Luke 18:1-8 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.He said, "In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man.And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying,'Give me justice against my adversary.'For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself,'Though I neither fear God nor respect man,yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.'" And the Lord said, "Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to his elect,who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes,will he find faith on earth?"
It seems like when we need to pray the most, and the enemy is attacking us with everything he's got, the distractions of life and nuances of everyday living capture our attention instead of praying. Persisting in prayer should come as easy as curling up with a new book by a favorite author or enjoying a spa day with girlfriends, but often prayer manages to be an afterthought, a faint memory when many of people can testify if it had NOT been for the prayers of the righteous, where would we be. My great-aunt used to prayer religiously from noon to one o'clock every afternoon. Like the faithful hands on the grandfather clock, her gnarled hands would turn off the credits of The Young and The Restless and spend time communicating with the Father. Even though her feeble body could not kneel, the humbleness of her heart and seriousness in prayers has always stayed with me. Hers was certainly an effective prayer life! But moving beyond time limits, it is my desire to be that committed-period! The Christian life not only expands our foundation for faith, it stretches our ability to go beyond what we can see to what we believe. As Jesus told the disciple, do not lose heart! It's a crazy world, but we serve a God who is always listening, even to our faintest cry, but we have to use the communication tool of prayer. We have the assurance that not only does He hear, but He answers, and quickly! Whatever you're going through, continue to be strong in the Lord and in His might and He will come through.
Psalm 5:1-3
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Do Not Be Afraid
Matthew 24:4-8 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.
There is so much going in the world. With multiple earthquakes, the economy on a nitro-laced downward spiral, monstrous waves slamming into a cruise ship,crime at an all-time high and steady rising, foreclosures, unemployment, hopelessness and still the list goes on and on. Even with all the horrific headlines that can entice us to grow weak and become faint-hearted, there is still a reason to rejoice; motivation to press through the pain and let our pressure release praise in the atmosphere.
The disciples asked Jesus what would be the sign for the end of the age. Giving them several pointers to watch for,He said, “See that you are not troubled(vs.6)". In other words, these things must come, but don't let it get you down; do not become discouraged; don't dwell on the negative; but focus on the positive aspect, because those that endure to the end, would be saved. As believers, our hope is in Christ and His Word. The Body of Christ is well aware of the fact that the hunt is on and we are the prey, but we have to stay PRAYED up. Paul called it praying without ceasing. Because we are doing our part there is nothing to fear because if we worry then why pray and if we're going to pray, then why worry.
Matthew 24:3
1 Thessalonians 5:18
1Peter 5:18
There is so much going in the world. With multiple earthquakes, the economy on a nitro-laced downward spiral, monstrous waves slamming into a cruise ship,crime at an all-time high and steady rising, foreclosures, unemployment, hopelessness and still the list goes on and on. Even with all the horrific headlines that can entice us to grow weak and become faint-hearted, there is still a reason to rejoice; motivation to press through the pain and let our pressure release praise in the atmosphere.
The disciples asked Jesus what would be the sign for the end of the age. Giving them several pointers to watch for,He said, “See that you are not troubled(vs.6)". In other words, these things must come, but don't let it get you down; do not become discouraged; don't dwell on the negative; but focus on the positive aspect, because those that endure to the end, would be saved. As believers, our hope is in Christ and His Word. The Body of Christ is well aware of the fact that the hunt is on and we are the prey, but we have to stay PRAYED up. Paul called it praying without ceasing. Because we are doing our part there is nothing to fear because if we worry then why pray and if we're going to pray, then why worry.
Matthew 24:3
1 Thessalonians 5:18
1Peter 5:18
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Psalm 119:9-11 How can a young person stay pure? By obeying Your Word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
Obedience seems easy enough, yet at times it is impossible to do. Jesus said, "If you love me you will obey what I command". King David who God calls a man after His own heart asks an important question that can be applied to the lives of the young and mature alike. Because of the world's sin problem, our carnal man is always eager to fulfill our sinful nature, but we can remain strong and do the right thing. David certainly wasn't perfect. Who can forget his adulterous relationship which produced a child? Or his orchestrating the death of the woman's husband but he is also remembered for dancing before the Lord with all his might, so much so that his clothes came off. He encourages us with an antidote that works when we apply it to our lives.
Ask
We can't remotely begin to draw close to God and live for Him if we don't read the blueprint for life known as the B-I-B-L-E. It is absolutely absurd to win in spiritual warfare, stand in our trials, let alone be obedient if we are clueless on what He has said in His Word. This is a relationship that will take time to build, and like Rome, it was not built in a day. We have to constantly stay in His presence so by "A-S-K-ing". Asking, seeking, and knocking can only be of benefit to us since those that ask receive, seekers find, and the door will be opened for them that knock.
