Archives: Messages
A Message
The Power and Priority of Prayer
Lent
~Forty days from Ash Wednesday to Easter
~A time of introspection, self-reflection, and evaluation of our relationship with God
Why is prayer so important?
Prayer is communion with God in order to access His kingdom, power, and glory.
Alex and Stephen Kendrick, The Battle Plan of Prayer, p. 39
Tapping into God’s Power
I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to see you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. All of this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
John 14:18-19,25,26 New International Version (NIV)
I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.
Luke 24:49 (NIV)
Power = dynamis (Greek)
For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
2 Corinthians 10:3-4 (NIV)
Prayer can do anything….It can reach out and address any issue that anyone is facing anywhere on earth. It can be silently engaged without the enemy ever hearing the life-changing conversation going on in our heads and our hearts
The Battle Plan of Prayer, p. 39
Prayer is like oxygen to our spiritual lives. It provides the needed wind in our sails to propel everything we do as believers, and it’s the unseen key to the success of every ministry of the church.
The Battle Plan for Prayer, p. 21
Prayer as a priority.
So if prayer is so powerful, why don’t we make it a priority?
God of possibilities, please forgive us for relying on our wisdom, strength, energy, and ideas rather than abiding in You and seeking You first. Help us lay aside anything that hinders us from pursuing Your best. Help us prioritize prayer and devote ourselves to it in our personal lives, our families, and our church. Make our church truly a house of prayer for everyone. Revive us again, O Lord. Help us walk in Your strength and glorify you with all we do. We pray this in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
The Purpose of Prayer
LENT- A time to look carefully at ourselves and our relationship with God.
A time to draw closer through spiritual disciplines.
What is the purpose of prayer?
TO GLORIFY GOD
And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
John 14:13-14 New International Version (NIV)
Return my sons from distant lands, my daughters from faraway places. I want them back every last one who bears my name, every man, woman, and child whom I created for my glory, yes, personally formed and made each one.
Isaiah 43:6b-7 The Message (MSG)
God reveals His glory to us, bit by bit, in our lives, through our lives, from one situation to the next.
What should our response be when God responds to our prayers and reveals aspects of His glory?
To glorify God even more!
Of all the things prayer is and does, its greatest accomplishment — and its greatest joy — is that it allows us, His beloved children, to be part of bringing Him glory. To God be the glory!” – Stephen and Alex Kendrick, The Battle Plan for Prayer, p. 31
God is IS.
“If we could only understand what being in the presence of the Almighty is truly like, our mind wouldn’t be casually wandering. We wouldn’t be drifting in and out of sleep. We’d be fully alert and overwhelmed. All attention held captive. Stunned. Speechless. And when we did speak, we would be humble, reverent, and very careful what came out of our mouths.” – Kendricks, The Battle Plan for Prayer, pp. 34-35
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” (Deut. 4:24)
Hebrews 12:28-29
Prayer allows us to do three things:
1- Prayer allows us to intimately know, love, and worship God.
2- Prayer allows us to understand and conform our lives to God’s will and God’s ways.
Our Father, in heaven, hallowed is your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…
3- Through prayer we are in communion with God in order to access and advance His kingdom, His power, and His glory.
Prayer is not about prayer.
It’s about a Person – God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
All for His Glory!
God Almighty, help me never again forget that I am in Your awesome presence when I pray. Help me not to enter into it as a duty or a mindless activity, the mere repeating of tired words. But help me come with worship, with love, and with a true desire to experience You personally. Help me abandon my own agendas and self-assurances, wanting to be nowhere else except directly aligned with Your will. And may your kingdom flow right through this heart and home of mine, taking me wherever You want me to go. Amen.
Marathon
Sticking to the Game Plan
Armor
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh,
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Ephesians 6:10-12 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
Ephesians 6:13 (NRSV)
Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:14-17 (NRSV)
Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
John 17:17 (NRSV)
…but test everything; hold fast to what is good;
1 Thessalonians 5:21 (NRSV)
The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. – GotQuestions.org
Just as shoes allow us to walk on otherwise painful terrain without fear, so the preparation of the gospel of peace allows us to traverse the otherwise painful trials and tribulations of life without fear, knowing that what awaits is greater than anything we could possibly suffer in this world (Romans 8:18).
