JACKS DAILY DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
(Matthew 6:13) “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”
One of the great evils or sins that we to often fall into or commit, is the sin of pride.
Another key that I’ve recognized in the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to pray is “the key of humbleness”.
Humble enough to recognize our sinfulness, “and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil”.
It’s the humble who recognize as well,,, their inadequacy, or weakness and their sin.
It’s the arrogant and prideful that stiffen their neck and refuse to bow their knee letting pride rule their attitude.
(Luke 18:9-14) is an account of Jesus concerning humbleness in prayer.
“To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable”.
“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people… robbers… evildoers… adulterers… or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.
But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner’.
I tell you that this man rather than the other, went home justified before God.
For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
One of the biggest enemies of our soul is the enemy of “pride”!
And we must be quick to pray for protection, guard our hearts and humble ourselves before the mighty hand of God.
(1st Peter 5:6) tells us to “humble ourselves before the mighty hand of God, and in due season He will exalt you and lift you up”!
This is something that only humble people, aware of their limitations can do.
(Philippians 2:12–13) tells us to “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure”
We must recognize that only God can give us the strength and the resolve and the faith to fight sin and all of its lies.
That includes the sin of pride.
Don’t try to do it on your own... the bible tells us to pray!
Some think its "weakness" to be a man of prayer.
That prayer is only for women and little children.
If that’s the case then let me say this morning for all the world to hear, “As men we need to pray like children”!
We are all aware that at times our prayers often don't sound as warm and as intimate as they should, between a good father and his children.
Often times we pray prayers of repetition, or transactional prayers or bargaining prayers… forexample “God if you will do this, then I will do that”.
To often we pray “formal prayers”, distant and cold, rather than surrendered, vulnerable, humble confessions of weakness.
Kind of like “Our boss who art in heaven . . . ”
God is the kind of boss we like, but want to keep at arm’s length.
We want him to see we’re doing our job, but we’re afraid of getting much closer.
Jesus tells us to lean in and relax with God.
(Matthew 6:34) “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
We are to give our worries to Him, because He walks through things with us.
If you have surrendered yourself to Him, the ears on the other side of your prayers belong to Dad, to Abba, to our heavenly Father.
Make yourself at home in prayer… not irreverently or carelessly, but humbly and confidently.
Be brave enough to let your guard down with God.
Let Him in all the way, and watch him care for you better than any father you’ve ever seen or known.
Prayer is meant to be a secure place and it opens the door to a wonderful relationship with God.
Once you've learned how to enter thru the door of prayer, a whole new relationship with God opens up before you.
I can't say that I have arrived there yet, but prayer for me… is getting deeper and much more rewarding the more I lay down my will and my pride and I humbly enter into my closet and yield myself to Him.
And when it seems that the heavens are not listening or responding, that’s when I pray in the Spirit on my knees with groaning’s and utterances that no man can understand but the Holy Spirit… whom carries my heart and my cry before the throne and my Fathers listening ears.
Good Day!
(Matthew 6:12) “Forgive us our debts (our trespasses), as we also have forgiven our debtors.”
The fourth key I find in ‘The Lords Prayer’, that helps me enter into a deeper relationship with God, is the “key of repentance”.
We have the key of "praise”, the key of "kingdom awareness”, the key of "provision”, and the key of "repentance”.
Let me ask you tis morning, when was the last time you poured out your heart before God, in sorrow over the sins you’ve committed?
Now don’t get me wrong here!
Though we have been justified by the shed blood of Jesus, and though we have been redeemed and delivered from judgment for sin by the shed blood of Christ, it does not stop there!
It’s because we are still sinners.. though we are saved by grace every day and we still commit sin every day.
Now I know some of you are not going to like that statement but (1st John 1:8) states plainly that every person has sinned, and anyone who claims otherwise is deceiving themselves.
If God ever builds a dam in the river of his grace, then we are all doomed.
