THE PRAYER YOU MEANT TO PRAY

My prayer life is pretty hot and cold—and by hot and cold, I mean sometimes I go weeks without intentionally praying to God, and other times I get frustrated that He’s not immediately answering my petty prayers. There really is no in-between for me. Most days, I’m pretty good at praying for friends or family who are in dire situations, and I'm always quick to ask God for forgiveness when I goof up. But to be quite honest with you, and with Him, I still suck at praying.

I’ve read the New Testament many times, and one thing continually frustrates me: Jesus was a much better prayer than I am.

First of all, Jesus would routinely go off and pray alone, in the wilderness, for long amounts of time. My prayer life is typically jammed into the 45 seconds after I wake up before I jump out of bed and decide I need to shower and get ready for my busy day. Or, it gets crammed into commercial breaks of my favorite sports talk shows. There is no escaping to pray—and there are no lengthy periods of time where I enjoy my Father’s presence and take in His wisdom for my heart.

It's tempting to think: "Well, Jesus was God-made-flesh, right? So, He’s supposed to do things we weren’t able to, right? He lived a perfect life, and we can’t do that. This is probably just one of those deals."

Unfortunately for us, Scripture seems to say otherwise. Every time Jesus took His disciples somewhere to pray, I believe He expected them to pray, too. The Garden of Gethsemane comes to mind, especially as it’s one of my favorite scenes in the Bible. He asks His disciples to look out for him—and I believe this includes praying for Him—as He goes forward on His own and prays Himself. They’re worn out and tired, and can’t keep their eyes open (I can relate to that), but Jesus doesn’t take that as a good excuse. He’s upset; His words even sound as if He is hurt when they can’t stay awake.

Jesus was much better at His method of prayer than I could ever be. But it’s not just that. The content of His prayers blows me away too. Listen to the words He utters in that famous Gethsemane prayer: “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as You will. … My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may Your will be done.”

Let's compare to my typical prayer: “Hey. God. It’s me, Zak. Could you please send me a sign that you still love me? I’m feeling a bit self-conscious today. Also, a wife would be cool. And maybe some money, so I can afford to give some back to you. Thanks, peace.”

Jesus’ prayer is so different, it shocks and amazes me. His prayer ends, “May Your will be done,” and mine ends, “Could you please just do it my way?”

But in Paul’s letter to the Romans, we read an interesting verse that says there may be hope for us yet. It even explains why sometimes we’re disappointed at the results of our prayers.

"The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans" (Romans 8:26).

The translation I memorized one summer at camp said, “ ... intercedes for us with groans that words simply could not express.”

What a powerful gift for those who receive the blessing of salvation. When the Spirit rushes upon us, He's got our back in our prayer lives. When I don’t know what to pray, the Spirit intercedes on my behalf with the Father, finishing my prayers—and I believe that His prayer is so often, “Father, may your will be done.”

Without even knowing it, because the Spirit intercedes for me, my prayers are ending with “but Thy will be done.”

Asking for more money, more material blessings, more spiritual blessings—all of those prayers should be offensive to the God who has poured out unending blessings upon us already. But because of the Spirit’s intercession for us, we don’t have to worry when we don’t know what to pray for. We just have to trust that, in "His will be done," God is offering what is best for us.

I know I should be praying more—for more forgiveness, more humility, more desire to be like Him. But I also know the Spirit is constantly interceding with the Father on my behalf for these things. Its work is ever-present, and ever-powerful in my life, and for that, I am truly thankful.

Source: Relevant Magazine

Picture of Peace

“There once was a King who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The King looked at all the pictures, but there were only two he really liked and he had to choose between them. One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror, for peaceful towering mountains were all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace.

The other picture had mountains too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky from which rain fell and in which lightning played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all. But when the King looked, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest... perfect peace.

Which picture do you think won the prize?

The King chose the second picture. "Because," explained the King, "peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."

Catherine Marshall

Difficult times

If God brings you to it, he Will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

In Defense of Discontent

By the grace of God, we cannot quite pull it off. In the quiet moments of the day we sense a nagging within, a discontentment, a hunger for something else. But because we have not solved the riddle of our existence, we assume that something is wrong-not with life, but with us. Everyone else seems to be getting on with things. What's wrong with me? We feel guilty about our chronic disappointment. Why can't I just learn to be happier in my job, in my marriage, in my church, in my group of friends? You see, even while we are doing other things, "getting on with life," we still have an eye out for the life we secretly want. When someone seems to have gotten it together, we wonder, How did he do it? Maybe if we read the same book, spent time with him, went to his church, things would come together for us as well. You see, we can never entirely give up our quest. Gerald May reminds us,

When the desire is too much to bear, we often bury it beneath frenzied thoughts and activities or escape it by dulling our immediate consciousness of living. It is possible to run away from the desire for years, even decades, at a time, but we cannot eradicate it entirely. It keeps touching us in little glimpses and hints in our dreams, our hopes, our unguarded moments. (The Awakened Heart)

He says that even though we sleep, our desire does not. "It is who we are." We are desire. It is the essence of the human soul, the secret of our existence. Absolutely nothing of human greatness is ever accomplished without it. Desire fuels our search for the life we prize. The same old thing is not enough. It never will be.

