Prayer 101
Very nearly half a century ago I remember the enthusiasm my church inspired in me (as a new follower of Jesus) in the area of categorized truth they usually called "sound doctrine" back then. In thinking about this topic (which as near as I can tell is apparently not much discussed these days) I was pleasantly surprised to discover that some old fashioned web sites still make this subject of Biblical orthodoxy a big deal--which it really is! (See for instance, http://www.dtl.org/apologetics/wright/doctrine.htm). I have ranted a lot in recent years about the dumbing-down of Christians everywhere. Surely ignorance of who God really is, is one reason things are falling apart as fast as they are. The Christian faith has specific content--which reflects who God is, what He likes and dislikes, what He is doing in the world, and on and on. God has not changed nor has he receded into outer space. In fact He is on His way back even now.
Fortunately, knowing God in a personal way does not require that we know, ahead of time, a lot about God. When asked who was the greatest in the kingdom of God, Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me." (Matthew 18:1-4). But after we have come to Jesus in simple trust, we all must move on and grow in the knowledge of God. This involves not merely more head-knowledge, we are to all grow experientially with God. He is a living Person and we are each miniature persons. For most of us, the other persons who are part of our lives are of great importance. God deserves to be Number One. He is totally into knowing and loving people. The better we know our God, the easier it is for us to relate well with all sorts of other persons. Simple basics like this are the most quickly forgotten it seems.
...And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us." (1 John 4:16-19)
One item on my list of basic Christian beliefs presented to me (way back) was the topic called "the blessed hope of the church." I was taught that the world is a hostile place for us followers of Jesus, at best a very temporary residence for God's family. The unseen government of the social order around us is opposed to God. Our very presence on the planet arouses hostility against us, and unleashes a myriad of enemy attempts to take us out of action. The hosts of enemy arrayed against us Christians hang out down here mostly around Planet Earth. C.S. Lewis called Earth the "Dark Planet" ruled over by a "Bent Angel."
The really good news called "the blessed hope" of Christians in every generation, I learned decades ago, was the reality that Jesus Christ will actually return to earth, quite probably very soon now. When that happens, it will be to take us to safe-haven--to a splendid New City made just for us. It will be a splendid day likened to a Bride Groom at long last being united to His greatly loved Bride. After we've gone, Jesus has a lot of rehab waiting for Him to address. He owns the planet and it was created for Him in the first place. A lot of bad tenants have trashed the place, so a major overhaul is coming soon.
"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you." (Titus 2:11-15)
Many of the early followers of Jesus paid with their lives for publically naming Jesus as Lord instead of Caesar. As the centuries have rolled by it should be obvious that the return of Jesus draws nearer day by day. In fact if Jesus delays much longer it seems plausible that He will not find anyone down here who knows that God wants to save them, and why. But, strangely, I see little evidence today that the "blessed hope" holds out any real attraction for what's left of Christ's church. Fear, dread, apprehension, hiding, seem to dominate instead--at least in the hearts of many people I know.
Jesus could have returned any number of times since the First Century. His disciples originally expected His absence would be only weeks or months. The good part of the long delay is that Jesus might have chosen to return a hundred years ago. In that case, you and I would not be here. We would never have been born and never had the chance to choose to follow Jesus. I, for one, am very glad Jesus waited for me, and that He has patiently endured while all sorts of wonderful people I know have come into His family by faith in Jesus Christ. I know a really neat group of "travelling companions" I am eager to spend more time with--and then, too, there is the challenge of getting acquainted with a billion or so others who have called Jesus Christ their Lord since Pentecost.
God has sent major wake up calls to our planet just in the past century or so. Jews in Europe began to long for a national homeland in the late 1800s. Circumstances arising out of World Wars I and II resulted in a small sliver of the ancient land of Israel being allocated to the Jews, who established a new national identity there in 1948. What forces or powers could regather and revive ancient Israel against all the odds? Surely all of us should ponder why this tiny nation should exist today, surviving nicely though constantly attacked by surrounding nations in a series of wars since 1948. The enemy nations who have lately chosen to eradicate the Jews are mostly obscure peoples newly awakening to power after slumbering, long centuries in the deserts of the Middle East. It is as if the chess board of world conflicts was suddenly wiped clean just a few years ago, and a whole new suite of players were suddenly in place confronting one another according to a plan no one could remember had been previously scripted--written ahead of time in great detail, and recorded in the Bible.
