Pray Factor 2.4

Lastly Have Total Compassion

A humorous story is told of a man who repeatedly prayed aloud during a weekly prayer service; “Lord fill me with your compassion.” He repeated that phrase several times until his wife screamed out: “don’t do it Lord, he leaks.”

 

Ephesians 5:1-2 “Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

When Jesus came, he came to fulfill the whole law. Christ said, “I will show you a more simple way. If you love, you will unconsciously fulfill the whole law.”  I think we are all familiar with Galatians 5:22-23. Do you know what the nine ingredients of the spectrum of love are: patience, kindness, generosity, humility, courtesy, unselfishness, good temper, meekness, and sincerity?

Think about this: they are all in relation to men, in relation to life, in relation to the know today, and the near tomorrow and not to the unknown eternity.

Mark 8:1-2 “In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said unto them, 2 I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:”

Here is The Biography of Jesus in Six Words is this: I Have Compassion on the Multitude. Do you know what that is called…Love in Action.

When you love in action You become an Involved Christian.

I love when the light bulb goes off in new Christians and they realize that God has a plan for them and then they live that plan out. They love so others may know the love they have.

There are three steps for developing compassion…

a.   Intensity

Luke 9:51 “As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” He had a resolve or intensity.

 B. Sensitivity

Luke 10:30-37 “In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.' 36 "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" 37 The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

Be sensitive to the Lords leading. People you come in contact with may be beaten and robbed, or someone who has lost control inside. You never know who God is going to give you opportunity to minister to.

c.   Generosity

Matthew 10:8 “Heal the sick, raise the dead, and cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” Be generous with all you have, big or small.

What’s the bottom line: Become like Jesus.

You are Loved!

 

The Prayer Factor 2.4

As we continue from yesterday...
We must commit to Total Spiritual Discipline
The ingredients of spiritual development include: “Self -Control or Efficiency”

 

1 Corinthians 9:25 “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”  He clarifies that statement with 9:26 “Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

There are a couple areas we can work on in in our personal development.

Let’s look at two:

Temple Care

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

 How do you honor Him?

1.    Eating…something I’m working on in my life. A box of cookies is not a meal.

2.   Sleeping…make sure you are doing right to your body by what it needs. Go to bed…sleep is the healing process your body needs.

3.    Exercise…I go to the gym 3 to 4 times a week because it makes me feel good. Under the first layer is some rocking muscles. My wife was mad at me, (fun Mad) because she made me go get a physical and guess what? I’m healthy…PTL! Now she didn’t want me to be sick. This was a fun banter with each other. But we must take care of ourselves.

 Blessing Care

1 Corinthians 4:2 “Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” You want God’s blessings, be faithful!

 Be faithful with you’re:

1.    Time…balancing everything you do have to be God led.  

2.    Treasures…if this is your church you should be supporting it with the tithe. All this doesn’t happen on its own. It takes money to have a building and pay the bills and to have a fulltime pastor. We all have to be a part of keeping the ministry going here. I believe that God will move in your hearts, things will get paid, because God did it inside of you.

3.    Talents…all of you have been gifted with talents and abilities that you need to be using for Jesus. Stop making excuses that you can’t when you have been gifted to Do Great things!

 When we are operating in these major control areas for personal development…

It Equals us becoming a Balanced Christian.

 If you go back to our opening scripture in Romans 6:11, “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” What is the makeup of a Balanced Christian? It is “the man or woman who has died to self…has no ambitions and has nothing to be jealous about. They have no reputation and so has nothing to fight about. They have no possessions and therefore have nothing to worry about. They have no rights so therefore they cannot suffer any wrongs. They are already dead so no one can kill them.”

Only as we learn to die can we really live in Christ. More tomorrow...

 

You are Loved!

