Tag: How to pray

Devotionals

Come Talk with God      

Loring Schultz

Read: Psalm 27 NLT – Psalm 27 – A psalm of David. The LORD – Bible Gateway

“My heart has heard you say, ‘Come and talk with me.’ And my heart responds, ‘LORD, I am coming.’” Psalm 27:8 NLT

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

David’s prayers in the Psalms are simple and direct. He prays exactly how he feels, whether it’s through joy, comfort, praise, sorrow, anger, confession, abandonment, fear, or whatever else was on his heart, he prayed to the Lord simply and direct. David had an intimate relationship with the God of heaven so much so, that his heart heard Him say, ‘Come and talk with me.’ Several other translations say, ‘Seek My face.’ David was constantly seeking to be with his God in prayer that when he heard ‘Come and talk with me’, he was always ready to say, ‘LORD, I am coming.’

We may all not sense God speaking in our hearts as David but all of us can develop the characteristic of seeking God’s face. Seeking His face is nothing more than having a deeper desire for intimate fellowship with your creator. The more we desire Him, the more we will be aware of His desire for us. God also desires to be with us intimately. This is often missed by our routine repetitive early morning prayers and out the door we go. God is inviting us to seek His face to come and talk with Him. Talking with someone is to have a conversation. Speaking and listening. Taking time to listen to God is just as important as telling Him all your problems.

Listen closely to what God is saying to you through the Holy Spirit in prayer. You may never hear God speak audibly to you in prayer, I never have, but I’ve felt His presence and direction many times through prayer as I seek His face. God desires to have that intimate fellowship with us through prayer. He is saying, ‘Come and talk with me.’ May we have the same desire by seeking His face and be ready to say, ‘LORD, I am coming.’

Devotionals

Persistent in Prayer

Loring Schultz

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 NLT

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.com

Some may take offense to this, but most Christians do not have a consistent prayer life. These same Christians also struggle with being persistent in prayer. If you were not offended by the opening lines to this devotional then you are one of the many who do struggle, as I myself, with being persistent in prayer and praying consistently. There have been countless numbers of books written on prayer over the years. Sermon series, lectures, class studies, small groups, and seminars have all addressed these concerning issues on prayer. Although much progress has been made with lives changed, we still have a problem with consistency and more importantly with being persistent in prayer. Perhaps we spend too much time on intellectual and educational pursuits that we miss the simple points of Jesus’ teaching.

“Consistent” and “persistent” may appear similar in meaning, but are vastly different in action. Being consistent in prayer involves a regular pattern of a set time and routine on a continual basis. Persistent in prayer constitutes a deeper involvement as being determined, steadfast, resolute, and not giving up. Our Lord longs for our persistence in praying. He desires that His desires become our desires, and that we pray accordingly. Through persistence in prayer when asking for His will to be done, God will answer as He only gives us good things. “For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Mt.7:8 nlt)

When Jesus spoke those words to His disciples in Matthew chapter seven, He was emphasizing the importance of persistent praying. ‘Ask,’ ‘seek,’ and ‘knock,’ are in the present tense and are commands of God. They are in ascending order to note their importance. We are never to give up praying the Lord’s will for our lives, but to be persistent. Asking, seeking, and knocking, we are to be persistent in prayer.

Devotionals

Coming Before God in Prayer with Unconfessed Sin

Loring Schultz

“If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer. Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me.” Psalm 66:18-20 NLT

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.com

            The biggest struggle most Christians have in their daily walk with God is a consistent and fruitful prayer life. Living in a fast pace society where everything is instantaneous, short, and to the point, will put anything of value in jeopardy. A Christian’s prayer life is no different. We may do our best to carve out time in our day to pray, but there is always a chance something will hinder us from being consistent, it’s called life. We cannot get around unexpected interruptions, but we can make sure we are not hindering our time with God right from the start with inconsistencies in our own life.

            The number one reason for an inconsistent and unfruitful prayer life is unconfessed sin. The Psalmist writes, “If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But God did listen!” (Ps. 66:18) Prayer is not simply asking God for things, but is a conversation with a holy God. It is a relationship that is intended to grow with time spent together. Unconfessed sin is a barrier preventing growth in your Christian life and it starts in your prayer requests to God.

            If you are struggling in your prayer life with no satisfaction, no results, no meaningful relationship with God, and your prayers seem like just words being spoken in open air, maybe it’s time for a self-examination, myself included. “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” (1 Jn. 1:9a NLT) The Psalmists continued to write with good news that God does listen when we confess our sins to Him. God pays attention to our prayers, He does not ignore them, and He will never withdraw His love from us. Praise God!