God orchestrates history to suit His own purposes. We are mere houseguests on His planet and we may have much less to say about where history is going than we ever imagined. Have we lost hope? Not because we don't believe Jesus will ever return, but because our personal love for Jesus has faded? Are we just now beginning to be dimly aware that in neglecting our personal walk with Jesus we have paid a great price? C.S. Lewis was gentle when he said of our generation, "We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered us. Like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."
A young friend of mine runs his own small start-up high tech company in Silicon Valley, where I live. He also manages a restaurant conveniently located on my way to church. This week I asked him what he felt were the overwhelming issues facing his generation. His near-instant response was "the end of the world." Right away he summed up the rapidity with which we have moved from fear of nuclear war or of total annihilation to a foreboding sense of helplessness where there is no possible way to escape. I have been asking people I know to tell me how they feel about life right now. What bothers them most? Apparently the current economic downturn is only a symptom to many who are discerning. Institutions such as universities, churches, think-tanks, great and mighty corporations, international banks -- are now seen as part of a cosmic problem with no apparent answer. Our unresolved past lives are catching up with us, there are no new frontiers to flee to, and no credible leaders are speaking words of genuine hope.
Frances Schaefer predicted our situation which he called "existential despair" when he spoke on university campuses 50 years ago. Sure enough, hopelessness and despair are everywhere now. Moral absolutes have faded away. Truth has been almost fully marginalized--death by mocking evidently. The God our forefathers hoped in has quietly faded into near-total obscurity. Have can one tell the difference between a holy person and the profane? Who can one trust?
This is not the time for us to try to hide from God. Israel has not paid any real attention to God in two millennia and more, yet the Lord still says to them, "All day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people." (Romans 10:21).
Truth never changes. If something was once true, it is still true. That is how we identify truth! It was for very good reason that Jesus told us to seek, because those who seek find. God loves you and He loves me and He is ready to get us ready to go home, and to get us safely there as well. This present world is really about to go up in flames. All the evidence I take to be credible now points to the return of Jesus for His people as being now truly "at hand." Something said to be "Imminent" for 2000 years will actually happen. One does not wait forever for the Return of the King when history demands it. We can not know the exact date, but all the evidence now shouts "Soon!" "Get Ready!" "Stay Ready."
When all else fails, get out the Instruction Book, open that dusty Users' Manual, and go back to the basics about our sinfulness versus God's great love for us. We may have endangered ourselves greatly by drifting away from Him, but He is eager to have us open up, get honest with Him, and to seek His face. That is the need of the hour. The more honest we are with God, the better. God has announced well in advance what He has already done in the world so that we can know Him and be made whole. The Bible tells us in a much detail where Jesus is now taking things. Our ignorance of Who God is, is what is killing us. Ignorance is not bliss!
The words of the prophet Isaiah 2700 years ago, are still God's call to all of us today:
Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance. Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you-- The sure mercies of David. Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people, A leader and commander for the people. Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, And nations who do not know you shall run to you, Because of the LORD your God, And the Holy One of Israel; For He has glorified you.”
Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
“For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; And it shall be to the LORD for a name, For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” (Isaiah 55)
The return of Jesus will not be the end of the world as we know it. The Bible describes the coming of Jesus as a two-stage event. First Jesus will come and quietly remove all those of us who have known him during the past 2000 years. Most of these people (all ages, every age group, all parts of the world) have already died. They will be raised from the dead, restored to perfect health and given new bodies (resembling the new body Jesus had after His resurrection). Immediately following, all those of us who are true Christians here and now will be called up to join the vast company who have preceded us. Where will we go, what will we do? What will happen down on earth after we leave? You can be sure we won't be bored. It is all in The Book!
To be Practical: Surely this is a great time to get together in small groups and study together what the Bible says about reality, and what life will be for us who have already placed their faith in Jesus as Lord.
There will come a time when it will be too late. The gates will be closed and the offer of God's grace will cease. The New Testament echoes the Old in this regard,
We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 6:1-2)
Lambert Dolphin
July 19, 2010, updated December 30, 2018
lambert@ldolphin.org
Ron Graff and I are now revised our very popular Prophecy Handbook, "Thy Kingdom Come... The Prayer Most Offered is about to be Answered," first written in 1998. More than 320,000 copies have been downloaded free of charge. We expect hard copies to be available this Fall. Ron and I are both careful and conservative in every way. We believe every follower of Jesus should have a basic knowledge of what the whole Bible says about the future. Online version.