The Prayer Factor = You

Romans 6:11”In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

Did you know God has a Plan to use you? Each of us is the means by which God will accomplish His purpose here on earth. St. Augustine said, “Without God we cannot. Without us, God will not.” God’s way is to use people. Rarely does God use a thing: His plan centers on a man or woman who comes to the place of surrender in their lives. Only as we grow spiritually can our prayers have the full term effect God desires. Each of must have a self-development plan for our spiritual lives. Example: One of the areas of self-development would be to take part in a small group. Smalls groups do a couple of things: they bring you to a place of surrendering your time and your personal wants for a great cause. What can be more important than growing in Christ?

The number #1 thing we must do is Surrender. 

The most vital area of spiritual self-development is the aspect of total surrender. We must be like Jesus, and Jesus Christ surrendered all.

The great enemy to the surrendered life is: Selfishness

The selfless Christian is a giving Christian.
The key to dying is: Giving

 I love the story of a king that wanted to show his people how much he loved them. So, he decided to pay for a great feast for his kingdom. He decided to have a great meal and invite every family. The king would provide all the meat, all the vegetables, all the desserts ... everything; the king would provide all, but the wine. The king asked every family to bring one bottle of their best wine. He would see that there was a several thousand gallon vat for all to pour in their bottle of wine. What a feast this would be! The King wanted to honor his people.

One poor farmer decided, he would slip in his bottle, nothing but water, no wine. How would the king ever know his selfishness? His one bottle of water mixed with thousands of bottles of wine would never be known. The King would never know? The taste would still be good. So the poor farmer climbed the stairs to the top of the vat and while no one was looking, he poured in his bottle of wine; I mean his bottle of water in with the thousands of other wine bottles. No one saw him. He had fooled every one there.

He laughed, he got away cheap! He sat down at the kings table ready for the feast. The king was so proud, he honored his precious people. He filled his plate with delicious food. The King picked up his Royal Gold Chalice. The king placed his chalice under the spout of the huge vat of wine. The king looked into his chalice, and to his surprise ... it was clear, pure water. Seems everybody in the kingdom thought their little bottle of water would not matter in the vat of wine.

Your part matters! Learning that self-sacrifice, dying to self, is vital to an empowered life; we begin the process of allowing the Holy spirit to work in us.

Men and women who permit God’s forgiveness to come into them so fully that not only are their sins washed out, but also their very selves, their egos, and the root of their self-will as well; Will Begin to see an intensity of power begin to manifest in their lives. Not doubt, cynicism, faultfinding, doom, gloom, pessimism. But the fruit of God working inside you.
1 John 2:15 says, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.” That’s the difference. We have decided to put in all in. More Tomorrow...

 

You are Loved!

The Prayer Factor #4

Prayer Allows us to see the Spiritual Secrets of God

When we tap spiritual secrets we are in essence confiding with God by the authority of God.

Let me show you…in Daniel 2:21-22…he says, “He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. 22 He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.”

The KJV says “He reveals the deep and secret things.” How do we tap into God’s secrets?

There is a four letter word that spells power…F E A R

Fear means: 1. Fear God 2. Be at Ease with God 3. Are your eyes on God 4. Respect and Reverence God

Psalm 25:12 “What man is he that feareth the LORD? Him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. 13 His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth. 14 the secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.”

 The lord confides in those who have relationship with Him. When we have relationship with Him we begin to see things we’ve never seen before. Daniel was shown the very secrets of God because his relationship with God was full of Fear.

Now there is Three Results of Developing Spiritual Power

We must have

1.    “The Wisdom of God.” We must pray for wisdom on a continual basis.

2.    “The Peace of God.” Reverence and respect brings peace. We trust God in our relationship so much it takes away real fear. Respect defined is “the act of Noticing with Attention.”

3.    “The Blessing of God.” God’s blessing is upon MT 18:13 “and His seed shall inherit the earth.”

The biblical definition of Fearing God is Proverbs 8:13 “To fear the LORD is to Hate Evil. Love God!

Finally Prayer is Developing Spiritual Love

When we commune with God we develop something Daniel learned. Dan 11:32 tells us something amazing about who God is. “The people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.”

I know you desire to be strong and do great exploits. Every one of us wants to pray for someone and see God do a miracle.

