, 'Well that's all right because Johnny told me he wanted to help' She whispered again, 'Remember the duck?'

So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help. After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he finally couldn't stand it any longer. He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck. Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, 'Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a slave of you.'

Thought for the day and every day thereafter:

Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done... And the devil keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...

You need to know that God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing. He has seen your whole life. He wants you to know that He loves you and that you are forgiven. He's just wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.

The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness; He not only forgives you, but He forgets. It is by God's grace and mercy that we are saved. When Jesus died on the cross; he was thinking of you!

* For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. 2 Cor 5:21 KJV

* But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Phil 2:7, 8 KJV
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Thank God for the Cross!

"God...reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ." 2 Corinthians 5:18 NKJV

Tim Miller writes: "My nine-year-old daughter Jennifer was looking forward to our family holiday. But she became ill, and a long anticipated day at Sea World was replaced by an all-night series of CT scans, X-rays and blood tests at the hospital. As morning approached the doctor told my exhausted little girl that she would need to have one more test, a spinal tap. The procedure would be painful, they said. The doctor then asked me if I planned to stay in the room. I nodded, knowing I couldn't leave Jennifer alone during the ordeal. The doctor gently asked Jennifer to remove all her clothing. She looked at me with child-like modesty as if to ask if that were alright. They had her curl up into a tiny ball. I buried my face in hers and hugged her. When the needle went in, Jennifer cried. As the searing pain increased, she sobbed repeatedly, 'Daddy, Daddy, Daddy,' her voice becoming more earnest with each word. It was as if she were saying 'Oh Daddy, please, can't you do something?' My tears mingled with hers. My heart was broken, I felt nauseated. Because I loved her, I was allowing her to go through the most agonising experience of her life.

In the middle of that spinal tap my thoughts went to the Cross. What unspeakable pain both the Son and the Father went through - for our sake."

But because of the Cross of Christ we have:

(1) Reconciliation. "God...reconciled us to Himself" (2 Cor 5:18 NKJV).

(2) Regeneration. "Having been born again" (1 Pet 1:23 NKJV).

(3) Resurrection. "Everyone who...believes...I will raise him up at the last day" (John 6:40 NKJV).
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Jesus conquered death for you! "He has given us...a living hope." 1 Peter 1:3 NIV

Ernest Becker wrote a book called The Denial of Death. In it he said we live our lives ignoring, avoiding and repressing the truth that we are mortal, and sooner or later we are all going to die. He pointed out that it's the reason for our workaholism, approval addictions and obsession with money and security. Becker published his book in 1973 with great acclaim, and in 1974 he won the Pulitzer Prize and became famous. That year he found out he had cancer. That year he turned to God. That year he died.

It's said that Arizona has the largest cryonics foundation in the world. For a healthy fee your blood can be filled with anti-coagulants, your body frozen and stored in a capsule of liquid nitrogen at minus 160ºc until you can be reheated later. At that point advanced medical technology can cure whatever disease killed you and you can live again. Or if you don't like being cold, another company offers "eternity in a paperweight". For a small fee your DNA is put in a little box for the next 10,000 years so that you can be cloned whenever it's convenient. They also offer a 10,000-year money-back guarantee, though it's hard to say who will collect it if things go wrong.

John Ortberg writes, "We try to outsmart death in more subtle ways; health clubs, skin creams, surgical techniques, new diets, warmer climates, better medication, smarter doctors and more. Perhaps science will help us live forever, like Gulliver's toothless, hairless, memoryless race of Struldbrugs."

Rejoice, Jesus conquered death, and His resurrection guaranteed yours:

"He has given us...a living hope through the resurrection...into an inheritance that can never perish" (1 Pet 1:3-4 NIV).

Mount Auburn, America's first cemetery, was so beautiful it became the number one tourist attraction in Boston. When they created Central Park in New York they modelled it after Mount Auburn. The rallying cry was, "Why not have it all, but without the graves?" We keep trying to have it all, but without the graves! But we can't. We live only a heartbeat from eternity.

So here are two truths you must keep in mind:

(1) God put you on this earth for a specific purpose. Have you found yours yet?

Are you pouring your life into it and making every moment count?

Paul did, and he ended up writing: "The time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing" (2 Tim 4:6-8 NKJV).

(2) When you know Christ as your Saviour, the best is yet to be. It is said that on his deathbed, D.L. Moody suddenly sat upright, opened his arms as though embracing something wonderful, declared that earth was receding, Heaven was near, and that it was his coronation day. What a way to go!

You don't need to fear death because Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:25-26 NKJV). Believe it, it's true!

Written Bob Gass Ministries Used with Permission from "The Word For Today": April 2009 http://www.blogger.com/
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Jesus as someone has said passed from gory to glory in a short space of time; from tragedy to triumph; from the cross to the crown; from despair to delight, from rejection to rejoicing, from villain to victor. Isn't that wonderful. May our hearts be glad because of all that He has done. But please don't take my word for it - look beyond the cross to the crown, beyond the grave to the skies. Be blessed and have a wonderful Easter.

If you do not know Jesus & would like to know more please write to me Jan Lyall at email: prayer@swpwarriors.com & I will get back to you as soon as possible.
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Whilst tidying the "Reflection Archives" I became aware of one consistant theme that the Lord has impressed upon me over over the years - Abba wants us to spend more time with Him so that we can know Him at a deeper level may this message bless You!
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The Secret to Knowing God - How to walk in deeper intimacy with your Creator (Bayless Conley)

Deep down, I truly believe every Christian wants to experience a deeply personal and intimate relationship with God. And I also believe each and every believer in Christ can have this kind of relationship with their Creator.

But there is often a problem in how we approach God. We often go to Him looking for rewards… or we’re constantly asking Him for things. Now, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t go to God with our cares and burdens. In fact, He tells us in 1 Peter 5:7 to tell Him about our concerns because He cares so much for us.

But if you want to know God… I mean, really know Him… there is another prayer He wants to hear from you. It’s a prayer like the one we hear Moses pray in Exodus 33:13. In my mind, this is one of the greatest prayers in all of Scripture:

“Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight.” Moses didn’t just say, “Come with us, God” but he said, “Show me Your way because, God, I want to know You.” And then Moses added to it in verse 18, when He said, “Please, show me Your glory.”

The Hebrew word for “glory” literally means “weight, mass, or substance.” So in essence Moses is saying, “God, I want to know what You’re made of. I don’t just want to know about You. I want to know You. I want to know who You are.”

The word that Moses used when he said he wanted to know God is the same word that’s used in Genesis 4:1 where it says, “Adam knew Eve his wife.” Moses is requesting to have the most personal, intimate relationship with God. He wants to draw close to God.

Friend, prayers like that touch the heart of God because not too many people pray them!

I read a story about Abraham Lincoln that took place during the Civil War. A woman actually came to the White House and somehow got in with a plate full of cookies. When she finally got through to the president, she said, “Mr. President, I don’t want anything at all. I was just thinking about you today and the load that you are carrying… and I just thought maybe some cookies would brighten up your day.”

Lincoln began to weep and said, “Madam, I see a great many people every day, and they want a great many things from me. But of all the people I’ve seen since being in office, you are the first one that has ever come not asking something of me but wanting to bring something to me.”

While God delights in answering our prayer, He also desires for us to bring something to Him. But how often do we... do you… come just to bring Him something?

It’s the kind of prayer that says,

“God, I want to know You. I just want to hang out. I want to find out who You are. Show me what You are made of.”

Friend, I think we can all know God in a personal and intimate way… just like Moses did… the way Paul did… even the way Abraham did.

Paul cried out in Philippians 3:10, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection.”

And Abraham discovered what God meant when He said in Genesis 15:1, “I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”

Life is about knowing God! So let me challenge you today to pray a prayer like this:

God, show me who You are. I’m not coming with a request. I’ve got a long list, but I’ll leave it outside the door for now. God, I’m just coming to You because I want to know You. I just want to make Your heart happy. I want to make You smile. God, show me Your ways.

Doing this will delight the heart of God! And you’ll be surprised at some of the things that begin to happen within your life when you pray this prayer. Because I truly believe God is crying out, saying “Oh, that they walk in My ways!” He wants you to know Him today!
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When You Speak, God Hears

Those who pray keep alive the watch fires of faith. For the most part we don't even know their names. Such is the case of someone who prayed on a day long ago. His name is not important. He is important not because of who he was, but because of what he did.

He went to Jesus on behalf of a friend. His friend was sick, and Jesus could help, and someone needed to go to Jesus, so someone went. Others cared for the sick man in other ways. Some brought food; others provided treatment; still others comforted the family. Each role was crucial. Each person was helpful, but no one was more vital than the one who went to Jesus.

John writes: "So Mary and Martha sent someone to tell Jesus, 'Lord, the one you love is sick'" (John 11:3, emphasis mine). Someone carried the request. Someone walked the trail. Someone went to Jesus on behalf of Lazarus. And because someone went, Jesus responded.
In the economy of heaven, the prayers of saints are a valued commodity. John the apostle would agree. He wrote the story of Lazarus and was careful to show the sequence: The healing began when the request was made.

The phrase the friend of Lazarus used is worth noting. When he told Jesus of the illness, he said, "The one you love is sick."

The power of the prayer, in other words, does not depend on the one who makes the prayer but on the one who hears the prayer.

We can and must repeat the phrase in manifold ways. "The one you love is tired, sad, hungry, lonely, fearful, depressed." The words of the prayer vary, but the response never changes. The Savoir hears the prayer. He silences heaven so he won't miss a word. The Master heard the request. Jesus stopped whatever he was doing and took note of the man's words. This anonymous courier was heard by God.

John's message is critical. You can talk to God because God listens. Your voice matters in heaven. He takes you very seriously. When you enter his presence, the attendants turn to you to hear your voice. No need to fear that you will be ignored. Even if you stammer or stumble, even if what you have to say impresses no one, it impresses God--and he listens. Intently. Carefully.

The prayers are honoured as precious jewels. Purified and empowered, the words rise in a delightful fragrance to our Lord. "The smoke from the incense went up from the angel's hand to God" (Rev. 8:4). Incredible.

Your words do not stop until they reach the very throne of God. One call and heaven's fleet appears. Your prayer on earth activates God's power in heaven. You are the someone of God's kingdom. Your prayers move God to change the world. You may not understand the mystery of prayer. You don't need to. But this much is clear: Actions in heaven begin when someone prays on earth. What an amazing thought!

When you speak, Jesus hears. And when Jesus hears, the world is changed. All because someone prayed.

Source: UpWords with Max Lucado Feb 6th 2009
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Keys To Effective Prayer

1. - Being Specific in what you request of God

In Mark 10:46-52 we find a very intriguing story.
Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, "Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you." And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. So Jesus answered and said to him, "What do you want Me to do for you?" The blind man said to Him, "Rabboni, that I may receive my sight." Then Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your faith has made you well." And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road.

The question Jesus asked, "What do you want Me to do for you?", seemed obvious, didn't it? Everybody present knew Bartimaeus needed his eyes to be healed. Why would Jesus ask this question? He wanted us to understand how important it is to be specific when we ask something of God. Bartimaeus' faith had to become specific before it made him well. It was after he said, "Lord, that I might receive my sight," that Jesus said, "Your faith has made you well."

2. -- Being Connected - The need to have a close relationship with God.

In John 15:5, Jesus says, "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."

God wants every part of our life to be connected to Him. And He tells us that as that happens, as we have our lives connected with Him, we bear much fruit. A few verses later Jesus directly connected that fruit to prayer.

In John 15:16, Jesus goes on to say, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you."

If we are connected to God and we abide in Him, Jesus says we will bear much fruit--prayer fruit.

Think about a fruit tree for a moment. The leaves come out because the branches are attached to the tree. In the spring the branch will blossom, and from those blossoms comes the fruit. But if something happens and the branch is not solidly connected to the tree, it will probably not bear any fruit at all. There may be a few leaves, but the blossoms won't come and there won't be any fruit. The blossoms and healthy fruit will only come if the branch is fully connected. God wants us connected to Him in every part of our lives. When that happens, our prayers will be in line with His desires, and we can be confident that He will answer.

How to Stay Connected - While there are many things we can do, I want to focus on two things.

First of all, if you want to have a close relationship with God, it is important to realize just how much He desires to have a close relationship with you.

This is an amazing truth when you stop to think about it. He is Almighty God, and yet He wants to have a close relationship with you.

Romans 5:11 in the New Living Translation says, Now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. Through Jesus, God made us to be His friends! So connecting with God starts with remembering He desires to be your closest friend.

Second, you need to practice His presence. Right now God is with you. He is everywhere you go. He is at your job; He is at your home; He is with you wherever you might be, even in the hardest time of your life.

The last part of Hebrews 13:5 says, For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

There was a monk in the seventeenth century named Brother Lawrence who wrote a book called The Practice of the Presence of God. In the monastery there were chimes that rang every hour, and Brother Lawrence would use that as a reminder to connect with God. If you have a PDA or a wristwatch or a cell phone, you might consider setting it to go off throughout the day to remind you that God is with you. Each time it goes off, spend a few moments communing with Him. Practice His presence. That will help you stay connected to God

3. -- Praying From the Heart
Romans 10:9-10 says, If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Prayer must come from the heart. These verses in particular teach us that if a person is going to pray a prayer of salvation, the heart and the mouth must get together. It is not good enough to just have the words. Your heart and mouth must be in agreement.

I believe this truth applies to every kind of prayer. It is not good enough to just use eloquent words. There has to be heart behind them if you are going to realize results from your prayers. I think only those things that burn brightly within our hearts truly touch the heart of God.

When I was young, I would go fishing with my cousins. At night, the bats would come out and my cousins would take a lure, and they would cast it up in the air. Every once in a great while one of the bats would hit the lure and get snagged. I think when we pray, it is like casting lines up into the heavens. But it is only the prayers that come from our heart that ever hook onto anything in heaven.

4. -- Consistent with God's Will -

Effective prayers are those that are in line with God's Word and will. This means you must have knowledge of God's Word.

In John 15:7, Jesus says, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you."

If you abide in God and His words abide in you, your desires will line up with His will. How important it is for us to know the Word of God!

As Hebrews 4 reminds us, the Word of God is living and active and powerful. It is spirit; it is life. It's not just pages on a piece of paper. And as you are in the Word of God, I believe the Holy Spirit will paint heaven's pictures, heaven's thoughts, and heaven's ideas on the canvas of your heart and your mind.

As you read the Word of God, you will have confidence in your prayers because you will have God's heart. And when you have God's heart, He is going to answer your prayers because that is what He desires.

I also want to point you to 1 John 5:14 which says,
Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. His will, of course, is His Word. So if you ask anything according to His Word, He will hear you. And if you know that He hears whatever you ask, you know you have the petitions you have asked of Him. This means you and I need to know what the Bible says so that our prayers will be answered.

5. -- Endurance - Whatever you are praying for, patiently endure.

Hebrews 6:11-15 says, And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, "Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you." And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.

Do you realize that once God gave Abraham and Sarah the promise of having a child, it was 25 years before Isaac was born? There was some patient enduring that took place before they obtained the reality of God's promise in their lives. And so it must be with us.

Perhaps you have been praying for things in your life, and you are getting discouraged.

You must remember that God does not always work things on our timetable. He works according to His. I just want to encourage you today: Be patient. Patience is that long-lasting quality of your faith.

A number of years ago I heard one person say that faith is like your hand and patience is like your arm. When you exercise faith, it is like holding up your hand against the problem, and as you do, things are being worked out. But if you take your patience down, your faith comes down with it. Patience is the thing that keeps your faith applied until the answer comes.

6. -- Humility - God resists the proud. He gives grace to the humble.

In 1 Peter 5:5-6 we read this, Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble." Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.

Humility, more than anything else, is an attitude of the heart that says, "I recognize I am not self-sufficient. I am open, I am teachable, I am thankful. God, I am willing to bow my heart before You and confess that I am in utter need of Your assistance."

Contrary to what some people say and think, humility is not to be equated with lack of courage. in fact, it takes great courage for a person to admit they have need. Meekness is not weakness. Meekness is a sign of strength.

King David said in Psalm 18:35, Your gentleness (or Your meekness) has made me great. Moses was called the meekest or the humblest man on the face of the earth, and yet we don't think of him as a weak person. He is one of the greatest leaders to ever step out of the pages of the Bible, and very few people in history have had power with God in the place of prayer like Moses did.

Jesus, our Savoir, said, "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart" (KJV).

Friend, that ought to be one of the hallmark qualities of our lives-- especially when we are praying.

7. -- The Holy Spirit's Help - Take time to praise God today for His provision of the Holy Spirit.

In John 16, Jesus is talking to His disciples, and He is trying to prepare them and let them know that He is going away. In John 16:7 He tells them, "Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you."

Do you know who the Helper is? It is the Holy Spirit. Earlier in John 14:26 he had told His disciples this, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you."

The Helper, the Holy Spirit, has been sent to come alongside and teach us all things. He will teach you how to pray; He will teach you things about prayer. The Holy Spirit will help you in that way.

Then He said, "[He will] bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." The Holy Spirit will help us remember the promises. The things that God has taught us He will bring to our remembrance, so we can pray effectively.

The Holy Spirit is like having a personal assistant. A personal assistant will help you remember your appointments or show you something you do not know. Every moment of every day He is there for us.

8. -- Forgiveness - Jesus cited unforgiveness as the number one reason for unanswered prayer.

In Mark 11:24-26 Jesus says, "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."

Pretty strong, isn't it? If my prayers were not being answered, this would be the first place I would look--into my own heart, to see whether I had allowed bitterness toward another human being to reside there. Whether I was harbouring a grudge or had strife in my heart toward anyone else.

Jesus said if you have anything against anyone, anything--big or small, new or old--or anyone--yourself, your husband, your wife, a family member, a loved one, a neighbour, a co-worker, a relative, an enemy--if you have anything against anyone, it will lead to unanswered prayer.

Sometimes people hold things against themselves. They do not forgive themselves, even after God has forgiven them and after others have forgiven them. They just want to whip themselves for their stupidity for falling into the same stupid sin again, or for whatever they have done, and they don't release themselves!

There are others too, including those closest to us, whom we must forgive. If your prayers are not being answered, then look there.

Perhaps you have searched the Scriptures, filled your heart with the Word, you are praying from the bottom of your heart, and you are expectant of answers; but before you can partake of the fruit of your prayers, you must forgive if you have anything against anyone!

Hindered Prayers

1 Peter 3:7 says, Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honour to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.

Notice it says, "Husbands, likewise," which means, gals, you are not off the hook. The following truth applies to you as much as it does to the boys. That truth is simply this: If there is bitterness or unforgiveness in your heart toward your spouse, your prayers will be hindered. That word hindered literally means to be cut down in the same way one would cut down a tree.

I once had this incredible tree called a cherimoya tree. One of the things about a cherimoya tree is that it is not indigenous to our country, and the insects that pollinate it do not exist here.

In order for the tree to bear fruit, I needed to pollinate it by hand with my little artist paintbrush. I would get pollen on the brush from one flower and pollinate other flowers. Eventually the little buds I had pollinated began to turn into fruit. I was so excited! They were getting close to the time to be harvested. Then I came home one afternoon to find my whole tree hacked to pieces. Every branch and piece of fruit was in the trash. The gardener had cut my tree down!

I believe that can happen with our prayers.

You can be intensely committed spiritually, searching the Scriptures, filling your heart with the Word, praying from the bottom of your heart, but if you are not honouring your spouse or you are treating them in a bad way, the devil has the authority to waltz right in and chop your prayer tree down. Let's keep the axe out of the devil's hand by honouring and forgiving and valuing our marriage partner.

The Power to Forgive

There are times when we need to forgive someone for something they have done. On occasion it can seem so difficult...almost impossible. But forgiveness is not an option for you and me as followers of Jesus Christ. Forgiveness is an act of the will. You can forgive. In fact, Jesus said that we even need to love our enemies, those who may not want peace with us.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:44, "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you."

How can you do that? Because God has done the same thing for you.

In Romans 5:10 it says, When we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son. When you and I embrace salvation through Jesus Christ, that same love of God is poured out in our hearts. (See Romans 5:1 and 5). As a result, we can forgive those who have wronged us.

Once you have forgiven someone, it can still affect your emotions. I like what Corrie ten Boom shared. She went through several sleepless weeks over something that someone had done to her. She tried to forgive the person; but, still, when she would think about it, she would respond emotionally.

