| Title | Summary | |
|---|---|---|
| Wait in Expectation | I wonder how different our attitude toward prayer would be if we REALLY expected our prayers to be answered. I think back to the times when God has suddenly answered one of my prayers and my first thought is “Wow, I can’t believe he actually answered that!” It sounds so silly that it makes me laugh. What exactly was I expecting to happen when I prayed? | |
| Crying Out to God in Prayer |
Praying to God does not require eloquence or special theological insight. Like the tax collector who beat his breast and cried out "God have mercy on me, a sinner", we can come to Jesus with our raw emotion. In this devotional from Vision Christian Media, we learn about how the undignified prayer of a blind man caught Jesus's attention leading to his restored sight. |
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| Prayer & Fasting Guidelines |
This week we are promoting the Esther Fast from sundown Tuesday through sundown Friday. This is a time to pray for our nation, that God would intervene in our government, in our culture and in our churches and that his Holy Spirit would move hearts to embrace the life-changing gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. In this blog we offer some prayer guidelines to help you pray throughout the fast. |
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| God is Still in Control | During times of suffering or hardship, it can be easy to forget that God is in control and to wonder if he even sees what is going on. One thing we can be sure of is that God is sovereign over everything and that he is "compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." (Psalm 103:8) Watch this video from Pastor Jerry Gillis (www.thechapel.com) for an excellent message about God's sovereignty - I guarantee you will feel encouraged and blessed: Video: God is Sovereign | |
| Stronger Together | I have often thought that Christians could be more effective if we worked together as one. With so many different churches and organizations, each with their own ministries, it seems like we would benefit greatly if we could work together, pooling our time and resources to become a major force in our world. One organization that is doing just that is Alliance Defending Freedom (www.adflegal.org). As their name says, they are an alliance of organizations working to defend our religious freedom in the United States. | |
| Not the answer you were expecting? | Sometimes we pray to God and we already have in our minds how we think he should answer. In fact, we pray with our desired answer foremost in our mind. Many times (if not most of the time), God answers us in ways we never expected. | |
| Feelings versus Faith | "Sometimes people will neglect to pray because they are in the dark and feel no desire to pray. But that is the very time when they need prayer. That is the very reason they need to pray. " - Charles G. Finney | |
| Prayerlessness | I think the greatest sin of our churches today is prayerlessness. This post explores some of the reasons why we struggle with prayer. Do any of these sound familiar? | |
| Humble Yourselves | When you pray, ask God to open your eyes to see yourself the way he sees you. Humble yourself before him and ask him to forgive you for your pride and for trusting in your own wisdom instead of looking to him for guidance. | |
| Pray without ceasing | I have often wondered what Paul meant when he said that he never ceases to give thanks or that he prays without ceasing. We are commanded to do this in Scripture, but what does it really mean? | |
| I didn’t expect you to answer like THAT! | Sometimes when we pray, God answers in a way that is totally unexpected. One thing I know for sure is that God is good and he will not give us a stone when we ask for bread. So, even though it does not seem like God gives us the RIGHT answer, we know that He gives us the BEST answer. | |
| Praying – Easy or Hard? | Why is it so difficult to slow down and actually get on our knees in prayer? Is it because we are too busy? Maybe it is because we really don’t understand how much God longs for usto take that time to just focus on Him. He knows our hearts, but do we know HIS heart? | |
| Praying for Miracles | I wonder how many times we miss God’s blessing because we fail to pray for miracles. I hope this post will encourage you to pray for miracles. Not just for the miracle itself, but for the miraculous change it can bring about in the life of another. | |
| Learning to Pray | As believers, we are promised the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us in prayer, searching our heart and thoughts and tells us what to pray. The Holy Spirit will teach you to pray if you just ask. | |
| Why pray? | If God already knows what we are going to ask for, and his will is going to be accomplished on the earth, and the Spirit is already interceding, why does he need us to pray? | |
| The Impulse To Pray | Always respond to every impulse to pray. The impulse to pray may come when you are reading or when you are battling with a text. I would make an absolute law of this – always obey such an impulse. –Martyn Lloyd-Jones | |
| Praying for Spiritual Leaders | While browsing the Internet, I came upon the list below for “Praying for Missionaries A-Z”. I wanted to share it with you because I think it is applicable for praying for anyone in ministry. | |
| Do you delight in prayer? | As you fall more and more in love with God, you will begin to desire to spend time with Him and you will delight in prayer. | |
| When you don’t feel like praying | What I have found is that prayer can be a lot like exercise. I procrastinate exercising all the time because it is difficult, requires my time and energy and focus. | |
| Tough Week | When you don’t understand life’s turns and you are tempted to be discouraged, focus on who God is. He is unchangeable. We know that he is compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. That never changes, no matter how it seems. You need to trust him and acknowledge him and have faith that he will always do what is most just and loving and most compassionate. One day we will understand fully. Be patient and keep trusting. |