Ever heard a story of someone who did something amazing in an emergency? They lifted a car off someone and then when they tried to do it again they couldn’t? My Dad one Sunday went to make some extra money by helping a guy reposition his posts under the trailer he was living in. As they were jacking things up the guy crawled under the corner of the trailer and bam, it collapsed right on him. I watched as my dad ran to the corner and lifted that trailer so the guy could get out. The guy was taken to the hospital with crushed ribs. But my dad could never lift that trailer again.  

That power we seem to get in time of need is available to each of us in prayer.

The word Strong in Daniel 11 means we become firm and durable. That doesn’t sound exciting. Prayer is not about us getting some feeling; it’s about us being obedient and God moving on our behalf.

Exploits on the other hand means we are to do bold deeds and daring acts.  

In Daniel 11…the key Hebrew Word for “Know” is: Yada

It's Definition is staggering: it means Life Giving Intimacy. When you know God you get life giving intimacy.

I know this is a weird scripture…Gen 4:1 “Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, "With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man."

Just as Intimacy in marriage creates a meaningful relationship, Intimacy with God through prayer creates a meaningful spiritual relationship. (Knowing God Brings Life)

Let me close with a challenge: This week what is your Written Commitment for Daily Yada?  What is your oath or pledge to know God in Prayer?

Have you Prayed in the church parking lot yet...

The Prayer Factor #2

Prayer is Transacting Spiritual Business  

 

What does transacting spiritual business mean? The word transacts means to carry on or conduct (business, negotiations, activities, etc.) to a conclusion. When we express our hearts to Him, We are carrying on the work of God in prayer. We are doing His business. The word spiritual means we have the authority in Jesus name.

R A Torrey once said “prayer is the key that unlocks all the storehouses of God’s infinite grace and power. All that God is, and all that God has, is at the disposal of prayer.”

Matthew 18:18-19 says, "Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. 19 "Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.” When we pray we pray to his will.

There is a spiritual law in effect here.

The Law of spiritual Authority.  “When we take Authority on Earth God releases Power from Heaven.” Prayer can penetrate places where no other power can reach.

If we define that a little further…the spiritual law is “a sequence of Events occurring with unvarying Uniformity.” God’s said he would and His word hasn’t changed.

That’s why Jesus said “whatever you bind here is bound in heaven.” The phrase when we Bind here on earth…it means “to compel as by oath or legal restraint.” It’s a binding agreement. The conditions are we simply agree together.

Here are the vast possibilities of prayer agreement; Wisdom, knowledge, holiness, and heaven through prayer. There is no situation or problem too great for the power of prayer. It leads to all blessings, taps the power of God and it brings the prayer warrior into the very presence of God Himself. More tomorrow...

You are Loved!

The Prayer Factor Part 2

Prayer is…

 

1.   Entreating Spiritual Power
Someone once said “Prayer is a cannon set at the gates of heaven to burst open its gates.” Now I know we have access anytime to God, but the power of prayer is no more or no less than the mighty power of God released through the life of a man or woman who stops being an obstacle to God.

The power of answered prayer is Gods alone; and that power is unlimited when we believe. I read a story of an elderly widow from the slums of New York who had never ventured far from her home. A person who was told of this woman’s life invited her to spend the weekend at their ocean side cottage. The lady who had never seen all the luxuries was awestruck by the beauty of the location. As the benefactor who invited this lady watched her, she stood and looked overwhelmed by the vast expanse of water and the beautiful surroundings. As she stood there tears began to flow down her cheeks. The benefactor asked her why she was crying. She simply replied, “Because it’s so wonderful to see something there is enough of.”

We can struggle in this area of enough in prayer. It’s not the…can God do it, but the…will God do it. If you have faith to believe in God, you will also believe there will always be enough! God has enough (unlimited) power to use on our behalf, anytime, anyplace, any situation. I’ve had to remind myself that a lot lately. God will never leave us begging when he has more than enough.