When she shared this with her pastor, he had her look up at the bell tower of the church. He reminded her that the bell would continue to ring even after the person ringing it had let go of the rope. But given a little time, the bell would slow down until it was silent. It may take time for your emotions to settle even when you have let go of the rope. Just let go of the rope and forgive. You can do it!

Source: By Janet Conley - From Answers For Each Day - Dec 2008
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12 Steps to Change Your Prayer Life -

1. “The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases.” (Prov. 21:1)

If your thoughts wander during your prayer time, instead of trying to force them back into your pre-set agenda, try following them. Perhaps the Lord has another agenda.

2. “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” (Matt. 6:5-6).

Set a time for daily prayer. Consider it an unbreakable commitment. Keep your set appointment every day for one week. For one solid week, let your scheduled prayer time be the centrepiece of your day: arrange everything else to fit around it.

3. "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35)

Give God the first fruits of your day. For one week, give the very first 30 minutes of your day to prayer.

4. “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” (Luke 5:16)

Find a place in your home where you can be alone and undistracted during your prayer time. Keep your Bible, prayer journal, pen, and whatever tools you use in that place so that everything is ready. During your prayer time each day, this is a sacred place.

5. “I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.” (Isaiah. 6:1)

As you start your prayer time, before you say anything, let your mind’s eye see Him, high and exalted, and yourself in a position of worship before Him. Stay in that inner posture until His glory fills your thoughts as the train of His robe fills the temple.

6. “But Jesus said, ‘Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.’” (Luke 8:46 )

Take time to become truly alive to His presence with you. Be aware that as you touch Him through prayer, His power is released into your life.

7. “O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth.” (Ps. 78:1)

Read your Bible this morning with the awareness that you are listening to the words of His mouth. Stop at the first word, phrase, or thought that captures your attention and let the Father speak to you about it and let it shape your prayers.

8. “We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isa. 64:8)

This week, practice the prayer of pliability. Instead of focusing on what you want God to do for you, focus on allowing Him to shape your desires until they match His. Accept each situation in your life as His hand shaping your thoughts, character, and longings.

9. “Not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)
This week, let these words be the only prayer you pray about situations that confront you. Focus on relinquishing every situation to Him to be a platform for His power.

10. “I will remember the deeds of the LORD.” (Ps. 77:11)
This week, try writing out your prayers. It will help you stay focused and will create a record of God’s work in your life.

11. “My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long.” (Ps. 35:28)

This week, practice praying out loud during your private prayer time. It will make your prayer experience more concrete and will help you keep your mind focused.

12. “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; …talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” (Deut. 11:18-20)

This week, try walking as you pray. Walk through your neighbourhood or around your yard. You will be more able to keep your mind open to new thoughts the Lord might introduce. You are likely to find yourself spending more time with Him.

Author: Jennifer Kennedy Dean - Right to the Heart of Women
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Clearing The Mind

2008-03-09T09:20:00.000-07:00

Uncluttering, by Patrick D. Odum

Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out, and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved (Matthew 9:17).

May God bless you this day... then write it down!

Well, it happened yet again. I needed to make a call and reached for my cell phone only to find it wasn't where I thought it was. I checked all the usual places...my desk, the car, kitchen counter, the bathroom, by the bed. Nothing. After an hour or so, I had to turn to my last resort. I picked up another phone and called myself. Way off in another room I could hear my clever ring tone, A Beautiful Day , calling out to me. The phone was under the cushions of the sofa in my den. Don't ask.

It seems the older I get, the more things I misplace...eyeglasses, car keys, wallet, my sanity. I'm relatively satisfied I've not completely lost my mind, at least not yet. Hey, many of my friends suffer from similar experiences. I've thought perhaps with my increase in age, there has been such a huge increase in my intelligence that the brain just can't hold it all. However, recalling I'm the same person who once cut down a tree limb while standing underneath it, i've tossed that theory aside.

A good memory is a wonderful thing, but more important is the remembering. What use is a good memory that never has a purpose? But it's in the remembering that we can find purpose, renew faith, and rediscover hope.

In these days we forget so much because we have so much on our minds, so many things pulling us in so many directions. Difficulties come, stress settles in, anxiety rises. We lose focus and patience. Faith and trust fade. All because we have forgotten to remember. What can we do against this spiritual erosion that slowly wears us down? The answer is very simple.

Years ago, Moses was called to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. They witnessed plagues and water turning into blood. They were there when the angel of death passed over. They saw the Red Sea part, crossed on dry land, and watched the Egyptian army drown when the waters returned. They followed a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. When they were hungry, they had quail in the evening and manna in the morning. All these things came by the hand of God. But they forgot to remember.

Life in the wilderness was hard and in their thirst, they complained bitterly. At God's command, Moses struck a rock and water gushed out. He called the place Massah and Meribah, which mean testing and quarreling , because in their time of difficulty, the people had cried out, Is the LORD among us or not? (Exodus 17:7) Though they now had water, everything soon took an even more serious turn. They were attacked. But God had not abandoned them. With Moses holding high the staff of God, Joshua took some of the men and fought back. After a long day's battle, they finally defeated the Amalekites.What happened next gives us encouragement today.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered..." (Exodus 17:14a)

Write this! Over and over in the Bible we see such words. Write this down...on stone tablets, parchment, scrolls, staffs. The Ten Commandments, the Law, the Prophecy, the covenants. The names of leaders, the history of families. Songs of praise. The ways of God and those of His Son. Time after time, God has instructed His people to write it all down as something to be remembered.

Why? Because when we don't write it down, we forget. We forget about blessings and answered prayers. We forget His promises and His presence. And soon the only thing we can remember is how hard life is. Hope fades and we cry out, "Is God with me or not?"

You want some real encouragement today? You want to recharge your faith and trust in God? You want to walk into a new day with the assurance that whatever comes, you will be able to stand because God is by your side and He will make you stand? Then begin to write it down.

Take a journal, notebook, even a scrap of paper. Think of your life, what happened years ago and what occurred yesterday. Record your blessings. Big or small, it doesn't matter. Make a list of your prayers and the answers you've received. Jot down when God did something you least expected.

And write down your complaints with Him. Yeah, that's right. He didn't abandon His people in their wilderness and He won't abandon you in yours. You think He doesn't already know how you feel? Write them down and see how He responds. The problem with the Israelites was not that they complained. Jesus walked on this earth and knows how difficult life can be. The problem was... they forgot to remember.

So do it. Make time each day or once a week, but do it. Don't rely on memories alone. And when life comes crashing in, go back and read about your Heavenly Father. He's something worth remembering. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. You come to the help of those who gladly do right, who remember your ways. Isaiah 64:4-5a

Take care and be God's, Chuck
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Hear Him In Quiet Time

2007-11-18T17:53:00.000-08:00

Your quiet time with God (Oct 10-16 2007)

"O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1 NIV

When you come to meet with God you should have an attitude of:

(1) Expectancy. Expect to 'give and get' from your time together. And make it a time of intimacy. It's impossible to have a love affair in a crowd or a public place; intimacy calls for being alone with the one you love. The Bible speaks about Christ as the Groom and us as His bride. Think of the anticipation and excitement shared in such moments.

(2) Reverence. Don't rush into God's presence. Prepare your heart by being still before Him and letting the quietness clear away the thoughts of the world. Remind yourself Who it is you're meeting with - God! "You are worthy...to receive glory and honour" (Rev 4:11 NIV).

(3) Alertness. Get to bed early so you'll be in good shape to meet God in the morning. He deserves your full attention. Give God the best part of your day - when you are the freshest. Follow the example of Christ: "Very early in the morning...Jesus...went off to a solitary place, where He prayed" (Mk 1:35 NIV). Hudson Taylor said, "You don't tune up the instruments after the concert is over...you tune them up before you start."

(4) Willingness. This attitude is crucial: you don't come to your quiet time to choose what you will or won't do, but with the purpose of doing anything and everything God wants you to do. Jesus said, "If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether My teaching comes from God" (Jn 7:17 NIV). So come to meet with the Lord, having already chosen to do His will no matter what!

Your quiet time with God (2) O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

Stephen Olford said, "I want to hear God's voice before anyone else's in the morning. And His is the last voice I want to hear at night." David and Daniel met with the Lord three times daily (See Ps 55:17; Da 6:10). Whatever time you set, be consistent. Put it on your calendar; make an appointment with God as you would with anyone else. And keep it. Don't stand Him up!

The question is often asked, "How much time should I spend?"

Here are some guidelines:

(1) Don't start with a two-hour quiet time. You'll get discouraged. You'll create memories of failure rather than memories of success. You must grow in this relationship as you do in any other. So begin with a few minutes and let it grow.

(2) Don't clock-watch. That'll ruin your quiet time faster than anything else. Decide what you can do in God's Word and prayer during the time you've selected; then do it! Sometimes it'll take more time than you have set aside, sometimes less. But don't keep looking at your watch.

(3) Emphasise quality, not quantity. It's what you do during your quiet time - whether 15 minutes or two hours - that's important.

(4) Choose a special place. "Next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord" (Ge 19:27 NIV).

Your special place ought to be a place where:

(a) you can pray aloud without embarrassment;

(b) you're comfortable. (Don't have your quiet time in bed - that's too comfortable!)

As the days go by your special place will come to mean everything to you because of the wonderful times you have there with the Lord.

Your quiet time with God (3) "O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

For the next few days let's deal with some 'quiet time problems.'

The problem of discipline! This is known as "the battle of the blankets." It faces you the moment you wake up. The devil will exaggerate how tired you are. And when he and your flesh team up, it's a battle to get out of bed.

So here are some tips on overcoming this problem:

(a) Go to bed on time. Too many of us stay up late watching TV, therefore we have a hard time getting up in the morning. Dawson Trotman lived by the Scripture, "Early will I seek thee." Even if he had company the night before, he would excuse himself and go to bed because his top priority was meeting with Christ each morning.

(b) Get up immediately upon waking. If you wait to think about it, you've already lost the battle. Furthermore, when you wake up in the morning it's not the time to pray about deciding to get up. If you have to pray about it, do so the night before, and pray that you'll have the willpower to do it. Plan it. Be intentional! Resolve like the Psalmist, "In the morning, O Lord, You hear my voice" (Ps 5:3 NIV).

(c) Go to bed with thoughts of Scripture. Fall asleep with the attitude of, 'See You in the morning, Lord.' Ask Him to wake you up with thoughts of Him. One of the best ways to do that is to go to sleep with a Scripture verse on your mind. "Do not let this Book...depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night" (Jos 1:8 NIV)

Your quiet time with God (4) O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

You say you're not getting much out of your quiet time? Rick Warren refers to this as "the battle of the blahs." He writes: "You can never judge your quiet time by your emotions. Emotions may lie; feelings may come and go. If you only have a quiet time when you 'feel' like it, the devil will make sure you never feel like it. Some days will seem bland. On other days you'll think Heaven has opened up to you. So don't expect a glorious 'experience' every morning. Not having goose-bumps doesn't mean God is not present."

Dry spells can be caused by:

(a) Disobedience. God won't bless you beyond your last act of disobedience. And He won't reveal step two until you've taken step one.

(b) Being in a hurry. Samuel Chadwick said, "Hurry is the death of prayer." So go for quality and content, not mileage!

(c) Being in a rut. When your quiet time becomes a ritual instead of a relationship, it dies. So be flexible; change your routine, keep it interesting - for you and the Lord.

(d) Not sharing your insights with others. When we give out, we get back more in return. Share your quiet-time thoughts with others and see what happens. If you're still not getting anything out of it, tell God about it. It takes time to develop a relationship. You must learn to see God in all kinds of circumstances in order to get to know Him well. So don't give up:

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up" (Gal 6:9 NIV).

Your quiet time with God ( 5 ) "O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

Once you have won "the battle of the blankets" and "the battle of the blahs," you'll have to fight "the battle of the brain." Your mind will wander off in 101 directions during your quiet time. The devil will make sure it does. You'll find yourself distracted by noises, lack of sleep, tensions with others, work, and things you 'just can't forget.'

So here are some helpful suggestions:

(1) Be sure you're thoroughly awake. Take a shower, splash cold water on your face, or do some exercise. Get the adrenalin flowing! The Psalmist writes, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God" (Ps 42:1 NIV). A deer being pursued by a hunter has only one thing in mind; getting to the stream where its wounds can be healed, its thirst quenched, and its strength renewed.

(2) Use a memo pad. When you decide to spend time with God you'll suddenly 'remember' everything you have to do, or have left undone. So write things down as they come to you, then tell yourself, "I'll get to that later," and go back to prayer.

(3) Walk while you're praying. You won't fall asleep while standing up, so move around.

(4) Personalise the Scriptures. Pray them back to God. Since God's Word is always in line with God's will, your prayers will get answered. For example, use Psalm 23: "Lord, You are my Shepherd, therefore I shall not want for anything. Thank You for leading me in paths that are right when I don't know which way to go." This simple technique can transform your quiet time.

Your quiet time with God (6) God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

Nothing is more difficult to maintain than your quiet time with God. When pressures mount, what's the first thing you're tempted to drop? Satan knows if he can keep you from it he's won the battle, because he'll have no opposition from you.

Backslidden Christians will tell you, "It started when I began to neglect my quiet time with God."

"So how can I overcome this problem?" you ask.

(1) Make a covenant with God. And be serious about it: "When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it...It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfil it" (Ecc 5:4-5 NIV).

(2) Put it on your schedule. Block out time to meet with God each day, just like you plan a doctor's appointment or a business lunch. Can you imagine keeping an appointment that's more important?

(3) Be ready for the devil's excuses and attacks. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. So follow the Boy Scout motto, "Be prepared!" Dr. Robert G. Lee used to say, "If you wake up in the morning and don't meet the devil face on, it means you're headed in the same direction!"

(4) Leave your Bible open the night before at the passage you intend to read in the morning. When you wake up it will serve as a reminder to have your quiet time.

"But what if I miss a day?" Don't worry, and don't go on a guilt trip. If you miss a meal it doesn't mean you gave up eating. You simply eat a little more at the next meal, and go on from there.

Your quiet time with God (7 ) O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek You." Psalm 63:1

Psychologists say it takes up to three weeks to get familiar with a new habit; then another three weeks before it takes root. You've got to get beyond that six-week barrier!

Here's a simple formula for developing a habit:

(1) Make a strong resolution! If you begin half-heartedly you'll never succeed. The Bible says "Encourage one another daily" (Heb 3:13 NIV). So become accountable to someone. Ask them to encourage you, and to remind you of the promise you made to God.

(2) Never allow an exception. A habit is like a ball of twine: every time you drop it some of the strands unwind. So never allow 'just this once' to occur. Each act of yielding weakens your will and causes you to lose ground.

(3) Seize every opportunity to practice your new habit. Whenever you get the slightest urge to practice it, do it right then. Don't wait, use that moment to reinforce it. It doesn't hurt to overdo a new habit when you are first starting.

(4) Rely on the power of God. When all is said and done, you must realise you're in a Spiritual battle and that you can only succeed by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. So pray that God will strengthen you. Depend on Him to help you develop the habit for His glory.Write down the following words and sign your name to the bottom of them. Then keep them before you constantly:

"Lord, I commit myself to spending a definite time with You every day, no matter what the cost. And I'm depending on You to help me to be consistent. Amen."
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Hearing from God (1) (Aug 29th- 1st Sept 2007) - "He will be our guide." Psalm 48:4 (NIV)

Jesus told His disciples, "The Spirit of truth (the Truth-giving Spirit)...will guide you into all the Truth (the whole, full Truth)" (Jn 16:13 AMP). Jesus spoke these words to men with whom He'd spent the previous three years. Now you'd think that if Jesus was with us personally for three years day and night, we'd have learned all there is to know. But Jesus said to expect more, because He will always have something to say to us about each new situation we are facing.

God wants to speak to you on a one-to-one basis. He wants to lead you step by step into the good things He has in store for you. He cares about the tiniest details of your life. Never hesitate to take what you think are small things to God; after all, everything is small to God! He even keeps track of how many hairs you have on your head (See Mt 10:30). He cares about the desires of your heart. He wants to reveal truth to you that will set you free from worry, fear, and limitation. His plan to share an intimate relationship with you existed before you were even born.

The Psalmist said, "All the days [of my life] were written before ever they took shape" (Ps 139:16 AMP). Paul said that God "determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek Him" (Acts 17:26-27 NIV).

Doesn't it stand to reason that if God plans all of our days, and where we're going to live before we're even born, that it's important for us to learn how to hear from Him

Hearing from God (2) - "Be still, and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

If you are unwilling to listen to God in one area, you'll be unable to hear from Him in other areas. People think they can't hear from God, but in reality there are a lot of things they already know He wants them to respond to, but haven't done so. The more quickly you do whatever it is the Lord tells you to do, the more quickly He reveals the next step you are to take.

Hearing from God must be developed by practice - especially if you're a talker! That's why He says, "Be still and know that I am God." Our flesh is full of energy and always wants to be active doing something, so it can be difficult for us to be still. Don't just talk to God when you want or need something; spend time with Him - listening! He'll open up many issues if you'll just be still before Him.

You say, "But I don't think I've ever heard God talk to me!" Could it be that you haven't learned to listen? When you ask God for something, it's time to tune your 'receiver.' Even if He doesn't respond at that moment, He will in due time. You may be doing some ordinary task when He decides to speak to you. But if you've honoured Him by listening as part of your fellowship with Him, He'll speak to you at exactly the right time.

Perhaps you've wasted many years going your own way. It's not too late to go in a new direction. If you are sincerely willing to obey God, He'll guide you on an exciting journey of learning to hear from Him every day of your life.

Hearing from God (3) - "His anointing teaches you concerning everything." 1 John 2:27 AMP

We need to have an attitude that says, "God, no matter what anyone else is telling me, or what I think myself, if I clearly hear You saying something to me I'm going to honour You and do what You say."If we pray diligently, hear from God, then start asking everybody else what they think, we're honouring people's opinion above God's. This attitude will prevent us from developing a relationship in which we consistently hear from Him. We need to trust God to instruct us - without needing reassurance from others:

"The anointing (the sacred appointment, the unction) which you received from Him abides [permanently] in you; [so] then you have no need that anyone should instruct you... His anointing teaches you concerning everything and is true...so you must abide in (live in, never depart from) Him" (1 Jn 2:27 AMP).

This verse isn't saying that we don't need anybody to teach us God's Word. But it does say we have God's Spirit living inside of us to guide and direct our lives. We might occasionally ask somebody for advice, but we need not go constantly to other people to ask them about decisions we're making for our lives.If we are ever going to develop the ability to hear from God and be led by His Spirit, we have to start making our own decisions - and trust the wisdom God has deposited in our heart. The devil wants us to think we're not capable of hearing from God. Don't buy it! The Holy Spirit that dwells inside you will give you confidence, comfort, and counsel for your life. So, learn to listen to Him!

Hearing from God (4) - "For the revelation awaits an appointed time".

Please go to link http://www.ucb.com.au/ Sat 1st September to read the rest of this message!~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Praying for others: How to pray for others "Grace, mercy, and peace from...Jesus Christ." 1 Timothy 1:2

Paul prayed for three things to be given to those he loved. So when you're not sure how to pray for others, what better example than this one where he asks God to give Timothy:

(1) Grace: Peter says, "God, who gives all grace, will make everything right. He will make you strong...support you and keep you from falling" (1 Pet 5:10 NCV). This word grace implies 'all of God you'll ever need to handle whatever you're facing.' That's worth praying for, isn't it?

(2) Mercy: A large publishing house has a machine that automatically mails reminders to its readers that their subscriptions have expired. One day it malfunctioned and a rancher in a remote Colorado town received 9,734 notices! So he drove for kilometres to the nearest post office, mailed in his cheque, and wrote, "Send me the magazine. I give up!" That's how it is with God; He keeps sending us notices!

The Bible says, "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness" (Lam 3:22-23 NIV).

(3) Peace: "All who listen to Me shall live in peace and safety, unafraid" (Pr 1:33 TLB). What a gift to know that God's peace can sustain you through the worst situations. And the kind of peace He gives is different from what the world offers (See Jn 14:27). At best, the world's peace gives us temporary relief;

but "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds" (Ph 4:7 NIV).

So the next time you're praying for someone ask God to saturate them in His grace, mercy, and peace.

Written Bob Gass Ministries Used with Permission from "The Word For Today" (Aug-Nov 2007): http://www.blogger.com/ to those in Australia the devotional is available free from UCB Australia by phoning 1800 068 204.

