specific

Pray this to God

Woman hands place together like praying in front of nature green bokeh and blue sky background.

Just think about it. Right now, all your sins, every single sinful thought, desire, word, deed, the things that you are really thankful nobody else knows about – God knows about all of it. And by the blood of Jesus, it is all covered. Your sin has been atoned for.

These regulations are to be observed for all time to come. This ritual must be performed once a year to purify the people of Israel from all their sins. So Moses[c] did as the Lord had commanded. – Leviticus 16:34 GNT

When you and I pray, and tell Jesus that we are sorry that we have turned our back on Him and believe that He died, was buried and rose again, then our sins are gone and grace covers us with the blood of Jesus.

Even my hidden faults, I ask God to forgive them.

None of us can see our own errors;
    deliver me, Lord, from hidden faults!
Keep me safe, also, from willful sins;
    don’t let them rule over me.
Then I shall be perfect
    and free from the evil of sin. – Psalm 19:12-13 GNT

When I pray for this specific request, I usually find that God does not just wipe them away and that’s it. I find that He wants me to deal with them. He may send someone, He may cause His word to jump from the pages of the Bible, He may use a sermon – but in some way or other I am suddenly confronted with what I say or have done and I find that it is ugly and I do not like it. God has His way of opening up the secret places.

There is only one prayer in all of Proverbs and here it is.
I ask you, God, to let me have two things before I die: keep me from lying, and let me be neither rich nor poor. So give me only as much food as I need. If I have more, I might say that I do not need you. But if I am poor, I might steal and bring disgrace on my God. – Proverbs 30:7-9 GNT

You can learn a lot about someone when you listen to them pray. This prayer addresses God on the spiritual weaknesses in my life that either block or detour the pursuit of godliness in my life. It also teaches me to pray with an ask that comes from humble submission.

I liked that Agar simply asked God for what he wanted, like a child addressing his father, like a servant speaking to his master, like a sinful man praying to a holy God. He had his spiritual priorities in place and did not waste his time on trivial superficial things. It was weighted down with the gravity of eternity.

“In praying one should think about dying and then pray accordingly.” – Matthew Henry

The idea of being set free from lying may very well be a confession of sin or it may be a prayer to protect him from lying.
I am challenged not only to ask Jesus to remove my sin from my life but to present any attitude and perspective that would block my pursuit of being godly. I do not want to be detoured from pursuing Him.
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No matter what season in life I am in I want to pray knowing God has everything under control. 
“Grant us grace to bear willingly all sorts of sickness, poverty, disgrace, suffering and adversity and to recognize that in this your divine will is crucifying our will.” – Martin Luther

The value of prayer

the value of prayer

It was interesting to read in Leviticus chapter six this morning and in particular, a new element was introduced – fire. In my research I could not believe how many commented on this passage and its significance was not lost to me. Let me share some of them with you, but first let me allow you to read this one verse in particular.

The fire must always be kept burning on the altar and never allowed to go out. – Leviticus 6:13 GNT 

“No more should our faith, love, zeal (that flame of God, as Solomon calls it, Song of Solomon 8:9), that should never go out; the waters should not quench it, nor the ashes cover it.” – John Trapp

F.B. Meyer observed that the perpetual fire was an emblem of:

· God’s love, because there was never and will never be a time when God does not love.

· The prayers of Jesus for His people, because He forever lives to pray for His people (Hebrews 7:25).

· The ministry of the Holy Spirit, because the fire first lit on the Day of Pentecost still burns among the people of God.

By this law we are taught to keep up in our minds a constant disposition to all acts of piety and devotion, an habitual affection to divine things, so as to be always ready to every good word and work. We must not only not quench the Spirit, but we must stir up the gift that is in us. Though we be not always sacrificing, yet we must keep the fire of holy love always burning; and thus we must pray always. – Matthew Henry

Charles Wesley brings several of these interpretations together in his hymn – O Thou Who Camest From Above

O thou who earnest from above
The pure celestial fire to impart
Kindle a flame of sacred love
On the mean altar of my heart.