A simple acrostic to follow when we pray may be helpful:

ACTS – Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication.

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on Prayer – 6 “Deliver us from evil”

Loring Schultz

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Matthew 6:13 KJV

            Our Lord’s final example in praying is often misunderstood by many. When Jesus taught His disciples to pray ‘And lead us not into temptation,’ He was not referring to being tempted to sin by God. God does not tempt anyone to sin. The book of James says, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.” (Ja. 1:13) The word ‘temptation’ is better translated ‘a trying, or testing,’ and there are several examples of testing in the Bible. Our Lord Jesus Himself was tested (tempted) by Satan in the wilderness, Abraham was tested by God when told to offer his son as a sacrifice, and Job was severely tested when accused by Satan.

            There are occasions when God will test us, or ‘put us to the test’ to test our faith in Him. There may be trials brought upon us by Satan permitted by God in order to prove and test our faith as in the case of Job and the apostle Paul. When we pray, ‘lead us not into temptation’ we are actually praying ‘don’t put us to the test, protect us from the test, and from Satan, the evil one.’ Our Lord does not lead us into any testing or trial in which He is not there and has not made a way of escape for us to bear it. Paul writing to the church in Corinth says, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” (1 Cor. 10:13)

            Jesus teaches after praying not to be put to the test, we are to ask to be delivered from evil. This is not evil in general but from the evil one, Satan. Many versions of Scripture do reference it as the ‘evil one.’ We are to pray to be delivered from Satan’s schemes, his temptations, and his accusations against us.

            It is important to note that not all temptations (testing), trials or troubles are evil in and of itself. It was noted Jesus Himself was tempted by Satan. Our Lord passed the test and is our example in our troubled times. Abraham and Job also passed the test and were blessed for it. But when Paul asked the Lord to remove the thorn in the flesh from Satan three times, the Lord did not, but said, ’My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ And Paul responded ‘Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.’ (2 Cor. 12:9) Paul also passed the test and serves as an example for us to follow.

            We are to pray that we be delivered from Satan’s evil temptations and not fall into sin. Jesus prayed for His disciples in His High Priestly prayer in John 17:15, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” A. W. Pink is quoted as saying, “To be kept from the evil of sin is a far greater mercy than deliverance from the trouble of temptation.” We may pray not to be put to the test, but the more concerning prayer is ‘deliver us from evil,’ Satan, the evil one.

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on Prayer – 5 “Forgiveness”

Loring Schultz

“and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.” Matthew 6:12 NLT

            Over the centurie the Bible has been translated from the original manuscripts into many different languages and it is still on-going. We also have several different versions of scripture available to us. According to the Wycliffe Global Alliance, Bible translation is currently happening in 2,846 languages in 157 countries, and there are yet 964 languages in which there are no translations, but the work has started. I open with this to remind us that whichever language text you may be reading, it may vary depending on the version it was translated from. One such example is the fifth petition in the Lord’s Prayer as taught to us by Jesus. Most versions say, ‘forgive us our debts,’ some say ‘forgive us our sins,’ and some traditional Church readings render ‘forgive us our trespasses.’ It is always most important to know the original meaning of certain words in order to apply them correctly to our lives.

            The word translated ‘debt’ in the original Greek is ‘opheilēma’ and means that which is owed, legally due, or a debt. Its secondary meaning is an offence or sin. It is easy to see why ‘debt’ is used in most versions. But a closer look considering the context and how it relates to the whole of scripture, we take note that ‘sin’ is also an appropriate translation and more to the point.

            Jesus instructs to confess our sins to God our Father and ask forgiveness as we have also forgiven those who sinned against us. What Jesus is saying is forgiveness leads to forgiveness. It’s important to note Jesus doesn’t say we ‘should’ forgive others, but that we ‘will’ forgive others. We will forgive others in response to our Father’s forgiveness of our sin when we accepted His Son Jesus as our Savior. Jesus went to the cross and bore the guilt and punishment for our sins which we could never pay. It is a debt none of us could pay. God the Father forgave our debt, he forgave our sin.

            In the fourth petition of the Lord’s Prayer Jesus teaches us to ask for our daily bread, food substances and our material needs. It is only logical Jesus now addresses our daily spiritual need of forgiveness. We have been forgiven an enormous debt and given salvation and eternal life through Jesus, however we are still fallen creatures in our sin nature who still sin daily. As we ask God daily to forgive us of our sin, we are reminded that we are pardoned sinners, and as pardoned sinners we should forgive as we have been forgiven.