Come - Be Still - Listen

2007-07-08T22:19:00.000-07:00

After much prayer I have today posted the following messages as I believe they are important to our daily walk - you will also find further messages related to these articles in the April 2006 archive - it is my prayer that you will find a message or scripture here that will minister to your situation & that you will leave here encouraged & refreshed in spirit. Be blessed today!
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Come Away to a Quiet Place (Phil Ware)

The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place (Mark 6:30-32 TNIV). [Emphasis added.]

How do you restore your energies after you have reached the spiritual exhaustion point?

What do you do when the fatigue debt has mounted so high in every dimension of your life - physical, emotional, and spiritual - that you do not think you can do one more thing?

Where do you go for renewal when plenty of sleep won't relieve the bone-weariness that pulses through every fiber of your being?

These are not hypothetical questions. You probably know that from personal experience. There is a kind of tiredness that nothing seems to relieve. This kind of exhaustion comes at the end of a long spiritual battle or from being the long-term caregiver for a loved one or from ministering to people repeatedly until you are completely depleted or from battling a long and debilitating illness or from ...

For many of us who have found ourselves in such wearisome conditions, retreat and rest are often prescribed. They are also much desired.

Yet many find such restful retreats remedy their weariness for just a short time, only to learn its return has left them feeling completely and perpetually "burned out."

Elijah's example of rest and refreshment after his exhaustion is a good one. Food and rest were not enough for Elijah to be renewed (1 Kings 19:1-7), although they were part of his healing.

What Elijah needed most, however, was to be in the presence of God. He needed to have God minister to him and speak directly to his heart (1 Kings 19:8-18). God spoke to Elijah in a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:12) and called Elijah back into service, reminding him there were others out there still serving the LORD God (1 Kings 19:18). One of these in particular needed Elijah to prepare him to lead God's people (1 Kings 19:15-17).

Carve out some sacred space and some holy time!

I am not surprised that when Jesus saw the weariness of his apostles, the Lord not only told them to go away to a quiet place, but he also called them to be with him. Getting away wasn't enough. Resting and being alone, far away from the crowd, wouldn't rekindle the holy fire they needed to minister. No matter how restful retreat from the maddening rush may seem at the time, getting away by itself will not restore what is spent.

Only the presence of the Lord can renew, restore, revitalize, reinvigorate, and re-establish our spirits. Only the Spirit of God, the breath of heaven, can make dry bones rise again (Ezekiel 37:1-13).

Used with permission - HEARTLIGHT(R) Magazine 2007 -- http://www.heartlight.org/
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Be Still! (Kimberli J. Brackett)

One of my favorite songs has always been "Be Still and Know that He is God" by Stephen Curtis Chapman. The scripture reference (which is also one of my favorites) is taken from Psalm 46:10 - a simple yet profound verse.

I sometimes wonder which part of the verse is most desired by God - that I am still or that I know He is God. I think the answer to my own question would be that you can't have one without the other. Something to ponder anyway ...

Today, I'm adding to those two favorites a verse that my children have learned this week while memorizing Psalm 37. Verse 7 says, "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him."

I know I am drawn to both Stephen's song and these scriptures because it's so difficult for me, in my flesh, to be still. So often God says, "Be still my child," as a gentle reminder to me that I can only hear what he is asking of me, I can only see the unimaginable power He possesses, when I decide to quit talking, asking, and planning, and simply ... listen.

I don't know about you, but my heavenly Father sometimes has to go to extremes to get my attention. He decided in the last two weeks to take the "be still" part of my life into his own hands. In his infinite wisdom, the Father graciously moved our family to Noodle, TX - yes, there IS a town in Texas called Noodle...

God sometimes has to purposely remove us from what is comfortable and "normal" so He can show us how distracted and "busy" we are in this big noisy world we live in. He so desperately wants to show himself to us, to tell us he loves us, but so often we can't hear him speak words of love or see His fingerprints in our lives because we are so busy being busy. ....

God is gently calling you to be still!

BUT ... you know our God is faithful. Outside my bedroom window, He brings an incredible sunrise every morning over the pond - matter of fact it's 7:45 a.m. and I'm watching it as I type this to you. There is also a bridge and a windmill (which I love) outside the same window! Almost every day, He sends at least one roadrunner that plays on the bridge for me and my children to watch. .... He may have forgotten to put big trees in West Texas, but there are cactus and rocks and valleys and gorgeous terrain. The wind blowing on our faces reminds us of His angels that are protecting us everyday. When we sit on the rocks overlooking the valleys and hills, we hear nothing. Did you read that correctly ... we hear NOTHING.

The blessing of this is that when you PRAY in the quietness of this place you actually CAN hear God because there are no distractions.Why am I sharing "Life in Noodle, TX" with you? Because, my sweet friends, I know that you too need to be still ... I know that you too need to find a quiet place where God can show himself to you in a mighty way so you can, possibly for the first time in your life, "know that He is God."

I know that I desperately needed Him to help me be in a place of solitude so I could hear what he was asking of me as a mother and a wife and as a ministry leader. He wanted me to watch the sunrise every morning, to get into His word and lay myself face down at His throne so He could show me the path I needed to take to be in His will. I was off course ... way off course. He wanted me to see through His eyes and not my own the direction I needed to go. He wanted for me to prioritize things differently and allow Him to be the love of my life and the only guide in my journey.

God is gently calling you to be still ... can you hear him? What blessing has your Heavenly Father planned in the stillness awaiting only you? What amazing truth is almighty God going to reveal to you when you surrender your heart to the quietness of his throne?

Let him show you. You only have to "be still" and he will do the rest ... remember ... He is God.

Used with Permission: - HEARTLIGHT(R) Magazine 2007 -- http://www.heartlight.org/
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Who Can Be Still? (Rubel Shelly)

Ever feel guilty when somebody quoted this Bible verse: "Be still, and know that I am God"? (Psalm 46:10).

I'll bet you'd like nothing better than to find a quiet time today. Maybe you are even planning for it. Wonderful things can happen in times of solitude, stillness, and silence before God. But "stillness" is hard to come by and simply isn't available on some days or in certain life experiences.There's precious little time for stillness when production deadlines are close. A report is due in three hours. An inspection is in progress. If you live in a big city, there are voices and horns. There is constant motion. Shared living space has someone else's music, someone else's TV, and someone else's voice. Where do you find God in all the noise?

Then there is "noise" of a different quality altogether. Pain from illness or injury screams at you. The pressure of finding a new job or putting life together after a death takes away your tranquil sense of God. Sadness, disappointment, and loss crash over you with the roar of an angry sea. Strange as it may seem to say, the greater need for some of us may be less for stillness than to learn how to hear God's voice smack in the middle of all the noise, chaotic activity, and disorienting trouble.

"They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits' end. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord ..." (Psalm 107:27-31).

Do you really think ours is the first to feel this way?

Do you really think ours is the first generation of humankind to feel the pressure of noise, tension, and uncertainty? Of course it isn't. And the experience of some of those people can guide us in our times of stress.

Whoever the subjects of this ancient-but-always-modern thought (Psalm 107), they were reeling and staggering under their load. There was no serene stillness before God for them. To the contrary, they were "at their wits' end." So right in the middle of their frenzy and distress, "they cried out to the Lord in their trouble" - and God heard them.

If your life has more tumult than stillness, more crash than tranquility, God has not abandoned you. He beckons you to cry out to him, and he will show himself to you.

Amidst the noise, you will find him with you in the middle of it all.

Used with permission: - HEARTLIGHT(R) Magazine 2007 -- http://www.heartlight.org/
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Reflective Prayer: Lord it is so hard in the busyness of life to find the time & place of solitude to be with you - help me Abba to be a wise steward of my time - help me stop & find that place that is yours & mine alone - help me to stop talking - let me be still and listen - help me to know you - thank you for hearing my cry today! Amen
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Learning to Listen - (Max Lucado)

Equipped with the right tools, we can learn to listen to God. What are those tools?

Here are the ones I have found helpful:

A regular time and place. Select a slot on your schedule and a corner of your world, and claim it for God. For some it may be best to do this in the morning. Others prefer the evening Others prefer many encounters during the day. Some sit under a tree, others in the kitchen. Maybe your commute to work or your lunch break would be appropriate. Find a time and place that seems right for you.

How much time should you take? As much as you need. Value quality over length. Your time with God should last long enough for you to say what you want and for God to say what he wants.

Which leads us to a second tool you need? an open Bible.God speaks to us through his Word.

The first step in reading the Bible is to ask God to help you understand it. Before reading the Bible, pray. Don’t go to Scripture looking for your own idea; go searching for God’s. Read the Bible prayerfully. Also, read the Bible carefully.

Here is a practical point. Study the Bible a little at a time. God seems to send messages as he did his manna: one day’s portion at a time. Choose depth over quantity. Read until a verse “hits” you, then stop and meditate on it. Copy the verse onto a sheet of paper, or write it in your journal, and reflect on it several times.

Will I learn what God intends? If I listen, I will.Understanding comes a little at a time over a lifetime.

There is a third tool for having a productive time with God. Not only do we need a regular time and an open Bible, we also need a listening heart. Don’t forget the admonition from James: “The man who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and makes a habit of so doing, is not the man who hears and forgets. He puts that law into practice and he wins true happiness” (James 1:25 PHILLIPS).

We know we are listening to God when what we read in the Bible is what others see in our lives. Paul urged his readers to put into practice what they had learned from him. “What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do” (Phil. 4:9 RSV).

If you want to be just like Jesus, let God have you. Spend time listening for him until you receive your lesson for the day - then apply it.

From Just Like Jesus - - UpWords from Max Lucado - Copyright (W Publishing Group, 1998, 2001)
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Reflective Thought: Armour for the Battle

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. (NAS) 1 Peter 5:8-9"

Personal spiritual warfare is anything we do as a conscious effort to live out the kingdom of God and oppose the kingdom of Satan in our particular contexts." (Scott Morreau).

The basic secret for overcoming our enemy is simply knowing God in a vital and deepening relationship. Our focus as Christians should be on God, His power, His sovereignty, His holiness and His love. Because of Christ's victory on the cross, our standing against the enemy is possible. ...the struggle between being godly & being you. The amazing truth is that God has elevated us, spiritually, to the same exalted position Christ enjoys. God "raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:6).

As we take our stand in the victory of Christ, Satan is powerless to defeat us. No one who is wise goes into battle unprepared. Paul tells us: "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power" (Ephesians 6:10).

Immediately after beginning a relationship with Christ, a believer finds himself in a constant struggle. On earth, there are 2 kingdoms in conflict: God's Kingdom and the spiritual forces of evil (Ephesians 6:10-12). It is not a question of which Kingdom is stronger. Jesus is the stronger who has bound Satan (Luke 11:14-22). Because of Christ's victory on the cross, our standing against the enemy is possible.

So what's the struggle? Basically it's the struggle between being godly and being you. Paul says "be strong." The word "strong" means to empower. It comes from the root word "dunamis" which is where we get our word "dynamite". So it is dynamite like power. But, you cannot be strong in yourself. The strength come from God and His power.

Paul continues to write: "Put on the full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" (Ephesians 6:11-12).

The verb tense of "put on" means that it is a command to begin at this very moment. Right now, not later! Put on the whole armor or God, not just bits and pieces, but the full armor of God! The phrase, "Take your stand" implies that not everyone does take a stand. Often, the very fact that you are willing to stand while everyone else is falling away, draws the attention of others and makes them seek out your secret.

HINT: The secret is your relationship with Jesus Christ.

So, are you STANDING? Are you EVEN in the Battle? Whose strength are you fighting IN?

Your own strength or GOD'S? Everything aims at our ability to stand. . .refuse to yield ground. . .sometimes all you can do is stand! And you will "win" if you stand! But, expect an active battle as you stand. "You can always measure the weight of your blow by the one you get back." (from a missionary in New Guinea)

Written by Marji "Mike" Kruger - Anchor Your Life: Devotions - http://www.anchoryourlife.com

Affirmations

2007-05-25T20:25:00.000-07:00

Due to many prayer requests I have once again added some old & some new affirmations below to use daily -

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The Power of Words:

There are so many people in the world that are capable of doing the Lord's work, but they have a problem with discouragement. This is the enemy's number one weapon and he is more successful with it then you may think. You would not believe the attacks and numerous times satan tried to discourage my heart to do what the Lord put in my spirit to do. My mouth is what kept me victorious and that is what I want to share with you today.

Our mouth is the most powerful weapon we can use when fighting spiritual battles, but it isn't in our own strength that we are victorious but in the Lord's. The Bible says that life and death are in the power of the tongue and we shall eat the fruit thereof (Proverbs 18:21).

Always be quick to speak words of life, blessing and prosperity. When life gets tough and you start speaking negative words, eventually that problem will get worse because you are giving the enemy the authority to stick around.

The enemy comes to us slowly and tries to plant a thought in our mind and then sits back to see where we will go with it. It is then up to us to accept it and pursue that thought or cast it down and speak words of authority over the devil.

You do have control over your mind and are completely capable to defeat satan and the plans he has for you.

If you have been washed by the blood of the Lamb and have opened your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, then the devil has no business hanging around you. You must renew your mind and realize that satan must flee when he's commanded to in the name of Jesus Christ. (Mark 16:17)

I want you to do something that I believe will help you understand that you do have control over your mind and the things that enter it. I will give you a sentence that I want you to repeat in your mind 4 times and when you are repeating this the 4th time I want you to start counting to ten out loud.

Are You Ready?

Repeat in your Mind this sentence: Nothing is working right and I should just give up.

Repeat again

Repeat again

Repeat again

Now start counting Out Loud --- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Ok. What happened when you started counting out loud? The thought that was being repeated in your mind stopped the second you opened your mouth and started counting the numbers.

Every time the enemy comes with words of discouragement and defeat, we are to stand strong and speak the scriptures. In 2 Corinthians 10:5 the Bible declares "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." Every thought that is not of God, we are to bring into our control and overcome it by speaking words of life and not death. (Deuteronomy 30:19)

The second the devil gives you a thought of discouragement or to quit a certain task the Lord has given you, you should be quick to speak words of authority using the scriptures.

Examples:

You are to weak to handle this situation; you are to open your mouth and say " I am strong in the Lord and in the power of His might" (Ephesians 6:10).

"I will overcome every obstacle with the help of the Lord and nothing shall overtake me." (Deut 28:1-3)

You are not smart enough to handle this problem; open your mouth and say "God will give me all wisdom to handle any situation" (James 1:5).

You are not going to beat the cancer; you are to open your mouth and say "By His stripes I am healed" (Isaiah 53:5).You will never be able to pay all your bills; open your mouth and say "God will meet all my needs according to His Riches and Glory. I will lend and not borrow and the Lord will make me the head and not the tail" (Deuteronomy 28:12-13).

You will never see your children and grandchildren get saved; open your mouth and say. "Me and my household will be saved in the name of Jesus" (Acts 16:31).

I have written these things to you for one reason. I want you to be encouraged to do all that the Lord has put in your heart to do. Never think that you are not good enough or do not have the skills to do the work of the Lord. The Holy Spirit will put in your heart every step that you need to take so don't worry about that.

Jesus says in Matthew 10:19-20 "But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you." KJV

I encourage you to search Gods Word and write down all the scriptures that are relevant to the problem or situation you are going through. The devil is not afraid of you but he is terrified of Gods Word and must obey when commanded to in the name above all names, Jesus Christ.

Remember This: Jesus doesn't call the qualified; He qualifies the called

In Christ Service, Dwayne Savaya Gods Work Ministry
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Reflection: Lest We Forget:

Always remember: The enemy wants to block your path. If he can tempt and divert you from your course, he can stop you from entering into the full portion (inheritance) that God has for you. He will develop strategies against you to bring deception and then division. He develops ways to accuse you so he can hold you in condemnation. He wants to block your supply, discourage you, stop you praying & praising. Do not be ignorant of his wiles.

Tear down mindsets of poverty. Poverty has a voice which says, "God is not able." Dismantle unbelief over provision. "Prove Me NOW," says the Lord! Look up and see the windows of blessings that He wants to open up. Watch Him overcome your devourer.

God says: I will supply all your needs Philippians 4:19
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Francis Frangipane: "TAKE UP THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT--THE WORD OF GOD--AND GO TO WAR!"

"If we advance protected by the Blood of the Lamb, if we war armed with the Word of God, and if we shoulder in our hearts the Cross of Christ, we will truly be more than conquerors through Him that loved us."

Christ not only came to set captives free, He came to train and empower the recently freed to be warriors. We may not always walk perfectly, but because God causes all things to work for good, we still can walk triumphantly. How can we, imperfect Christians, walk triumphantly?

The Bible says we overcome "because of the Blood of the Lamb and because of the word of [our] testimony, and [we do] not love [our lives] even when faced with death" (Revelation 12:11).

These three things--Christ's atoning blood, our testimony of God's eternal word, and choosing to not love our own lives--secure us in the place of victory. We are a covenant people, a people purchased for God from every nation. Yes, we still sin, but God has placed the iniquity of us all upon His Son, Jesus Christ (Isaiah 53). When the enemy comes to accuse and condemn us for our failures, we must remind ourselves that every sin we have ever committed has been nailed to Christ's cross. The entire "certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us," has been paid in full by the Blood of Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:14)!

As much as we need the blood of Christ, to functionalize our victory, we also need a living knowledge of God's Word. Many Christians are awakened spiritually, but they do not know God's promises in the Bible. To be successful, we must know God's Word, believe it, and speak it with faith when we pray. We overcome by the "word of our testimony."

Third, in our world of excess and self-gratification, we must learn the wisdom and power of carrying the Cross ("they did not love their life"). By becoming true disciples of Jesus Christ, the Cross keeps us focused on our transformation. It also keeps us from the quicksand of self-pity, gratuitous over-indulgence, and unforgiveness.

To aid your fight of faith, we've prepared a brief collection of Scriptures.

Remember, God's Word will not return to Him without accomplishing the purpose for which He sent it (Isaiah 55:11). Let us, therefore, "hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23).

Don't murmur when you pray, proclaim the Word of God with authority. Indeed, the Holy Spirit tells us to take up "the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" (Ephesians 6:17). If we advance protected by the Blood of the Lamb, if we war armed with the Word of God, and if we shoulder in our hearts the Cross of Christ, we will truly be "more than conquerors through Him that loved us" (Romans 8:37).

The following are just a few of the many mighty promises of God. We urge you to print these verses, memorize them and pass them on to your friends and fellow intercessors.

Spiritual Warfare Verses
"Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven: and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven" (Matthew 18:18).
"The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil" (1 John 3:8).
"'No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; and every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their vindication is from Me,' declares the LORD" (Isaiah 54:17).
(Isaiah 42:13, 1 John 4:4, James 4:7, Matthew 28:19-20, Matthew 16:18, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, Luke 10:19, 2 Corinthians 2:14, Isaiah 49:24-25)

Divine Shelter of God
"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the Kingdom of His beloved Son" (Colossians 1:13).
"The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold" (Psalm 18:2). (1 John 5:18, Psalm 91:1, Romans 8:28)

Fear
"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18). "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4). (2 Kings 6:16, Hebrews 2:14, Hebrews 2:14-15)

Deliverance, Forgiveness and Salvation
"He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea" (Micah 7:19)."If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). (Isaiah 53:5, Psalm 32:7, Psalm 91:3, Hebrews 7:25, Romans 8:34, Luke 4:17-19)

Peace
"Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10)."In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O LORD, make me to dwell in safety" (Psalm 4:8). (Romans 16:20, Philippians 1:28, Psalm 110:1)

The Power of the New Covenant
"And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death" (Revelation 12:11). (Colossians 2:13-14, Matthew 26:26-28, Zechariah 9:11-12)

Healing
"But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5). (Hebrews 13:8, Matthew 4:24, Isaiah 53:4)

Family
"For I will contend with the one who contends with you, and I will save your sons" (Isaiah 49:25).(Acts 2:17, Acts 16:31)

Discernment
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). (1 Corinthians 2:15, Ephesians 6:10-18)

We hope these Scriptures will be a blessing and an empowerment to you. Francis Frangipane - Ministries of Francis Frangipane - Email:francis1@frangipane.org - ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Affirmations: (Author Unknown - Scriptures from Bible - God's Word)

Having problems & cant cope? Then search Gods Word and write down all the scriptures that are relevant to your situation. The devil is not afraid of you but he is scared of Gods Word. The second you feel overwhelmed you should be quick to speak with authority using the scriptures.

