February 17, 2021
Wednesday
Matthew 6:7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
Vain in this context means empty. They think if they keep praying over and over God will eventually hear and give in. That’s a wrong way of thinking. They do not know God. God is not like that. It doesn’t work when you are praying you are giving lip service, but your mind is somewhere else. Your heart is not in what your mind is not on. Vain repetition is when you a praying with your mouth, but your mind is somewhere else. We are to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. In other words, every part of us.
Matthew 6:8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
When you work the Word, the Word will work for you. There are laws in the natural and there are laws in the spirit. If you work natural laws, they work for you. You have to SAY what you pray. Unspoken prayer requests don’t work. You have a part and God has a part. God always does His part. There is a proper approach to God! God designed prayer to get things from Him to you. We are going to have to change our attitude and how we think about prayer. God thinks about prayer as an opportunity to get to know you and you to know Him. But we look at prayer as a way to go to God to get something. Most only pray when they HAVE to. When a need pushes them to do it. It is an opportunity to come in living contact with Almighty God. When you learn how this protocol works and start using it, you will come in contact with the living God, and when you do that, there are things that flow from Him to you. If you can get in His presence, receiving from Him is easy! It becomes natural and not forced. They only way you will get to know Him is if you decide you are interested in Him. You have to be interested in knowing Him, not just getting things from Him. He sees your heart and He knows what is genuine and what isn’t. How you get things from God, is by knowing Him. You cannot trust anyone that you don’t know. God won’t push Himself on you. He wants to be pursued. You don’t come before God without acknowledging He is God. Your worship of Him should always come before asking Him for anything. Until you know Him, you’ll never know the person He made you to be. He made you to be just like Jesus. You are to be conformed to the image of Him.
Your success in life will be measured by two things:
1- Your prayer life
2- How selfishly you choose to live.
Anyone can learn how to pray. If you want to, you can live your whole life for yourself. And if you do that you’ll lose your life. Or, you can live your life for God. We all get to make that choice and when we stand before Him, that will be accounted for. Everything God does, He does for us.
James 5: 13-18 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
If you are having trouble or experiencing a trial or difficulty, pray. That’s what God says! If you’ll pray, it will go away! You want someone else to pray, but God says, if you are afflicted, LET HIM PRAY! Prayer is a good thing. It’s the answer to your suffering. Stop looking at the problem and look at the answer! If you’ll pray God will come on the scene and help you! Don’t look for someone else to do it for you.
James 5:9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.
Do not blame your troubles on one another or you will be under judgement. A lot of people when experiencing a difficulty, look for someone to blame. Quit blaming and pray. God can’t help you if you’re blaming to others for your affliction. The quicker you can get with God and start praying, the quicker it will turn around.
In verse 13 it also says, “Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.” Notice it don’t say, “let him complain!” The problem is, you are afflicted because you won’t pray and therefor you aren’t cheerful and singing. It’s a cycle! If you want to be merry, you have to get rid of the affliction and to do that you must pray.
Verse 14 mentions the “sick.” In this context it means someone who is beyond their own help. They are bedridden. Unable to do it themselves. HE must call the elders and let them pray OVER him. The oil is a type of the Holy Ghost. It is also something physical and tangible to help that person in their faith because they are struggling big time.
Verse 15: And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
All prayers are made in faith, but there is a prayer OF faith. You don’t pray the prayer of faith for somebody, you pray over them. There is a difference. You’re not really an elder of the church unless you know how to pray the prayer of faith over someone.
Verse 16: Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
In other words, in the congregation because we are family, you and I can pray, and someone else can be healed! Sometimes people cannot get healed because of things they hold in their heart. To get those things out, sometimes it has to be confessed. They have to deal with the issues in the heart before healing can take place. People are stuck in life because they won’t turn loose of things in their heart. It is serious! The reason you won’t turn loose is because you’re selfish and full of pride. When you start seeing that about yourself, you’ll realize how ugly it is. God has forgiven you for just as much ugly things as anyone has ever done to you. He did it with no questions. Every day you should say,” Thank you because I have been forgiven of so much.” The thing about God, is He won’t bring it back up, He won’t remind you, He won’t hold it against you! When you start getting to know Him and that starts affecting you, you’ll start to see other people like that. When you see those people who wronged you, you won’t see the things they have done. You’ll start seeing them through different eyes.
James 5:9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!
Don’t hold unforgiveness and grudges in your heart!
Prayer is an avenue to get to know God. The more you come to know Him the more you will get to know who you are to be and what belongs to you. Faith don’t work apart from knowing Him. He would rather you doubt His ability than His willingness. He has already said YES! All the promises of God are yes and amen. So why are you having such a hard time? You don’t know Him. God is willing! We have to believe that He is! When you get to know Him, you find out that He YEARNS to do things for you! You cant know Him apart from spending time with Him. You will be wise to become interested in understanding and developing the love of God in your life. When you truly understand Gods love for you, faith is easy. It is second nature. You don’t have to talk God into giving you anything. He is a giver. He is gracious.
Mark 11:22-16 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. 25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”