Blessings of Asking

 

Jesus replied,

“If you only knew the gift God has for you

and who you are speaking to,

you would ask me,

and I would give you living water.”

…those who drink the water I give

will never be thirsty again.

It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them,

giving them eternal life.”

John 4:10, 14

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Lord, Please Teach Me How

 

So I’m working to understand this verse better:

 

 

Confess your faults one to another,

 

and pray one for another,

 

that ye may be healed.

 

The effectual fervent prayer

 

of a righteous man (or woman) availeth much.

 

 

(King James’ version of James 5:16—beautiful poetic language that I often have to ponder in order to internalize)

 

Other versions use these words:

 

Powerful

Great power

Supplication

Wonderful results

Can accomplish much

Very powerful

Continual prayer

Heartfelt supplication

Insistent prayer

Very strong

 

I positively don’t want to waste my time praying wimpy limp-along prayers that don’t accomplish much. So I’m striving to be a better pray-er. (perhaps that’s a key; maybe it’s not so much praying better prayers, as it is being a better pray-er)

 

I read in Matthew Henry’s commentary that one needs to be careful to actually pray in prayer. I paused for much thought there. Then caught myself this morning saying words while my focus was really on the pictures I was taking; and I’m pretty certain there’s no such thing as half-hearted effectual fervent prayer.

 

God doesn’t want me to treat his listening presence as if I can contain it on the back burner.

 

And there’s not a cookie cutter design for prayer because God says:

 

 

“When you pray,

 

don’t babble on and on

 

as people of other religions do.

 

They think their prayers are answered

 

merely by repeating their words again and again.

Matthew 6:7

 

 

However, God was so meticulous when he gave his OT worship instructions to Moses that I have to believe some conditions and methods are more effective than others.

 

I asked some friends what they think the verse means:

 

Without ceasing (3 repeats)

With an honest heart.

Takes a lot of intentionality to be constantly aware of God’s presence during prayer.

Pray with conviction.

Just pray!

Be consistent.

Sometimes pray with a broken heart.

Desperate.

Honest.

Like you are on fire and you just want to burn hotter and you don’t want to stop or even have a slow down—if that makes sense.

Pray believing and often.

 

I even listened to one of Dr. David Gibbs, Jr.’s sermons on prayer:

 

Get clean

Be righteous & clean

Be faithful to pray

Expect answers

Expect God to do the impossible

 

My personal takeaway:

Lord,

 

please teach me how

 

to be a pray-er

 

who prays fervent

 

effectual prayers

 

that avail much.

 

Amen

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Lord, Please Use My Moment Well

 

Father, please keep my focus on the important things–the ones for whom I pray–keep them safe, by night and day. Give each of us an intense hunger and insatiable thirst for you. And, Lord, thank you for your reminders; and please use my moment well.

 

We are here for only a moment,

visitors and strangers in the land

as our ancestors were before us.

Our days on earth are like a passing shadow,

gone so soon without a trace.

1 Chronicles 29:15

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Blessings of New Birth

 

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth,

unless you are born again,

you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

“What do you mean?”

exclaimed Nicodemus,

“How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb

and be born again?”

Jesus replied,

“I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God

without being born of water and the Spirit.

Humans can reproduce only human life,

but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.

So don’t be surprised when I say,

‘You must be born again.’

John 3:3-7

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Blessings of Choosing to Believe

 

He came into the very world he created,

but the world didn’t recognize him.

He came to his own people,

and even they rejected him.

But to all who believed him and accepted him

he gave the right to become children of God.

they are reborn—

not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan,

but with a birth that comes from God.

John 1:10-13

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