Paul reminds us not to leave the gospel somewhere behind us as some do saying “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved” (1st Corinthians 15:1–2)
Salvation thru Christ, brings us justification before God… once-for-all, by grace alone, through faith alone.
(Ephesians 2:8) “For by grace you have been saved thru faith and that not of yourselves but it is the gift of God not of works lest any one should boast”.
And salvation thru sanctification, is happening all over again for you today… a new and fresh stream of mercy for you this morning (Lamentations 3:22–23) and tomorrow morning, and every day in your future!
You’re being forgiven, rescued, and purified from your sin on a daily basis.
Your salvation is sure, never taken back, and you are still being saved.
However we need to wash ourselves, cleanse ourselves daily, in his "Word of hope" the gospel… daily immersing ourselves in the saving fountain of Christ’s blood that was shed for all of us.
(1st John 1:9) “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
The reason we need to daily confess our sins, repent of our sins, even though they are already forgiven, is because of “relationship”… relationship as a child with his father.
Sin destroys relationships!
What Jesus did on the cross was a “judicial forgiveness” which God grants as judge, just as though we had never sinned.
This is a forgiveness of “justification”, which is complete, and you will never need to seek it again.
(Psalm 103:11-12) says “For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us”.
Now that the penalty for sin has been paid, the Bible tells us that we have been purchased by Christ and have been adopted into His family.
We are now children of God.
(1st John 3:2) says “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared… but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.”
This means God is our heavenly Father.
What this passage shows us is, that although we have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus and been justified and granted forgiveness before a Holy Judge… our bodies are yet to be redeemed.
Not only are we God’s children now, but we are yet “to become as He is”.
Now that we are children of God, there is a parental forgiveness that God grants as our Father.
The forgiveness of justification takes care of judicial guilt, but it does not nullify our Heavenly Father’s “displeasure” over sin.
He disciplines us as a part of our continual “sanctification” until we become as He is.
He disciplines us because He loves us and we are being conformed into the image or likeness of Christ.
The thoughts, words, and actions that Jesus displayed in His life and ministry, serve as a model for how we glorify God in our lives... this is what it means to be conformed to His image.
This is why we continue to seek forgiveness from our Heavenly Father
This is why we need to repent before God in prayer.
Laying down our humanistic pride and acknowledging our disobedience and waywardness that so easily besets us as human beings.
As every little child likes to imitate their father while growing up so we need to seek to imitate Jesus and walk and talk like Him.
Paul describes it as “in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28)
Repentance is the action part of the faith we profess!
Which brings me to my 5th key to developing a closer relationship with God “Humbleness”, which I will discuss tomorrow.
Good day!
(Matthew 6:9-15) “This then is how you should pray”
I've never been one to devote a lot of time to prayer.
I mean, don't get me wrong!
I pray, but its not been the kind of "prayer commitment" that I've heard many of the "great evangelists" or the "theological teachers" of the past had.
To be honest I could never understand how they could spend so many hours like that in prayer.
But lately I find that I have been more prone to taking little snippets of time to stop what I'm doing and bow my head and talk to the "Father", in the middle of some activity or during a lull in my busy day.
Its almost like I can sense that God is there waiting, wanting to talk to me.
And so I am taking moments in my day to simply bow my head and use the Lords prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to pray as a guide to lead me thru times of prayer.
It’s the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples to use as an example of how to pray.
Not that we need to be taught to pray, because prayer is simply communicating with God as you would with another person.
But by using “The Lords Prayer” as a formula as such we can use the prayer to help us cover the important bases and unlock our ability to correspond with God.
Matthew (6:9-14) “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread… and forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
The first key to effective prayer is the key of praise, worship and adoration of Him.
The importance of acknowledge Him, God, the Father, the Creator as being the source of all things and His Prominence
The "second key" to effective prayer is to realize that we are not of this world but we are part of His kingdom.
Don’t get me wrong… “we are in this world,,, but we are no longer of this world” (John 17:16)
This means that the kingdom of heaven should be first and foremost on our minds.
