More on Persistency In Prayer

More About Persistency in Prayer

Luke 11.5-13

continued, shameless knocking

Now Jesus is giving us an illustration of prayer. But it is important to note that Jesus often illustrated with contrast. So that the man knocking at the door is a type of a man praying. Asking for a need of a friend. Intercessory Prayer. We must come to him by prayer for others as well as for ourselves.

And this man is persistent. He continues to knock on the door until he gets his desired response. Now, does that mean that we have to continue to pray until we break God down, until He gets so sick of hearing us that He finally gives in and gives us what we want? No, again we have a contrast. If a man, a friend, will do something because of persistency, how much more will your Father? 

It is similar to the unjust judge. He didn’t want to get eventually worn out by her continual coming. This man did not want the household woke up. His “friend” was not going away until he got the three loaves of bread.

It was unusual to travel at night. Dangerous. What do you do when unusual things happen in your life? Something unexpected, something at the “wrong” time. Have you said, “Now this?” or This could not have happened at a worse time! We see through as well as dimly or dark like as a poor reflection but one day will see face-to-face one day window even as we are noon. So God knows all things. He knows when unexpected things come to us we need to remember they are not unexpected to God.

So this man had unexpected company in the middle of the night. It was his friend. He traveled a long way. No doubt he had travel by foot. He was hungry. He had nothing to set before him. This was embarrassing for both the traveler and the host. In that culture in that time it would’ve been considered disgraceful. I have had fair share of contact with people from the Middle East the east  and the far east. I am related to some by marriage. I have been in their homes I have watched how they will cook more than enough so that you do not feel that you are needing to watch how much you eat. So he asked for three loaves of bread.

This traveling friend must have been in some type of emergency. As I said normally you would not travel at night. It was dangerous. It was dark. Animals of prey both human and literal lurked in the darkness. Bands of theives were around turns waiting for unsuspecting innocent person to pass by. We see this in the Good Samaritan in a few chapters.

So it was an inopportune times for both the visitor and his host.

1. The Most Inopportune Times v.5-6

occurring at an inconvenient or inappropriate time.

Store Clerk to my Dad when he had the Drakes Cake Route. Here on the Island, actually he worked in Brooklyn, he had a Wise Potato Chip Route. Kids from the neighborhood remember it to this day 45 years later. Upstate Drakes Cake, then the Franchisor for the whole region.

• We may come with the more boldness to God in a strait, if it be a strait that we have not brought ourselves into by our own folly and carelessness, but Providence has led us into it. This man would not have wanted bread if his friend had not come in unexpectedly. The care which Providence casts upon us, we may with cheerfulness cast back upon Providence. -Matthew Henry

2. The Refusal of the Neighbor v.7

 Don’t bother me.

The reasons or excuses... we can tell the difference!

• The door is shut and locked, his children are asleep in bed, in the same room with him, and, if he make a noise, he shall disturb them. His servants are asleep, and he cannot make them hear; and, for his own part, he shall catch cold if he rise to give him.

He had the bread! 

God has things to give us as we put ourselves out, we sacrifice to pray.

Jesus prayed all night... for his disciples, picked and in peril

In the Garden He said to them after they pledged to die with Him,  “Could you not keep watch with Me for just one hour?”

3. The Answer to the Request. v.8

fervency, and constancy, in prayer

Intercessory prayer

Continual shameless audacity in knocking.

We ought to continue instant in prayer, and watch in the same with all perseverance.

4. How Much More! v.9-13

So he keeps knocking and perhaps even shouting out, “I need bread!” The friend inside thinks, “I am not going to get rid of him until I give him what he wants.” This is the same idea as in Luke 18.1 that Jesus expressed, He gave them this parable to show them that men ought always to pray and not give up.” We cannot be a pain to God when we are praying. We cannot change His will. He cannot be convinced by such action.

We win over men because they are displeased with it 1976, Colorado Springs 7-11. Jerry Erickson, supervisor, “You are not going to stop bugging me until I give you a job, are you?”

