Prayer

Risking God's Reputation With Our Prayers

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Most of us are morning prayers, usually following a quiet time. Think back to the prayers that were prayed this morning... how many of them will be answered by the normal course of times passing? How many will be answered as we insert ourselves into the equations? How many of them flat out put God's reputation on the line? How often do we really pray prayers that cannot be answered unless the supernatural, create the world from nothing, breathe into us the breath of life, God of the Universe inserts Himself into the equation?

Joyce Meyer shares that God delights in answering our specific, impossible prayers because then it is unequivocally clear Who answered them and all the glory goes to Him. Additionally, we then have great stories to tell throughout our lives of God's miraculous answers.

Think for a minute about an impossible prayer God answered.

Now think for a minute about the most seemingly impossible prayer on the list right now.

Maybe it's a prayer we are are not currently praying because we've grown weary.

The same God is on the other end of the line... Go ahead and risk God's reputation with the impossible prayer.

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

 “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not!  So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.  

Matthew 7:11 NLT

The Summer Pray-cation : )

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Yesterday morning before the crack of dawn, with a handful of friends, and Mark Patterson's book, "Draw The Circle: The 40-Day Prayer Challenge"...we started the traditional vacation month of July committing to prayer.Committing to being in God's presence to "be still and know" and be still and listen. Committing to pray for each other's destinies and desires as God ordained them- in the book, Mark calls it "God's will, God's way".

We're not sharing a traditional, churchy type "prayer list". That doesn't mean we're not praying for specific things- we are and we will... just not by circulating a "list". We're leaning into God's all-knowing character and all-encompassing spirit to lead us and guide us.

Many things from Mark's book are great mini devotion on prayer, so here we go:

And when you pray to God regularly, irregular things happen on a regular basis.

-Mark Batterson

He prayed to God regularly. Acts 10:2