That is, "His Kingdom" and its importance in our lives.
Jesus prayed to the Father, “Thy kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
We need to remember that there is a heavenly Kingdom awaiting us at some point in our future.
Being aware of that should cause us to keep one eye on the future as well as down here below.
And while we keep one eye on the future, we should all want His glory, His name, to break through everywhere in this world.
We spot it here and there in ourselves, and in our relationships, and in our ministries.
But we should desire to want God to be seen, and worshiped, and enjoyed everywhere.
He deserves to live and exist in every heart, and every city, and every nation.
He’s worthy of worldwide worship, and we as His children should never rest or be quiet until he has it.
"God, bring your kingdom here"… it’s not here, yet, not completely.
There’s evidence of evil everywhere.
Sin’s consequences are wreaking havoc.
Do we want the same for the King of righteousness?
Of course we do! So we pray something similar to these thoughts!
"You are the King, Oh Lord, and no one can stop you”!
“Allow your grace, mercy, and holiness to conquer every effort against you”.
“Push your glory and greatness into more and more corners of our world and establish your will".
“Make it tangible and functional across the globe, in the United States, in Canada in my state, in my province, in my city, in my neighborhood".
As believers, and as His children, we need to fill our prayers to God with "praise and thanksgiving" rather than just with petition and needs.
When you take that position of praise and thanksgiving, He will meet your needs and even give you the desires of your heart.
Which brings me to a third key… that of provision and supply.
That is God being our provider!
Jesus taught us to "ask" the Father to “give us this day our daily bread or needs".
Ask Him daily, to provide for us, to trust in Him for our very life’s existence.
“Give us this day our daily bread”.
The bible says “God himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:25).
You can be sure that the needs you have today will only be found in one place.
Just a few verses after he taught them to pray, Jesus says to these men, “Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on . . . ” (Matthew 6:25).
Why you ask?
The answer is that “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:32–33).
Your daily needs… food, shelter, health… are a proving ground for faith.
Many of us assume we will have what we need tomorrow, either cavalierly assuming God will do it again, or foolishly presuming to take credit for it ourselves (overtly or subtly).
God knows your need for water, for food, for shelter, but He wants those basic needs to be a reason to seek Him.
Ask him to meet your needs… the most extravagant and the most basic.
Ride the "rhythm of provision" into dependence and worship each day.
How about you, have you learned to pray?
Have you learned to enter in to those quiet intimate times with the Heavenly Father… times that will spur you on and lead you out into the darkness of this world… filled with faith and passion to be His light in that darkness?
Prayer will do that!
Good day!
God knows your need for water, for food, for shelter, but He wants those basic needs to be a reason to seek Him.
Ask him to meet your needs… the most extravagant and the most basic.
Ride the "rhythm of provision" into dependence and worship each day.
How about you, have you learned to pray?
Have you learned to enter in to those quiet intimate times with the Heavenly Father… times that will spur you on and lead you out into the darkness of this world… filled with faith and passion to be His light in that darkness?
Prayer will do that!
Good day!
(Luke 5:16) “He went away to be by Himself and prayed”.
Another one of the reasons that Jesus prayed regularly is because there is also great power in prayer!
For example in (Isaiah 38 1-8) there is a story told about King Hezekiah who was sick and near death.
God told the prophet Isaiah to go to Hezekiah and tell him “get your house in order for you are about to die and not live”.
However Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord.
In the ensuing prayer He said, “Lord, please remember how faithful I’ve been to you. I’ve lived the way you wanted me to. I’ve served you with all my heart. I’ve done what is good in your sight…"
But that’s not the end of the story!
Before Isaiah was out the door, God told him to turn around and tell Hezekiah that his prayer had been answered.
God told the prophet to go to Hezekiah and tell him, “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.
I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city.” ’
And this is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing which He has spoken:
“Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.”
And the Bible records that the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.