We get answers from God because He is pleased with it.

Prayer is a family matter!

It is between our  Father in Heaven and His children here on earth.

This is the way this section begins and concludes.

To encourage us in prayer. If importunity could prevail thus with a man who was angry at it, much more with a God who is infinitely more kind and ready to do good to us than we are to one another, and is not angry at our importunity, but accepts it, especially when it is for spiritual mercies that we are importunate. If he do not answer our prayers presently, yet He will in due time, if we continue to pray.

Bread and eggs from our earthly fathers

The Holy Spirit from our Father in heaven... give good gifts... what can better than to serve the LORD in the power of His Spirit! We need Him. We need to filled again!

Ask

Seek

Knock

For answers

But definitely for the Holy Spirit

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Teach Us To Pray

Teach Us To Pray

 Luke 11.1-13

The word teach:

1. to impart instruction
2. instill doctrine into one
3. to explain or expound a thing
4. to teach one something
   
   
   Root words of prayer: To take advantage of, to draw near, be close by and to wish.
   Prayer is getting close to God and conversing with Him. It is talking to Him.
   
   
   
   
   

1. The Desire. V.1

Jesus’ private prayer life

*They had observed it

In this verse one

They no doubt noticed the closeness Jesus had with the Father

They saw the tranquility and the contentment and the joy of prayer in Jesus praying.

They saw the joy.

They longed to reach out to God.

Genesis 4.26 Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the LORD.

*It made them hungry

I told you about my Nana on that summer morning over 50 years ago. It lodged in my mind and made me hungry... my cousin Lori also. Just spoke to Helen Pawson about that on Wednesday.

*Spontaneous

*Unrehersed

Not recited but conversation with His Father.

Intimacy with Jesus

Friendship With Jesus

Friendship with Jesus!
Fellowship divine!
Oh, what blessed, sweet communion!
Jesus is a Friend of mine.

2. The Model. vs.2-4

The LORD’s Prayer

First concern- The Glory of God

First Petition or Request His Kingdom Come

3. The Components.   vs.2-4

Our Father in Heaven

God’s Glory

God’s Kingdom

God’s will

God’s Provisions

God’s Forgiveness

Our relationships

It is interesting that we have one main section of scripture devoted to instructions for praying for the healing of our bodies when we are sick (James 5.13-16). It is not mentioned in the LORD’s prayer directly, although if His Kingdom comes people will be healed. We have numerous places including John 3.16 where salvation in preemminent. We have numerous places where we are directed to pray for the spread of the Gospel.

Luke 10:2

He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord ofthe harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.

Ephesians 6.18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

Colossians 4.2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. 5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Pray for the Spread of the Gospel

We read that the early Christians "continued steadfastly… in prayers." (Acts 2:42)

Pray for a specific individualPerhaps a person you know well, or even someone you have just met today. We know so many who still need God’s salvation. Pray earnestly for their soul, that God will deal with them as he has with us. We probably little realize how many prayed for us.

Pray for a missionary or evangelistMany men and women have left family and friend behind to go forth and preach the message of God’s salvation. They need our prayers as they face difficulties we may never experience. Pray regularly for them by name, asking God to meet their specific needs. Pray for the missionaries in Haiti.

Pray for an area of need
It may be a country far away, or a little town nearby. Remember the multitudes in need, many of whom don’t have the privilege of hearing the gospel message preached. Ask God to raise up those to go among them and present Christ as Saviour.

Pray for a specific workIt may be that your first encounter with the gospel was someone preaching or handing out papers on a street corner. Ask God’s continued blessing of this work. Pray that the many Bibles and New Testaments handed out will be read and used of God. Remember the texts and pamphlets given door to door. Seek God’s blessing for the gospel being presented on the Internet

And yet far too often our prayers are just centered on those sick in body and not those who need to come to Christ.

What We need to change

What we are asking for... 

V. 13 Asking for the Holy Spirit

Be filled and keep on being filled Ephesians 5.18 Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit

Not for spectacular but very practical and empowering.