There let it for Thy glory burn
With inextinguishable blaze
And trembling to its source return
In humble prayer and fervent praise

In considering what prayer may look like, I am encouraged when I read Psalm five.

Listen to my words, O Lord,
    and hear my sighs. – Psalm 5:1 GNT

It is not about keeping our eyes closed and speaking prayer continuously – it could be very much a simple or deep or exasperated sigh. It is about God listening and in this case hearing from my heart. I believe God can answer prayer even before I speak them.

In no means does this take place of the spoken prayer for we are taught of its importance.

However, when I do not know how to pray or the exact words to pray I know the Holy Spirit will help me pray.

His next statement matters.

Listen to my cry for help,
    my God and king!

I pray to you, O Lord – Psalm 5:2 GNT

When David uses the word “cry” I believe it is for the sense of urgency involved in the need.

You hear my voice in the morning;
at sunrise I offer my prayer[b]
    and wait for your answer. – Psalm 5:3 GNT

I am a morning person so I like the habit starting my day with prayer. Who knows what the day will be bringing? Who knows what decisions and temptations will be coming my way? What kind of leadership will I be called on to perform? I am feeble, helpless, sinful, prone to making mistakes, living in a world of temptation and surrounded by dangers I know nothing about. When people talk about fitness, I practice my spiritual fitness looking to God each morning for His guidance and protection.

How can I be expected to follow God if I do not have instructions for the day? It is my time to declare Him as Lord when I do. My time with Him in the morning becomes my “tithe” of the day. He knows my sincerity when I do.

 It is not unexpected to read the apostle Paul urging the Christians in Colossae to pray and to do so persistently.

Be persistent in prayer, and keep alert as you pray, giving thanks to God. At the same time pray also for us, so that God will give us a good opportunity to preach his message about the secret of Christ. For that is why I am now in prison. Pray, then, that I may speak, as I should, in such a way as to make it clear. – Colossians 4:2-4 GNT

He adds two other elements that increase the value of prayer – “keep alert” and “giving thanks.” It is about being spiritual aware of what should be prayed about – to my needs and the needs of others. I love the idea of giving thanks because I know the temptation to fill my time of prayer with asks more than praise. The idea of keeping alert is something I practice before prayer – during prayer – after prayer – I need to be aware of God’s leading.

Paul also asks for prayers on his behalf – a bit unexpected. But as a man with passions there was no special spiritual elevation. He was tempted, capable of weakness and fatigue and faced the challenges that I face, that we all face, trying to do what is right.

However, I do love the specific prayer request he made – “Pray, then, that I may speak, as I should, in such a way as to make it clear.” He wanted good opportunities – he wanted open doors – he wanted success to have the gospel preached and ultimately he wanted to see changed hearts and lives. 

Everything in this passage highlights the value of prayer and how it relates to the gospel. If I ask God to help me, to guide and direct me will doors open for me in ministry?

He had been comparing Himself to a vine, His disciples to the branches in the vine. Some branches continued in the vine, that is, remained in living union with the vine, so that the sap or life of the vine constantly flowed into these branches. They had no independent life of their own. Everything in them was simply the outcome of the life of the vine flowing into them. Their buds, their leaves, their blossoms, their fruit, were really not theirs, but the buds, leaves, blossoms and fruit of the vine. Other branches were completely severed from the vine, or else the flow of the sap or life of the vine into them was in some way hindered. Now for us to abide in Christ is for us to bear the same relation to Him that the first sort of branches bear to the vine; that is to say, to abide in Christ is to renounce any independent life of our own, to give up trying to think our thoughts, or form our resolutions, or cultivate our feelings, and simply and constantly look to Christ to think His thoughts in us, to form His purposes in us, to feel His emotions and affections in us. It is to renounce all life independent of Christ, and constantly to look to Him for the inflow of His life into us, and the outworking of His life through us. When we do this, and in so far as we do this, our prayers will obtain that which we seek from God. – Torrey