            “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Eph. 4:32 NIV)

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on Prayer – 4 “Our Daily Bread”

Loring Schultz

“Give us this day our daily bread.” Matthew 6:11

            The first three petitions Jesus taught His disciples to pray had an upward focus to God, His glory, His kingdom, and His will. Jesus now instructs them to ask God to care for their needs in the next four petitions. Early eighteenth century Theologian Matthew Henry, concerning our need for daily bread, writes the following, “Because our natural being is necessary to our spiritual well-being in this world…… we pray for the necessary supports and comforts of this present life, which are the gifts of God, and must be asked of him, for all the remainder of our lives.” Henry notes that it is needed daily, for it is on-going for the rest of our lives.

            The Greek word translated ‘daily’ is ‘epiousios’ which carries the meaning ‘the bread of necessity’ and ‘the bread that suffices for each day.’ It is what is needed every day to an exact amount, not too little and not too much. In Jesus’s day and in ours today, bread is a staple food item. Fresh baked bread with no preservatives will last about only one day. That was true in Jesus’s day and His point was well understood, it had to be supplied daily. We ask the Lord to meet our need daily need being careful not to ask for excess. Our Lord will supply all we need, not all we want or desire.

            Asking God to give us our daily bread does not only pertain to food in sustaining us. The daily bread we need also consists of all our daily needs to make it through this life as we serve Him. We need clothes on our backs, a place to call home, repairs to our home, transportation, viable employment, health, strength, and other physical needs. In a sense, when we pray for our daily bread, we are also praying for all that encompasses our survival now and in the future. God knows our future and He knows what our need will be before we will. (Mt. 6:8) Our complete trust in God to provide for us is built on the foundation of our faith in Him by praying to provide for our daily needs right into the future.

            Matthew Henry gives us six lessons to learn from the simple petition ‘Give us this day our daily bread.’ Adapted from the king’s English centuries ago for better understanding; First it teaches us self-restraint, to do things in moderation, and not be given to indulgence of appetite. Second, we are taught honesty and hard work through the vocation God has given us to meet our needs. Third, it teaches us not to be concerned about tomorrow, but to have continued faith in God that He will care for His children. Fourth, we ask God to give it to us, not sell it or lend it to us, but to give it. This teaches us to see the mercy of God in caring for us. Fifth, not to us only, but to others of like faith, we pray for their needs as well. Christians are to pray and fellowship together, and through this a heart of love and compassion will develop for those less fortunate. In this the Lord will use us to meet their need. And lastly, it teaches us to increase our desire towards God. As we hunger and anticipate the bread to feed us physically, our hunger to meet with God spiritually will also increase. “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on prayer – 3 “Thy Name, Thy Kingdom, Thy Will”

Loring Schultz

“Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

            The Lord’s Prayer is a simple model Jesus taught His disciples when they asked Him to teach them to pray. It begins with an upward focus to the God of heaven, His glory and His will leading to the human needs of each of us. Jesus’s main focus, also His priority in prayer, is the exaltation of God. The first petition He taught His disciples to pray is ‘Hallowed be thy name.’ It may be translated as ‘holy’ be thy name. God’s name is to be treated with reverence for it is holy. This should make us aware as we approach God in our failed human state that we are about to converse with a holy God. It is our place to begin our prayer by treating His name as holy, ‘hallowed be thy name.’ It was Jesus’s first petition in His prayers and should be ours as well.

            The second and third petitions flow together with the first exalting God the Father. In all that we do, Christians are to do everything for the glory of God including our prayers. Our prayers should reflect the desire for glorifying God by honoring Him and praying for His kingdom to be established and His will be done in all things. This brings glory to God as we pray in agreement that God’s will and His kingdom will all come about according to His plans established before the foundations of the world.

            We may ask, why then should we pray? If God’s plans for His kingdom and His will are already determined, then why pray? Note the following reason on why we should pray; Prayer is not only about asking for things from God, although that is certainly an important part of prayer, but more importantly it is a time of meeting with God, your creator. It is a time to sit with Him and seek to know Him better. We need again to remember ‘who God is’ and ‘who we are’ and that the God of the universe wants to have a relationship with us. He has reached out to make that happen, for we would not do that on our own. Therefore He deserves our praise and reverence exalting His name as we sit in prayer with Him. Modern day theologian R. C. Sproul notes when asked ‘Does our prayer change God’s mind? No, prayer changes us’ and that is the basis of prayer, to know God and to be changed by Him.