Prayer is powerful because we are coming before our creator the one who has all power and authority to do what He wants… and when we acknowledge Him in submission and surrender both audibly and physically we are tapping into that power.
Prayer is powerful!
(Matthew 18:19-20) Jesus said “again I say unto you that when two of you agree on anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my Father in Heaven”
The Bible says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a godly person is powerful and makes things happen.” (James 5:16)
The original language used in this verse tells us that “prayer is strong, and that it is a powerful force”.
Because of Hezekiah’s quickness to go to prayer, God promised to heal him, protect him, deliver him, and give him 15 more years to live!
And, as a sign that God would keep this promise, God caused the shadow of the sun to move backwards! (Isaiah 38:7-8)
God actually stopped the earth from turning and made it go backwards!
And for those of you that find that hard to believe, there is a scientific document written back in 1970, concerning a NASA computer that was programmed to calculate planetary and lunar positions in the future and the past.
While running the program into the past, the scientists were amazed when the computer "came to a halt" and put up a red signal indicating that there was something wrong.
The scientists working on the study reported… "We have found there is a day missing in space in elapsed time”.
The lengthy article that followed is rich in scientific conversations illustrating the perplexity of the scientists.
Finally someone suggested that this missing day might represent the time when Joshua made the sun stand still (Joshua 10:1-15)
But the computer indicated that "the elapsed time that was missing back in Joshua's day was 23 hours and 20 minutes," not a whole day.
Someone produced a Bible and found the text where it said "about or (approximately) a day." (I am quoting the newspaper article, not the Bible.)
That allowed room for an inconsistency, but there was still 40 minutes of time to be accounted for.
Someone then remembered (2nd Kings 20:8-11), where Isaiah made the shadow of the sun return backward ten degrees as a sign to Hezekiah and Gods promise in healing him.
Ten degrees is exactly 40 minutes... Isn't that amazing?
The bible gave science the answers they were looking for.
A quiet prayer from a weak man… and God made the earth stand still as He listened!
The king was at his very weakest and on his own, he could do absolutely nothing about his situation.
But in prayer, he tapped into the ultimate power source.
God is the Creator of the universe.
He simply spoke and He laid the earth’s foundation (Job 38:4).
He tells the mighty oceans how far they can go on the shoreline, and He sends lighting where He wants it to go (Job 38:11, 35).
Without prayer, with out conversation with God, you are just going through the motions… doing and living life on your own.
There is absolutely no comparison between God’s power and yours.
Why wouldn’t you want to pray and invite God’s power into every situation you face?
Remember, when you are at your weakest, God’s power is the strongest.
(2nd Corinthians 12:9) says “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
We tap into that power thru the avenue of prayer.
Good Day!
(Psalm 127:2) “For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep”
Every Psalm contains its own special truth, and this song which is credited to Solomon, reminds us that it is the Lord, who blesses our daily lives, our domestic duties, our business opportunities and our various labours.
The Lord is the one who provides for our everyday needs, and it is upon Him that each one of us should depend.
The Lord pours out His favour on our labour, and establishes the work of our hands (Psalm 90:17)
But when our toil is divorced from His providence, or when we undertake to work in our own strength, we discover the futility of our actions.
When we seek to be independent of the Lord, we find it is vain to rise up early and retire late in order to eat the bread of painful labours for the Lord gives to His beloved… even in his sleep (Psalm 127:2)
What a comforting truth to realise that the Lord is not only the Author of that beloved sleep that refreshes us daily, but He gives gifts to His beloved children even when they are sleeping.
God in His grace provides us with sleep, with its rejuvenating, refreshing, revitalising and restorative qualities, which benefit our spirit, soul and body,
But also, when His children are asleep, His gifts and graces continue to flow from Him to us.
Sleep itself is a gift from the Lord, to His dearly beloved children, but through sleep, the Lord bestows many good and precious gifts, and pours grace upon more grace, on His beloved, blood-bought children.
