Praying with purpose!

"I have been doing a Bible study on my own called Lord Teach Me to Pray by Kay Arthur.  This has been an unbelievable study, teaching me things about prayer that I did not know. Tomorrow is my last day of study, but I wanted to write what I have learned.  The whole study is based on the Lord's Prayer, Matthew 6:9-13.  I memorized this prayer as a child, but never knew the "real" impact it CAN have on your prayer life.  There have been so many times I have dove in to prayer with a meaningless approach to His throne.  Now, I start EVERY prayer with praise and adoration for who He is!!  Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name!  The very fact that you pray is to worship God!  

"Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  This means we anxiousy await the time when He physically rules on this earth.  We let His kingdom be done in us, that is, doing our part to bring people to Him until His coming.  This is a quote from Adrian Rogers.  "No matter how faithfully you attend church, how generously you give, how circumspectly you walk, how eloquently you teach, or how beautifully you sing, if you are not endeavoring to bring people to Jesus Christ, you are not right with God."

Romans 12:1-2;  "Therefore I urge you by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

Kay says if God's will is good, acceptable, and perfect, don't you long to be right in the middle of it?  George Mueller applied biblical principals in his decision making .  When you seek God in this manner I believe He will bless.

1.  I seek at the beginning to get my heart into such a state that it has no will of it's own in a given matter.

2.  I do not leave the result to feeling or simple impression.

3.  I seek the will of God through the Word of God.If I look to the Spirit alone without the Word I lay myself open to great delusions.

4.  Next, I take into account providential circumstances.  These plainly indicate God's will in connection with His Word.

5.  I ask God in prayer to reveal His will to me aright!

6.  Thus through prayer to God, the study of the Word,and reflection, I come to a deliberate judgement according to the best of my ability and knowledge, and if my mind is thus at peace, and continues after 3 petitions I proceed accordingly.  

"Give us this day our daily bread"- I love this one!!  It says give US our daily bread.  We are not only commanded to pray for our daily needs, but for the daily needs of others as well.   

It asked me to sit quietly before the Lord and think of one specific person to pray for. God laid someone on my heart, and I continually lift her and her family up in prayer.  

First we are to ask.

Second, know you and I are supposed to ask within the boundaries of God's Word.(Psalm 145:17-19)

Third, you must ask according to the will of God.

Fourth, you must ask until the answer comes.

Fifth, remember when you ask, ask for others!

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors".  God will deal justly with all who sin.  But that is God's business.  Yours is to forgive...period.  With this, God also commands us to confess the sins of the people.  This was very hard for me to do, and still is.  Let your heart be broken with the things that break His heart.  In the book of Daniel, Daniel always included himself in the shortcomings of Israel.  We have to ask God how to plead with Him on behalf of His church.  I still struggle with this.

"Do not lead us into temptation"- Can I tell you this part of the study changed my life?  Well, all of it did, really.  You see,  I struggle with anxiety.  So much, that I have to take medication(the lowest possible dose)to help control the symptoms.  I am somewhat embarrassed about that, but it has helped me so much.  I have been so confused about how to pray to God about how to control the anxiety.  This study opened my eyes to exactly what I needed to pray.  It is called preventative prayer.  This final topic of prayer is a cry for deliverance.  Grounded in Matthew 5: 3-8, it says spare me Father , from needless trials or testings in which I might find myself tempted.  When I have these attacks, I am tempted to lose control, and lose trust in my Father.  I now pray the preventative prayer of, Father, please remove any thoughts from my head that will trigger an anxiety attack.  Just do not even let them come into my head!!  

"...keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Matthew 26:41

"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil."  We are telling God that we realize we cannot handle the Evil One alone.  We are willing to stand in righteousness, but God must do the delivering.

I am so thankful for this study and how it has made me better understand how to pray, both for others and myself.