A prayer for us:

Acts 4.23 On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 25 You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:

“‘Why do the nations rage
    and the peoples plot in vain?
26 The kings of the earth rise up
    and the rulers band together
against the Lord
    and against his anointed one.

27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. 29 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

We all need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

He is the Breath of the Church. Without Him working we are just going through the motions.

In this account by R.A. Torrey there are things that we need to hear, particularly the power (the dunamis) that the Holy Spirit brings upon people when they are baptized in the Holy Spirit. I believe we need a revival in the Church of the Nazarene of this type of preaching , teaching experience and testimony:

Time and again Mr. Moody would come to me and say: “Torrey, I want you to preach on the baptism with the Holy Ghost.” I do not know how many times he asked me to speak on that subject. Once, when I had been invited to preach in the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, New York (invited at Mr. Moody’s suggestion; had it not been for his suggestion the invitation would never have been extended to me), just before I started for New York, Mr. Moody drove up to my house and said: “Torrey, they want you to preach at the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York. It is a great, big church, cost a million dollars to build it.” Then he continued: “Torrey, I just want to ask one thing of you. I want to tell you what to preach about. You will preach that sermon of yours on ‘Ten Reasons Why I Believe the Bible to be the Word of God’ and your sermon on ‘The Baptism with the Holy Ghost.'” Time and again, when a call came to me to go off to some church, he would come up to me and say: “Now, Torrey, be sure and preach on the baptism with the Holy Ghost.” I do not know how many times he said that to me. Once I asked him: “Mr. Moody, don’t you think I have any sermons but those two: ‘Ten Reasons Why I Believe the Bible to be the Word of God’ and ‘The Baptism with the Holy Ghost’?” “Never mind that,” he replied, “you give them those two sermons.

Once he had some teachers at Northfield–fine men, all of them, but they did not believe in a definite baptism with the Holy Ghost for the individual. They believed that every child of God was baptized with the Holy Ghost, and they did not believe in any special baptism with the Holy Ghost for the individual. Mr. Moody came to me and said: “Torrey, will you come up to my house after the meeting tonight and I will get those men to come, and I want you to talk this thing out with them.” Of course, I very readily consented, and Mr. Moody and I talked for a long time, but they did not altogether see eye to eye with us. And when they went, Mr. Moody signaled me to remain for a few moments. Mr. Moody sat there with his chin on his breast, as he so often sat when he was in deep thought; then he looked up and said: “Oh, why will they split hairs? Why don’t they see that this is just the one thing that they themselves need? They are good teachers, they are wonderful teachers, and I am so glad to have them here, but why will they not see that the baptism with the Holy Ghost is just the one touch that they themselves need?”

I shall never forget the eighth of July, 1894 to my dying day.  (124 years ago to this day!)

It was the closing day of the Northfield Students’ Conference–the gathering of the students from the eastern colleges. Mr. Moody had asked me to preach on Saturday night and Sunday morning on the baptism with the Holy Ghost. On Saturday night I had spoken about, “The Baptism with the Holy Ghost, What it is, What it does, the Need of it and the Possibility of it.” On Sunday morning I spoke on “The Baptism with the Holy Spirit, How to Get It.” It was just exactly twelve o’clock when I finished my morning sermon, and I took out my watch and said: “Mr. Moody has invited us all to go up to the mountain at three o’clock this afternoon to pray for the power of the Holy Spirit. It is three hours to three o’clock. Some of you cannot wait three hours. You do not need to wait. Go to your rooms, go out into the woods, go to your tent, go anywhere where you can get alone with God and have this matter out with Him.” At three o’clock we all gathered in front of Mr. Moody’s mother’s house (she was then still living), and then began to pass down the lane, through the gate, up on the mountainside. There were four hundred and fifty-six of us in all; I know the number because Paul Moody counted us as we passed through the gate.