(Desire , 10-11)

Source: Ransomed Heart Ministries by John Eldredge

We Are at War

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10)

Have you ever wondered why Jesus married those two statements? Did you even know he spoke them at the same time? I mean, he says them in one breath. And he has his reasons. By all means, God intends life for you. But right now that life is opposed. It doesn't just roll in on a tray. There is a thief. He comes to steal and kill and destroy. Why won't we face this? I know so few people who will face this. The offer is life, but you're going to have to fight for it, because there's an Enemy in your life with a different agenda.

There is something set against us.

We are at war.

I don't like that fact any more than you do, but the sooner we come to terms with it, the better hope we have of making it through to the life we do want. This is not Eden. You probably figured that out. This is not Mayberry, this is not Seinfeld's world, this is not Survivor. The world in which we live is a combat zone, a violent clash of kingdoms, a bitter struggle unto the death. I am sorry if I'm the one to break this news to you: you were born into a world at war, and you will live all your days in the midst of a great battle, involving all the forces of heaven and hell and played out here on earth.

Where did you think all this opposition was coming from?

(Waking the Dead , 12-13)

Source: Ransomed Heart Ministries by John Eldredge

Heavenly Help

I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2

It’s OK to ask for help. In fact many times help is needed by you and expected by God. Your heavenly Father desires deeply to help His children. He can’t wait to be there for you. But, to benefit from the help of God, we have to look up. We look up from the mess and mire of our circumstances and see God extend His comfort and security. We look up from our financial debacle and hear God say, “Don’t worry, I will provide for you.” We look up from our relational quagmire, and God pours out His forgiveness and longs for a deeper and more intimate relationship with us.

We can and should do the same for others. When we look up out of our prosperity and see that God is there, it helps us remain grateful for and generous with His blessings. Heavenly help starts by looking up and recognizing that almighty God is available, seated in glory, awaiting our engagement. He is the creator of the galaxies, yet He is ever ready to help you. Nothing is too small or insignificant for the compassion of God. He cares about His creation. As your Creator, He is responsible for your well-being.

He wants to help. He wants to provide peace where there is turmoil. His presence is calming when there is chaos. His Holy Spirit is your helper. He will lead, convict and comfort you, all at the same time. There are no capacity issues with the Holy Spirit. He is 100% involved at all times for the followers of Jesus Christ. It is simply a matter of our tapping into His tremendous resources. Look up before it is too late. Look up while He can still be found. Heaven is waiting to help.

God has divine insomnia. He never sleeps or slumbers. He is always there to listen and guide you. His “help desk” is open 24/7. Imagine calling on God in the middle of the night. The midnight call to God does not encounter a prolonged ring, a disgruntled customer service representative or voice mail. Your 911 call to God receives the calm and loving assurance of your heavenly Father immediately. He is available and yearns to help in any way He can. Just as every good parent wants to help his child, so does your heavenly Father—times ten. Moms and dads are the first to administer medicine to their sick children, defend their disenfranchised son or daughter, and celebrate their accomplishments. They are there to help.

This is a reminder not to discount God’s earthly help agents. The Body of Christ is available to help you. You have helped others all these years, and now you are in a stage of great need. Do not allow your pride to keep you quiet. Your brothers and sisters of faith need to understand your fate. You are hypocritical to put on the guise of normalcy when all hell is breaking loose in your life.

It actually is a great encouragement to your caregivers to understand that their helper has needs too. You are not immune to the help of people. In fact, your availability for help will bless others in ways that you cannot imagine. Let God help first and let His children help second. It is a divine process that rallies the troops in heaven and on earth. You are not alone. Allow help to minister to you, and one day you will do the same. Help is on the way!

Taken from Dose 87 in the 90-day devotional book, “Infusion”… http://bit.ly/bQHNIE

Post/Tweet this today: Our Creator cares deeply about His creation. #creation #care

Source: Wisdom Hunters by Boyd Bailey