Note in the scripture when Jesus responded to the devil He said, "It is written..." (Mathew 4:1-11)

For all the negative things we have to say to ourselves, God has a positive answer for each one ... Speak out daily:

Please find some useful scriptures to use below:

You are to weak to handle this - you are to say " I am strong in the Lord and in the power of His might" (Ephes 6:10). "I will overcome every obstacle with the help of the Lord and nothing shall overtake me." (Deut 28:1-3)You are not smart enough to handle this - say "God will give me all wisdom to handle any situation" (James 1:5).

You will never see your children and grandchildren get saved; say. "Me and my household will be saved in the name of Jesus" (Acts 16:31).

You will never be able to pay all your bills; say "God will meet all my needs according to His Riches and Glory. I will lend and not borrow and the Lord will make me the head and not the tail" (Deut 28:12-13).

You are not going to beat the sickness or infirmity; you are to open your mouth and say "By His stripes I am healed" (Isaiah 53:5).

You say: "It's impossible" - God says: All things are possible (Luke 18:27)

You say: "I'm too tired" - God says: I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28-30)

You say: "Nobody really loves me" - God says: I love you (John 3:16 & John 13:34)

You say: "I can't go on" - God says: My grace is sufficient (II Cor 12:9 & Psalm 91:15)

You say: "I can't figure things out" - God says: I will direct your steps (Proverbs 3:5-6)

You say: "I can't do it" - God says: you can do all things (Philippians 4:13)

You say: "I'm not able" - God says: I am able (II Cor 9:8)

You say "It's not worth it" - God says: It will be worth it (Romans 8:28)

You say: "I can't forgive myself" - God says: I FORGIVE YOU (I John 1:9 & Rom 8:1)

You say: "I can't manage" - God says: I will supply all your needs (Philippians 4:19)

You say: "I'm afraid" - God says: I have not given you a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7)

You say: "I'm always worried and frustrated" - God says: Cast all your cares on ME (I Pet 5:7)

You say: I'm not smart enough" - God says: I give you wisdom (I Cor 1:30)

You say: I feel all alone" - God says: I will never leave you or forsake you (Heb 13:5)

"Never Again" List (Author Unknown)

Never again will I confess "I can't," for "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13).

Never again will I confess unmet needs or poverty, for "My God shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory" (Philippians 4:19).

Never again will I confess fear, for "God hath not given me a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" 2 Timothy 1:17).

Never again will I confess doubt or lack of faith, for "God has given to every man the measure of faith" (Romans 12:13).

Never again will I confess weakness, for "The Lord is the strength of my life" (Psalm 27:1). Also . . . "for the joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10).

Never again will I confess supremacy of Satan over my life, for "Greater is He that is within me than he that is in the world" 2 John 4:4).

Never again will I confess defeat, for "God always causes me to triumph in Christ Jesus" 2 Cor 2:14).

Never again will I confess lack of wisdom, for "Christ is made unto me wisdom from God" (I Cor 1:30).

Never again will I confess sickness, for " . . with His stripes I am healed" (Isai 53:5). And "Jesus Himself took my infirmities and bore my sicknesses" (Matthew 8:17).

Never again will I confess worries and frustrations, for I am "Casting all my cares upon Him who cares for me" (I Peter 5:7).

Never again will I confess bondage, for "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Cor 3:17). Never again will I confess condemnation, for "There is now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1).

Finding life impossible - It is written: Nothing is impossible with God - He will never forsake you - They that wait upon the Lord shall be refreshed & strengthened - The battle is the Lords & with Him on our side we will win.

Battle weary: It is written: "The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven." Deut 28:7 NIV

Lost direction: It is written: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Feeling defeated: It is written: "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." Isaiah 54:17.
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Reflective Thought:

Know your enemy. Your real enemy is the devil. Your enemy is not people. People are simply the instruments, simply the tools of the devil. It tells us in Ephesians 6:12, "We war not against flesh and blood." Recognize who the enemy really is and charge him with the Word and with faith-filled words.

Obey the Word of God. It is not enough just to hear it, we must obey. Sometimes obedience to God means there will be a good fight. We have to fight to get anything that is worth having. Don't just read the Word, obey what God is instructing you to do to get your breakthrough.

Keep standing. What do you do if you prayed and obeyed and you have not experienced breakthrough? The Word of God tells us we are more than conquerors. We are to fight the good fight of faith, perceiving and expecting the God of the breakthrough to come through. Having done all to stand, STAND!

Yesterday's failure can become today's success. Tragedies can become triumphs. You can change the direction of your life. The secret is to see your breakthrough. Perceive it and see it clearly. God is a God of breakthrough, and He can bring the breakthrough in your life today. Trust Him.

Let us say, " I am strong in the Lord and in the power of His might" (Ephesians 6:10). "I will overcome every obstacle with the help of the Lord and nothing shall overtake me." (Deut 28)

Questioning what to do! Proverbs 3: 5-6 says "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

God left us at least three powerful promises:
1. "I am with you always to the end of the world." Math 28:20
2. "He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear, but ... will also provide a way out, so that you can stand up under it." 1 Corinthians 10:13
3. "If you ask for bread, He will not give you a stone. If you ask for a fish He will not give you a snake." Matthew 7:9-10
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The Lord Will Conquer Your Enemies

2007-05-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

Dwell on Goodness of God:

Deut. 28:7 “The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven! “

Proverbs 6:31 “But if the thief is caught, he must pay seven fold as much as he stole…”

I may be wrong about this but I don’t think that I complain much or ever tell you about my bad days. I don’t because I usually don’t dwell on the things that make a bad day bad. That helps make a bad day better.

I usually dwell on the goodness of God and how that has impacted my life. I think about those things of real value and then I think of things in the light of God’s big picture – eternity and His eternal purposes. That makes any big problem immediately seem small and less significant.

On top of that, complaining glorifies the devil’s efforts. I won’t do that. I never let the devil get away with any attack he has brought against my life. The Apostle Paul taught us that “we don’t fight flesh and blood” – in other words, people are not our problem or enemy.

He taught us that there are spiritual forces that work to “kill, steal, and destroy.” Granted people are used by Satan to hurt one another at times but they are still demonic forces that try to hurt us, discourage us, and convince us that God is not real or does not care. That is a lie. He does.

Consequently, when I am attacked, I identify what it is that the enemy has done, I declare him caught, I identify him as the thief, and then I bring it to the Lord.

Why? Because of a very special promise that I remind God of – today’s Fresh Manna verse: “The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven! “

You may not know this about me but I love to do gardening – flower gardens. It is a place where I can get quiet with the Lord and wind down from working with people all day. I love to have a part in making things grow. Planting a garden is probably like painting on canvas to a painter. I put a variety of things in place in the garden. I nurture them, and over time, they spring into a beautiful flower garden.

This year our weather warmed up early. I was able to do my spring clean up in April. Then the weather stayed warm so I took a risk and planted it early. I actually had it mostly planted by the end of April. By May this year, it already almost looked like a summer garden. I had a broad mix of perennials and annuals. I invest a fair amount of money in building my garden as it’s a delight to Renee and I and one of the few hobbies that I spend money on.

Yesterday, we had a hard storm pass through. There were tornados in the area and we had hard hail and rain hit. It stripped many of the leaves from the trees. It also stripped the plants in the garden and every plant I had in a planter. I had beautiful towering geraniums three feet high with full blooms. It stripped them down to nothing. It stripped my beautiful blooming garden to the ground. Our streets were flooded. Part of one garden area was under water. Everything was a mess. I worked in three feet of water for an hour trying to clean the street sewers from debris so the streets would clear from flooding rain. I succeeded and the flood waters drained. Then I spend four hours just trying to rake the debris from the garden areas while trying also to not cry. A months worth of labor working many evenings and a significant investment in my garden and just been stolen.

I fell into bed last night exhausted. I fell asleep and began to dream. I had a horrible dream that Renee had died in this storm. Throughout the dream, I’d be walking but without her. Instead I’d be thinking about how much I missed her. It was such a sad dream. After what felt like a full night of this dream, I half woke up. I reached out for Renee but she wasn’t there. I fell back a sleep and dreamed more of the same. Then this morning I woke up and reached for her again. She wasn’t’ there but I realized she was next door at my daughter’s house. She’d been babysitting the grandchildren this week while my daughter and son-in-law were on vacation. When I realized this I was so happy!

I got up and looked out the window at my yard and garden. It is still devastated, but, it seems much smaller and less significant after my dream of Renee dying. I am so glad I have her. The garden I can replant. The time and money I’ve lost is not lost. I have turned it over to the Lord. I never let the devil steal even a nickel from me. What God has blessed me with is mine to use and to be a blessing. I will not let the devil steal from me.

What do I do about it? I turn it over to the Lord.

“Heavenly Father, Satan the thief has attacked our lives and he has no legal right to do so because Renee and I are children of God. I have prayed for your protection over this household and the enemy has violated that. I turn Him over to you. You said, you would “…conquer my enemies when they attack me.” You said, “Though they will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven!” You said that “if the thief is found, he shall restore sevenfold…” I thank you for a sevenfold return on what the enemy has stolen and lay hold of that promise by faith today. Thank you for watching over us and the promise of your word in Jesus name. Praise God I have my wife. Praise God I will have my sevenfold return!

Used with permission: Pastor Tim Burt - http://www.freshmanna.org
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The Power of Prayer

2007-02-24T19:51:00.000-08:00

To post the next two messages no surprises I went through much warfare! I believe both should be read regularly as positive reminders of why we pray& understanding spiritual warfare. I would recommend using the link at the end of the message to go & read the full hand book -Enjoy!

Power of Prayer

(From Spiritual Survival Handbook - (Part Message) Chapter 4: )

