Tag Archives: prayer life

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – Holiday Holiness

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Presidents are criticized for almost everything, including their vacations. George W. Bush had a “lackadaisical approach to the world’s most important day job” according to one newspaper which disapproved of his frequent trips to his Texas ranch. And President Obama has been attacked for expensive and frequent trips to Hawaii. Whatever your opinion, remember this: A president is never really on vacation. One historian wrote this about President Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Even while relaxing…he received mail, reviewed dispatches, signed and vetoed legislation, met with political and world leaders, and delivered press conferences and speeches.”

Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.   I Corinthians 15:58

Does “steadfast” and “always abounding” describe your work for the Lord, or are you given to taking frequent holidays from your prayer life, Bible study and service to others? God’s desire and direction for you is to “be ready in season and out of season.” (II Timothy 4:2)

If you have grown weary in doing good, then you may not be drawing on the proper source for your strength. Today, ask God to increase your faithfulness. And as you lift up your leaders, pray that they govern with godly wisdom – in hectic days and holidays.

Recommended Reading: II Timothy 4:1-8

Joyce Meyer

Joyce Meyer – Simple, Believing Prayer

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And when you pray, do not heap up phrases (multiply words, repeating the same ones over and over) as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their much speaking. —MATTHEW 6:7

We must develop confidence in simple, believing prayer. We need the confidence that even if we simply say, “God, help me,” He hears and will answer. We can depend on God to be faithful to do what we have asked Him to do, as long as our request is in accordance with His will. Too often we get caught up in our own works concerning prayer.

Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that prayer is simply conversation with God. The length or volume or eloquence of our prayer is not the issue, it is the sincerity of our heart and the confidence we have that God hears and will answer us that is important.

Sometimes we try to sound so devout and elegant that we get lost. If we could ever get delivered from trying to impress God, we would be a lot better off.

Several years ago God caused me to realize that when I had occasion to pray out loud in front of other people, I really was not talking to Him at all. I was actually trying to impress those listening with my eloquent, spiritual-sounding prayer. Simple, believing prayer comes straight out of the heart of the one praying and goes straight to the heart of God.

irst Thessalonians 5:17 says, Be unceasing in prayer [praying persever-ingly] or as the King James Version puts it, Pray without ceasing. If we don’t understand simple, believing prayer, that instruction can come down upon us like a very heavy burden. We may feel that we are doing well to pray thirty minutes a day, so how can we possibly pray without ever stopping? We need to have such confidence about our prayer life that prayer becomes just like breathing, an effortless thing that we do every moment we are alive.

 

We don’t work and struggle at breathing, unless we have a lung disorder, and neither should we work and struggle at praying. I don’t believe we will struggle in this area if we really understand the power of simple, believing prayer. We should remember that prayer is made powerful by the sincerity of it and the faith behind it.

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Charles Stanley – Praying With Confidence

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Matthew 7:7-11

We sometimes become impatient in our prayer life. We might get angry or simply throw up our hands and decide God is not listening to us when He doesn’t answer our prayers immediately or in the exact way we hoped. The truth is that God delights in answering our prayers and has provided plenty of promises that should motivate us to talk with Him.

Read today’s passage one more time. If we understand what Jesus was saying in Matthew 7, we will be able to pray with greater confidence.

To ask is the easy part. We request aid in our jobs or protection of our children. We also ask to be drawn closer to God.

Then, to seek is the next step—the action stage of asking. Oftentimes we need to do something before God will bring about an answer to our prayers. For instance, if we pray, “God, please help me understand Scripture,” we must proceed to open the Bible and start reading.

Finally, to knock demonstrates that we’re coming to the Lord with a sense of dependence upon Him. We recognize that we cannot manipulate an answer to our petitions but instead must rely upon His power. What’s more, our ability to “knock” is unique—our God is personal and intensely interested in us.

Jesus uses the words ask, seek, and knock in the present active imperative tense. That means “ask and keep on asking; seek and keep on seeking; knock and keep on knocking.” In the Scriptures, prayer is compared to incense, which implies an unbroken stream that flows from us to heaven. Are you providing a continuous fragrance to the Lord with your prayers?

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Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – The Foil for Fear

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What does it mean to seek God? A wonderful example may be found in the life of E.M. Bounds, well known as a tireless prayer warrior and author of many books on intercession.

I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4

A biographer wrote that Bounds “did not merely pray well that he might write well about prayer. He prayed because the needs of the world were upon him. He prayed, for long years, upon subjects which the easygoing Christian rarely gives a thought, and for objects which men of less thought and faith are always ready to call impossible. As breathing is a physical reality to us, so prayer was a reality for Bounds. He took the command, ‘Pray without ceasing’ almost as literally as animate nature takes the law of the reflex nervous system, which controls our breathing.”

Would that describe your prayer life…or are you an “easygoing” Christian living in fear or apathy? Ask God to help you be more faithful and more fervent in your prayers. It will make a difference for you, and for America, if you can end this day by saying that in everything, truly, you sought the Lord.

Recommended Reading: II Timothy 1:3-10

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Charles Stanley – Listening to God

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2 Samuel 7:8-22

Of all the heroes in Scripture, few are spoken of as respectfully as King David. What made him so special? David himself wondered the same thing(2 Sam. 7:18) The best answer is simply that he was a man who listened to God.

Righteousness is impossible unless we listen to the Father. When we do, we gain divine guidance, direction, discipline, and encouragement. This was certainly true of the shepherd-king (Ps. 63:1-8).

In the Psalms, we get a beautiful picture of David’s prayer life. Note four things he did when meditating on God:

1. He reviewed the past. Though David had made some serious mistakes, those hard times produced a necessary humility. Looking back helped him remember God’s faithfulness.

2. He reflected upon the Lord’s character. When we focus on His attributes, we grow in our understanding of who He is. This results in a more personal, interactive relationship.

3. David recalled God’s promises. He knew the Lord had always directed his steps—and with great success.

4. He made requests of his heavenly Father. God never intended for us to go through life alone. He is always ready to act on our behalf.

Stop for a minute and think about how you typically interact with God. If prayer time is dominated by your own talking, some adjustments may be in order. Just as the Lord spoke to David, God also has many things to say to you, if you’ll simply let Him speak.