After a while Mr. Moody said: “I don’t think we need to go any further; let us sit down here.” We sat down on stumps and logs and on the ground. Mr. Moody said: “Have any of you students anything to say?” I think about seventy-five of them arose, one after the other, and said: “Mr. Moody, I could not wait till three o’clock; I have been alone with God since the morning service, and I believe I have a right to say that I have been baptized with the Holy Spirit.” When these testimonies were over, Mr. Moody said: “Young men, I can’t see any reason why we shouldn’t kneel down here right now and ask God that the Holy Ghost may fall upon us just as definitely as He fell upon the apostles on the Day of Pentecost. Let us pray.” And we did pray, there on the mountainside. As we had gone up the mountainside heavy clouds had been gathering, and just as we began to pray those clouds broke and the raindrops began to fall through the overhanging pines. But there was another cloud that had been gathering over Northfield for ten days, a cloud big with the mercy and grace and power of God, and as we began to pray our prayers seemed to pierce that cloud and the Holy Ghost fell upon us. Men and women, that is what we all need–the Baptism with the Holy Ghost.

Acts 2.38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

This week we wll meet on Wednesday. Even if you are not part of a Bible Study, come!

This is for the whole church.

You can join in as a silent partner, no one will be forced to pray.

We will call upon God for His Spirit to be outpoured.

We will pray for His Will to be done here on the Island and around the world.

We will pray for souls to be saved.

We will look to heaven for Him to forgive and heal our land.

What to do in a prison

What To Do In A Prison

Acts 16.16-40

Roberto can tell us what it is like to be in a prison for the Gospel.

So can Lei Ming, a dear lady in Flushing, from Mainland China, who was in prison there for the Gospel. There are literal prisons.

There is not one recorded escape attempt in the Bible! From Joseph in Genesis to John in Revelation, and all in between, they submitted to the injustice and God powerfully used them and blessed them!

Daniel

Submission to His Sovereignty

It is a wonderful thing when we recognize the Sovereignty of God. His rule and overrule. More of His overrule is needed to be seen and appreciated in our lives. It takes maturity to see this. 

How many times He has waited to answer my prayers so He can line other things up and weave them into my life and His wonderful plan. I have learned patience through this process. I have come to appreciate the wonderful ways of God which are beyond my finding out, but revealed often as we go through them.

Then the Sovereignty of God is wonderful when we don’t understand. As Spurgeon said, “When we cannot trace God’s Hand we can always trust His heart.” This is true in a prison. There are some God wants to deliver us from today, others we must endure looking to Him.

Submission to Sovereignty of the Nation

I Timothy 2 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth

vs.35-40

Our land, our laws

There are figurative prisons...

There are similarities with a literal prison.

*You are confined.

*Your rights are taken away

*Your severely limited.

*Your freedom is taken away.

Fear is a prison. God has not given us a spirit of fear but of love, power and a sound mind.

Worry is a prison.

Envy and jealousy is a prison.

Grief can be a prison if we let it.

Working for a tyrant can be a prison.

Does not have to be.

1. Pray

I love that at midnight they were praying!

Some of my best praying seems to be in the middle of the night lately.

I would love to know what they were praying... 

I do not think that they were praying to be released but they may have been.

Perhaps, “God use us here. Do what You know best. We are your servants.” Both prayers were about to be answered.

Often we pray to be released. And if it is fear, or worry of envy or jealousy or anger or unforgiveness we have every right to ask God to deliver us.

Luke 4.18 The Words of Jesus quoting from Isaiah

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,”

Pray right now to be delivered. We will have prayer at the end of the service up front as well. 

There are other prisons.

Bad Marriages

Physical Impairments

Lack of Education

Family Dynamics

Pray, ask for God to show you His purposes.

Pray, ask God to teach you His ways.

Pray, ask God to use you.

Ask that it will result in His Kingdom going forward and the Gospel going out.

Paul wrote from imprisoment to the Church at Philippi, Philippians 1.12 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the Gospel. 13 As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. 14 And because of my chains, most of the brothers have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.

If we can get to this point concerning imprisonments that are in God’s plan, we will be more than conquerors. We will soar on wings like eagles without ever leaving the ground or in some cases our chairs.