The safe place for your heart. "Keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for. Keep on looking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And the door is opened to everyone who knocks." Luke 11:9-10
~~~

A young missionary on furlough told this incredible story while visiting his home church in Michigan. "While serving at a small field hospital in Africa, every two weeks I traveled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping overnight at the halfway point. On one of these journeys, I arrived in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase medicine and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the field hospital. Upon arrival in the city, I observed two men fighting, one of whom had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at the same time talked to him about the Lord Jesus Christ. I then traveled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without incident.

Two weeks later, I repeated my journey.Upon arriving in the city once again, I was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he had known that I carried money and medicines. He said, "Some friends and I followed you into the jungle, knowing you would camp overnight. We planned to kill you and take your money and drugs. But just as we were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by twenty-six armed guards." At this, I laughed and said that I was certainly all alone out in that jungle campsite. The young manpressed the point, however, and said, "No sir, I was not the only person to see the guards. My five friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of those guards that we were afraid and left you alone.

At this point in the sermon, one of the men in the congregation jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he could tell him the exact day this happened. The missionary told the congregation the date, and the man who interrupted told him this story: "On the night of your incident in Africa, it was morning here and I was preparing to go play golf. I was about to putt when I felt the urge to pray for you. In fact, the urging of the Lord was so strong, I called men in this church to meet with me here inthe sanctuary to pray for you. Would all of those men who met with me on that day please stand up?" The men who had met together to pray that day stood up. The missionary was not concerned with who they were, he was too busy counting how many men he saw. There were twenty-six.
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Be a prayer warrior, not a prayer worrier. A prayer warrior walks in the authority of Jesus.
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1. What is prayer?

Prayer is the simple act of "talking with God" and opening our minds to receive His point of view on a matter. Prayer is a hotline to God. Each time we pray, we will not receive a busy signal, and we can spend all the time we want talking to God.

How can this be? Because God is never too busy to speak with us. He always welcomes our calls and we do not need to be concerned about any phone charges, because Jesus already paid our bill in full.

Whenever God is our focus we are praying. More specifically, prayer is:

~ Our S.O.S. signal to God in times of crisis. Prayer is one of the most important instruments in our spiritual survival arsenal as it stops the strategy of the enemy.
~ The key that unlocks the miraculous.
~ Where we become spiritually recharged.
~ Talking to God with a trusting heart.
~ Asking God for guidance.
~ Listening for Gods voice.

Is not listening one of the qualities we look for in others? This is the same in our relationship with God. He is looking for us to not only talk to Him, but care enough to spend time listening to him.
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Prayer is the safe sanctuary where you can open your heart to God.
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Praying when everything is going well is really great, but when pain and crisis hits prayer needs to be a "knee jerk" reaction. Talking with God about our problems and then giving our burdens to Him is a great benefit.

Undoubtedly, there will be times when we are too emotionally overwhelmed to find the words to pray, this is when we can rely on the Holy Spirit to intercede on our behalf. Romans 8:26-27, "The Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will."

* Due to length (also similar messages already in Archives) points 2-8 9-11 & 12 have not been included in this post - It is strongly recommended when you have time that you use the link at the bottom of this message to complete the study.

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God understands your prayers even when you can not find the words to say them.
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8. What happens if I don't take time to pray?

Satan will try everything in his power to keep you from praying by keeping you busy. Because he knows neglecting to pray produces doubt, weariness, discouragement, disillusionment, and vulnerablity to the devil's tactics.

Eventually discernment is destroyed, our heart becomes hardened, and it slowly brings spiritual disaster. So it's no wonder when we make it our goal to pray that distractions come our way. This is one of the devilss most obvious strategies in his attempt to keep us from a deep ongoing relationship with the Lord. When faced with distractions, the best response is sheer determination to make time for the Lord in prayer

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Seven days without prayer makes one weak.
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11. Why do we need to pray Gods scriptural promises?

Praying the promise, not the problem is simply using biblical scriptures in our prayers as a way to be confident that we are praying according to the will of God. For God faithfully watches over his Word for it to perform what he wants to see happen in any given circumstance.

He intervenes in answer to our prayers no matter how bleak things may look. In order to pray this way, we first need to search the Bible for the verse that is the antidote to our problem and then boldly pray it.

Here are some verses to help you get started:

When all looks hopeless: Matthew 19:26, "Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible."

When feeling trapped with no way out: 2 Corinthians 3:17, "...the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, he gives freedom."

When grieving: Matthew 5:4

When in sorrow: John 14

When you worry: Matthew 6:19-34

When you are in danger: Psalm 91

When God seems far away: Psalm 139

When your faith needs stirring: Hebrews 11

When you are lonely and fearful: Psalm 23

When you grow bitter and critical: I Corinthians 13

When you feel down and out: Romans 8:31

When you want peace and rest: Matthew 11:25-30

When you leave home: Psalm 121

When you want courage: Joshua 1

If you are depressed: Psalm 27

If you are discouraged: Psalm 126

For dealing with fear: Psalm 34:7

For security: Psalm 121:3

For reassurance: Psalm 145:18
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Anxiety is the rust of life, destroying its brightness and weakening itspower. A childlike and abiding trust in God is its best preventive remedy.
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13. Why is prayer so important?

God is a builder. Through prayer He gives plans, strategies, patterns, and schemes to shape more of His kingdom within the world. For absolutely nothing good is accomplished on earth without it first being accomplished in prayer. This is one of the reasons prayer is so vitally important to our spiritual well being and our positive impact on others.

In fact, there will not come a time in our spiritual growth when we can say we have arrived and no longer need to broaden our prayer experience. Learning about prayer is a life long process.

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Delay never stops Gods purpose, it only polishes you His instrument.
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The final step in prayer is to trust God as we wait patiently for His answer. The key word here is patiently. A Spiritual Survivor is a person who learned to be prayerful and patient.

"Spiritual Survival Handbook Chapter 4 used with permission: Copyright (c) 1999-2007 Spiritual Survival Handbook by Rev. K. A. Brown. All rights reserved. To view complete 'Spiritual Handbook please go to the following link: http://www.spiritualsurvival.org

Spiritual Survival!

2007-02-24T19:09:00.000-08:00

"Victory Elements' - Disarming the darkness.

(Spiritual Survival Handbook: (Part Message) Chapter 8:

"God disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross of Christ."Colossians 2:15
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In Mainland China during 2002, Pastor Li De Xian and his wife Zhao Xia refused to be silenced. "Christ was the first to suffer," Pastor Li De Xian said. We just follow him. There are many thorns, but we are just injured a little on our feet. This suffering is very little."

Despite continual pressure from the Public Security Bureau, Pastor Li refuses to miss a service unless he is in prison or change his message of salvation through Jesus Christ. He has been arrested so many times during the past two years that he has lost count. During one recent detention, jailers tied his arms and legs together and chained his arms and legs to a bedpost for three days. When they finally released him from this torture, he was forced to work on an assembly line in the prison factory putting bulbs into strings of Christmas lights to send to America.

"Don't feel sorry for us," Zhao Xia says of their lifestyle. "At least we are constantly reminded that we are in a spiritual war. We know for whom we are fighting. We know who the enemy is. And we are fighting. Perhaps we should pray for you Christians outside of China. In your leisure, in your affluence, in your freedom, sometimes you no longer realize that you are in spiritual warfare."

As members of Gods army living in enemy terrain, Christians are daily involved in a spiritual war between Gods kingdom of light and Satans kingdom of darkness. We are Christs foot soldiers and Jesus is the Captain of God's Army. As our Captain, He goes before us and with us as we do our part in taking dominion over and neutralizing the forces of darkness. As we do the practical with Gods anointing, the Lord does the supernatural.

The fearless confidence Pastor Li posesses is available to every Christian as we recognize the magnitude of Christs victory over Satan. Through Christs death and resurrection, the devils teeth and claws were pulled out. In spite of this, Satan presents himself as undefeated. He goes about "roaring" as a lion attempting to intimidate the soldiers in God's Army in to believing he can chew us up, spit us out, and shred us to pieces. The truth is Jesus crushed the Devil's authority over every Christian.

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He (Jesus) is the Lord over every ruler and authority in the universe. Colossians 2:10
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1. What is a satanic attack?

It is a deliberate and calculated assault by the devil with the intent to ultimately destroy or at least to cause harm spiritually, physically, mentally, materially, and emotionally. One of the focus of every attack is to cause us to doubt. Our thoughts are where our spiritual battles are either won or lost, so whatever the evil one is lying to you about, reject it. Then replace it with scriptural truths.

While Jesus lived on earth, he was not immune from Satans attacks. Jesus experienced spiritual battles on many occasions during his life. The first attack recorded came after his baptism:

Mark 1:12-13, "The Holy Spirit compelled Jesus to go into the wilderness. He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was out among the wild animals, and angels took care of him."Luke 4:1-13, "Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit to go out into the wilderness, where the Devil tempted him for forty days. He ate nothing all that time and was very hungry.

Then the Devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, change this stone into a loaf of bread."
But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say, `People need more than bread for their life.'"

Then the Devil took him up and revealed to him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.The Devil told him, "I will give you the glory of these kingdoms and authority over them--because they are mine to give to anyone I please. I will give it all to you if you will bow down and worship me."

Jesus replied, "The Scriptures say, `You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.'"

Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, `He orders his angels to protect and guard you. And they will hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone.'

"Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, `Do not test the Lord your God.'

When the Devil had finished tempting Jesus, he left him until the next opportunity came.

Just as Jesus used the powerful Word of God to defeat the Devi's attacks, we can do the same. For every spiritual attack there is a scripture which helps resist temptation and win the battle. In addition to using scripture, we need to keep from talking about how the devil is attacking us. By keeping our focus and speech on the Lordship of Jesus, the evil one is deprived of the attention his pride and ego craves.

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When you do the practical, God faithfully does the supernatural.
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2. Where are spiritual battlefields?

Within our thoughts. Our thought life is rich soil for spiritual battles. This is where we either win or lose every battle.

"Be careful! Watch out for attacks from the Devil, your great enemy. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for some victim to devour. Take a firm stand against him, and be strong in your faith." 1 Peter 5:8-93.

Are there character traits soldiers in God's army need to develop?

Yes. The following traits are powerful in advancing God's Kingdom on earth by overthrowing the kingdom of darkness:

Alertness: Be aware of spiritual events and respond with the right actions.
Discipline: A learned lifestyle that is imposed from within one's self.
Confidence: Lack of insecurity due to the fact physical and spiritual abilities are not dependent on a soldier alone, but dependent on God for His resources and strength to flow through them.
Wisdom: Practical application of knowledge and discernment in moral and spiritual matters within daily activities.Endurance: Able to persevere regardless of the physical and spiritual obstacles encountered.
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You may want to measure yourself by your aspirations instead of your performance, but the conduct of your life is the only real proof of the sincerity of your heart.
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4. What is spiritual armor?

It consists of invisible spiritual weapons supplied by the Holy Spirit to be used in defending one self from Satans attacks and used in advancing the Kingdom of God on earth. Each piece of spiritual armor needs only to be put on once.

It has been reported by a national deliverance ministry that demons see spiritual weapons.

Ephesians 6:14-17, "Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared. In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

A prepared soldier never lets his or her guard down. Every day spiritual preparedness is required for whatever confronts them. Before going into spiritual battle, ask the Holy Spirit to anoint your spiritual armor.

Without the Holy Spirits anointing, you end up relying on your own natural strength. The anointing keeps your armor working properly and free of holes.

The Devil also uses the 4 D's of discouragement, disillusionment, depression, and deception to knock us down and distract us from focusing on the path to victory.

If you fall for this tactic, refocus, get up, and grab your sword and shield.

6. What is the anointing?

It is the supernatural manifestation of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, which enables us to function beyond our natural abilities within our work, our relationships, and our ministries. It can be seen through the operation of our spiritual gifts and our ability to stand firm by faith in the face of trials. If we want this anointing, we need to simply ask for it and voluntary surrender our plans and desires in exchange for Gods. This produces more room for the Holy Spirit to reside within us.

Through surrender to Father God our intellect, emotions, and physical abilities become available to the Holy Spirit for achieving His purposes. Under His control our natural gifts are elevated to their highest potential. Surrender is the pivotal element to the increase of the anointing. Our surrender indicates a fight has taken place. Surrender frees us from our futile efforts to depend on ourselves.The anointing is maintained and grows by living a consistent holy lifestyle of worship and walking in love.

This is the price tag for the anointing ... choosing to forgive rather than take revenge or allow bitterness to find a home in our hearts ... choosing to praise and worship the Lord rather than complaining or doubting.

This lifestyle keeps our armor working properly and free of holes. Sin creates holes in our armor giving the devil the ability to hook on to our minds, bodies, or souls. By standing guard against sin and being filled with the Holy Spirit nothing can stop us from winning our spiritual battles.
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* Due to length the remaining points of 6 - 13 have not been included in this post - It is strongly recommended when you have time that you use the link at the bottom of this message to complete the study.

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A mind filled with doubt can't focus on the path to victory
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13. What are the spiritual weapons of mass destruction used in obtaining victory for spiritual battles?

Gods spiritual weapons are not wimpy. They disperse and annihilate evil forces. They cause shifts in the spiritual realm. They dethrone wicked regional powers. When these mighty supernatural weapons are used, the forces of evil cringe and retreat.

In spite of this, the devil tries to convince us we are powerless and to ultimately give up, but the truth is God has given His children these five powerful spiritual weapons of mass destruction to defeat the devil's assaults.

~ The name of Jesus. Psalm 44:5, "Only by your power can we push back our enemies; only in your name can we trample our foes." While Jesus was on earth, everything he accomplished was through Father God's authority. As Christ's Dragon Slayers on earth, every spiritual victory we obtain is through the authority we exercise in His name.

The name of Jesus is powerful over the enemy of our soul as it represents the victory that redeemed us from Satan's ownership; it brings hope to the hopeless; and peace to the confused. When we call on the name of Jesus during a spiritual battle his very presence is manifested causing evil forces to scatter.

~ The scriptures. Hebrews 4:12, "For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep." The whole universe was created through the spoken Word of God. When a verse is spoken and mixed with faith it accomplishes what it states it can.

As sons of God, our spoken words carry great power and authority. When we speak the Word of God into a spiritual battle it sends the evil forces running with their tails tucked like a submissive dog.

~ The blood Jesus shed on the cross. Revelation 12:11, "They have defeated him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of their testimony. And they were not afraid to die." The Devil fears the redemptive blood of Jesus Christ above every other power. Why? The hordes of hell don't want even a drop of Christ's blood to touch them. The blood of Jesus Christ is the most powerful element on earth.

It resurrects the dead, heals the sick, redeems sinners, and sets captives free from demonic bondage.

Spiritually applying Christs blood to a situation reverses it from a negative into a positive, meets the physical and financial need, and breaks off demonic bondage.

When we take communion in remembrance of Christ's sacrifice, it brings spiritual nourishment, a deeper identification with Christ, and the anointing we need to defeat the devil.

~The power of the Holy Spirit. 1 John 4:4, "The Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world."

~Trust in Jesus. Ephesians 6:16, "In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan." Another powerful step in response to a spiritual attack is worshipping God.

14. How does worship help in spiritual warfare?

Worship keeps our hearts focused on resting and trusting in the Lord to supernaturally fight for us as he accomplishes what we can't. Deuteronomy 1:30, "The LORD your God is going before you. He will fight for you." Deuteronomy 3:22, "Do not be afraid of the nations there, for the LORD your God will fight for you." When God steps into our battles we can count on them to always be won.

As we worship, the Holy Spirit scatters our enemies. In 2 Chronicles 20:14-24 is recorded an account of when praise and worship led the people of God into a victorious battle against their enemies. As a choir of people marched in front of the Israeli army, God began to ambush their enemy. Before the day was done, not one member of the enemy forces was left alive.

After the victories, we have the opportunity to build spiritual memorials. Memorials serve as a reminder to others and ourselves of God's faithfulness and his ability to deliver.
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A Misfit looks for victory and refuses to settle for anything less in reaching his goals
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15. What are spiritual memorials?

They are reminders of the victories we have won. With every spiritual victory, we can erect a monument to our victories as a spiritual landmark - a memorial. It can be an object established in memory of a person or an event worthy to be remembered. Memorials serve as a reminder to us and others of Gods faithfulness and his ability to deliver.

An Old Testament example, Joshua 4:1-9, is the time Joshua was instructed by the Lord to build a memorial out of twelve stones from the Jordan River as a reminder to the people of Gods victorious deliverance.

King David created his memorials through the writing of his Psalms. Thousand of years later these meaningful psalms continue to bring comfort and encouragement.

For us, a memorial can be an object that has special meaning such as a notation in our Bibles with the date of the answered prayer or just a memory we recall when giving our testimonies to others. Which ever itis, we are to celebrate our victories and build a memorial to God's glory. These memorials won't only be for our own encouragement in the future, but also to build up the faith of others and the generations to come as they face their spiritual battles.

As you face future spiritual battles, remind yourself of this truth: Spiritual battles are won through the words of "Yes" to God and "No" to Satan.

Suggested Prayer:

Dear Lord,Expose the evil ones working in my life. Bring what is hidden in darkness into Your holy light. I ask for strength and wisdom to release into Your care all that is uncovered. Keep me daily alert to the devils tactics and to resist from falling into his traps. Amen.
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Victory consists of getting up just one time more than we've fallen down.
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Spiritual Warfare Prayer

Heavenly Father, I praise and worship You. I cover myself with the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ as my protection. I pray that the blessed Holy Spirit would enable me during this time of prayer. I take a stand against all the workings of Satan that would hinder my prayers. I address myself only to the True and Living God. I reject any involvement of Satan in my thoughts and words. Satan, I command you, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, to leave my presence with all your demons. I command every work of darkness to be subject to the name of Jesus.

Heavenly Father, I recognize that You are worthy to receive all glory, honor, and praise. I am thankful that You have loved me from past eternity. That You sent the Lord Jesus Christ into the world to die as my substitute. I am thankful that Jesus came as my representative and that through Him You have completely forgiven me; You have adopted me into your family; You have assumed all responsibility for me; You have given me eternal life; You have given me the perfect righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ, so I am now justified. I am thankful that in Him, you have made me complete, and thatYou have offered Yourself to me to be my daily help and strength.

Heavenly Father, open my eyes that I might see how great You are and how complete Your provision is for me this day. I am thankful that the victory the Lord Jesus Christ won for me on the Cross and in His resurrection has been given to me seating me with the Lord Jesus Christ in the heavenlies. I recognize by faith that all wicked spirits and Satan himself are under myfeet. I declare, therefore, that Satan and his wicked spirits are subject to me in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am thankful for the spiritual Armor You have provided. I put on the Girdle of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Sandals of Peace, and the Helmet of Salvation. I lift up the Shield of Faith against all the fiery darts of the enemy; and I take in my hand the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. I choose to use Your Word against all the forces of evil in my life.
I put on this Armor and live in complete dependence on You. I refuse in this day to believe my feelings. I hold up the Shield of Faith against all the accusations, distortions, and insinuations that Satan would put into my mind. I claim the fullness of the will of God for my life today.

I am thankful, Heavenly Father, that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds, to the casting down of imagination and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge God, and to bring every thought into obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, in my own life today I tear down the strongholds of Satan and smash the plans of Satan that have been formed against me. I tear down the strongholds of Satan against my mind, and I surrender my mind to You, blessed Holy Spirit.
I affirm, Heavenly Father, that You have not given me the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of a sound mind. I break and smash the strongholds of Satan formed against my emotions today and I give my emotions to you. I smash the strongholds of Satan formed against my will today, I give my will to You and choose to make the right decisions of faith. I smash the strongholds of Satan formed against my body today, I give my body to You recognizing that I am your temple. I rejoice in Your mercy and goodness.

I am grateful, Heavenly Father, that the Lord Jesus Christ spoiled all principalities and powers triumphing over them in Himself. I claim all that victory for my life today. I reject all the insinuations, accusations, and the temptations of Satan. I affirm that the Word of God is true. I choose to live today in the light of God's Word. I choose, Heavenly Father, to live inobedience to You and in fellowship with Yourself.

Open my eyes and show me the areas of my life that do not please You. Work in me to cleanse me from all areas in my life that would give Satan a foothold against me. I do in every way stand in all that it means to be Your adopted child. I welcome all the ministry of the Holy Spirit into my life. By faith and in dependence on You, I put off my fleshly works. I stand in all the victory of the resurrection and the provision He has made for me to live above sin.Today I put off all forms of selfishness and put on love. I put off all forms of fear and put on courage. I put off all forms of weakness and put on strength. I put off all forms of lust and put on righteousness, purity, and honesty. I am trusting You to show me how to make this practical in my daily life.

I stand in the victory of the ascension and glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ, where all the principalities and powers were made subject to Him. I claim my place in Christ as victorious with Him over all the enemies of my soul. I completely surrender myself to You, Heavenly Father, as a living sacrifice. I choose not to be conformed to this world. I choose to be transformed by the renewing of my mind. I pray that You would show me Your will and enable me to walk in all the fullness of Your will today. Blessed Holy Spirit, I pray that You would fill me. Come into my life, break down every idol and cast out every foe.

I am thankful that You have made a provision, so that today I can live filled with the Spirit of God with love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, faithfulness, and self-control in my life. I recognize that this is Your will for me. I therefore reject and resist all the endeavors of Satan to rob me of the will of God.

Heavenly Father, I pray that now and through this day You would strengthen and enlighten me. Show me the way Satan is hindering, tempting, lying, and distorting the truth in my life. Enable me to be the kind of person that would please You. Enable me to be aggressive in prayer and in trusting you. Enable me to be aggressive mentally, to think about and practice Your Word, and to give You Your rightful place in my life.

Again, I pray that You, blessed Holy Spirit, would bring all the work of the crucifixion, all the work of the resurrection, all the work of the glorification, and all the work of Pentecost into my life today. I surrender myself to You. I refuse to be discouraged. For You are the God of all hope. You have proven Your power by resurrecting Jesus Christ from the dead, and I claim in every way this victory over all the satanic forces in my life. I pray this all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ with thanks giving. Amen.
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Copyright (c) 1999-2007 Spiritual Survival Handbook by Rev. K. A. Brown. All rights reserved. "Spiritual Survival Handbook Chapter 8 used with permission: Copyright (c) 1999-2007 Spiritual Survival Handbook by Rev. K. A. Brown. All rights reserved. To view complete 'Spiritual Handbook please go to the following link: http://www.spiritualsurvival.org

UNLEASHING THE POWER OF GOD

2007-02-24T18:52:00.000-08:00