Ron and I do not believe in impersonal web sites hosted by unknown writers. Much of our time is spent answering email and getting to know people. This springs from our belief that God's people are one great family. Several friends work with me to be sure we cover your email questions as thoroughly as we can.
Other:
2011 series on Psalms on Sunday mornings at my home church, Peninsula Bible Church in Palo Alto, CA. My classes are posted weekly in mp3 audio. Current series: http://ldolphin.org/psalms/index.html. My past newsletters are on my web site, http://ldolphin.org/news/ for your amusement. I am always writing something new, but articles seem to take me forever to finish. See my main library page, http://ldolphin.org/asstbib.shtml. I am a work in progress and my web site is even more so.
From 2001
Prayer 101
‘When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people,
if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways,
then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:13-14)
Synopsis: The last nine newsletters (1) of mine have been leading somewhere, though I began to recognize that only about a week ago. It's time for all of us to pray.
I have been interested in the state of Christ's church ever since I became a follower of Jesus back in 1962. Only gradually have I come to see how far most of our churches today have drifted from the picture the New Testament gave us on how local churches are supposed to function structurally and organically.
Two years ago some health problems came along and I then began to examine more closely the state of my own "interior world" -- the personal, intimate side of my knowing Jesus in heart, mind and soul. All sorts of innate deficiencies and culturally driven inadequate responses to life (garbage and sewage) began to surface in me. I had been "going with the flow" in the streams and currents of life in this world, mostly just staying up to date on trends and movements, and then reacting to them. I did not stop and take note that the church was not growing more militant and triumphant but gradually dumbing down, losing her impact on society, and offering less and less challenge to pursue moral excellence.
I knew that "as the church goes, so goes the nation." Since the real church is a small group (a remnant) within the professing church, one might say, "as the remnant goes, so goes the nation." God is actually not running the universe all by Himself, but in partnership with us, His people. He gives us what we have deserved, often stopping us from total self-destruction by a slender margin of pure mercy--at the last minute. We reap what we have sown. The overwhelming problems coming down on us nowadays are our fault, not God's.
When we hear truth about God and ignore it, we go blind and become dull of hearing in that area of understanding -- to our own greater hurt. The Old Testament shows plainly that a mere outward show of integrity and religion in a nation is far from what God wants. He hates hypocrisy and religious pretense. Yet these days we are occupied with our own lofty goals driven by ambition, pride, and self interest. Though we've been told by Jesus that we can't serve God and self-interest, our response to this (and other similar pleas from the Lord) does little more than make us slightly more religious. These days, who takes anything Jesus said seriously, though Jesus owns the universe and we are only His temporary house guests here? The real God is ignored, insulted, blasphemed and demeaned in the ugliest language ever invented. We are a planet of idols, self-made gods narcissistically worshipping our own creations. God's people stay silent, saying and doing nothing to change the status quo, sometimes contributing to it.
Jesus designed and built the universe, serving the Father and the Holy Spirit as He did so. The Three had us in mind. We were invited to stay here for a season (if our behavior met the Landlord's basic rules on behavior). We were put here so that we might learn to love in the same way that God loves. He'd like to teach willing candidates among us to live out the life He demonstrated--a life that restores, serves, and heals. Our rewards (if any) would come later. Instead of quietly serving Jesus as He asked, we have turned everything upside down. God is self-giving and we are self-seeking -- where is our common ground? Isaiah said, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!" (Isaiah 5:19-20)
God is, a Personal Being -- He deeply wishes each of us to walk with Him personally in our interior life. He'd also like us to be real and transparent in our relationships with other people out in the exterior world. The world needs to see and hear Jesus in and through us. It's the basic design of society. Jesus needs clear transparent vessels of integrity if He is to speak to others through us. At the same time, God has designed things so that we should each find a path in life which leads to holiness. Holiness is wholeness -- being well-rounded and complete, wedded to the impeccable purity and integrity of Jesus Christ in our hearts.
Genesis says that man and woman were created in the image and likeness of our Creator. God is a Spirit -- His image in us involves the making of two distinctive, complementary sexes, not one, not three. Our creative and inventive gifts, our capacity for worship, love and relationship reflect the Creator's image in us. What is called God's "likeness" in us unfolds as we allow Him to transform us from self-seeking to self-giving persons. Thus, over time, we become in time "imitators of God." (Eph. 5:1) However we can' grow as followers of Christ by sitting on the sidelines as passive bystanders.
