February 24 Praying To Be Heard....

Matthew 6:5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

One time a young professional was waiting for a meeting when he heard someone walking down the hallway. Thinking that this might be a potential client for him, he picked up his telephone and pretended to be having a high-powered conversation.

Soon the footsteps stopped at his desk. Looking up he asked, “What may I do for you?” The man standing before him replied, “I’m from the telephone company. I’ve come to hook up your phone.”

Prayer is the same way. The prayer that gets our Savior’s attention comes from the heart and not from the head, “to be heard by men.” Prayers to impress people are one-way conversations.

ACTION POINT:

Find a quiet place in your home where you can be alone with the Lord every day for a special time of communion with Him. He is waiting for you there.

Adrian Rogers

February 23 Don’t Leave Empty Handed

James 1:5-7

5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

I have often said, “The Lord does not answer prayer based on merit, but on mercy.” God is a merciful Father who loves us, and invites us into his presence. He desires to fellowship with us, and hear what is on our hearts. He knows our weakness and our frame. He knows we are the dust of this earth. He knows that we need a daily cleansing in his Word. He knows that we will stumble along the way, and that we need his forgiveness. He knows that no matter how hard we strive, we are going to come up short. Now, just because the Lord understands who we are, does not mean he gives us a license to sin. Sin will hinder our prayer life. He will deal with our disobedience. However, God knows that our prayers are not based on our goodness, but on his goodness. He is good to answer us, but he wants one thing from us, above all else. He wants us to exercise faith Gods wants us to fully trust him when we speak to him in prayer. Don’t misunderstand what I’m saying when I make this statement. The Lord is willing to work with a lot of imperfections in our lives, when he sees faith in our hearts. How many times has he answered a prayer for you, when you knew you didn’t deserve it? You are probably thinking, 100% of the time. That’s because he is merciful, and he saw faith in your life. He knew that you trusted him in spite of yourself. The individual who prays in doubt, will walk away empty handed every time. Jesus taught us to have faith in God. We are not to have faith in ourselves, or even in our prayers. We are to place our faith in him when we pray. You don’t have to walk away empty handed in your prayer life. Have faith in the merciful hand of God, knowing that he will answer your prayer, not because you are good, but because he is good!

Pastor Rick Gravley

February 22 You’re Dead! You’re Alive!

Romans 6:11

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

A woman woke up one morning and noticed that she felt like she had just gone to sleep. She said, “It can’t be six o’clock in the morning!”

But the radio said it was six. The clock said it was six. The sunrise said it was six. Now, I submit to you: it really didn’t matter how she felt, did it?

Sometimes we respond the same way when it comes to our salvation. We need to get our salvation out of the realm of fickle emotions and begin to “reckon” (count on) God’s facts.

Each morning when you wake up, begin by saying, “I am dead to sin. I am alive in Christ. I know it’s a fact. He died for me. Now I reckon it!”

ACTION POINT:

Look up the word “reckon” in the dictionary. Are you “reckoning” yourself dead to sin and alive to Christ? If not, begin to do so today.

Adrian Rogers