I believe it is time to be praying for all our loved ones - the prodigals & those God has laid on our hearts - may this encourage you to pray earnestly!
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UNLEASHING THE POWER OF GOD

I pray it blesses all who read these words as it did those who heard them on Jan 24th 2007 here in my home church. God Bless Rev Ron Morrow
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"If we schedule a banquet, we can pack the church. But when we schedule a prayer meeting, we' are fortunate if a dozen people show up."I listened intently as the silver-haired pastor of one of the largest churches in America sat in his office and poured out his heart. As we talked, this humble, heavy-hearted servant of God reflected on those days earlier in this century when he was frequently privileged to witness the outpouring of Gods Spirit in genuine revival.

The secret to those extraordinary movements of God was not to be found in the methods, the music, the promotion, or the preaching. There have been many revivals without great preaching, singing, or promotion. But there has never been a mighty revival without mighty praying.

Prayer is to revival what labor is to childbirth. The woman who expects to have a child must endure labor pains and travail for a period of time prior to the joy of seeing that baby born. Likewise, there will be no revival apart from our willingness to agonize through the labor pains of prevailing prayer.

Prayer moves the hand of God to defeat the attacks of Satan against the Kingdom of Christ. The reality of this truth moved Samuel Chadwick to write: "The one concern of the Devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray."

Prayer unleashes the limitless, supernatural power of God into our circumstances. The marvelous promises of the Lord Jesus regarding the power of prayer stagger the imagination.

"If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it" (John 14:14). "If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 18:19).

"All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive" (Matthew 21:22).

Throughout history, Gods children have tested these promises and proven them to be true without exception. The pattern is generally the same: In the midst of dark and desperate days, Gods people humble themselves and cry out to Him for deliverance; in accordance with His promises, God hears from heaven, extends mercy, and moves to meet the needs of His children; as a result, His name is glorified among the lost. Without exception, when Gods people have united in specific prayer, He has heard, answered, provided, delivered, empowered, conquered--whatever was needed.

The glorious outpouring of Gods Spirit at Pentecost was birthed in a ten-day prayer meeting. The vibrant band of believers that "turned the world upside down" had no doubt about the priority or the power of prayer. In response to prayer, they enjoyed one of the greatest harvests of souls that the world has ever known. Demons, dungeons, disease, and disbelief were no match for the supernatural power of Christ that was released as a result of those first century prayer meetings.

Such mighty answers to prayer were not limited to the early church. Twenty centuries of church history are punctuated with accounts of divine intervention in response to united, fervent prayer. Although the earthly applause and recognition in times of spiritual awakening may be granted to the gifted orators and personalities who occupy the pulpits, I believe that heavenss headlines highlight those humble men and women who devote themselves to the ministry of intercession. Think, for example, of the great revival years ago in Lewis, the largest island of the Outer Hebrides . Students of revival will associate the name of Duncan Campbell with that gracious visitation.

Few, however, are familiar with Peggy and Christine Smith. Peggy was blind; her sister, Christine, was crippled with arthritis. Though little-known by men, they were well-known by God. Unable to leave their cottage even to attend church, these two godly elderly ladies sought God unceasingly until He opened the windows of Heaven and poured out a mighty manifestation of His power that engulfed the entire island of Lewis .

More than two centuries earlier, a little-known pastor in rural Epworth , England , knelt in his study and pled with God to send revival to his nation. As he frequently requested his wife to keep their 17 children from interrupting his prayer time, Samuel Wesley probably never imagined that the answer to his prayers was running up and down the hall outside that study. God raised up two of those children, John and Charles, to shake a continent for Christ.

Charles Grandison Finney stands as a giant in the records of revival in America . Only eternity will reveal how much of the spiritual fruit of his ministry was the result of the prayers of Abel Clery and Brother Nash. Day and night, isolated in dark, damp accommodations, these two prayer partners battled the forces of darkness as Charles Finney preached. In community after community, the fire of God fell in response to their earnest, prevailing prayer. And still today, God answers prayer! Space would not permit me to recount the literally hundreds of miraculous answers to prayer this ministry has experienced in church after church across America .

Specially-called times of extraordinary prayer have resulted in satanic strongholds being torn down, the bonds of sin and selfishness broken, and the glory of God dramatically released into hearts, homes, churches, and communities. With all my heart, I believe that God is able to turn the heart of this nation back to Himself. It is nothing for the omnipotent God of the universe to bring that hardened skeptic to repentance and faith, to reconcile that marriage that has been devastated by bitterness and unfaithfulness, to change or replace godless, humanistic legislators and civic authorities with God-fearing rulers, or to rekindle fresh love, devotion, and power in lifeless, backslidden churches.

But God has committed Himself to move in response to mens humility, dependence, and faith expressed through prayer. The unspeakable blessings of revival are reserved for those who wait for God in prayer (Isaiah 64:4). But the sin of prayerlessness ties the hands of God and limits His power. With a grieving heart, the ancient prophet cried out, "There is none that calleth upon Thy name; that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee . . . " (Isaiah 64:7).

God is so eager to pour out His reviving presence that He is diligently seeking for intercessors. "I sought for a man among them that . . . should stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none" (Ezekiel 22:30). Our generation has tried every conceivable way to experience spiritual reality. The need of the hour is not for more or better preaching, promotion, entertainment, programs, organizations, seminars, conferences, television and radio broadcasts, techniques or methods.

We are engaged in a battle "against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12).

The battle cannot be won with weapons and strategies designed and engineered by men. This battle must be waged and won in the prayer closet. Casual praying will not suffice. We must pray fervently. Oh, that God would endue us with the spirit of the Weeping Prophet: "Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people. Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth not, without any intermission, till the Lord look down, and behold from heaven . . . Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord . . . " (Lamentations 3:48-50; 2:19).

Intermittent, sporadic praying will not do. If our generation is to experience genuine revival, we must pray persistently. Prayer must become as vital and natural a part of our lives as breathing. We must pray when we can feel the presence of God, and we must pray when the gates of heaven seem to be locked against us. Like the needy widow in Jesus' parable, we must knock relentlessly on the door of heaven, until God hears and answers. We must pray when it is convenient, and we must pray when great sacrifice is required. We must pray when we are strong, and we must pray when we feel that we have no strength left to pray. We must pray when we have time to pray; and we must pray when the demands on our schedules seem more than we can bear.

Listen to the words of Samuel Chadwick, a man who lived his life before the throne of God: "There is no power like that of prevailing prayer--of Abraham pleading for Sodom, Jacob wrestling in the stillness of the night, Moses standing in the breach, Hannah intoxicated with sorrow, David heartbroken with remorse and grief, Jesus in sweat of blood. Always there is the cost of passion unto blood.

Such prayer prevails. It turns ordinary mortals into men of power. It brings power. It brings fire. It brings rain. It brings life. It brings God."

Dear friend, you may be a pastor, a teacher, a housewife, a factory-worker, a student, a businessman. Regardless of the way that you are serving God, will you respond to His call to pursue a life of prayer?

With humility, with boldness, with hearts made clean by the blood of Jesus, with reverence, adoration, tender love, and faith, let us draw near to God; let us press close and feel His heart; let us earnestly intercede on behalf of His church and His world; and let us cling to Him until He floods every crevice of our dark, sin-sick world with the glorious, healing light of His presence
Used With Permission: Rev Ronald Morrow

When overwhelmed in Spiritual Warfare

2007-01-27T00:13:00.000-08:00

Many of the intercessors are involved in spiritual warfare if this is your first visit you will find some useful articles in the April archive that may encourage, refresh & remind you -

The battle is the Lords - He is the Captain - With Him on our side we will win if we keep the focus on Him.

May the message & scriptures below encourage you to press the battle to the gate. Please go direct to the site (link at end of message) for the full message & useful resources.

Spiritual Warfare (Part Message)

In Christian teaching, spiritual warfare should not be separated from the Christ-given mission to make disciples of all nations. We are in a spiritual battle for the eternal souls of all humanity. Not simply securing a place in heaven after death, but redeeming this lifetime by yielding our lives to the work of our Lord Jesus Christ continued in us and through us. Our enemy, the devil, fights against us every moment.

Summary: Christians have victory in spiritual warfare by counting ourselves as dead ...crucified with Christ... and that the life we live is not our own, but Christ living through us. Our lives should manifest Jesus Christ as He continues His work in this world through us ... destroying the works of the devil.

Do not focus on the problem; focus on the solution. Be aware of the problem, but more aware of the purposes, promises, and presence of God.

If you are a professing Christian, but you are nevertheless overwhelmed by spiritual battles there are several possible reasons:

1. You've never truly been "born again". Examine your faith. (2 Cor 13:5; 1 John 5:5)

2. You have unconfessed sin in your life. Confess it. (Psalm 51; I John 1:9;James 5:16)

3. You're trying to live the Christian walk on your own strength. Lean on God. (1 Cor 1:25; 2 Cor 12:9-10)

4. You're doing God's will, ready to bear much fruit, and the devil's trying to make you quit. Don't quit. (Gal 6:9; 2 Tim 2:3)

5. Often, since none of us are perfect, eg: a saint who lives by grace some combination of items 2 - 4

* When Bomber pilots start getting surface-to-air flak, they know assuredly that they have arrived at the target. Likewise, the harder our enemy resists, the more likely that you've found a "high-value" target.

*Why then do Christians (myself included), once they get into an escalating spiritual battle, run for the hills? Is it a sense of entitlement to live in the land of the big PX (Post Exchange shopping mall)?

Some points to remember in the midst of battle:

* You can always ask for help.

* Fight as a member of a team.

* Resting one soldier, or team, while another one fights.

* Be aware of the situation. - The battle's not about you, but to keep you from doing your small part in accomplishing God's will.

* If you quit... the enemy wins. Faith overcomes the world.

* If you have already quit... stand up, put on the armor of God, re-establish communications with God and your fellow soldiers, sharpen your skills with the Sword of the Lord, ask for forgiveness and new instructions, and finally... get back into the fight!

* We are called to suffer hardships as good soldiers of Christ:

You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. (2 Tim 2:1-4 NKJV)

* ...what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish... (Phil 3:7-8 NKJV)

* Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. (1 Peter 4:12-13 NKJV)

* ...so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer... (2 Thess 1:4-6 NKJV)

* Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. (1 Peter 5:8-9 NKJV)

*...time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. (Heb 11:32-34 NKJV)

* Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil 3:13-14 NKJV)

Scripture References:

* ...the battle is the LORD's... (1 Sam 17:47 KJV)

* ".the enemy. is the devil." (Matt 13:37-39 KJV)

* "He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad." (Matt 12:30 NKJV)

* We are human, but we don't wage war with human plans and methods. We use God's mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil's strongholds... break down every proud argument that keeps people from knowing God... conquer their rebellious ideas, and we teach them to obey Christ. (2 Cor 10:3-5 NLT)

* Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Eph 6:11-12 NKJV)

* ...they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him. (1 Chr 5:20 NKJV)

* ...they cried, "The sword of the LORD and of Gideon!" And every man stood in his place all around... (Judg 7:20-21 NKJV)

* ...who through faith subdued kingdoms... became valiant in battle... (Heb 11:33-34 NKJV)

* For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight... I have kept the faith. (2 Tim 4:6-7 NKJV)

* ...in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:37-39 NKJV)

* ...what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be Mydisciple. (Luke 14:31-33 NKJV)

* For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (I John 3:8-9 KJV)

* ...now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, * and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. (Rom 13:11-14 NKJV)

* Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. (Rev 12:10-11 NKJV)

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matt 28:19-20 NKJV)

Source: Battle Focused Ministries: Their goal - equipping the saints for spiritual warfare: Link: http://www.battlefocused.org/

Fiery Trials - Faith Testing

2007-01-26T23:35:00.000-08:00

...That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. ... (1 Pet 1:5-9).

I have noted many are going through some trials - if you are asking why? In the July archive there is a message Why does God allow suffering? which may give some answers. I also pray these two messages below will bless you today & remind you that what ever you are going through you are not alone.

Refiners Fire - (Author Unknown)

Some time ago, a few ladies met in a certain city to read the scriptures,and make them the subject of conversation. While reading the third chapterof Malachi they came upon a remarkable expression in the third verse.

And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver. Malachi 3:3

One lady's opinion was that it was intended to convey the view of the sanctifying influence of the grace of Christ. Then she proposed to Visit a silversmith and report to them what he said on the subject.

She went accordingly and without telling the object of her errand, begged to know the process of refining silver, which he fully described to her.

After some thought she said, do you sit while the work of refining is going on?

Oh,yes madam, replied the silversmith; I must sit with my eye steadily fixedon the furnace, for if the time necessary for refining be exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver will be injured.

The lady at once saw the beauty, and comfort too, of the expression, He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver. Christ sees it needful to put His children into a furnace; His eye is steadily intent on the work of purifying, and His wisdom and love are both engaged in the best manner for them.

Their trials do not come at random; the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

As the lady was leaving the shop, the silversmith called her back, and said he had forgotten to mention that he only knows when the process of purifying is complete when he sees his own image reflected in the silver.
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Fiery Furnace

Followers of Jesus Christ often end up in the fiery furnace of affliction.

It happens by God's great plan and because of His mercy. To some people the idea of a God who allows us to endure trials seems foreign, but it is infact for our own good.

James 1:2-4 NIV Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Trials teach us how to persevere. Even many non-Christians will acknowledgethat the troubles of life can build character.

With God's help we learn to develop godly character.

We do not walk through the furnace alone. God does not just throw us in, walk away and hope for the best. He sits with us as a refiner and monitors everything.

We see confirmation of that fact in the trials and testing God allowed the nation of Israel to go through. He allowed them to go through the fire, but closely monitored everything.

A refiner must monitor temperature and timing to end up with just the right finished product. If the temperature is too hot or the time is too long he risks loosing his metal. Too cold or not in the fire long enough and too many impurities remain.

Malachi 3:2-4 NIV - But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiners fire or a launderers soap. He will sit as arefiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will beacceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.

When we go into trials it is not an accident. It is at God's appointed time.

He chooses it for our benefit.

Daniel 11:35 NIV Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time

The whole concept is shown fully in the historical account of the three Jewish young men literally cast into a fiery furnace by King Nebuchadnezzar only to come out unscathed.

(Read all of Daniel 3, it is a fascinating story of faith and of God's faithfulness)

Daniel 3:24-25 NIV Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire? They replied, Certainly, O king. He said, Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.

Even the pagan King Nebuchadnezzar could see that there in the midst of the fire with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego walked God's representative. They were never alone. God walked with them before the furnace. God walked with them in the furnace. God walked with them after they came out. He does the same for you and I when we face trials.

Until next time, rejoice in the trials of life. They come in God's timing. They bring us closer to God and we do not walk through them alone.

Used With Permission 2001-2006 K.F. "Kevin" Corbin, Gleanings From The Word Ministries International http:/gleaningsfromtheword.com

The Father's Song To You

2007-01-12T18:31:00.000-08:00

It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High. (Psalm 92:1)

Do you have a favorite song? Do you have favorite people you love to hear sing those songs? Do you have favorite songs you love to sing? Do you have moments you love to sing?

I am sure most of you had positive answers & some precious memories. I have found that when I have chores I am not so fond of such as dishes to wash or ironing to do that when I start singing songs to the Lord that the task is so much more enjoyable. I also find listening to praise music is so relaxing & before long I find myself & the family singing along with the music.

Whilst I was growing up my home was full of singing and some of my fondest memories are of my mother singing lullabies & songs to us during the day & on occasions at bedtime as a special treat my dad would sit on my bed and at my request sing one of my favorite songs. So it is no surprise that I also sang songs to my own children and hopefully they will continue to do the same when they have their own families.

I pray today stories will bless you and encourage you to sing out praises to Abba and those you are with. May you find a new song on your lips! To those of you who perhaps do not have special memories I pray the 'Fathers song' (see link below) will bless you and become your own precious song.
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Dear Friend,
We should never allow our past mistakes to keep us from starting afresh and accomplishing every goal that God has placed within our hearts. We must see ourselves as redeemed and forgiven children of the Lord who were once lost, but now are found. Just because we fell short in the past does not mean we cannot succeed now and in the future to come.

We must remember what the Bible declares in Psalm 40:3 "And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord."

God is able to put a new song in our mouth leading us on the right path that leads to life and happiness in Him. Trust Him with your life because God is able to do extraordinary things with the most ordinary of people. (Psalm 51:8-13) (1 Peter 2:9-10) (Ephesians 3:20-21)

I hope this message speaks to your heart to never give up on yourself because a new beginning is available each day that you awake.

THEY ARE PLAYING YOUR SONG - Author: Alan Cohen

When a woman in a certain African tribe knows she is pregnant, she goes out into the wilderness with a few friends and together they pray and meditate until they hear the song of the child. They recognize that every soul has its own vibration that expresses its unique flavour and purpose. When the women attune to the song, they sing it out loud. Then they return to the tribe and teach it to everyone else.

When the child is born, the community gathers and sings the childss song to him or her. Later, when the child enters education, the village gathers and chants the childs song. When the child passes through the initiation to adulthood, the people again come together and sing. At the time of marriage, the person hears his or her song.

Finally, when the soul is about to pass from this world, the family and friends gather at the persons bed, just as they did at their birth, and they sing the person to the next life.

When I have shared this story in my lectures, a fair amount of people in the audience come to tears. There is something inside each of us that knows we have a song, and we wish those we love would recognize it and support us to sing it.

In some of my seminars I ask people to verbalize to a partner the one phrase they wish their parents had said to them as a child. Then the partner lovingly whispers it in their ear. This exercise goes very deep, and many significant insights start to click.

How we all long to be loved, acknowledged, and accepted for who we are!

In the African tribe there is one other occasion upon which the villagers sing to the child. If at any time during his or her life, the person commits a crime or aberrant social act, the individual is called to the centre of the village and the people in the community form a circle around them. Then they sing their song to them. The tribe recognizes that the correction for antisocial behaviour is not punishment; it is love and the remembrance of identity. When you recognize your own song, you have no desire or need to do anything that would hurt another.

A friend is someone who knows your song and sings it to you when you have forgotten it. Those who love you are not fooled by mistakes you have made or dark images you hold about yourself. They remember your beauty when you feel ugly; your wholeness when you are broken; your innocence when you feel guilty; and your purpose when you are confused.

If you do not give your song a voice, you will feel lost, alone, and confused. If you express it, you will come to life. We attract people on a similar wavelength so we can support each other to sing aloud. Sometimes we attract people who challenge us by telling us that we cannot or should not sing our song in public. Yet these people help us too, for they stimulate us to find greater courage to sing it.

You may not have grown up in an African tribe that sings your song to you at crucial life transitions, but life is always reminding you when you are in tune with yourself and when you are not. When you feel good what you are doing matches your song, and when you feel awful, it doesn't.

In the end, we should all recognize our song and sing it well. You may feel a little warble at the moment, but so have all the great singers. Just keep singing and you'll find your way home.

Read and meditate on these scriptures:

Isaiah 43:18-19 "Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert."

Joshua 1:9 "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest."

Psalm 28:6-8 "Blessed be the LORD, because He hath heard the voice of my supplications. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise Him. The LORD is their strength, and He is the saving strengthof His anointed."

Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."

Used with permission: Dwayne Savaya Gods Work Ministry http://www.Godswork.org
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Introducing a New Father's Song

In Zephaniah 3:17 the Bible says... The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. NIV Bible

Have you ever wondered what the Father's song sounds like?

I am pleased to share with you that Michael Mulroy from the UK has asked the same question and in response he has recently arranged and recorded a new 11 minute musical piece that features all of the words of the Father's Love Letter sung by Dan Shiells. If you want to listen or download the Father's Love Letter in song, go to www.fathersloveletter.com/song.html

Author: Barry Adams'Father's Love Letter used by permission Father Heart Communications Copyright 1999-2006' contact: http://www.fathersloveletter.com/
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PRAYING WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT

2006-10-05T23:58:00.000-07:00

PRAYING WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT - By Dr. Joseph Winger

It was one long flight I'll never forget. I had been looking forward to a restful in-flight nap. But instead of snoozing, I was captivated by conversation with the man sitting next to me. He relayed one tragic story after another about growing up as a Christian in atheistic Albania.

Our hearts were immediately connected. Because one of this mans languages was modern Greek, I asked him if he had ever used one of my favorite Greek words sunantilambanomai.

Now, let me explain the reason for that odd request. Earlier that week, I had been thinking about the Holy Spirit and prayer. That long Greek word is the word the apostle Paul chose to explaine that the Holy Spirit helps us in our prayers. "In the same way the Spirit also helps [sunantilambanomai] our weakness; for we do not know how to pray" (Romans 8:26).

"Yes," he said. "We use that word for helping someone." I asked him to give me an example. He quickly replied, "If a person were carrying a heavy box, I would go over and help them. We would carry it together." He further explained that the emphasis was on an action where two people were doing something together. With that revelation, I could barely contain my joy. I remember struggling to restrain myself from shouting. I sure did not want to cause a scene and attract an air marshal!

I then asked him if he thought the apostle Paul meant that when we pray the Holy Spirit does it with us. He nodded and confidently said, "Yes."

At that moment, I saw for the first time that prayer was never intended to be an activity that I do all alone--the Holy Spirit wants to help me pray more effectively. Too often we work hard to figure out the "right formula"to make our intercession successful. A better approach would be to begin our prayers with a humble admission of our inability to pray on target and then ask for the Holy Spirit's help. That would require us to listen more and give God fewer directions.

The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament

We see the Holy Spirit's activity with prayer even in the Old Testament. The foundation for all of our spiritual undertakings is, "Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit" (Zechariah 4:6).

This is certainly true of prayer. Our praying requires the Holy Spirit and not purely human might, power and effort.

Zechariah further links the Holy Spirit with prayer: "And I will pour out.the Spirit of grace and of supplication" (Zechariah 12:10).

Jack Hayford explains how the Holy Spirit helps our praying in terms of one of the Old Testament definitions of the word "intercession."

"Lexicons show the root idea of this word to be, 'to light upon by chance, to meet accidentally.' So it expresses a fortuitous and unplanned encounter of parties. That definition seems pointless unless we take into consideration Gods strategy for prayer. The [Holy Spirit] is active in bringing to mind people or circumstances we ought to pray for, and giving rise to prayer that exactly hits the mark. That is, God Himself knows where hearts cry for His intervention, and theHoly Spirit prompts prayer to release the working of His hand for them."(Jack Hayford, Prayer is Invading the Impossible [New York: BallentineBooks, 1983], 123-124.)

We can all testify of how God brought someone to mind at the precise moment they needed intercession. The person was either experiencing a victorious breakthrough or an urgent need. The Holy Spirit brought them to mind and helped our prayers to "hit the mark!"

How the Holy Spirit Helps Us to Pray

The New Testament portrays each person of the Trinity as deeply involved in the experience of prayer: we approach the Father through the Son, empowered and guided by the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul exhorts us to "pray in the Spirit" (Ephesians 6:18).

Jude speaks of"building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit"(Jude 20). "Praying in the Spirit" has been interpreted differently depending on a persons background and theology. Charismatic and Pentecostal churches believe these verses refer to praying in tongues (I Corinthians 14:14-15). A widely accepted interpretation explained here by Frank Gaebeleinis to pray while guided by the Spirit of God: "Because all believers have the Spirit, they are to pray according to the Spirit's will (set forth in the written Word of God, and made known by inner promptings) to accomplishGod's work by God's power." (The Expositor's Bible Commentary, p. 395).