            The Messianic Kingdom will indeed become a reality one day in the future. The Lord Jesus will rule from Jerusalem over the entire earth for 1,000 years. But currently this world is under the rule of Satan and his demons. Paul writing in Ephesians says the following, “For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.”(Eph. 6:12 NLT) Therefore as Christians we desire to see the Kingdom of God in its fullness come quickly. Until then we pray ‘hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come,’ and for God’s will for us to be completely known that we obey His will ‘in earth as it is in heaven.’  

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on Prayer – 2 “Our Father”

Loring Schultz

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, ‘Abba, Father.’ For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.” Romans 8:14-16 NLT

            The first and most important step in prayer Jesus teaches us is the address, “Our Father.” Equally important is who is able to address God as “Our Father.” There is a misconception that was brought about in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through a book by German Theologian and church historian, Adolf von Harnack, entitled ‘What is Christianity?’ His thesis was the doctrine of Christianity can be reduced to two propositions; ‘The Universal Fatherhood of God’ and ‘The Universal Brotherhood of Man.’ Simply stated, since God created man, then all are God’s children, and all are brothers and sisters. But careful study of scripture does not reveal such a hypothesis. It is true in the sense of creation, God has created all of mankind. Each one of us has God as their creator.

            The term “Our Father” is not an address seen in the Old Testament, but has significate meaning in the New Testament. It is the reality of adoption into the family of God, becoming a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ, God the Son. Scripture says, “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.” (Jn. 1:12) Having that right to become children of God, Christians have the right to claim God as their Father and the right to address Him properly as “Our Father.” Those who have not trusted in Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection for the remission of sins and have not accepted Him as Savior have no valid reason to address God as Father.   

             The Lord’s Prayer is recited mostly every Sunday in churches around the world depending on the denominations and style of worship. If your church is one of many who pray the Lord’s Prayer, are you able to truly address God as “Our Father” with those in the family of God with whom you are worshiping. God desires for you to address Him properly as His child, and you can make that happen. As Paul writes in Romans chapter 8, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, ‘Abba, Father.’ For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.”

            If you repent of your sins and accept Jesus Christ as your Savoir as the only way of salvation, you will be saved and will be able to say along with your brothers and sisters in the family of God, “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

Bible Studies

The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus’s teaching on Prayer – 1 “How to Pray”

Loring Schultz

“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” KJV

            There are many prayers recorded in the pages of scripture. Without a doubt, the most familiar prayer is the Lord’s Prayer found in the gospels of Matthew and Luke.  It is a model prayer Jesus taught His disciples when they asked Him to teach them how to pray. The disciples evidently saw something in Jesus concerning His prayer life. He would leave them for hours spending time with His Father in prayer. They realized the importance of prayer even as John the Baptist taught his disciples to pray and now they were witnessing Jesus’s prayer habits. It was a marked influence on them, for they did not ask Him to teach them to perform miracles or anything else spectacular, but they asked Him; teach us to pray.

            In Matthew’s recording of the Lord’s Prayer notice Jesus began His teaching with how not to pray. There are many bad examples in how not to pray. The key point to remember is the Lord’s Prayer is an example to follow in praying, and it is a good one. Jesus instructs His disciples and us. “When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them.” (Mt. 6:5a NLT) Praying is not a spectator sport to show others how holy you are. Jesus also said, “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.” (Mt. 6:7 NLT) This is not a condemnation towards long prayers, but of excess meaningless verbiage just to be heard. Repetition is not a bad thing when in earnest prayer, and crying out to God concerning your sorrow and needs. We need to take comfort that God knows exactly what we need. Jesus says, “Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!” (Mt. 6:8 NLT) Daniel Henderson in his book ‘Transforming Prayer’ writes the following, “Our Father is completely dialed-in and capable. He is all-knowing and sovereign. He does not need the persuasion of our words or vigorous religious performances in order to know and meet our needs.”

            Jesus’s instructions on how to pray begin with, “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private.” (Mt. 6:6a NLT) This is a reminder that God looks on the heart and not outward appearance. He will meet with us in private and not in the public square. This is not a prohibition against public prayer. Jesus Himself prayed publicly and corporate prayer within the church is vital to its existence. “Private praying is the finest training ground for public prayer.” (Wycliffe Bible Commentary)

            As we move forward in the coming weeks being taught by Jesus how to pray may we heed the two rules of prayer by R.C. Sproul, “Remember to whom you are speaking, and remember who is doing the speaking.”