Seek
The Word assures us that if we draw close to God He will draw close to us. But before that we have to submit to God. Temptation is everywhere, and the enemy seems to know just when to strike, where to attack and how to make us think he is defeating us. Take heart, things are not as they appear, never forget he had to get God's permission to attack Job, but in the end look how Job was blessed by staying close to God. David got it right when he instructed future generations to hide the Word of God in our hearts so we don't sin against him.
Knock
In the book "The Purpose Driven Life", author Rick Warren let people know not only does God have an awesome plan for our lives, He desires to be in communion with us. With life's distraction it seems insurmountable at times to feel victorious, but in those moments we need to remember the rich promise of having a Great High Priest who has been tempted just like us, but remained without sin. Those critical moments when are strength is weak, our faith is shaken to the core, because we have been obedient we can count on God to remain true to His Word.
Job 1:6-8
2 Samuel 6:14
Mark 7:7-11
John 14:15
Romans 6:12
Acts 13:22
James 4:7:8
Obedience seems easy enough, yet at times it is impossible to do. Jesus said, "If you love me you will obey what I command". King David who God calls a man after His own heart asks an important question that can be applied to the lives of the young and mature alike. Because of the world's sin problem, our carnal man is always eager to fulfill our sinful nature, but we can remain strong and do the right thing. David certainly wasn't perfect. Who can forget his adulterous relationship which produced a child? Or his orchestrating the death of the woman's husband but he is also remembered for dancing before the Lord with all his might, so much so that his clothes came off. He encourages us with an antidote that works when we apply it to our lives.
Ask
We can't remotely begin to draw close to God and live for Him if we don't read the blueprint for life known as the B-I-B-L-E. It is absolutely absurd to win in spiritual warfare, stand in our trials, let alone be obedient if we are clueless on what He has said in His Word. This is a relationship that will take time to build, and like Rome, it was not built in a day. We have to constantly stay in His presence so by "A-S-K-ing". Asking, seeking, and knocking can only be of benefit to us since those that ask receive, seekers find, and the door will be opened for them that knock.
Seek
The Word assures us that if we draw close to God He will draw close to us. But before that we have to submit to God. Temptation is everywhere, and the enemy seems to know just when to strike, where to attack and how to make us think he is defeating us. Take heart, things are not as they appear, never forget he had to get God's permission to attack Job, but in the end look how Job was blessed by staying close to God. David got it right when he instructed future generations to hide the Word of God in our hearts so we don't sin against him.
Knock
In the book "The Purpose Driven Life", author Rick Warren let people know not only does God have an awesome plan for our lives, He desires to be in communion with us. With life's distraction it seems insurmountable at times to feel victorious, but in those moments we need to remember the rich promise of having a Great High Priest who has been tempted just like us, but remained without sin. Those critical moments when are strength is weak, our faith is shaken to the core, because we have been obedient we can count on God to remain true to His Word.
Job 1:6-8
2 Samuel 6:14
Mark 7:7-11
John 14:15
Romans 6:12
Acts 13:22
James 4:7:8
Monday, March 1, 2010
What Are You Hungry For?
Mark 6:42 So they ate and were filled.
Jesus has just fed the multitude with two fish and five loaves of bread. It doesn't sound like much to begin with, yet from small beginnings, there were twelve baskets left over. This is after feeding the five thousand men that were counted, a number that didn't include the women and children. I imagine the crowd was full with "itis",but their reaction of being full was to the food, not to the Living Word among them. In delivering the Beatitudes, Jesus teaches that those that hunger and thirst after righteousness would be filled. Righteousness being translated as leading a life that is pleasing to God. To the woman at the well, Jesus offers Himself as living water. To the same multitude in John 6, He declares, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." The crowd was very enthused and impressed with the miracle, so much so that they wanted to take Him by force and make Him their King. Jesus had to instruct them with a very important reminder which is just as important for us today; "Do not labor for the food which spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you".
John 4:13
John 6:35
Jesus has just fed the multitude with two fish and five loaves of bread. It doesn't sound like much to begin with, yet from small beginnings, there were twelve baskets left over. This is after feeding the five thousand men that were counted, a number that didn't include the women and children. I imagine the crowd was full with "itis",but their reaction of being full was to the food, not to the Living Word among them. In delivering the Beatitudes, Jesus teaches that those that hunger and thirst after righteousness would be filled. Righteousness being translated as leading a life that is pleasing to God. To the woman at the well, Jesus offers Himself as living water. To the same multitude in John 6, He declares, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." The crowd was very enthused and impressed with the miracle, so much so that they wanted to take Him by force and make Him their King. Jesus had to instruct them with a very important reminder which is just as important for us today; "Do not labor for the food which spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you".
John 4:13
John 6:35
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