Many years ago when I was still single after I had just accepted Christ; I decided to hang with my cousin who was saved and one night her college group rented the gym out to have some fun. They were into volleyball I was into football, and when I realized they were into tackle volleyball, oh ya. One of the guys jumped to spike on me and my elbow accidently put a big gash into this guy’s forehead. Well he ran into my elbow. As he went to the ground and held his head, there was some blood. Like all over the place. So my initial reaction was just to pray. I was still a young Christian and my mentor Tom told me God answered prayer. So I got down and prayed for him. The blood stopped and as I was about to pray for healing, someone said “you don’t think God will actually heal him?” Yes I did.

But that question made me doubt for just a second. The bible tells me God answers prayer. Yes or no, he answers. Men and women throughout time have had to learn to rely and trust God knows what’s best.

Think about Elijah:

Elijah believed God answered prayer. But there was this constant struggle within himself and he even doubted God. In 1 Kings 18:36-38 he stood up in faith to do what God had called him to do…Elijah has prophesied against Ahab & Jezebel and has summoned the people for sacrifice. The people had turned their hearts away from God; Ahab & Jezebel where terrible evil people and rulers. So all the people and the prophets of Baal showed up; if you know the story he taunts the prophets to a dual basically. My God is better than your God type of thing. So Baal prophets build an altar and Elijah watches until about noon, and then begins to challenge them. Why hasn’t Baal answered your prayers yet? So Elijah tells the people to grab twelve stones, he builds an altar with trenches around it, and then tells them to pour water over everything.

In verse 36 he says… “At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."

What was Elijah doing? He was entreating God to move with power to change the people’s hearts. The demonstration of power came by the “fire of the Lord. It burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the soil, and the water in the trench.” What a demonstration. Verse 39 says “when all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, the Lord he is God, the Lord he is God.”

We see another example in 1 Samuel 7:9-10, Samuel was offering a sacrifice on behalf of the nation of Israel because the people had assembled to contemplate turning back to God. The people for twenty years had turned their hearts away and worshipped the Ashtoreth’s and was now mourning doing so because they were being attacked again by an enemy; This time the philistines. In verse 9 it says… “Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the LORD. He cried out to the LORD on Israel's behalf, and the LORD answered him.”

This is important; the only limits to prayer are the limits of God. As far as God goes, prayer goes. More tomorrow...

 

You are Loved!

 

Expressing Our Hearts In Prayer

1 Thessalonians 5:17 ‘Pray without ceasing.'

When the Bible says, ‘Pray without ceasing,’ that means pray every day, not just periodically or when you’re in trouble. James 5:16 says, ‘The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.’

Ever played with a slinky? If you just hold it, is the intent of what it is supposed to do fulfilled. The point of the slinky is to see if you can make it do its thing on what ever object you can. It’s the physics involved. But what happens when the slinky doesn't do what we want? most of would give up trying.

Prayer is just like playing with this slinky…at some point you lose interest or just want to give up. But that's the whole point isn't...when your prayers don't get answered, how we would like them to; do we just give-up?  

The word ‘fervent’ in James means passionate, persistent and determined. It’s not the number of our prayers, how many they are; nor the rhetoric of our prayers, how eloquent they may be; nor the geometry of our prayers, how long they may be; nor the music of our prayers, how sweet our voice may be; nor the logic of our prayers, how argumentative they may be; nor the method of our prayers, how orderly they may be; nor even the theology of our prayers, how good the doctrine is, that God responds to.

Fervency of spirit is what ‘avails much’. The most powerful thing you can do is pray! And when you join with a prayer partner, your potential is awesome. ‘If two of you agree on earth concerning anything that [you] ask, it will be done for them by My Father in Heaven.’ (Matthew 18:19 NKJV) It works like this: the less you pray, the less you want to pray; the more you pray, the more you want to pray. Nothing will motivate you to pray like answered prayer. But you can’t start with the answer; you’ve got to start with the prayer! Here’s a fact of life: we only keep doing what rewards us. So the key to building a great prayer life is to pray until you get answers. So pray in faith and expect God to answer!

You are Loved!