I had the pleasure of visiting a friend’s church
last weekend. The message went right in line with what my own church home had
been teaching – are we praying powerful prayers? They gave five examples of
prayers that unleash the power of God in our lives. They are too good not to
share…
“Search Me”
Psalm
139:23-24 “Search me, O
God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is
any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Vulnerability is the first thing we look for in
others and the last thing we are willing to show. It’s also the one thing God
requires to change our lives. He will not force His way into our hearts and
minds, we have to let Him in. Are we allowing ourselves to be open and
vulnerable to God? Do we really want to know our true motives?
“Break
Me”
Hosea
10:12 “Sow for
yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your
unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers
righteousness on you.”
This sounds so harsh! But God faithfully uses our brokenness
to glorify Himself through our lives. New crops cannot grow in hard ground. We
need to let God break up the hard places in our hearts so that new life and new
fruit will be produced for His glory.
“Stretch
Me”
Isaiah
54:2 “Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not
hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes.”
We know we need to stretch before we exercise for
optimal performance. But how do we perform for the Kingdom of God? God wants to
stretch us out of our comfort zone so we can be effective in ways we’ve not yet
imagined. He longs to increase our faith, our passion, and our impact for Him.
“Lead
Me”
Matthew
26:39 “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed. “My
father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will,
but as you will.””
Do you allow God to lead you no matter what? Do you
follow Him even through the dark, scary areas in life that seem overwhelming? I’ll
admit, sometimes I don’t. Fear will stop me dead in my tracks. Asking God to
lead us allows for HIS will in our lives, not OURS. We pray this prayer so we
can honestly say “not mine, but thine…”
“Use
Me”
Isaiah
6:8 “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who
will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!””
Do you ever put God in a box? Do you have
preconceived notions about how and when He can use you for His kingdom? I
certainly have. But God is bigger than anything we can imagine. He writes a story
we can’t predict. Are we allowing Him to use us the way HE has planned?
I’ve been praying these five prayers in my quiet
time this week. I challenge you to do the same. God wants to take us into a
deeper relationship with Him. It begins with allowing Him to search us, break
us, stretch us, lead us, and use us. The pastor teaching this message made a
great statement – “There are things God CAN do that He WON’T do until the
people of God pray.” Let that sink in for a minute. God is waiting for us to
pray dangerously by giving Him full access to our hearts and minds. Isn’t it
more dangerous not to?
Be blessed,
Jennifer
“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 will I hear from heaven and will
forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2Chronicles 7:14
2 comments:
I accept your challenge, my friend. Thank you for your love & devotion that you share.
You are so very welcome! :)
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