40 Days of Prayer- Tuesday, June 25 - Devotion 27 - Interceding Prayer - John Toler

Interceding Prayer

John 17 is an awesome chapter to me.  Contextually it follows the chapters that deal with abiding in Him and the Holy Spirit coming, which are two great chapters in themselves but this 17 is special to me because Jesus prays for all believers.  This is but a glimpse into the intercessory role that Christ is getting ready to take at the right hand of God.  It should be encouraging to us to know that Christ prayed for us and continues to do that and we now have an example of what that is like in John 17.

There are also more examples from this passage that Christ gives us.  This passage is an example of praying for God’s Will.  Notice in His prayer for us, it is all about our growth in Him, ability to serve God, and success in GOD’S KINGDOM.  Also it serves as an example to intercede on the behalf of other Christians and their work in the Kingdom of God.  Do we spend time praying for our brothers and sisters and their impact for Christ in the world?  Do we really spend time praying for missions in other countries?  In our prayer time I hope we are making time for all the things we should be accomplishing in prayer, such as worship, thankfulness, repentance, our requests (needs), but also interceding on the behalf of others as God lays them on our heart.

My challenge to you! Be praying God will lay people and ministries on your heart so that we can be praying for the will of God in and through their lives as Christ did for us. 

John 17:20-26 I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."

40 Days of Prayer - Monday, June 24 - Devotion 26

Hindrances to Prayer Pt. 2

Today's devotion is a follow up to Sunday's message on Part 2 of Hindrances to Prayer. Reflect on these final 4 hindrances and trust God to teach you that your prayers may go un-hindered!

1.     Robbing God – Malachi 2:17-3:18

In Malachi, the prophet speaks and tells the Israelites they are robbing God. They are robbing God with their tithes and offerings. Not only are the robbing God with their tithes and offerings, but catch this, when there is cherished sin, not listening to God, wrong motives and doubt, what are they actually robbing God of, His Glory? Don’t rob God, reflect His glory!!!

2.     Pride – Luke 18:9-15  9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed[a] thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The man that was justified before God was the one who was not prideful in His prayer. The one man declared himself righteous before God, the other was declared righteous by God.

 3.     Un-forgiveness – Matthew 6:14-15  14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

 When we pray there must not be un-forgiveness in our heart toward others who have wronged us. If there is God will not forgive us when we ask.  A true sign of a forgiven person is one who forgives others,

4.     Un-healthy Relationships – 1 Peter 3:1-7 Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your respectful and pure conduct. 3 Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— 4 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and do not fear anything that is frightening. 7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

Matthew 5:21-24 (Read)

Un-healthy relationships are a hindrance to God hearing our prayers. When there is not understanding or honoring one another, these are hindrances and God desires we deal with our un-healthy relationships.

Conclusion

Read these following passages and consider why these hindrances prevent God from answering our prayers. If our cravings are not for God, He may very well give us the desire of our heart and how devastating this may be to us! Spend time today asking God to search your heart and reveal things in your life where you are lacking. Heed His words and return to Him in these areas and His promise is He will return to you!

Numbers 11

Psalm 106:6-15

40 Days Of Prayer - Saturday, June 22 - Scripture Reading

Hindrances to Prayer Pt. 2

1. Robbing God
Malachi 2:17-3:15
17 You have wearied the Lord with your words. But you say, “How have we wearied him?” By saying, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and he delights in them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God of justice?”

 “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord. 4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.

5 “Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.

6 “For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. 7 From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’ 8 Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. 11 I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. 12 Then all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.

13 “Your words have been hard against me, says the Lord. But you say, ‘How have we spoken against you?’ 14 You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? 15 And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape.’”