We were all born into a highly damaged creation. Human sensibilities, inside and outside, are badly broken. Man's sin has caused the entire universe, the natural world, to be fatally broken as well. The restoration and repair task for man and nature required the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the second of the Persons.
In every age of history, a few have been willing to follow Jesus to become new creations and to be citizens, destined to assume leadership in a new heavens a new earth. Only those who respond to Jesus benefit from his atoning sacrifice.
The power supply and energy for living an authentic Christian life is the very same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead two millennia ago. It's the power with which He also "upholds the universe by His mighty word..." That same power will very soon raise us, his followers, to eternal life.
Thus, there is another subtle feature of being a genuine Christian. We can not live this high-quality new life in our own self-effort (that power is what the Bible calls man's natural life, or "the flesh.") Those who love Jesus and follow Him with the right motives understand that our part is to make ourselves available to Jesus so that He can live His endless life through us. Some have called the normal Christian life, the "exchanged life." For Jesus to obtain that life for us was the greatest gift ever given. The Bible says, "...you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, because ‘All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, But the word of the LORD endures forever.’ Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you." (1 Peter 1:18-25)
Nowhere does the Bible picture the church of Jesus as an audience of consumers assembled to be entertained by a professional choir, with the hour capped off by a lofty, but irreelvant, message in the style of Greek Oratory.
Rather, a very important aspect of our calling to follow Jesus is our individual and group prayer. God uses the prayers of His people as very central key to his communication with His people. This very Personal God wishes to speak to us in many loving ways best described as the courtship of Lover and Beloved. Courtship never succeeds if the beloved is indifferent and fails to respond. Indifference to a suitor's patient calling is a very uncivil way of expressing hatred.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another," should not be all that difficult to do -- when we pay attention to our Leader. In a world of information overload, a world-culture saturated with deception and lies, we surely need the Wisdom of God as never before. We are surely now very near to the end of the age. Yet, when the world all around us needs to hear from Jesus through His own personal representatives, we followers of Jesus have become weak, unavailable, ill-informed -- languishing in indifference.
One obvious solution to today's enormous problems is to encourage our fellow Christians to come together and start praying. Apparently we aren't bothering to pray very much. Do we wrongly assume we are doing just fine without Jesus, or do we suppose He really doesn't care?
I believe that if we begin to pray, from the heart, now, God will quickly respond. We may think we are not in need of prayer. Let's pray anyway and see if God doesn't answer. When we pray we may well discover that God is ready to answer with torrents of living water. I believe our needs for radical help from God have never been greater. If we start to pray I'm convinced it won't be long until God shows us how much we need to repent and how perilous our condition really is right now.
Prayer 101: A few friends and I are proposing a new format for prayer tailored to the uniqueness of our time. We are suggesting that each and every one of you gather your family, a few friends, your home Bible class, for some down to earth serious prayer. Since it is now the midnight hour and the dangers are very grave, please step in and learn to pray immediately as part of your in-service Christian training. The suggested starting format below has been chosen to help you avoid a couple of common pitfalls when praying in a group. But go, as the Spirit leads.
God willing, we'll be post some guidelines and comments on a web site so you can share your experiences with others and learn from them. Every prayer group needs to stay on track and to stay keenly aware that is a solemn gathering between us and our Lord Jesus. Yours is a unique prayer meeting, owned by and led by Jesus Christ the Lord -- make sure He stays in charge.
Every person in the group should pray. Shy-persons can write their prayers down on paper and pass them to the Facilitator. Yes, we think your group should have a Facilitator. An essential feature of Prayer 101 is that you are each communicating with the living God. He is supremely intelligent, emotional deep, and fully acquainted with every human need. Jesus will listen and respond to your prayers, and more importantly, He will change the members of your group, breathing new resurrection life into each one of you. Be prepared to be changed by a style of transparent praying. The overall reasons for gathering in prayer in this "family style" is to allow the Spirit of God to change us. Beyond that, expect the Sovereign Lord to begin to change the world around you.
Pray like this:
1. Thanks-Giving. Each member of the group should briefly thank God for what he or she is grateful for here and now. We can all do this, even in hard times. Starting our prayer times by thanking God is a form of worship; it's where we should always approach God. As evidenced by many of the Psalms, God knows that we have overwhelming problems and needs these days, and He invites us to bring them to Him daily. Let's start by acknowledging that we need to come into alignment with our Holy God first. He is the One who continues to show us kindness and mercy, though we deserve to be banished forever from His very presence. You might want to open with a short reading from the Bible and an opening prayer to get started on the right wavelength.
