Pastor Stephen Dedman

Tag: Prayer

Time To Pray

Encouragement, Trust

“So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.”
‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭1:4‬

When do you know it’s time to pray? Is it when things in your life are falling apart? Or when there is mass chaos all around? What has to happen for you to realize it’s time to pray?

Most of the time we wait till things get out of hand before we say, “I can’t do anything but pray that God does something.” If this is the case, we’ve waited too long.

Nehemiah received some news that deeply disturbed him. The Jews had gone back into their homeland to rebuild their city and temple, but the walls around Jerusalem were still in ruins. As you can tell in our Scripture verse today, Nehemiah was troubled in his heart.

His response to this terrible news was to turn to God with fasting and prayer. He knew he couldn’t do anything about it, but He knew God could.

Are there things in your life right now that are disturbing you? Are they out of your control? If so, it’s time to pray. When something lays heavy on your heart and you can’t get it off your mind, you need to turn to the Lord in prayer.

Don’t wait until it’s too late. The moment something troubles you, seek the Lord in prayer. Spending time in prayer with God will make a difference in your life. God will reveal special things to you and give you hope that something is about to happen.

Pray

Lord, I know You hear my prayers and You know my heart. I ask that You give me the solutions to my troubles. I seek You today for guidance and understanding.

Committed To Prayer

Trust

And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
Luke 22:44

Our natural tendency is to avoid pain at all cost. But what happens when God leads us to a place where pain and suffering are necessary?

God is more interested in your spiritual maturity than your comfort. Fully trusting and obeying God sometimes requires a painful experience. But in the end it is worth it all.

Jesus knew the intensity of pain that was awaiting Him to take away the sins of the world. He knew the cost that was required of Him. But He also knew it was worth it all.

Some people never experience God in deep intercessory prayer because we know what it involves. It may require you to stay up late and pray while everyone else is sleeping. Or it may involve you experiencing brokenness while others are trying to be happy.

When was the last time you were deep into prayer with God? Or when was the last time you fasted and prayed until God specifically answered your prayer? It’s in these moments that God breaks the silence and speaks.

We long for our prayers to be answered but how much suffering are you willing to endure? Jesus prayed until His sweat turned to blood. That is the agony of prayer. But He did it to keep in God’s will.

There are no shortcuts to prayer. Prayer is how we express our heart to God. Are you committed to prayer?

Pray

Lord, I seek You in earnest prayer. I will not quit praying and seeking You until I receive what You want me to have. I want to experience You and rest in Your provision.

Heaven Bound

Encouragement

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
1 Peter 1:3

Peter was writing to a group of believers who were being persecuted for their faith in Jesus. They were facing rejection and severe hatred from the world around them.  So Peter began his letter encouraging them to endure the difficult times that they will face in this world.

Perhaps one of the best solutions of how to deal with difficult living is to look toward our heavenly future. This serves not only as encouragement but as a promise from God.  Troubles in this life are temporary and small compared to eternity in Heaven.

We all need to be reminded from time to time that we will suffer trials in order to build stronger faith.  So we need to view our suffering and trials as good things and keep glorifying God through it all.  

In the Old Testament, Job is one of the best examples of suffering as he kept on praising and worshipping God.  He never lost faith and he never stopped worshipping God.

Suffering should never direct you away from worshipping God.  Instead it should draw you to Him.

As Christians our inheritance is Heaven.  All of Heaven!  As children of God we are given eternal life that is free from sin and full of grace.  

It is hard for us to comprehend what life in Heaven will be like but Paul says it best, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

Pray

Lord, show me what I need to learn through my sufferings. Let my trials and difficulties bring me closer to You. Help me to see a heavenly perspective.