2. Pride
Luke 18:9-15

⁹ He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ ¹³ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁵ Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. ¹⁶ But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. ¹⁷ Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

3. Un-forgiveness
Matthew 6:14-15
¹⁴ For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ¹⁵ but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses

4. Un-healthy Relationships
1 Peter 3:7-12
⁷ Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

⁸ Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. ⁹ Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. ¹⁰ For

“Whoever desires to love life
    and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil
    and his lips from speaking deceit;
¹¹ let him turn away from evil and do good;
    let him seek peace and pursue it.
¹² For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
    and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

40 Days of Prayer - Friday, June 21 - Devotion 25 - Praying to Forgive - Laura Page

Jesus told his disciples of the need for forgiveness:  “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”  (Matthew 6:14-15, ESV)  This is no light or easy thing - in fact it is not possible in our human strength.  But Jesus also said that “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” (Luke 18:27, ESV)  To say “I forgive” and to mean it requires that we seek God earnestly and that we allow God to do that work through us.

Corrie ten Boom is a woman who understands the need to be forgiven as well as the need to forgive. As a child, she and her family sheltered Jews from the Nazis and was later forced into a concentration camp at Ravensbruck with her sister Betsie (who was killed in that concentration camp).  Corrie spoke often in gatherings about forgiveness, and then one day, after sharing about forgiveness, a man approached Corrie to thank her for her words on forgiveness and Corrie shared about the experience in “I’m Still Learning to Forgive”:

“I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt. I was face-to-face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze.

“ ‘You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk,’ he was saying, ‘I was a guard there.  But since that time, I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein,’ the hand came out—’will you forgive me?’

“And I stood there — I whose sins had again and again to be forgiven — and could not forgive. Betsie had died in that place — could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking?  It could not have been many seconds that he stood there — hand held out — but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.  For I had to do it — I knew that.  The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. ‘If you do not forgive men their trespasses,’ Jesus says, ‘neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.’

“I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality. Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were able also to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. Those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and as horrible as that.

“And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion — I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. ‘… Help!’ I prayed silently. ‘I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.’

“And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“ ‘I forgive you, brother!’ I cried. ‘With all my heart!’

“For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then”

We must, as followers of Jesus, obey His commands, and he has commanded us to forgive.  But He also promises to “supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19, ESV).  Who do you need to forgive?  Pray to God – ask Him first for the will to forgive and then ask Him for the feeling of forgiveness.

Jesus, when he was dying on the cross, said (and meant with His whole being):   “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:24, ESV).  Thy mystery of the gospel, according to Paul in Colossians, is “Christ in you”.  Allow His forgiveness to flow through you and extend to those who have caused injury – for those who do so know no more what they are doing than those who crucified Jesus.

40 Days of Prayer - Thursday, June 20 - Devotion 24 - Touching His Hem - Scott Gardner

Touching His Hem

Mark 5:24-29 (ESV)

And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.

 Wherever Jesus went, the people flocked to see Him. In Mark chapter 5, the crowds have thronged around Him, jostling each other to see or even perhaps speak to Him. Imagine the noise and the chaos as they press closer and closer. Also see a woman who has suffered for many years gradually working her way through the crowd, slowly getting closer to Jesus. “If I can only touch Him, I will be made well!” She finally is able to reach out and touch his clothing, and she is healed. Jesus confronts her and then says, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

This is an amazing story isn’t it? However, in some ways, it is a very sad story as well. This woman had spent the past twelve years visiting doctors who could not help her. She had lost all her savings and had found no relief. Then she turned to Jesus and immediately found the help she so desperately needed. Jesus was this woman’s last resort. She had tried everything else first.

Unfortunately, we often do the same. When we find ourselves in difficulty, it is so easy to run to our friends for comfort and advice, or to browse the bookshelf for the latest best-seller before we ever turn to God.

Is prayer your last resort? Do you try everything else and then ask God for His help? Where do you turn when the worries of the world press in on you from every side? Are you determined to get closer to Jesus and ask for His help? Prayer should be our first reaction in every situation. Jesus says that we do not have because we do not ask (James 4:2). In other words, “Don’t waste your time seeking help from the world, come to Me and ask Me for help, and I will answer you.”

Proverbs 18:10 (ESV)

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.