Pray like Jesus!

Matthew 6:9-13 “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we also forgive this who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever and ever, Amen.”

The one thing the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to do was to pray. Traditionally, this has become known as the “Lord’s Prayer”. In fact, it should be renamed the “Disciples Prayer” because it was for our benefit, not Jesus. Jesus never committed any sin, so Jesus never had to pray for forgiveness but in the prayer taught by Jesus, he taught the disciples to ask for forgiveness. In addition, this prayer contains within it all the key ingredients needed for a powerful breakthrough in every area of your life.

Prayer is WORSHIP: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Begin with praise and worship of God’s goodness every time you enter into God’s presence. Worship lifts your focus off of yourself and magnifies God’s greatness over your life.

Prayer establishes GOD’S RULE: Your kingdom come means for the authority of God’s kingdom to be present in your daily life.

Prayer aligns with GOD’S WILL: Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Prayer releases the abundant resource of heaven into the earthly realm so that more and more of our natural reality looks more and more like the kingdom of heaven.

Prayer PETITIONS and RECEIVES by faith: Give us this day our daily bread. Prayer deals with the practical areas of our lives. God delights to give good things to those who ask in faith.

Prayer is REPENTANCE: And forgive us our trespasses. Repentance is turning away from self and turning towards God. In prayer God gives us the strength to overcome sin.

Prayer releases GRACE for RELATIONSHIPS: As we also forgive those who trespass against us. Because of the fall of humanity, our relational worlds are under the stress of brokenness. In prayer we receive grace to reconcile and engage in healthy relationships.

Prayer builds CHARACTER: Lead us not into temptation. In prayer we find the strength to become more like Jesus and resist the temptation of the enemy and our flesh.

Prayer is SPIRITUAL WARFARE: Deliver us from evil. One of the primary weapons to fight against Satan is prayer. Pray in the Spirit on all occasions and you’ll discover grace and power to be victorious over all the attacks of the enemy against you.

Prayer is DECLARATION: For yours is the kingdom. Prayer partners with the primary message of Jesus, the gospel of the kingdom. Prayer isn’t passive, it’s forceful declaration of God’s heart for his kingdom to be established in the earthly realm.

Prayer releases God’s POWER and PRESENCE: The power and the glory forever and ever, Amen. Without prayer, we have no access to God’s power. We need power top effect change in our lives and in the earth. In prayer we become aware of God’s glorious presence. Prayer manifests the glory of God. Selah!

Dead or Alive?

John 15:2 “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes.”

This is a challenging statement from Jesus. His words are a call to be proactive about our personal growth. A dead branch doesn’t produce anything worthwhile to anyone and will be removed. A fruitful branch will be cut back and pruned in its season in order for more fruitfulness to come. Either way, we’re going to get cut. We may as well get cut for bring fruitful and not for being fruitless.

I refuse to be fruitless. Refusing fruitlessness means I intentionally position myself to grow. Someone once said, you only grow according to the books you read, the places you visit and the people you meet. I think there are other ways for growth to occur but these three are a great starting place. What books are you reading? Which new places are you visiting and studying? And who are the people you are posturing yourself in front of to receive from? God is committed to your fruitfulness and the extension of his kingdom. Be intentional, be prepared for pruning and be ready for greater fruitfulness in your life.

Power of God’s Word

Luke 5:4-6 “And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.’ And Simon answered, ‘Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.’ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking.”

God always speaks on purpose – God doesn’t do random, he only ever does intentional. When Jesus spoke to Simon, he wasn’t suggesting something to do because he thought things were getting boring, teaching the crowd. Jesus asked Simon to do something because he not only wanted to bless him but give him a deeper understanding of Simon’s call. Scripture repeatedly shows us that God never wastes a word, he always speaks with purpose and intention.

