Prayer

12 Gifts of Christmas / Day 3- Prayer

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But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:32 ESV

Can you remember a single time in the life of Jesus when he said, “I’ll be praying for you!”? He prayed when He was woken from sleep in a storm and He prayed in the desert for forty days. He prayed when people were hungry to multiply bread and He prayed for God to forgive His enemies from the cross. Everywhere and always Jesus prayed because He knew that His Father was listening. We probably already knew about those prayers of Jesus but did you ever stop to think that Christmas is in fact, the ultimate answer to every person’s prayer. God heard and He sent us His Son.

Prayer is also the greatest gift we can give to anyone this Christmas, every needs Jesus and anything is possible when we pray. Those who feel alone can experience His presence; He came as Immanuel – God with us. For friends who have lost their way, the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem answers their prayers for forgiveness because He came as God’s sacrifice for sin. For the friends or family who feel life is very dark with this pandemic, He is the light of the world.

For those feel week, He came as to be our strength. For those of us who know we have done things wrong and hurt others, Jesus shows Himself as the friend of sinners. no matter our need, Jesus is the answer to our prayers . What greater gift we could give to someone else is there than to be able to honestly say “but I have prayed for you”

In the Silence of Worship

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

We often think of worship as something we do, sing or listen to. But as I was reading my Bible this morning I came across Psalm 105 where David lists nine attributes of a worshipper. At first He talks about the kind of worship we are all familiar with such as singing about how great God is and making sure everyone hears. But then David goes on to list four things we do in silence.

Psalm 105:3-4 Glory in His name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and His strength. Seek His face always.

In this Covid-19 year with just two days remaining till Thanksgiving it can be a struggle to focus on being truly grateful. When I came across this morning’s verse and was encouraged I saw that four silent acts of faith that matter far more to God than all the noise coming from our mouths or instruments. Today we will look at just the first two.

Glory in His Holy name – So is that like the Pentecostal church we visited years ago where we were startled by someone who suddenly stood up and shouted “Glory!”? Does it mean saying, “God is good!” when we’re in church? Or just maybe glorying in His name means something looking forward expectantly to seeing God’s glory in every small thing of my day. Those silent moments of worship are like what Jesus said about the kingdom of God being a small seed that grows into the largest plant in the garden.

Let the hearts of those who seek your face rejoice – Genuine rejoicing lips are rooted in honest rejoicing hearts. You might wonder if seeking God’s face isn’t like a religious game of hide and seek with the Almighty. No! NO! He wants us to find Him just as my wife delighted in hiding baskets filled with chocolates and colored eggs for our children to find on Easter morning. But our children had to be seeking. They had to read and follow the clues she left behind on tiny folded pieces of paper. As they raced from place to place their excitement grew till suddenly behind a doorway or inside a closet they each joyfully found what they had been looking for! Do you have a joyful testimony of something you discovered this year as you spent some of that extra Covid-19 time on seeking His face?

If it has been a struggle to set aside quiet time to just sit in the presence of God and seek Him I hope this music from Eric Terlizzi which I loved to listen to while I prayed some years back may be a blessing to you as well.

God Still Answers Prayer

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 2 Corinthians 13:14

When you think about prayer; have you ever stopped to consider all the prayers of the Bible that God is still answering? Maybe it would help to think about them somewhat like going out to eat or stopping at the grocery store to buy milk and eggs. The first thing that happens whenever we start out in the car is that my wife begins rummaging through her purse for coupons. Somehow, whether we are going to Olive Garden, Pizza Hut or Walmart she finds one that we can use, then she looks to see if the date is still valid. Prayers in the Bible are somewhat like those coupons. We only get to take advantage of them if we ask to redeem them and the good news for us is that there is no expiration date!

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This morning as I was reading Paul’s prayer of blessing for the Corinthian church I stopped and went back over the words realizing that in my own life I desperately need the grace, love and fellowship that Paul asked for. These blessings are much more than just words on a page or the sound waves generated by our pastor as he prays them over us at the end of a Sunday service. This 2,000 year old prayer is a valid coupon, redeemable in our prayer closet to whoever presents it by faith to God.

God still wants you and I to experience the Grace of Jesus Christ every day. The love of God is more than a gift given long ago; it is valid and waiting for us to experience it this morning. And just as they say on television; “But wait there’s more!” remember that in these days of stress, fear and change; the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit is a gift that God longs to put into our hearts if we will only ask.

So why not put aside a moment right now as you are reading and ask God for:

Grace for every weakness, sin and sorrow

Love for all people you will meet in every place and hour

Fellowship In every conflict, disappointment or disaster

These are God’s precious promises; still active in the words of this ancient prayer. They never die but they wait on our faith to remember and believe!