2. Far-Away-Lands. Our planet seems like it is all about ready to self-destruct, and indeed the Bible says it is. To start praying for our beleaguered earth, let's pray for a few public figures in the news, first, for people who are half-a-world away today. Let's pray that God would move these leaders and persons of influence away from opposition to God and God's programs. Christians in foreign lands are often in constant peril all their lives. Our prayers will enable God to empower them. Leaders near and far away are often unwitting servants of evil demonic powers--our prayers directed at the invisible powers of evil behind the scenes can make a difference. "We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." --remember Ephesians 6:12?
The one key, pivotal, most important country on earth is Israel. If you don’t see this, read the Old Testament.
3. Our Home-Land. Pray next for national and local leaders. Often churches stay away from controversial political issues in praying and in preaching. Therefore things get worse. Ask God to show your group ways to change the world from backstage, from behind the scenes, using our God-given powerful weapons of spiritual warfare (2). Instead of simplistically praying for a certain person in power to be "saved," pray for God's influence in his or her life by means of love, kindness and mercy. [Yes, we do not seek to convert others to our way of thinking, we seek to model lives that demonstrate the love of Christ.] The New Testament asks every church to make corporate prayer (3) our high priority. As a group why don't we ask our Almighty God to quietly set aside and to dry up demonically empowered projects now running unchecked in our communities. Deal in prayer with the fallen angels behind collective evil in the world. Only God's remnant knows how to do this. We need to pray so we will be given eyes that see and hears that ear, not merely by the physical observations we can absorb daily, but asking God to show us what He’s doing in the unseen world’.praying for hearts to change, believers and unbelievers alike, for priorities to shift away from ourselves, our agendas to align with His.
4. The Local Scene and Your Circle. You have touched upon the big picture in prayer, now pray for the needs in your group. (This is where most small prayer groups start and end--going no further. In your prayer group who is ill, who is out of work, who is out of action because of illness or emotional exhaustion? The dynamics of YOUR prayer group are the most important issue you will be dealing with--that's why we listed this last. We Christians say we love each other but in reality we often harbor grudges, bitterness and resentment toward one another. In the symbolic language of First Corinthians 12-14, the whole body of Christ is sick. Broken relations and unconfessed sin in the group must be sought out and carefully healed. Go slow and be very careful. The Holy Spirit knows how to gently show every member of your group where and how they need to change. We can all be blind in some areas of our own lives and fail to see that it is "we," not "they," who have unresolved conflicts with others in the group. Remember, the church as a whole, the Body of Christ, is weak these days because of sin. Repair and healing of our nation therefore starts with our small group. When your prayer times ends, write down a list of "to do" items so that new life and healing God makes known can spread to others. God will want to use you to answer some of the prayer requests that came up.
As your prayer group begins to see things as God sees them, branch out to other areas of prayer, to special projects or certain people. If your find yourself not knowing how to get started in your prayer group, select one of the great prayers in the Bible (4) as a model. Read and apply.
Invite the Lord Jesus Christ to step down into the midst of your prayer group every time you meet. He will gladly direct your prayer activity, provided you stay out of the way. Invite one or two seasoned "prayer warriors" to help out in your group by keeping you all on track. We suggest you stay informal in your prayer group and not tie yourselves down with extra rules and unnecessary protocol. It is not necessary for you to address God in perfect King James English. Put a few guidelines in place then stick to them. When your group gets too large, divide and multiply.
There is nothing new here. Truth never changes. "Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever." Your prayer group has the privilege of being used by God to change history. Please pitch in and allow God to work through you in this simple new way? Let us know what you learn and what God shows you.
In short, what my friends and I feel called to do is to urge you to all become actively engaged in praying -- and please start immediately. We strongly feel God wants to meet us in prayer at this critical hour in our nation's history. We are confident that Jesus is ready to respond if we will make the first move; confident that Jesus is ready to respond if we will engage with Him fully as the branches to His vine.
Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. ‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. ‘For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. ‘For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, And instead of the brier sall come up the myrtle tree; And it shall be to the LORD for a name, For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.’ (Isaiah 55:6-13)
12 September 2010
My web site: http://ldolphin.org/;
Links: 1. Previous newsletters: http://ldolphin.org/news/
2. Spiritual Warfare, http://www.raystedman.org/thematic-studies/spiritual-warfare/
3. Corporate Prayer, http://ldolphin.org/prayoption.html
4. Prayers in the Bible, http://www.raystedman.org/thematic-studies/prayer/