It is as we “abide in Him” and rest in His love, that the Lord endows us with His perfect peace, which passes human understanding, and gives us the assurance that He is with us even to the end of the age.
Our bodies were designed by God to have a prolonged period of sleep each day, and research shows that sleep provides us with many benefits for both body and the soul.
The benefits of sleep are not confined to righteous men, for God is good and gracious long-suffering and of great kindness to all humanity.
However, those that are His children receive gifts and grace from the Lord, even when they are fast asleep, and unaware of His work within.
For those that are saved by grace through faith in His redemptive work, the Lord gives, and continues to give innumerable benefits… but without faith it is impossible for His children to please Him.
How futile, therefore, to stress about getting up early and striving to work late into the night, in order to supply what we need according to what we do, when God has promised to supply all our needs, according to His riches in glory and to bestow His grace on His beloved children, even when we are sleeping
Bedtime prayer can be a meaningful way to end your day spending time with God talking over your day, sharing your concerns with Him, and thanking Him for His love His care, His protection and His provision thru out the day.
But why should we take time to pray before bed each night?
Praying as you fall asleep gives you the chance to look back over the day and thank God for His help and His blessings.
Thru out the day, we often miss the hand of God in our lives as we run from one activity to another.
We tend to lose sight of the good gifts our heavenly Father is giving us and focus instead on our troubles and worries.
Scripture tells us to “fix our eyes on Jesus” so that we do not “grow weary and lose heart (Hebrews 12:2-3)
Whether life feels overwhelming or dull, a time of prayer at the end of each day can help you refocus on God’s goodness and reflect on your priorities and purpose.
Relationships flourish when they are nurtured.
Spending time talking with God before bed is a way of loving Him and deepening your relationship with Him.
Choosing to pray before bed each night means that you can look forward to enjoying time with the One whose love for you is deep (Ephesians 3:18-19) and constant (Romans 8:37-39).
Redeem the time you lie in bed waiting for sleep to come.
If your mind is a blank, worries and temptations will creep in to fill it.
Pain that was background noise during your busy day can blare like a siren when you are lying in the quiet and the dark.
Reaching for your phone to distract you will only keep you awake.
Rehashing conversations and running the numbers will only feed your anxiety.
Instead, release your worries and the pressures of the day by taking them to the One who has the power to help you and give you peace.
Calm and relaxed, you will likely drift off to sleep long before you have prayed for each of your family members and friends, and that is perfectly okay.
As I’ve said many times in the past… prayer is not a recitation of a magic formula.
Prayer is communication with the One True God, who is majestic in power and full of love for you.
Following is a prayer you may feel free to copy out and use each evening as you retire.
“Heavenly Father, thank You for the benefits of a good night's sleep, thank you also for the day by day provision of the gifts and the grace that is ours in Christ and which are even poured out upon us during the night-time hours.
Thank you for the work events of this day and for the work that you have given me to do tomorrow and during my time on earth in days to come.
Lord, I know that without you, I can do nothing, and so I praise you that I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.
Keep me from the worries of the day, the fears of the night, and from trying to sort out my personal problems, without bringing them to you, and relying on your strength and promised grace.
May I never forget that it is you who provides for my daily needs, my future, and the steps I take each day.
I pray that from tomorrow and going forward, I may do all for your greater glory and praise, as I follow the plans you have prepared for me according to (Jeremiah 29:11) “For I know the Plans I have for you sayeth the Lord; plans to prosper you and give you a future not plans for evil”
This I ask in Jesus name, Amen”
Good Day
(Luke 5:16) “He went away to be by Himself and prayed”.
As believers, as Christians, and as children of God, God wants us to spend time with Him in prayer.
There are no rules about when you should pray.
But, taking time every morning to pray is the best way to start your day.
It shows God that you are putting Him first and it reminds you to depend
on Him all day long.
The Bible says that God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23).
Every day is a fresh start.
Someone said that each new day is a gift that’s why it’s called the present!
Why not start it with your heavenly Dad?
