Persistance - Day 110 Month 4-20 Week 16-5

Today's Reading (Bible in 1 year)


Numbers 24,25, Jeremiah 8:1-12, Luke 18:1-34

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers%2024%2C25%2C%20Jeremiah%208%3A1-12%2C%20Luke%2018%3A1-34&version=NASB1995


Persistence 


“Because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection.”  This is from the story Jesus told of the persistent widow.  The widow keeps going to the judge for protection from her opponent and he initially says no but she keeps bothering him until he relents.


Jesus responds with “Hear what the unrighteous” judge said.  If that’s what the unrighteous judge is saying, how much more will “God bring about justice for His people who cry to Him day and night.”


I don’t pray as much as I should.  When I was not reading the Bible daily, I also didn’t pray much.  I am still weak but improving in the prayer part of things.  My problem is I bring a list.  Now God does want to know our needs and wants, but prayer is simply a conversation with God.  It should be much more than our needs and wants.  It should be an expression of our love for Him.  If we look at the Lord’s prayer, it gives us some key directions.  

  1. We need to acknowledge who God is - “Our Father in Heaven”

  2. We need to show our respect to God - “Hallowed (holy)is Your name”

  3. We need to pray for His presence here on earth and His will to be done (because He knows what’s best for us even if we don’t agree)- “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”

  4. Then we can pray for our needs - “Give us this day our daily bread”

  5. We need to ask for forgiveness and clear our hearts - “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” (notice we’ve already forgiven those who have wronged us - if not, forgive and go back to the beginning)

  6. Ask for spiritual protection - “do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil”

When I usually pray, I generally thank Him for his blessings and get right into step four.


Our prayers should be God and others focused.  When God hears us cry out to Him and our prayer is properly motivated He recognizes our hearts in sync with His heart and when Jesus comes back, He says “He will find faith on the earth.”


We need to be persistent at praying for the things that we know are in His heart.  These are the things that will be on our heart the more we communicate with Him.


Something we don’t want to lose sight of here:  We need to read His words (the Bible) and take it in.  Yesterday, I was trying to write this blog and I was stumped.  I finished one paragraph and then could go no further.  The one paragraph I wrote beautifully - in my opinion, but it wasn’t what God wanted me to write.  He wanted me to really listen to Him about prayer.  God was talking to me through His word.  That’s one of the ways He communicates with me and will with you too.


Have a great day!

Steve

steve.d.pauls@gmail.com


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