Pray for a way.
Hello. Welcome, today. Today’s message will be a bit different than perhaps what you have heard in the past. It may be a revelation to you. It may be something you don't understand fully. It may even be offensive to some who have been taught differently. Things I have been taught, things I have believed, vs. what I truly believe God has shown me in His Word. What is it? Do not pray for change.
Do not pray for your will, but for His will to be done.
Do not pray for your surroundings to change.
Do not pray for the world.
I know. I think the first one, the one we will discuss today is the easiest to accept and understand. You can say we are going to ease into it.
We are born. We grow up being taught what our parents believe and what our parents were taught, if they went to church, in their church. We see in movies and on TV, people crying out to God to change their lives.
“Please God, let me hit the lotto.” “Please God let me date this one or that one.” “Please God let me get a promotion, raise, become the boss, at work.” “Please God, take this sickness away.” “Please God, get me out of this situation.” “Please God, take all this stuff around me away. Improve my situation.” “Please God, bring revival to America, and the world.”
Have you prayed any of these? I have. Have you been taught any of these things are something every Christian should do? I have. Do you truly believe that if God does whatever you ask, it would be better? I did. But here is the thing. None of these are Biblical.
Now I’m not saying it is wrong to ask God for things. Especially like healing, improving your life situation, and even that an unlimited amount of people get saved. However, what I am saying is sometimes the answer will be no. Why? It may not be God’s Will.
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."Understand what James is saying here. “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” In other words, you are asking God for your own will to be done. Not His Will. Look at what Jesus prayed as He was facing humiliation, torture, and horrible death.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” James 4:3-10
“And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw and knelt and prayed, saying, "Father if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.” Luke 22:41-43Jesus was facing something much worse than you can or will EVER face in your life. He asked God because He did not have the strength and or the will to go through all He knew He had to, if it was possible for God to reconsider. However, He already knows the answer. His flesh was weak not His spirit. Look what He said to Peter in the garden when they came for Him.
“Then Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?" Matthew 26:52-54Jesus could have stopped it at any time. However, that was the whole purpose He came to begin with. It was God’s will to do this. “Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." He had to go through with it. But look at this really important part of scripture.
"And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.”
God saw the flesh was weak but His spirit was right, so, God strengthened His flesh, so that He could accomplish what He came to do. What God sent Him to do. He will do the same for you.
Look at this passage here. James 4:13-15
Let me share a little story. I was working a job I loved, however, a new boss came in and was pretty wicked. No exaggeration here. He was wicked. He made all of our lives miserable. I was recently saved and young and naive, but I did what some other “Christians” did. I prayed for him to be removed. What happened? He fired me. He fired quite a few people. Was that what I prayed? Did I pray to get fired? Of course not. Was it how I envisioned the outcome would be? Of course not. I was jobless and the wicked manager was still there.
What Happened? I was not unemployed for more than 4 days. I ended up working for a man named Chief Rowley for three and a half years. It was a GREAT job and I had a blast working for him and learning so much about law enforcement that I would have never learned before.
I nearly forgot all about the wicked manager. What happened to him? He was very publicly fired. The place I was working? It no longer exists today. God not only got rid of the wicked manager, but he completely wiped out the whole place. What could I have possibly done to equal that? Nothing. I learned that the three most powerful words a child of God can say, as long as you mean it, to anyone is, “I forgive you.” Why? Because then you take them out of your hands and put them in God’s.
Whatever your situation, of course, pray to your Father and ask Him to take over the situation. Stop pretending you know better than God. Just give it to Him and let Him make a way forward for you His way. He has a plan and a purpose for you and your life. If you find and live in that purpose, you will always have God with you and He will ALWAYS be in charge of all things in your life.
What about your surroundings in general? What about all the negative stuff, God could not possibly want that for you. Is it wrong to pray about change? More on that next time.
Of course, without being adopted into the family of God, God is not with you to begin with. Have you been adopted into the Family of God? Would you like to be? It really is simple. Say this prayer. Say it in your own words, and do not doubt in your heart. God will hear you. He will send the Spirit of Life to you. Let us Pray.