Too often when we don’t start the day with prayer, we often get so busy with our day that we never get around to it.
But you don’t have to stop with a morning prayer!
You can continue to pray all day long.
You don’t have to pray with your eyes closed, you can pray with your eyes open!
You can pray on the transit going to work or when you are in the car.
You can talk to God while doing the dishes or cooking a meal.
You can pray in the middle of a conversation with your friend, when you don’t have the right words to tell your friend.
You can pray in your bed at night but don’t let this be your only prayer time, since it is so easy to fall asleep and miss conversation time with your heavenly Dad.
What I am trying to say is that prayer should be natural.
The more you do it, the more natural it becomes.
Like talking or breathing - before you know it, you’ll do it without giving
it any thought at all.
Don’t ever be afraid to talk to God.
God is crazy about you and He wants you to spend time with Him in
prayer.
You are the apple of His eye and He has great favor for you!
Good day!
(Luke 5:16) “He went away to be by Himself and pray”.
As believers, as Christians, and as children of God, God wants us to spend time with Him in prayer.
Jesus had come to earth to bring the kingdom of God to men.
He made it clear that things in the kingdom of God were very, very different than the things in this world.
That’s why John writes “love not the world nor the things that are in the world” (1st John 2:15)
Those who are meek and peace loving, and those who want what is right, can and will finally have what they long for because Jesus came to conquer sin and death.
(John 10:10) “I have come that they might have life and that more abundantly”
In the kingdom of heaven, even people who have nothing to offer God are accepted.
(Ephesians 2:8) “for by grace are ye saved thru faith, and that not of yourselves, not of works lest any man should boast”
As Jesus taught on the mountainside, many people gathered to hear Him.
Jesus taught that those who follow Him should never do good things just to call attention to themselves.
The good things that we do should be done in secret - just between us and God… “God sees what we do in secret, and He will reward those things (Matthew 6:4).
In (Matthew 6:5 -15) One of the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray (Luke 11:1).
Here’s what Jesus said about it. “When you pray, do not be like those who only pretend to be holy.
They love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners.
They want to be seen by others.
Listen to what I am telling you!
They have received their complete reward.
“When you pray, go into your room. Close the door and pray to your Father, who can’t be seen.
He will reward you. Your Father sees what is done secretly.” (Matthew 6:5-6)
Jesus said that prayer should not be a way to get attention and praise from people.
It should be done with a right heart toward God.
It is wrong to pray just to impress people.
That would be like a husband who only talked to his wife when other people were around.
In public, he would tell her how wonderful she was, so people would think he was a good husband.
But when they were alone, he would never say one word to her.
Is that how a good husband treats his wife? No.
Would she believe that he truly loved her? No.
His actions show his true feelings. If he really did love her, he couldn’t wait to talk to her.
He would make time to be alone with her so he could talk to her and listen to her.
So it is with God.
Many will go for days and all week long or for months before they talk to God in true heart felt prayer.
Jesus said that prayer should not be a way to get attention and praise from people.
It should be done with a right heart toward God.
It is wrong to pray just to impress people.
That would be like a husband who only talked to his wife when other people were around.
In public, he would tell her how wonderful she was, so people would think he was a good husband.
But when they were alone, he would never say one word to her.
Is that how a good husband treats his wife? No.
Would she believe that he truly loved her? No.
His actions show his true feelings. If he really did love her, he couldn’t wait to talk to her.
He would make time to be alone with her so he could talk to her and listen to her.
So it is with God.
Many will go for days and all week long or for months before they talk to God in true heart felt prayer.
Is that any way to treat the one whom you say you believe in and love?
Jesus continued teaching… “When you pray, do not keep talking on and on the way ungodly people do.
They think they will be heard because they talk a lot. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need even before you ask Him.” (Matthew 6:7-8)
The original word that Jesus used in this text was a Greek word translated (battalogeo), which means don’t say same the same words over and over again.
That’s vain repetition.