- freebiblestudyguides.org, Series 3, Lesson 4
It’s our faith in God’s promises, God’s protection, and God’s provision.
If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.
Daniel 3:17-18 (NIV)
Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.
Ephesians 6:14-17 (NRSV)
ARE YOU GOING TO PUT ON THE FULL ARMOR OF GOD?
Family
Family
a basic social unit consisting of one or more adults together with the children they care for, whether dwelling together or not.
a social unit consisting of one or more adults together with the children they care for.
~dictionary.com
those people we’re connected to through blood or marriage and those we treat as though they are.
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Ephesians 5:21 New International Version (NIV)
Out of respect for Christ, be courteously reverent to one another. Wives, understand and support your husbands in ways that show your support for Christ. The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. So just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises such leadership, wives should likewise submit to their husbands.
Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church – a love marked by giving, not getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of her, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And that is how husbands out to love their wives. They’re really doing themselves a favor — since they’re already “one” in marriage. No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it.
That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are part of his body. And this is why a man leaves father and mother and cherishes his wife. No longer two, they become “one flesh.” This is a huge mystery, and I don’t pretend to understand it all. What is clearest to me is the way Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.
Ephesians 5:21-31 The Message (MSG)
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” — which is the first commandment with a promise — “so that it may go well with you and that you ay enjoy long life on the earth.” Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring the up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
Ephesians 6:1-4 (MSG)
Righteous Living
The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. – Gotquestions.org
So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
Ephesians 4:17-19 – New International Version (NIV)
And so I insist – and God back me up on this – that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can’t think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion.
Ephesians 4:17-19 – The Message (MSG)
But that’s no life for you. You learned Christ! My assumption is that you have paid careful attention to him, been well instructed in the truth precisely as we have it in Jesus. Since, then, we do not have the excuse of ignorance, everything – and I do mean everything – connected with that old way of life has to go. It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it! And then take on an entirely new way of life - a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you.
Ephesians 4: 20-24 (NIV)
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Ephesians 4: 29-32 (NIV)
Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Ephesians 5:1-2 (NIV)
But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person – such a person is an idolator – has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them.
Ephesians 5:3-7 (NIV)
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible – and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
Ephesians 5:8-14 (NIV)
Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do no get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:15-20 (NIV)
Unity in the Body of Christ
I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
EPHESIANS 4: 1-3 – NEW KING JAMES VERSION (NKJV)
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called
in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith,
one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
EPHESIANS 4: 4-6
But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
EPHESIANS 4: 7
Therefore He says:“When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” (Now this, “He ascended”-what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
EPHESIANS 4: 8-10
And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers…
EPHESIANS 4: 11
…for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
EPHESIANS 4: 12-13
…That we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head -Christ –
EPHESIANS 4: 14-15
…from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
EPHESIANS 4: 16
REgifted
10 Simple Rules for Regifting
10. The gift should make sense for the receiver.
9. Take the tag off.
8. Don’t regift things you received from meaningful people.
7. Don’t regift family heirlooms.
6. Avoid regifting within the same circle of friends.
5. Remember who gave you the gift.
4. Be timely the the regifts: Everything has its season.
3. Regift in moderation.
2. Be honest if you get caught on a regift.
1. REWRAP the gift!
Regifting is the act of taking a gift that has been received and giving it to somebody else, sometimes in the guise of a new gift.
Another perspective of regifting…
regifting joy
The settled assurance that God
is in control of all the details of your life
The quiet confidence that ultimately everything will be alright
Praising God in every situation
I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
John 15:11 (NIV)
regifting hope
The sure certainty that what
God has promised in His Word is true
The firm assurance regarding what
is unclear or unseen
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.
Psalm 33:22 (NIV)
regifting peace
One of the greatest promises that
Jesus gives to those who believe in Him
Tranquility, harmony, security (inner peace)
Right relationship(s)
Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
Romans 14:19 (NIV)
The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
Isaiah 11:6-7 (NIV)
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)
regifting love
Agape love: no strings attached;
can’t earn it or buy it, only receive it
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
1 John 4:7-9 (NIV)