We need to pray this way over our fellowship. With so many churches in decline and many closings can we look to God to do immeasurably more than we can every ask or imagine?

I have been a member of 7 Nazarene churches in my soon to be 62 years on the earth.

3 have closed.

2 are flourishing

2 are at a crossroads.

Survival today is admired. Not commended in the scriptures rather as a point of urgent instruction.

Revelation 3.7 “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:

These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept My Word and have not denied My Name.

2. Praise

 “Praise the LORD anyway.”... never cared for that phrase.

Probably sang....

Psalms 113 - 118 and 136, which the Jews called the "great Hallel"

This is what they sang at the Last Supper.

They were singing God’s Word back to Him. We are careful what we sing here in our fellowship. We sing songs which glorify God, songs to the LORD for the most part.

The best hymnbook is the Bible, in the Psalms. Hymns that have been written by Fanny Crosby and Charles Wesley and others verbalize our experiences with God based on His Word. “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” or “How Great Thou Art” are example of Hymns that are based on scripture. I love singing them when I am just hanging out with the LORD or walking to my Jeep after a hospital call or visit.

What do you do in a prison?

3. Preach

II Corinthians 3.2

You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone.

God has pastor and evangelists to preach the Word. I feel like Moses: 

But Moses replied, "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD's people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!" Numbers 11.29

We are all witnesses.

The woman at the well in Samaria... went to tell the whole town, “Come, see the Man Who told me everything I ever did.” Jesus’ words in John 4.35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 

I never saw that verse like I did this week. Jesus is getting their eyes off the physical and material and talking about the importance of a soul. We too often fill our prayers for the sick and fail to agonize over souls. Healing is for this time. It is temporal at best but salvation is for eternity. We need to pray more like that. Pray the LORD of the Harvest! Jesus always pointed to the importance of the soul, greater than gaining the whole world!

We can all share the Word.... even from prison!

The song we often sing at the end of our time on Sunday mornings, “He Who began a good work in you...” was written by Paul, the apostle in prison.

4. Personal Evangelism

With the jailer and his family and household. The earthquake brought this encounter about. In the middle of the night, imagine, they have people come to Christ, baptize them and have a meal together! That is New Testament Personal Evangelism.

That is what we need to be in the midst of.

There is a church that I know very well. It saw great days and it’s past. Then a number of years ago it experienced some very difficult times. People ended up leaving. It looked like this church was going to dissolve as many churches have in our time. The people prayed. But it did not seem as if God was answering there prayers. At this point it becomes very easily to lean on our own understanding. It is tempting to look at it purely from human standpoint. When this happens we get into jaded thinking. We start trying to inventory what we have.

We forget we serve a supernatural God. He is not limited by our resources. Like the hymn says when we reach the end of our hoarded resources our Father’s full giving is only begun. Today that Church has a bright future. In the last four years it has tripled in size. But that’s not the whole story. It is influencing it’s community in ways it never has. The people continue to pray and God continues to work. The land that the church owns is about to be doubled. It is a poor church as far as money goes. And they could not have done this without God. People have looked at this work and said “this is so God.” Others have said “God is all over this thing.” What did the people do in this church? They stopped looking at their resources and how humanly that we get their church  rebuilt and they begin to look to the LORD. He has opened up the heavens on that little church down in Haiti. There are wonderful things happening this week are totally unexplainable. 

We have here in the United States now the science of church growth whatever that means! It does not allow enough room for the LORD to work and so often He does not. 

Here we are at the crossroads, another crossroads in this church, our church. We can walk by sight and we can get discouraged or we can walk by faith and trust her in the LORD. For instance just in the last week we have had nearly 450 people view the service from last Sunday. 

I have had a number of pastors say to me that they spiritually envy my situation. I don’t know that there’s many churches in the whole world that are like ours right now. We have our building to use and yet we’re not paying the utilities and the upkeep or the bills. At this point we’ve been set free from that. 