Big, fancy words do not impress God, nor does repeating “a memorized prayer over and over”.
Prayer is the time you spend being real with God.
It is when you pour our your heart to Him.
You can tell God anything and everything.
You can tell Him when you are angry or hurt or disappointed.
You can talk to Him about the good stuff that happened in your day.
He is with you every minute, so it should be easier to talk to Him than to your best friend or your spouse.
Prayer is also when you stop “to listen to His voice”
(John 10:27) “My sheep listen to my voice… I know them, and they follow me”.
So in response to the request “Lord teach us to pray”, Jesus gave a perfect example of how to pray.
We call it “The Lord’s Prayer.”
Lots of people can say this from memory, but remember, Jesus has just said not to repeat the same words over and over.
Reciting this prayer does not take the place of heart-felt conversations with your heavenly Father.
In giving this example Jesus was simply telling His disciples what to ask for and include them in the prayers they pray, the type of things or requests that God will honor in your prayers.
He said “This is how you should pray...
Our Father in heaven, may Your name be honored and may Your kingdom come.
May what You want to happen be done on earth, as it is done in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread and forgive us our sins, just as we also have forgiven those who sin against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.
Save us from the evil one”
Jesus also said “when you pray forgive people who have sinned against you.
If you do, your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive people their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:9-15)
Often when reciting the Lord’s Prayer, we stop short of verses 14 and 15.
But Jesus took the time to elaborate on forgiveness, and we must not overlook it.
Forgiveness must be a part of our prayer time!
Citizens of God’s kingdom understand the forgiving, saving grace of God, and should likewise extend grace to those who have wronged them.
So remember if you’re a believer in Christ, the world is different for us than it is for the rest of the world.
In order to be successful as a child of God… if you want your prayers to be effective… forgive!
Good Day!
Jesus continued teaching… “When you pray, do not keep talking on and on the way ungodly people do.
They think they will be heard because they talk a lot. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need even before you ask Him.” (Matthew 6:7-8)
The original word that Jesus used in this text was a Greek word translated (battalogeo), which means don’t say same the same words over and over again.
That’s vain repetition.
Big, fancy words do not impress God, nor does repeating “a memorized prayer over and over”.
Prayer is the time you spend being real with God.
It is when you pour our your heart to Him.
You can tell God anything and everything.
You can tell Him when you are angry or hurt or disappointed.
You can talk to Him about the good stuff that happened in your day.
He is with you every minute, so it should be easier to talk to Him than to your best friend or your spouse.
Prayer is also when you stop “to listen to His voice”
(John 10:27) “My sheep listen to my voice… I know them, and they follow me”.
So in response to the request “Lord teach us to pray”, Jesus gave a perfect example of how to pray.
We call it “The Lord’s Prayer.”
Lots of people can say this from memory, but remember, Jesus has just said not to repeat the same words over and over.
Reciting this prayer does not take the place of heart-felt conversations with your heavenly Father.
In giving this example Jesus was simply telling His disciples what to ask for and include them in the prayers they pray, the type of things or requests that God will honor in your prayers.
He said “This is how you should pray...
Our Father in heaven, may Your name be honored and may Your kingdom come.
May what You want to happen be done on earth, as it is done in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread and forgive us our sins, just as we also have forgiven those who sin against us.
Keep us from falling into sin when we are tempted.
Save us from the evil one”
Jesus also said “when you pray forgive people who have sinned against you.
If you do, your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive people their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:9-15)
Often when reciting the Lord’s Prayer, we stop short of verses 14 and 15.
But Jesus took the time to elaborate on forgiveness, and we must not overlook it.
Forgiveness must be a part of our prayer time!
Citizens of God’s kingdom understand the forgiving, saving grace of God, and should likewise extend grace to those who have wronged them.
So remember if you’re a believer in Christ, the world is different for us than it is for the rest of the world.
In order to be successful as a child of God… if you want your prayers to be effective… forgive!
Good Day!