Day 11 - August 12,2020 How We Can Be More Confident In Prayer

Sometimes it feels like my prayers are not getting any traction because as I pray, “dumb doubts” slip in.

How can we be more confident in prayer?

It is the power of our testimony in prayer.

Revelation 12:11 They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much  as to shrink from death.

The word “testimony’ means to repeat, redo and reoccur. 

When I see someone’s testimony I know I can ask God to repeat, redo and reoccur that in my life.

The Apostle Paul prayed for the NT Church  Ephesians 1, 3 and Colossians 1. The confident thing of his prayer was his experience, his testimony.

Ephesians 1:18 (NIV) 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,

May the eyes of our hearts be enlightened .. Paul knew what it was like to have lost sight and then to have his eyes opened.  So he prays that others may have the eyes of their hearts enlightened.

If God does this for someone else, He will do it for us.

We want God to repeat, redo and reoccur in others lives.

He does that for us and can use our testimony to repeat, redo and reoccur in others lives.

You can pray a person’s testimony in prayer. 

1 Peter 2:24 (KJB)  24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

We can apply this truth to our life today.

We can also pray a personal testimony and give God permission to do what He has done in our life in the life of others.

John 17:20-21 (NET) 20 “I am not praying[a] only on their behalf, but also on behalf of those who believe[b] in me through their testimony,[c] 21 that they will all be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. I pray[d] that they will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me.

Just as Jesus was praying his personal  testimony and “connectedness” to God that others may also be likewise connected to God.

God is able to repeat, redo and reoccur what He did with Jesus in our lives.

21 Days of Prayer - Day 10 Jesus Exemplifies The Power of the Prayer Closet

Day 10   Jesus Exemplifies the Power of the Prayer Closet

Words to describe believers or distinction.. Anointing, called, empowered.

God has called us to be different than others

Matthew 14:22, 28-29

22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.

28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

29 “Come,” he said.Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.

They rowed (showing energy and strength), but Jesus walked effortlessly on water (on top of the thing they were working with effort. 

Peter, a fisherman all his life, but never had he asked to walk on water.

Jesus gives an example and Peter desires this

Peter walks on top of what normally is on top of others until he lost focus

When he started to focus on the threat, he began to sink.

What impact is the wind having on us during the pandemic?  But if we will look to Jesus we can be above that which can be on top of us.

Two water walkers.  We can walk on what others drown in. 

As Jesus does it long term, Peter does it short term.

Jesus does it long term on  the water because of what he did on the shore.  What did He do? Because He had dismissed the disciples so he could pray.

We cannot walk on water in public if we are not praying in private.

The prayer closet is like the phone booth for superman, when we pray, we become different and empowered.

Jesus had stamina and steadiness.  

Jude 1:24

24 To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— 25 to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

You don’t keep yourself up, God keeps you up.

Jesus showed stubbornness, resilience, perseverance.  Refusing to quit even during the wind.  You only get this by prayer.

When you pray, you need to pray against somethings and then you need to pray for some things.

Let’s pray today that we’ll commit time in prayer that we might do even greater things for Jesus in public.

21 Days of Prayer - Day 9 - August 10 - Prayer Changes Everything

Day 9 Prayer changes everything.

21 Days of Prayer is so good that it realigns and recalibrates our lives to be back in tune with God. We get on with our lives and allow some things into our lives that can throw us off balance or now allow us to hear God correctly.  

However, each time we jump back into 21 days of Prayer, it realigns and recalibrates us back in harmony with the Lord Jesus. It’s the completion of one thing and the beginning of something new.

Prayer changes everything.  Our year may have started bad but prayer can change and bring us through 2020 with a  newness and a reaction.

Prayer can change our reaction.  Let’s operate out of this passage. Philippians 4:6-7

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

When we pray, we get the peace of God. We don’t have to operate out of anxiety, rather we get His peace.

Prayer changes our reality. We all have things in the natural that are not lining up. We all have miracles we are believing God for. We might get discouraged, yet  we need to keep praying, believing and persevering.  Provision, perseverance and power.

Mark 11:24 (NIV) 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Prayer changes our relationship. We all have things we are believing for. But this is the list; that we get closer to Jesus. That should be our number one value, to Know God. We never stop pursuing our relationship of knowing Him more and more.

C.S. Lewis said, “God is like an onion peeled in reverse. The more we peel (know Him) the bigger He gets.”

James 4:8  Come near to God and he will come near to you.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”  This past January 2020 was the best of times at New Years. We were expecting great things; and now on August 10, global pandemic, it’s the worst of times. We are facing things that need to change. 

As children of God we don’t need to leave it there. On August 10, 2020 we can pivot, we can turn in prayer, knowing that anything is possible. The script has not yet been written and if we end this year (over the next few months) getting closer to God, it will have not have been the worst of times, but indeed, the best of times

Prayer can change everything!