Just how does the Holy Spirit help us to pray?

Here are six ways :He helps our praying to be more powerful and effective:When I am weak, the Spirit supplies my inner man with spiritual vitality:"strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man" (Ephesians3:16).

When I am struggling with my identity, the Holy Spirit confirms to me the reality of my adoption by the Father: "The Spirit Himself bears witness withour spirit that we are children of God" (Romans 8:16).

When I feel far from God, the Holy Spirit ushers me into the Fathers presence: "we have access to the Father by one Spirit" (Ephesians 2:18).''

When I am confused about how best to pray, the Holy Spirit gives insight:"For to us God revealed them through the Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God" (I Corinthians 2:10).

When I am battling unbelief and negativity, the Holy Spirit fills my life with praise: "filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns" (Ephesians 5:18-19).

The apostle Paul wrote that we are to keep alert in our praying with thanksgiving (Colossians 4:2).

When I become sluggish in prayer, praising and thanking God actually wakes me up and keeps me focused. When I am tempted to disobey and thus hinder my prayer life, the Holy Spirit helps me to walk in Gods ways (Ezekiel 36:27) and manifest--the fruit of the Spirit-- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness(Galatians 5:22). It is by the Spirit that we put to death the deeds of our flesh (Romans 8:13).

An obedient life lays a firm foundation for confident, productive intercession (I John 3: 21-22). I am forever grateful for the Holy Spirits invaluable help with prayer. In fact, my life is a testimony to being pulled out of numerous critical situations because someone prayed by the Holy Spirits insights.

The most memorable time was when my daughter forcefully announced to my family that I needed prayer right then. She went into intercession asking God to protect me. At that precise moment I was two time zones away in a situation where a man was trying to rob me and possibly hurt me seriously. The amazing thing is that my daughter was only four years old. Holy Spirit helped a child to"hit the mark" with her intercession, and I am here today to proclaim that our God is faithful!'

Richard Foster eloquently summarizes the Holy Spirits help in prayer as:"When we stumble over our words, the Spirit straightens out the syntax. Whenwe pray with muddy motives, the Spirit purifies the stream.The point is that we do not have to have everything perfect when we pray. The Spirit reshapes, refines, and reinterprets our feeble, ego-driven prayers.

"WOW! With that kind of help, who would ever want to pray alone?

A Model Prayer From Abba

2006-09-17T23:13:00.000-07:00

"And now about prayer. When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I assure you, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father secretly. Then your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you. 7 "When you pray, don't babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don't be like them, because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! 9 Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be honoured. 10 May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven. 11 Give us our food for today, 12 and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us. 13 And don't let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. 14 "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Mth 5: 1-15)

MODEL PRAYER:

Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be honoured. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven. Give us our food for today, and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us. And don't let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." (Math 6: NLT)

KEY THOUGHT: Much has been written about Jesus' model prayer. Rather than something to be blindly recited, this is a short guide for disciples on how to pray.

The prayer easily divides into two parts: first, we recognize the estimable greatness of God, and then we recognize our dependency upon him. As the previous verses indicate, God is our Father whom we can approach freely as Father, while at the same time revering his holiness.

The first three petitions ask God to accomplish his ultimate will in our world and reveal his holy purposes to all people.

The second three acknowledge our need for sustenance, forgiveness, and strength to face the rigors of daily spiritual and physical life.

Bottom line, prayer doesn't need to be eloquent, but reverent of God, penitent before God, and dependent upon God while approaching him with confidence as children of God.

TODAY'S PRAYER: Holy and tender Father, I pray that you exert your power in our world and work your will in irrefutable and glorious ways. I trust you to fill my daily needs as I depend upon your mercy and grace to forgive me and empower me to forgive. May my life be used in your service to accomplish your will. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

What Jesus Did! is a 365-day devotional through the book of Mathew. Visit HEARTLIGHT on the web http://www.heartlight.org/
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A VISION FOR THE KINGDOM

Matthew 6:5-15 - When asked by his disciples how they should pray? Jesus gave us these words.

I used to think this was just a small prayer, a sample of what kind of stuff we could bring to God. Surely there must be bigger - better prayers. But after studying this for a while - I realized - no, this is THE PRAYER!

It encompasses all of life. You and I need to pray better - not just more - but better. I have been asking myself - why I do not pray like I play. If I were not an ordained minister would I pray at all?

Maybe you are asking those same questions too. As an introduction we are going to notice three aspects about this prayer: it is short, it is simple, and it is guaranteed.

It is short.
The Lords prayer is exactly 57 Greek words (just 52 English words). Men have written huge volumes on prayer; lectured for hours. Jesus took about 40 seconds. Some have tried to say that Jesus point is do not pray long. But it would be curious if he taught it, because he sure did not live it. We know that Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness fasting and praying and that He spent all night in prayer in Gethsemane.

So how much should we pray? Some of us have this knee-jerk reaction to spiritual disciplines, do not get too deep on me, just tell me what I need to do; give me the standard and I will do it.

In verses 7-8 here, Jesus warns us against praying many words thinking you will impress God by your many words as the pagans do. There is something more important than words, and that is your heart. Do not pray to impress God or others (v.5-6), real prayer can be simple and straightforward.

Ok you say - so my prayer should be short and I should do it in my closet, right?

Well not necessarily. The Biblical example is to labor in prayer and Paul instructs us, pray continually.

Some of Jesus most fascinating parables are about working hard in prayer: the widow who wears out the unjust judge with her requests for mercy - the man who knocks on his friends door at midnight. There is also a great saying of Jesus that men of violence take the kingdom by force. I don't think He is referring to some religious jihad, rather to strong men who labor in faith, work and prayer.

The key is motivation not length. There is no quota for length of prayer! Pray as much as you need - it is for your benefit and about your relationship. Asking how much you should pray is like asking how much should I talk to my wife?

There is no extra righteousness to be won by long prayers - and no righteousness to lose by short prayers. This is what I do not like about some programs for spiritual disciplines - they can reduce a prayer life to a 30 -minute quiet time. I have heard stories of people who come to faith and start praying all the time until they get discipled by some well-meaning person who tells them they need to have a structured 30 - minute quiet time in the morning. So the active imagination of faith gets whittled down to a timeclock duty and they end up hardly praying at all!

There is a freedom in prayer that is dictated by love - not by length.

It is simple.
The beauty of the Lords Prayer is that in its simplicity is its majesty.

It mentions only a few things, but it pertains to everything. It is like the old saying, It is shallow enough for a child to wade in - and deep enough to drown an elephant in.

The Christian faith is both the easiest thing in the world to grasp - but also the most difficult. It is all about putting your trust in someone else!

Prayer is the same, both the easiest and hardest, because it involves us putting our trust in someone else. In one sense prayer is talking to God without having to look in His face, but when you realize that all of your life is lived coram deo before the face of God - you realize you are before His face!

Experiencing the Lords Prayer is a little bit like an experience I recently had with maps. Last year I went to British Columbia. Now I thought it was just a small place north of Washington. My map has the United States in the center of it and then just a small bit of Canada at the top of the map and little of Mexico at the bottom. But I saw a Canadian map while I was in BC. On that map Canada is huge and the US is just a sliver of land at the bottom. I also realize that from the US/ Canada border up to the Yukon is as long as the US/Canada border all the way down to Mexico. And the diversity of scenery and the people I met in Canada!

The kingdom of God is a greater concept that we ever imagined. Our maps tend to have the kingdom of man in the center with Gods kingdom on the periphery. The Lords Prayer helps reorient our spiritual geography.

Now, the vision for the kingdom of God has to be huge to sustain 2,000 years (actually all of human history). One of the insights of the book Good to Great is that an effective company has an easy mission statement but is committed to it. That is the vision we get here, simple but powerful and transformative.

It is guaranteed.
Here is something to chew on: Everything in this prayer is going to happen, whether you pray it or not. God is going to be praised- by His children or by the rocks. His kingdom is going to come. His will is going to be done - He is the unstoppable force. He is going to provide for His children. He is going to forgive all those for whom Christ died. He is going to keep His people from [ultimate] harm. It is going to happen.

The most popular view of Christianity is that we are losing. Can you not see? The culture war is being lost. Look at television - look at the teen pregnancy rate - we are fighting a losing battle. But lets be good sports about it.

NO- Jesus says in Revelation, To him who overcomes I'll give the manna - the right to the tree of life…

As my old seminary professor once said, You do not get the good sportsmanship award if you are a follower of Jesus. You get the trophy of victory. You get the right to rule on the throne of Jesus like He rules on His Fathers throne today.

Do you know what the meaning of the Ascension is? It is not that Jesus is reigning for the first time as the 2nd person of the Trinity He has always reigned with the Father and the Spirit. The significance is that at the ascension He began to reign as a man on the throne. He has fulfilled the original command to Adam to rule the earth.

This goal of Gods kingdom is the highest goal you can have. It puts all your other goals in perspective, it gives all of your pursuits and struggles meaning. The Lords Prayer orients us to the kingdom of God , which is coming and is here. Too often, we forget and only focus on the kingdom of man.

But the kingdom of God will endure forever, eventually on earth as it does in heaven. Isaiah 9:6-7 is a familiar passage which talks about the 1st & 2nd Comings of Christ.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; And the government shall be upon his shoulder. And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end. On the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.

Friends do you want to see Jesus reign? Then pray His prayer.

It is a prayer He loves to answer. These are the areas He cares deeply about. These are not the only words you can pray. But, they are the focal point for how we think about Gods kingdom and priorities.

Author: Ronald Morrow (c) 2006

God Has A Plan For You!

2006-08-30T01:46:00.000-07:00

Luke 18:7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?

Reflective Thought: "Our prayers may be awkward. Our attempts may be feeble. But since the power of prayer is in the One who hears it and not the one who says it, our prayers do make a difference." - Max Lucado
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"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

God has a plan for your life. He brought you into this world to fulfil that plan. It is the best plan that anyone could ever make for you. It is a plan that will bring Him the greatest glory and you the greatest good. From the beginning of this calendar year until its end, God is working out His plan.

As you follow God's plan for your life, you do so by faith. It is important to remember that He is the Guide and you are the follower. He does not need to bring you into His planning room as a consultant to help Him decide what is best for your life. God has called you to trust Him and to take the next step of obedience according to His will.

God has said, "I will bring the blind by a way they did not know; I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, And crooked places straight. These things I will do for them, And not forsake them." Isaiah 42:16 NKJV

Here are some ways that God is working out His plan:
He is your Shepherd - He is leading you
He is your Provider - He is taking care of you
He is your Strength - He is enabling you
He is your Counsellor - He is speaking to you
He is your Shield - He is protecting you.
He is your Comfort - He is encouraging you.
He is your Father - He is blessing you.

Author: Roy Lessin, Co-Founder, DaySpring Cards
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Reflective Prayer: In both good times and bad, Lord, be close by me to help me keep my head about me. Do not let me be swept up in temporary situations, losing sight of Your hand on my life, but let me always feel Your guiding presence. Amen.

Are You Discouraged?

2006-07-08T22:17:00.000-07:00

We need to remember that the Lord Jesus Christ has given His assurance that the new life to come will overshadow any trial or hardship that is thrown our way and the Joy from this will last for eternity. The trials in our life are only temporary and will one day be gone never to return again. Read: (Rev 21:3-4)
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Reflective Prayer: This message was being prepared for next weeks sermon, but as I began reading the replies from the last sermon I mailed out and receiving the prayer requests from people who are under satanic or spiritual attacks this moment I knew that something needed to be done this week. Please remember to intercede for those you know who are intercessors, or simply ask the Father who you should pray for?
Those on the front lines of this Spiritual War The Warriors, The Watchmen and the intercessors are increasingly being singled out and attacked by the enemy. Once again if you know any of these people please remember to pray for them.

When You Come to The End of Yourself!

As we read the words of David in Psalm 38, we find this godly, righteous man at the end of himself. He was downcast and discouraged, and his struggle had drained him of all strength. Listen to his distraught cry:

"I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me, I as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. Thus I was as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs (Psalm 38:6, 8, 10, 13-14).

As I read this psalm, I imagine David slumped in despair. Perhaps what troubled him most was that he could not understand why he was suddenly cast down so low. This man hungered for the Lord, pouring out his heart daily in prayer. He revered Gods word, writing psalms that extolled his glory. But now, in his depressed state, all he could do was cry, Lord, I am at the end of my rope. And I have no idea why it is happening!

Like many discouraged Christians today, David tried to figure out why he felt so empty and broken in spirit. He probably relived every failure, sin and foolish deed in his life. At some point he must have thought, Oh, Lord, have all my reckless acts left me so wounded that I am beyond hope?

Finally, David reasoned that God must have been chastening him.
He cried, O Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over my head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me (verses 1-4).

Let me point out here that David is not just writing about his own condition in this psalm. He is describing something that all devoted lovers of Jesus face at some point in their lifetime. He is talking about being under a demonic attack from a plaguing spirit of discouragement!

This kind of discouraging spirit comes straight from the bowels of hell. And the time comes when every dedicated believer is overwhelmed by this sudden and unexpected experience. No Christian brings it on himself, nor does the Lord send it. Such an attack usually has nothing to do with any specific sin or failing by the believer.

Very simply, the spirit of discouragement is Satans most potent weapon against Gods elect. Most often, he uses it to try to convince us we have brought Gods wrath upon ourselves by not measuring up to his holy standards. But the apostle Paul urges us not fall prey to the devils snare: Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices (2 Corinthians 2:11).

Paul is saying, You have to see your discouragement for what it really is!

Its a demonic weapon an arrow that Satan shoots at you from his quiver to get you to doubt yourself. He knows he cant tempt you to turn away from Jesus. So he swamps you with vicious lies to make you think you will never be good enough to serve Christ. He wants to get you so downcast that you’ll want to throw in the towel!

Ask Yourself If Davids Heart-Cry Is Your Own Cry whenever you are overwhelmed by the Spirit of Discouragement.

Feebleness, soreness, brokenness, troubles, disquietness, mourning all of these things bowed Davids spirit low. He felt dry and empty, without direction, as if he had learned nothing over the years.

As for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me (Psalm 38:10).

David is saying I have lost my spiritual understanding. My vision and revelation of the Lord have left me. I can not reach God as I used to!

I know just how David felt. I have led evangelistic crusades in which thousands at a time have come to Christ. And I have helped lead multitudes of drug addicts and alcoholics to deliverance in Jesus. My life has been full of such rich blessings. But often, within days of these events, I became overwhelmed with discouragement. I ended up thinking, Lord; my life has been a complete waste. I have not accomplished anything for you!

That is the work of Satans spirit of discouragement. It makes us a target for the powers of hell within moments of our greatest spiritual victory!

This heavy, demonic spirit laid David so low; he was dumbfounded in Gods presence. He said, but I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. Thus I was as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs (verses 13-14).

The Hebrew meaning of this last phrase is a man who has no more answers or arguments left. David was saying, Lord, I am too down and discouraged to even lift my hand up to you. I can not pray, because I am too confused to speak. I am drained and empty. I have nothing to say.

Davids trial was not at all unique. I have read many biographies of devout men and women whom the Lord used mightily, and every one of these people struggled through the same kind of crippling discouragement.

The great British preacher C.H. Spurgeon led multitudes to Christ through his powerful sermons. But he suffered awful bouts with melancholy. He often felt as if he had accomplished nothing in his life. He once lamented, I have got the blackest heart in Britain. Frequently he would go into his garden, raise his hands to God and cry, Lord, I have never desired you more, yet my spirit has never been so low. Why is this happening?

David voiced the universal cry of the righteous soul that endures an attack of discouragement: I am ready to halt, and my sorrow is continually before me (verse 17). The word halt here in Hebrew means fall. David was telling God, I am not going to make it, Lord. I am at my absolute end and I am about to fall!

God Will Always Be Tender With Us in Our Helpless Condition But We Are Never to Allow Unbelief to Settle in Our Hearts!

We can talk to God all we want about our feelings of failure. We can tell him about our despair over our sins and foolish mistakes. But we are never to entertain the thought that he has abandoned us. This is a serious accusation, and our Lord does not take it lightly.

We see his immediate response to this kind of accusation in Numbers: (Israel) journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread; and the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died (Numbers 21:4-6).

When the Bible tells me my loving heavenly father sent fiery serpents upon his own people, and that they died from the snake bites, I can not ignore the very clear message: God will not allow such unbelief among his elect! After all that our precious Lord has done for us, the most hurtful accusation we can make against him is that he has neglected us. We are to beware of such unbelief, especially in our difficult times.

David is our example of someone who kept his faith. Even at his lowest point, David would not allow himself to wallow in unbelief. He cried, for in thee, O Lord, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God (Psalm 38:15).

If you are enduring an attack from a demonic spirit of discouragement, I suggest you do these three things:

1. Do Not Try to Maneuver Your Way Out of It.

Do not try to escape the attack through your own wits. You are no match for the demonic spirit you are up against. The battle is far beyond your human skill or physical power to wage. Nor can you merely talk it out with friends, or try to overcome it through books, seminars or counselors. The conflict is in the spiritual realm, and it has to be fought in the spirit.

In his time of discouragement, David could not figure out why he was so cast down. He asked, Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted in me? (Psalm 42:5).

Yet his questions were not doubts about God. David actually begins the psalm by expressing his deep thirst for the Lord:
As the hart [deer] panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God? (verses 1-2).

In the midst of his discouragement, David cried out for a revelation of the Lord. He was saying, God, there has never been a time when I have loved you more. I thirst for you like the running deer who pants for water. So why am I so cast down? Why am I suffering such overwhelming discouragement?

Of course, at times David experienced despair and depression because of his sin. He endured the Lords chastening for his pride when he numbered his fighting men, which was against Gods law. And he felt the pain of Gods rod when he committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband murdered. His heart broke with dejection over the judgment he brought on his family because of these sins.

So, too, many believers today are discouraged because of their sins. Some are depressed because the Holy Spirit has wanted to bring them into victory, but they resist. They have chosen the way of the flesh, and that always leads to pain and discouragement.

However, I am addressing repentant believers here those who seek God with all their hearts. These faithful servants are gripped by a different kind of discouragement. This kind comes upon them suddenly, out of nowhere, for no apparent reason. And it totally dumbfounds them. If this is true of you, you can be absolutely sure you are under attack. Satan has sent a cloud of discouragement to overwhelm you. And he has his reasons for doing so!

You see, discouragement is the devils most devastating tool in his attacks on Spirit-hungry saints.

It has been the enemyies weapon of choice for centuries against Gods elect. And from the day you became serious about the things of God determining in your heart to know Christ in his fullness Satan has sought to discourage you. He has watched you dig deeper into Gods word every day. He has seen you changing, growing, and overcoming all worldliness. So he has made you a target for heavy attack.

And you had better believe that attack will come! Right now you may be able to praise God loudly in church, saying, This is the greatest day of joy I have ever had! But watch out for what comes tomorrow. Satan will use his most powerful weapon discouragement to try to bring you down.

However, when the attack comes, do not think it is unusual. God allows this kind of fiery testing with all his saints.

Peter writes, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you (1 Peter 4:12). Discouragement is a trial Gods people have endured for centuries!

2. Go to Prayer, Giving the Holy Spirit Time to Do His Work!

When you are under attack from the enemies spirit of discouragement, you will not feel like praying. But you must still go to the secret place and be in Jesus presence. You do not need to worry about trying to pray your way out of despair. This is the time for Gods Spirit to go to work in you.
It is his job to lift you out of the pit.

When you go to the Lord, be honest with him. Tell him how weak and helpless you feel. Let him know, Jesus, I am dry. I have no strength left. If I am ever going to get out of this depression, you are going to have to make it happen. In such low times, the Lord is very patient with us. He does not expect us to exert some intense, fervent effort in prayer. He knows our condition, and he sympathizes with us.

So, just sit in his presence and trust his Spirit to do in you what he has been sent to do. It does not matter how cast down you are he will never forsake you! We have the notion that every time we fail the Lord, the Holy Ghost flits away like a bird.

Some Puritan divines taught this. They believed that Gods Spirit leaves Christians for a season whenever has grieved with them. I could never understand or accept this doctrine. How could Gods Spirit abandon me when I need him most? If he leaves me whenever I fail and fall deep into discouragement, how could he be my comforter? That would not provide any comfort at all. In fact, it would leave me in Satans power!

Likewise, if the Holy Ghost is my souls sanctifier, how could he do this work if he flies in and out of my life every time I fail? How could I ever see my sin without the Spirits presence there to convict me of it? How could I know how to change if he was not there to guide and direct me?

Jesus promised us, I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you (John 14:16, 18).

When the devils heavy spirit of discouragement settles over your life, you may be so distraught you can not even whisper a prayer. But even if you can not utter a word, you can talk to Jesus in your spirit. Just tell him softly, Lord, help me. This attack is too much for me. I can not do anything but sit here in faith. I trust your Spirit to drive it out of me.

The First Thing the Spirit Will Do When He Comes Is Expose All of Satans Lies!

The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you (John 14:26).

I remember experiencing a particularly heavy attack of discouragement at a certain point in my life. It happened when I was as close to Jesus as at any other time. I was diligent about my prayer life, pouring my heart out daily to the Lord. And I spent hours searching his word, devouring both Testaments. I enjoyed sweet communion with the Lord and saw many of my prayers answered. As far as I knew, I was in Gods perfect will, doing everything he told me.

But one morning, as I was preparing a message for the following weeks sermon, something hit me. I was overcome by an intense despair. It came out of nowhere, weighing me down heavily. And it happened for no apparent reason. No matter how hard I tried, I could not shake it. As I sat at my desk with my Bible open, I tried to continue working on the sermon. But I could not get anywhere. Suddenly I was bombarded with doubts about my ability to put together a true message from the Lord. My mind was flooded with horrible thoughts that told me, You do not understand Pauls writings. You have not grasped the old man and new man concepts. You do not comprehend dying to sin when sin still exists. How dare you presume to preach Gods holy word? I sat there for three hours, determined to dig out a message. But nothing ever came.

By mid-morning, all the words on the pages of my Bible seemed to run together. My mind was confused, and my spirit was dull, unable to hear anything from the Lord. I sank deeper into despair, thinking, I am totally ignorant of Gods word. Yet I keep churning out sermon after sermon, week after week. I’m not really serving anybody. After all these years, I still do not understand the Bible. My light has gone out! I was convinced I had nothing to give the people in our church. So I closed the Bible and left my study.

As I walked around the house, my discouragement only grew. I tried to figure out why it had come upon me in the first place, but I did not have a clue. I did not have any financial troubles. I had no family crisis. I felt great physically. And I had no known sin. I did not have a single reason to feel the way I did.

Finally, I went into my prayer room and sat on the floor. I could not even muster up a word to say to the Lord. Instead, I cried out to him from my spirit: Lord, I do not know what to do. I feel so down I can not even reach out to you. Yet I know I have never loved you more than right now. Why is this happening? Please, God help me.

When the devil comes with his spirit of discouragement, he bombards you with one lie after another. He lies to you about your marriage, your family, your friendships, your calling, and your walk with the Lord. Then he begins to replay in your mind every sin, failure and foolish thing you have ever done. By the time he has finished, you are crying, Oh, God I will never make it!