"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I believed He rose from the dead. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"
That's it. It really is that simple. Now go tell someone what you have just done. "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead, You shall be saved." Romans 10:9. You need to find a Church that God leads you to and be Baptized the way Jesus said to be. You are now a Child of God. A New Creature. You "have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him."Colossians 3:10
Email if you wish to contact me, it's truthbygod1@gmail.com
May the comfort of the Holy Ghost, and the peace of our Lord Jesus, be with you all. May God bless and be with you, always.
Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus is Lord!
Look at this passage here. James 4:13-15
“Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit", yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."We make plans all the time for ourselves, leaning on our understanding of so little amount of things. We know nothing compared to God. The only way we can know what God has planned for us is to ask Him.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6And here.
“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.” Psalm 37:5Also here.
“Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things, I delight, declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 9:23-24It is not about you. It never was. It is not now. Nor will it ever be, about you. Your plans may succeed. They may fail. They may be right. They may be wrong. If you are a child of God, it no longer matters what you think, believe, or desire. It is all about serving our Lord and God. When He calls us to go somewhere and do something, guess what, He goes before and paves the way. Create a way where there is no way.
Let me share a little story. I was working a job I loved, however, a new boss came in and was pretty wicked. No exaggeration here. He was wicked. He made all of our lives miserable. I was recently saved and young and naive, but I did what some other “Christians” did. I prayed for him to be removed. What happened? He fired me. He fired quite a few people. Was that what I prayed? Did I pray to get fired? Of course not. Was it how I envisioned the outcome would be? Of course not. I was jobless and the wicked manager was still there.
What Happened? I was not unemployed for more than 4 days. I ended up working for a man named Chief Rowley for three and a half years. It was a GREAT job and I had a blast working for him and learning so much about law enforcement that I would have never learned before.
I nearly forgot all about the wicked manager. What happened to him? He was very publicly fired. The place I was working? It no longer exists today. God not only got rid of the wicked manager, but he completely wiped out the whole place. What could I have possibly done to equal that? Nothing. I learned that the three most powerful words a child of God can say, as long as you mean it, to anyone is, “I forgive you.” Why? Because then you take them out of your hands and put them in God’s.
“Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." To the contrary," if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:19-21You see, I was praying for a change, God created a way out. It was not the change I envisioned, but I was not where God wanted me to be either. I got that job before I was saved, and now that I was a new creature, His child, He had other plans for me. You must learn to always trust in God. Believe it or not, He really does know better than you. In this case, Father ALWAYS knows best.
Whatever your situation, of course, pray to your Father and ask Him to take over the situation. Stop pretending you know better than God. Just give it to Him and let Him make a way forward for you His way. He has a plan and a purpose for you and your life. If you find and live in that purpose, you will always have God with you and He will ALWAYS be in charge of all things in your life.
What about your surroundings in general? What about all the negative stuff, God could not possibly want that for you. Is it wrong to pray about change? More on that next time.
Of course, without being adopted into the family of God, God is not with you to begin with. Have you been adopted into the Family of God? Would you like to be? It really is simple. Say this prayer. Say it in your own words, and do not doubt in your heart. God will hear you. He will send the Spirit of Life to you. Let us Pray.
"Oh heavenly Father, Lord God. I am a sinner. I know this. I know there is nothing I can do to change that. But I know you can. I accept Jesus's sacrifice for me. I believed He rose from the dead. I repent my sins. Please send the Spirit of Adoption into my life. Help me to get to know the real you. Save me. Please. In the name of Jesus, Amen!"
That's it. It really is that simple. Now go tell someone what you have just done. "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead, You shall be saved." Romans 10:9. You need to find a Church that God leads you to and be Baptized the way Jesus said to be. You are now a Child of God. A New Creature. You "have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him."Colossians 3:10
Email if you wish to contact me, it's truthbygod1@gmail.com
May the comfort of the Holy Ghost, and the peace of our Lord Jesus, be with you all. May God bless and be with you, always.
Until next time, be blessed, be a blessing, and Jesus is Lord!
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