This is our time. If we inventory our resources we are looking in the wrong place! An interesting thing is happened in my own life in the past 10 days,  for the first time since I started working when I was 13 years old as of next month I don’t have to work any more. There are several options that are open to me. One would be to move to Haiti and take my Social Security there and live very very well. Another possibility would be to take care of my mom as she turns 89 in September and I am free to do that. I cannot believe these options are open up to me next month. I cannot tell you the freeing sense I get when I think about them. It has made me light hearted.

The third possibility is to stay right here and for the first time in my ministry work with the knowledge, from a human standpoint, not to make a living, but because I want to do this. I have moved into a position of being a bond servant. The bond servant was once a slave and was set free. Because he loved his master he stayed on and served out of love, not because he had to but because he wanted to.

As I said we’re at a crossroads here  and we can take a pass of continuing to maintain the status quo or we can dig deeper with God. We can launch out into the deep we are there are oceans of fish waiting to be caught... remember Jesus said I’ll make you fishers of men. 

We could probably even continue and think well we’re doing the mission work in Haiti and we’re supporting missions around the world from this whole congregation and even say well there’s hundreds of people watching us each week. But I believe in my heart God wants more than that. He sent an earthquake to the prison that Paul and Silas was in and a church was born out of it. The church at Philippi became poor sweetheart church. 

We’ve had some earthquakes in our history but this is our time, this is God’s time, I love that line as of the Lord of the Rings Frodo says I don’t want the rings anymore and Sam answers that’s not our decision to make what we’ve got to do is decide what we are going to do with the time we been given. 

I’m calling on you as a congregation to dig deeper to pray more fervently that God will pour out his Spirit on this place in such abundance that we would not have room enough to receive it. The LORD can do anything! He took a church that was in ruins down in the mountains of Haiti, in that secluded place, where few Americans travel too. And now this October we have the largest team assembling that we’ve ever had. We are ready to put the roof on the church! This week the money will be sent wire down already has been wired down to put the doors and the windows in. 

But there’s much more happening than a building going up. Here we are we have a building that is paid for that is ours to use without cost. God is speaking to our hearts to our church. We dare not miss what He is offering to us. Be committed to Him like you have never been before! Watch Him work. Watch Him multiply boys lunches and stop storms and listen to Him do not say four months and then the harvest I tell you look to the fields they are ripe for harvest! And that whole city came to believe in him. I believe that can happen here. It is a matter of faith that just will live by his faith that was the word that God spoke to Habakkuk back when he complained about what was going on in the nation, when he complained that God was not answering his prayers. The word of the LORD to Habakkuk was look at the nations we need to do that and watch and be utterly amazed for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told.

I think one of Satan’s chief ways of working on us is to get us to focus on the problem rather than the LORD. You get your focus off Him and you got real problems!

Wait for the earthquake! Wait on God for a new Pentecost! Get in on what He wants to do.

We are in a rut here. Some of us have become spiritually lazy. Our prayers are really good when we pray for the sick and we should. However we need to focus on the LORD, praying that He will help us. Praying that we will see Him add souls to this church. In the Book of Acts, in each chapter, they were either at a prayer meeting, going to a prayer meeting or coming from. Prayer meeting. Thir prayers were centered around God being glorified by His Word going out. That is what we need to do.

We are suspending the Bible Studies the next 7 weeks.  We are going to focus on praying, asking God to help us. We will meet for prayer on Wednesday Evenings, in the church basement, in the old nursery room at 7:30pm. We will call out on God for this church, His Church. Seven weeks of prayer. Do not limit it to the prayer meeting. Pray together for the church, for God’s Kingdom to go forward. Pray in your homes. Let’s saturate the air with prayer! Let’s see what God will do! We will not be meeting on this Wednesday, being the 4th, but pray at home. Begin today to cry out to God for Him to work in us and among us. Then beginning July 11 through August 22 on Wednesday Evenings we will come together to pray for the church. When God’s people humble themselves and call on Jesus and they look to heaven expecting as they pray... I just feel like something good is about to happen and Brother this could be that very day. We could look back on this as a turning point in our  ,, j. ,