This is just what the devil did to me. While in prayer, I endured his bombardment of hellish lies for about half an hour. That is when Gods still, small voice broke through to my spirit. He spoke to me words full of love and compassion: David, you are greatly loved. Do not worry my hand is upon you. You are under severe attack, but you do not have to fear. You do not need any strength of your own for this battle. I have everything you need.

The first thing the Holy Spirit does in such times is to bring to your remembrance all the precious promises of Jesus. And so he did with me. He flooded my soul with dozens of promises I knew from Gods word. And he assured me, Your life is not over. You do not know it, but you have not even started yet. The best is still ahead of you. My spirit soared within me. As I stood to my feet I thought, Why did I ever put up with any of this discouragement? It is not from my Lord!

That is the work of the Holy Spirit. He undoes the lies of the enemy and brings encouragement from on high!

3. Dare to Believe the Incredibly Good Things the Holy Spirit Is Going to Tell You!

Multitudes of Christians enter Gods presence every day expecting to be reproved by him. How that must grieve our Lord. When we go to prayer, we ought to be prepared to hear a good word from our loving father. But many believers rarely are. I lived that way for years. Every time I entered my prayer closet, I expected to hear a rebuke from the Lord. Thank God, he has taught me a better way.

On the other hand, there are entire denominations that avoid any mention of holy reproof. They say very little about sin because they want to preach only positive, upbeat messages. In the process, they ignore all the convicting, life-giving reproofs spoken by Christ and the New Testament writers. Such churches claim to preach a gospel of love, mercy and grace. But, sadly, they misuse Gods grace, turning it into a license to sin.

I realize I am not writing this message to that kind of people. Rather, I am speaking to overcoming Christians who avoid sin as one way of loving the Lord. I am speaking to those who enjoy intimacy with Christ because they hunger and thirst for him constantly. If this describes you, and you are downcast and depressed, please know its happening not because you have gotten easy on sin. It is happening because you are under attack for loving Jesus!

Be assured all who wait on the Lord will receive his glorious promises: Since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him (Isaiah 64:4).

As it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:9-10).

Let us take a closer look at two phrases from the passage in Corinthians:
1. the things which God hath prepared for them that love him (verse 9). Satan can attack you, flooding you with lies and discouraging words. But if you will simply wait on the Lord, his Spirit will come to you in the midst of the attack and drive out all the devils lies.

How? He will give you a revelation of all the good things God has prepared for you because you love him! Our Lord has a wonderful plan for every single child who loves him. And no satanic attack against his children can ever alter those plans.

God knows the sorrows, struggles and pain we may be facing today. But he also knows the glorious things he has laid out ahead of us. He knows the revelation we will receive, the usefulness we will enjoy, the fruit we will see, the joy and peace we will possess. He has a good word for all who love him!

2. God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit (verse 10). The Lord desires to show us his good word about what he has prepared for us. And his Spirit is the messenger who bears that good word. The Holy Ghost will give wings to our drooping spirits with Gods revelation to us and well fly like eagles out of Satans snare!

Listen to these wonderful words from Isaiah: Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint (Isaiah 40:28-31).

That is the work of the Holy Spirit to encourage us. Our work is simply to trust him to fulfill what the father has sent him to do.

Go to your secret closet right now, even in your discouraged state, and quiet yourself before the Lord. Even if you do not have strength enough to speak, you can reach out to him in spirit.

Speak to him this prayer: Lord, I know your Spirit abides in me. And I know you have sent him to comfort me, strengthen me and reveal the mind of Christ to me. So, Holy Ghost, I turn to you right now in simple, childlike faith. Speak to my heart your words of comfort. I do not have any strength left. You’re going to have to lift me up and lead me.

The Spirit of Christ will not let you be deceived. He will show you the good things God has ahead for you. But you must dare to believe he will speak to you! You are not going to faint. You are going to come out of your trial more victorious, because your faith will have been tested and tried as gold. And you’ll see the Lord fulfill every promise he has made to you!

God Bless you all, Rev Ron Morrow - http://ronmorrowministries.

Why Does God Allow suffering?

2006-07-01T00:30:00.000-07:00

So many people write to me & ask, "why does God allow suffering?" I cannot claim to be an expert on the subject and truthfully sometimes there are no answers to some of the awful things that happen daily in the World. Its also a fact of life people become sick and die - some sooner than others and we go through times of trials and grief! In these times all we can do is pray, "Lord I don't understand this - I give this to you and choose your ways".

Sometimes suffering is simply because of mans choices and sin and God has provided the remedy for this through His son Jesus (John 14:6).

In the scriptures it also shows sometimes as a Christian God allows suffering to produce fruit, to teach dependence, to rebuke sin, to refine our lives, to enlarge our ministry, or like Job to silence the devil, to make us more like Jesus so we can Glorify God.

I pray the articles below will answer some of these questions and enable you to find Joy in the midst of your situation.

Please know if you are going through trials, challenges or testing you are not alone, God loves you and cares & I am here to pray with you.

"Behold we count them happy which endured. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy." (James 5:11) "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Neh 8:10)
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Why Does God Allow Suffering?

And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.Job 2:3 (KJV)

There's an awful lot of suffering and pain going on in this world around us. Even Americans are not immune, although we cannot even begin to conceive of the kind of affliction people in some parts of the world are experiencing. Furthermore, suffering of some kind hits every kind and class: rich and poor, educated and uneducated, and--yes--righteous as well as unrighteous. In fact, I'm sometimes tempted to believe that the righteous suffer more than the unrighteous, despite a prevalent teaching today that Christians needn't suffer at all.

The Bible is filled with pain and suffering. Wars, persecutions, famines, and sickness are found from Genesis through Revelation, with both saint and sinner at the receiving end. In our opening text, God testifies that Job is a perfect and upright man; nevertheless, he bears the brunt of a satanic attack throughout the next forty chapters. The Word of God finds no fault with Job's faith (as some might today), but for some reason God has actually allowed the devil to move Him against His servant!

Now God doesn't enjoy human suffering, but He does allow it, and sometimes even instigates it (see Micah 4:6, Nahum 1:12). So let's not be afraid to face the issue, but rather, let's deal with it head-on. Let's not redefine suffering, as some have done; we all know what suffering is. Let's not try to read into the Scripture a bunch of our own little ideas, but let's believe what it clearly says Suffering is a fact of life, and God allows it, so let's examine some of the "whys and wherefores," and see if we can't learn something. We needn't blame the Lord for human suffering, but neither should we attribute a sort of humanistic sentimentality to Him, while denying that the Bible means what it clearly says. We do need a clearer understanding of His perspective on this important subject, so let's approach it with an open mind. Who knows, we may even come to understand what the psalmist meant when he said, "I know O Lord that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me," (Psalm 119:75).

Why does God allow suffering?

...1. God Allows Some People To Suffer In Order To Bring Them To The Brokenness And Humility Necessary To Their Salvation. This is one of the most common reasons for suffering and affliction in the biblical record. God often used calamities to get peoples' attention and bring them to repentance. Earthquakes, famines, and droughts were all brought on at times by the Lord in order to bring people to salvation, and save them from something much worse than physical suffering -- an eternity in Hell.
Psalm 119:67 says, "Before I was afflicted I went astray; but now have I kept thy word."Similar to this, only directed more toward the believer, is the "chastening of the Lord." Hebrews 12:6 says, "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth." Like any caring Father our God disciplines us when we get out of line -- not just to vent His wrath, but to redirect us to righteousness. Some people insist that the chastening of the Lord doesn't include physical discipline, but the use of the word "scourge" (to severely whip) seems conclusive to me. Verse eleven says, "Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."

2. Affliction Makes Us Aware Of How Carnal We Really Are. It serves as a kind of shaking process that allows us to identify and eliminate some undesirable things in our character that might otherwise have remained hidden (Heb. 12:27). Suffering is a refining process that puts enough heat on us to bring the impurities to the surface. Anyone can act righteous under ideal circumstances, but a little pain or testing may bring out the very opposite. A nagging headache can make a real "bear" out of a person by the end of the day; smashing your thumb with a hammer can evoke a flow of words that seems very uncharacteristic, but is an accurate representation of what still lies undealt with in the heart. This deep down carnality must be uprooted and dealt with, and suffering is an effective way to do it.

3. God Allows Us To Suffer So That We May Learn Obedience. "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered" (Heb. 5:8). In this case we're not talking about a lack of obedience being dealt with--the subject is Jesus Himself--but rather a proof of obedience. Submission to suffering, and even death, for the Lord's sake, is the very epitome of obedience and commitment to God (see also Phil. 2:8).

Suffering is a test and trial of our faith which Peter says is "more precious than gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire," (I Pet. 1:7). Whether we fail or pass the test, it is valuable: either to expose our carnality, or declare our faithfulness.

4. Suffering Brings Us Into Closer Fellowship With Jesus. This no doubt sounds like out-and-out heresy to some people, but look at what the Bible says... "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings. . ." (Phil. 3:10), and in I Peter 4:13, "rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings." Someone said Christ suffered so that we don't have to, but the Bible seems to encourage us to join Him in suffering, and rejoice in it as well.You see, the things that bring people into closer and more meaningful relationships are shared experiences and things held in common. You and I may have fellowship with one another because we have our Christian faith in common, but when we spend much time doing the same things, and perhaps go through some hard times together, suddenly our friendship becomes much deeper. So it is with Christ. His was a life of sorrow, acquainted with grief; and when we experience the same things our relationship with Him becomes deeper. I'm not advocating that we walk around being morose and negative all the time, but I am saying that we should appreciate some of the benefits of suffering. "For hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps." (I Pet. 2:21)

5. Suffering Is A Token And Confirmation Of Our Covenant Relationship With God. This is what the Apostle Paul is talking about in Galatians 6:17 when he says, "From henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus." In ancient times, when you entered into a covenant--or sacred agreement--with someone, you would seal it in blood, leaving a scar for all to see. People would then think twice before troubling you; for they'd have to deal with your covenant-partner, too.Salvation is a covenant between man and God. Jesus sealed it in His own blood (and even His resurrection body bears the scars). There is also a sense in which we, too, must confirm the covenant by taking up our cross, living a life of personal sacrifice, and sometimes suffering in a very literal sense for the sake of our agreement with the Lord. It is a little like the Old Testament practice of circumcision, or like a wedding band, if you will. Suffering doesn't make you any more saved, but it can be symbol or token of your new covenant relationship with God.

6. If We Suffer With Christ, We Will Also Be Glorified Together With Him. This is the message of Romans 8:17-18, where Paul says, "I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." II Timothy 2:12 says, "If we suffer, we shall also reign with him." Apparently suffering in this life is a way of securing greater eternal glory in the life to come, of laying up treasure in heaven. One respected minister suggested that perhaps scars would be beauty marks in the next world, that we would retain ours in our resurrection bodies, even as Christ does His. In any case, there will be recognition and glory for those who have suffered with Christ. Some, recognizing this principle, have even been "tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection." (Heb. 11:35)

7. Suffering Allows The Strength Of Christ To Flow Through Us More Freely. Look at what II Corinthians 12:9-l0 says about Paul's thorn in the flesh... "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength is made perfect in weakness... Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."You can only be a fit vessel of Christ's strength and glory to the degree that your own human strength and confidence is broken. Earlier in II Corinthians Paul said, "We have this treasure in earthen vessels." The vessel is our humanity, and the treasure is the Holy Spirit within us. God desires to flow freely through us without being contaminated and diluted by the earthen vessel, without our pride and natural resources getting in the way. Physical infirmity and suffering is sometimes necessary to humble us enough for Christ's strength to come through. Our bodies, like Mary's alabaster box, must sometimes be broken before the ointment can be released as a blessing to others (Mark 14:3). This brings us right up to our next point...

8. Our Suffering Can Be Redemptive To Others. Colossians 1:24... "[I, Paul] now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church."Some suffering is actually the vehicle that imparts the redeeming grace of God to others. Paul's shipwreck and snake-bite in Acts 27 and 28 would qualify as an illustration of this. If he hadn't been cast upon that island and bitten by the viper, the revival that followed would never have occurred. If he hadn't been stoned in Lystra (Acts 14) perhaps the saints of that area wouldn't have been as strong.

As Christ suffered to procure salvation for us, we must sometimes suffer to propagate it. Any missionary can testify to the truth of this. Let's not flinch from it but gladly endure such suffering if called upon to do so.

9. God Allows Us To Suffer So That We May Comfort Others. "Blessed be God... Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." (II Cor. 1:3,4)

This is pretty self-explanatory, but let's take a quick look at it. If I suffer the loss of a close family member, I am naturally more able to comfort and strengthen someone else in the same situation. It may be one of the most heart-rending things I ever go through, but afterwards I have a wealth of wisdom and experience which will aid me in ministering to others. I can say with authority that God didn't let me down and He won't forsake you, either. I can comfort others because I've been there, and been the recipient of His comfort.

10. Sometimes It's Just Too Deep For Us To Understand. This sounds like a pretty lame excuse for an argument, but it's probably the best reason we've given yet for our question, "why does God allow suffering?" Have you ever noticed the answer the Lord gave to Job? You can read about it in chapters 38-41 of that book. God's answer, in essence, is this: "What do you know about the stars, the clouds, the wild goats, the behemoth and leviathan? If you can't understand simple physical things like that, Job, how do you ever expect to understand an issue as complex as the suffering of the righteous?

"Look at the Job's answer and be content, "I uttered that which I understood not: things too wonderful for me which I knew not... wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:3,6)

And so we come to the conclusion of our little article. We've seen quite a few things about the subject of suffering, but there are many things that we didn't even touch upon, and many others that we cannot, in this life, begin to comprehend. "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know even as also I am known" (I Cor. 13:12).

Until that day, it's a good idea to practice being heavenly-minded, and to remember above all--no matter what kind of affliction and contradiction you may face--that our God still loves you, that He's faithful, and that He'll never forsake you.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth him out of them all. Psalm 34: 19

Copyright (c) 1998 Kim Harrington, Masterbuilder Ministries.
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We Need To Listen!

2006-04-29T04:04:00.000-07:00

Psalm 46:10: Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

The city was roaring with noise. Car horns blasted, construction noise filled the air, radios blared, people shouted. As the day wore on, the noise steadily increased. After a while, you adjusted.

It wasn't until you were able to move into a quiet place that you realized how loud the noise had been. In the silence, everything seemed to change. Waves of calm and quiet rolled in. The silence was a little alarming and unsettling. In the silence, thoughts could creep out and be heard.

God comes to us in silence. We have lost the art of being still. Everything is rush, rush, rush, and few people take time to be still.

Noise provides us with a place to hide, where we don't have to face ourselves. Heavy schedules block honest reflection and renewal. Only through the still times in our lives can we hope for God to break through to help us make sense of our lives. Be still, and know that God is there.

Prayer: The day closes in on me, Lord, and I feel myself buried beneath a heavy layer of noise and activity. Break me free of the bondage of commotion. Bless me with quiet and peace. Amen.

'Wisdom from the Psalms' http://www.crosswalk.com/faith/devotionals/wisdom/
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Reflective Thoughts:

* "True silence is rest for the mind. It is to the spirit what sleep is to the body - nourishment and refreshment." (William Penn)

* "If you want to live life free, Take your time, go slowly, do few things, but do them well, Heart-felt joys are Holy. (Francis of Assisi)

* "The word is the instrument of the present world, and silence is the mystery of the future world." (Henri Nouwen) 'From The Way of the Heart'

* The first sign of intimacy with the Lord - is silence - There is a saying that goes: "You don't have to love in words, because even through the silences, love is always heard." (Author Unknown)

A Reason To Pray For Others: To Hear His Voice!

"SILENCE is BANISHED - We No Longer Listen" - 'The Watchman

'Sitting in traffic at a red light one day I was struck with the surreal image of almost every driver around my vehicle having a cell phone attached to the side of their head. The sight of these people reminded me of an Andy Warhol art display in which the miniscule parts of life are exaggerated to become the unavoidable focus of our attention. Each of the phone users was unaware of their surroundings, least of all the people and automobiles next to them.

Their thoughts were projected to distant places at the other end of the phone conversation. As I watched this almost comic scene in amusement, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the thought that even God could not get their attention. Along with this thought came a lesson in life from the throne of God. In Genesis 3:8 we are introduced to another scene which reveals the human reaction to sin. Adam had sinned against God and when he heard God's voice, he hid himself among the trees of the garden. He was ashamed of his sin and guilt drove him to attempt to block out that voice. This verse should cause us to ask questions about what was taking place. Jeremiah 23:24 opens a window that tells us much about ourselves today; "Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord."

There is no place God cannot see us and yet in Genesis 3 we read that God asked Adam where he was. Did God not know? Or could we ask, "Was God only trying to get Adam's attention?" God has not changed since the fall of man. According to Malachi He changes not. God knew exactly where Adam was but it was Adam who had attempted to lose himself. We can see this today if we will but slow down our lives and watch through the eyes of our Lord. I believe Adam did exactly what we do today when we experience guilt or shame. We hide among the trees; only those trees are radios, TV sets, parties, shopping and phone calls.

I once worked with a young lady who was, as it can only be described, addicted to the phone. She spent all her time with a telephone attached to her ear. She was late to work because she sat in the parking lot until she finished her phone call. As soon as she came through the door she made a phone call. She walked around trying to wait on customers with a phone against her head. When she took her lunch break she was constantly on the phone. One day I asked if she had a telephone problem and her reply was, "No."

I told her she was afraid of the quiet and challenged her to go home and spend 2 hours with no noise; no phone, no TV, no radio, no people. The next day she returned and said she only lasted 15 minutes.

Adam did what we do today and hid among the trees to avoid hearing God's voice because he knew he had sinned. Today our trees are cell phones and any other "tree" that will shelter our hearts from hearing God's voice. Sin is running loose in the Body of Christ and we don't want to hear God nag us because it harms our self esteem. That still small voice in the heart of man can be silenced by hiding among the trees. We race home from work with cell phones at our ears and turn on Dr. Phil to assuage our troubled spirit. We fill our hearts and minds with the voice of the world to block out the voice of God. The heart of Christians has been so corrupted by the voices of the world we no longer know sin when it stands at our door and knocks. We hear the whispering voice that Eve heeded and open the door to an enemy who only brings death and pain. Jesus warned us that the only purpose Satan has is to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10) but we find new and convenient reasonings to avoid conflicts between right and wrong. Abraham had sin in his house that was destroying the child of promise and God said to drive Ishmael out. Abraham had resisted the voice of his wife because it made him feel bad. The Church has waxed its ears and turned away from the voice of God. We have hidden among the trees but God sees us and knows the 'thoughts and intents of the heart." The Church listens to the voice of the serpent but celebrates the cell phones as we block out that still small voice vying for our attention.

He still calls out to His Church, "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches."

The light changed at the intersection that day and all those people drove away with cell phones still held against their heads. I was broken in spirit because I knew they could not hear my Savior's voice.
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What Can We Do?

Exercising the Spirit: Silence by Anthony de Mellow -

When a man whose marriage was in trouble sought his advice, the Master said, "You must learn to listen to your wife."

The man took his advice to heart and returned after a month to say that he had learned to listen to every word his wife was saying.

Said the Master with a smile, "Now go home and listen to every word she isn't saying."

We live in a society that does not value or encourage silence. When is the last time you heard someone say, "Let's share some silence?" This kind of statement is rarely heard today, even in church settings or among the most intimate of friends or family.

There are a host of reasons why most Americans avoid silence at all costs. As the story above by Anthony de Mello indicates, most of us fail to realize how important listening and silence are until conflict or malaise surfaces in a relationship.

If we are attentive, we can sense "things aren't just right" and get back to the important discipline of deep listening -- not only to what others say, but also to the resounding silence that exists between the words. Of course, we can easily "turn up the noise" -- watching more TV, keeping the iPod going while exercising, and staying ever busier at work -- doing anything to avoid being still and silent.

What is true in our relationship with others is even truer in our friendship with God. If we do not make time to respond to God's invitation to "be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10), then our relationship with him will drift; we'll become like two ships passing in the night.

Being silent is likely one of the most difficult spiritual exercises we can attempt, at least initially. However, those who are trained in the discipline and grace of silence will testify that not only does silence serve as a balm to wounded relationships, the practicing of silence does wonders to prevent spiritual sluggishness or apathy."For God alone my soul waits in silence ...." (Psalm 62:1 & Psalm 62:7)

In Psalm 62, David addresses the how's and why's of this important, but seldom practiced discipline. He actually addresses it twice, first in verse 1 and than again in verse 7. Let's take a look at these passages in reverse order.

"Wait in Silence"

One of the reasons why silence is often avoided is because we do not like to wait for anything! We value instant gratification and do everything we can to avoid or speed up waiting. We consider waiting time to actually be wasted time! How easily we can become frustrated, antsy, or downright angry if we must wait in traffic, in the grocery line, or, heaven forbid, for a church activity to finish! David at prayer, however, paints another picture. During seasons, or even moments, of waiting, we can be drawn to silence; and when drawn to silence, we just may be able hear the "still, small voice of God."

"My Soul"

Most developed cultures of today live increasingly more compartmentalized lives. We have our business life, church life, home life, exercise life, hobby life, and so on. And while each of these dimensions can be good, the norm is to live compartmentally and busily in each of these arenas, often with very little overlap between them.
The result is our soul -- that central core of our being -- gets frazzled, dazed, and torn as we are pulled to the point of weariness in different directions. The Holy Spirit who longs to dwell within us points us through his servant David's words to another, albeitcounter-cultural way of living and integrating our lives. This is the way of silence.

The Spirit calls to our spirit to enter this silence so that we might live holistic, holy, and centred lives. As we practice this important discipline, slowly and gradually, we become increasingly aware of God's presence and grace. This presence and grace then calls us to love others."For God Alone"

Israel's most repeated sin was idolatry. (If I am honest with myself, I recognize this is my most repeated sin as well!) It's not that the people of God, then or now, stopped worshiping Yahweh. Rather, they worshipped him AND the other gods -- just to hedge their bets you might say. Before you discount this as primitive, consider how you may betempted to do the same -- following Christ, no doubt, but also depending on mutual funds, family, and military might to provide peace, security, and happiness.

Again, silence is invaluable in exposing our secret sins and lack of trust. As our soul waits in silence for God alone, many distracting thoughts, images, memories, and secret desires will surface to our conscious mind. However, if we will stay with the silence, allowing the Holy Spirit within us and our own impatient spirit to raise "our stuff" into our consciousness, it will eventually pass on by, like debris flowing down a river. As our soul waits on God alone, he will provide not only peace and joy and rest, but also theever-increasing awareness of his presence.

A few "silent" exercises:

* Five minute "sit" before (and/or after) reading Scripture. In this exercise, we are consciously stilling our soul so that we might hear the Word of God. If the silence is too distracting or "noisy," some have found it helpful to silently repeat one of the many names for God.

* Silent walk. Whether during the day or at night, by oneself or with a friend, a silent walk can be a wonderful time of centring oneself on God an his presence with us. As a suggestion, if you walk with someone else, you could agree to walk for the first 30minutes in complete silence, followed by a time of sharing what each "heard."

* Fasting from noise -- no radio, TV, movie. What would it be like to take one day off from external noise for the sake of listening to God?

* Sharing silence in community. Many have found sharing silence some what easier and enhanced with others. What if worship leaders, preachers, teachers, small group leaders, pray-ers, prefaced or ended their words with the phrase, "Let's share a few minutes of silence together with each other and God"?

* Weekend retreat for those who might want to explore being silent for an extended time for silence, meditation, and prayer.

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

Used by permission. http://www.heartlight.org/ (c) 2006 Scott Owings.
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