Don’t let your past experience dictate your response to God’s Word – Simon was very quick to inform Jesus that he had toiled all night and not caught anything. After all, Simon was the expert, professional fisherman and Jesus was… well… Jesus. Too often, we hear God’s Word and let our personal experience dictate our response to it. Do we really think that God isn’t aware of what our past experience has been? When you let your past experience dictate your response to God, you get caught up in becoming a professional explainer of why that won’t work and this won’t work because supposedly you know better than God. When it comes to God’s word, we need to get over our training, logic and experience and:

Just Obey God’s Word – Simon ultimately responded to Jesus with, “But at your word I will let down the nets”. Just obey what God is asking you to do. What a novel idea. Develop the habit of reading or hearing what God’s saying and just do it. A revolution will start in your life when you act upon what God’s asking you to do.

Obedience is the key to fruitfulness – Simon obeyed and the haul of fish was so great, the nets were breaking under the weight of the catch. Simon had toiled all night and caught nothing but obeying one word from God changed everything. I remember asking God long ago what the secret to great fruitfulness in ministry was and he simply responded with “Obedience.” The prophet Samuel said to Saul, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifice as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams” (1 Sam 15:22).

Watching God’s Word in action will humble you – When Simon saw the results of his obedience, he and the other fisherman were astonished and very, very humbled. They realised that compared to Jesus, their expertise, pride and best efforts were as filthy rags. When God shows up in miraculous ways, it casts light on our doubt and unbelief and humbles our expert opinions. God always knows best.

Our obedience to God’s Word opens the door to our true calling – If Simon hadn’t have obeyed Jesus’ word, he wouldn’t have received a revelation of the call of God on his life to be ‘Catching men’ from that point on. Our obedience today positions us for our calling tomorrow. God sees our faithfulness in private and rewards us accordingly. What are you procrastinating on that God has asked you to do? Don’t delay any longer, obey God’s Word and watch the blessing of God follow your life.

Insight!

Barrenness to Fruitfulness

Luke 1:6-7 “And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.”

Zechariah and Elizabeth were the parents of John the Baptist. The events preceding John’s birth were significant and we can learn much from them to apply in our own calling.

You can be blameless and still be barren – The bible says that both of Johns parents were righteous and blameless in all the commandments of God and yet they were a barren couple. We are too quick to judge a book by its cover, especially when it comes to people. We often associate barrenness with sin in someone’s life or they have done something wrong. However, in John’s parents case, they were completely blameless and righteous but they were struggling with a point of lack in their lives. If you are experiencing lack somewhere in your life right now, don’t automatically look for what’s wrong but keep your eyes on Jesus and his word in your life. God’s perspective of you isn’t a reflection of your circumstances. God loves you and is near you even in the most difficult of circumstances.

God can bring breakthrough to your barrenness – God knows the plans he has for you and he is able to position you exactly where you need to be to get your breakthrough. It was no coincidence that Zechariah was chosen by lot to offer the sacrifice in the temple on the day that God was going to send a messenger to deliver a word of breakthrough for his barrenness. God knows how to get to you what you need for your breakthrough. Be sensitive to the opportunities God brings your way because he could very well be positioning you for a breakthrough.

Don’t stop praying in barren seasons – The angel Gabriel revealed that God had heard Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s prayers. No prayer goes unnoticed by God. The Book of Revelation talks about the bowl of intercession being poured out on the earth. Don’t stop praying because when it seems like nothing is happening and the heavens are brass, the bowl of intercession is being filled up and the time will come when the prayers you’ve prayed in the barren seasons will be answered.

Never doubt God’s Word because of your circumstances – Zechariah’s questions were consumed with doubt and he became mute to the day the word came to pass in his life. Never doubt what God has said just because it looks impossible. We walk by faith, not by sight. Too many of us measure our future based upon our past and present circumstances. When God’s NOW word kisses your substance of faith, the possibility of transformation in any circumstance is made possible. Faith activates the word of God in your circumstances.

Nothing is impossible with God – When the angel Gabriel shared with the virgin Mary the word of the Lord, he made reference to the miracle in Elizabeth’s womb and declared ‘Nothing is impossible with God’. The enemy would try to convince you that you are limited by your circumstances but the devil is a liar. There is always a way through with God on your side. You and God are a majority. I know it may seem like the end but with God the end is just the beginning of a new season in your life. Barrenness doesn’t have to be the theme of your life. God wants to move you from barrenness to fruitfulness.

Insight!