God's Simple Instructions - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) April 18, 2023

We've been so conditioned to think that everything involving God is complex and difficult. As such, when God gives us a straightforward and simple instruction, we struggle to obey.

A perfect example is James 5:13 - Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.

How much more direct can the word of God get? There is no trick here - when the people of God are in trouble, they should pray and when they are happy, they should give Him praise.

Sadly, so many of us - myself included - sit and wallow when faced with a difficulty, ignoring this instruction that prayer is the answer. How many of us have done this? Wasted valuable time and emotions grumbling and being sad for too long instead of taking the issue to God in prayer?

How many of us have been filled with joy, yet instead of praising the Lord, we have chosen to keep quiet and not express ourselves in rejoicing? This could be because something else comes up to distract us and in such cases, that is the tactic of the enemy to get a person to not obey the Lord. There could also be another reason for not rejoicing - deep down, we fear the source for our joy is a short-lived fluke. As God did not give us a spirit of fear, that concern/doubt/disbelief is another weapon of the enemy to blind a person from enjoying what God has done in their lives and honoring Him for it.

Nevertheless, God has called us all to praise Him and not bottle in our joy. We are to acknowledge Him, testify to His glory and believe His works, not think they'll flutter away like a mirage upon closer inspection.

The Lord will help us all to take His instructions and put them into effect in our lives. By His grace, His laws will be a pleasure to us and we shall realize that obedience brings even more of the good He has planned for us, IJMN, Amen.

See you at Noon EST for fellowship!

What Pleases God & What He Wants - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) April 14, 2023

Have you ever taken a moment to wonder what you could do to please God? Have you ever sought to understand what He wants from you and for you? Considered the advice given by Apostle Paul to the Church at Ephesus:

Ephesians 5:10 - and find out what pleases the Lord.

Ephesians 5:17 - Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

So many of us have read books to figure out the 'love language' of our partners, our children, our bosses and others. Yet, we haven't given sufficient thought to understanding what God's love language is. And we surely haven't taken the time to put such information to use on a regular basis. This is usually because we imagine it to be hard and close to impossible. And as a result, many of us are experiencing extended delays and an absence of miracles in our lives. This should not be as Believers.

We equally haven't considered what God's will is for us, choosing instead to be tossed about by the waves of life. This has caused a lot of dissatisfaction and discontent for countless numbers of people. These sentiments lead many to doubt, disbelieve and then disobey God, be it knowingly or unknowingly. Yet, we have a responsibility to pick up our Bibles, to pray, to search out the things of God so we get to know Him better. For when we are more familiar with Him, His desires and expectations, we start to make choices that align with Him instead of the devil. Also, He makes sure we hear His voice so we know what steps to take or avoid.

This lack of knowledge of the Lord is killing people before their time. It is crippling families and frankly, entire nations. Satan, the accuser, is taking advantage of this fact to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). All of us need to put Ephesians 5:10 & 17 into effect. None should feel exempt. Not even if we were born into Christian families or regularly attend church. God's caution in Proverbs 3:5-6 is for everyone - Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. We are further warned in 1 Corinthians 10:12 - So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! And to accomplish this, we must take Ephesians 5:10 and 17 seriously and make it a priority to know what pleases God and understand what He wants.

Many people feel this is impossible but that's not true. With God, even a little goes a long way because He does not expect any human being to be perfect. This is why in our imperfections, we still experience His blessings and grace. Remember Cornelius? All he did was help the poor and pray regularly. This resulted in a visit from an angel and blessings for family, friends and himself.

God wants us to desire to know Him more. He promised to reward all who earnestly seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). Additionally, He has said that He will give good gifts to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:9). Thus, if we truly want to know more and have a richer relationship with Him, all we need to do is ask and watch Him show us how.

May we all turn our attention even more to the Lord, seeking to understand the things we can do each day to make Him smile and give Him what He wants. That we may learn and put that knowledge to practice, so we can hear Him say, "this is my child, in whom I am well pleased." IJMN, Amen.

For more:

1. Wait On God

2. But, Can You Wait?

3. Are Your Prayers Detestable?

4. The Answered Prayers You Don't See

5. Choices & Unfulfilled Promises

6. What Are You Waiting For?

7. Dear Peppers 2: Don't Quit

8. Don't Turn From God

9. To Want Or To Give? That Is The Question

Set emotions aside & pray - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) April 11, 2023

For most believers, there are moments when they just can't pray. They're tired from a long day at work or after having to deal with some grueling challenge. At such moments, the zeal to pray is low. The energy to do almost anything is practically non-existent.

However, Jesus taught His disciples that prayer was not an option. Luke 18:1 - Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. Apostle Paul insisted that we are to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

These instructions are for everyone who claims to believe in Jesus. They do not ignore that there will be times we don't feel like praying. Having lived as a man, Jesus understood there would be times we would feel justified in not praying because we feel defeated and low. He knew that the devil would manipulate and take advantage of human emotions and feelings to discourage them from obeying God's instruction to pray.

This is one of the reasons why the Lord gave us His word in the Bible. With scripture, nobody needs to rely on their emotions and feelings to get into the right mood to pray. Remember we are told in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 - All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. God's scripture is all you need to do His good work of which praying for others and yourself is one.

We need to simply proclaim the word of God. His word doesn't depend on our emotional state, we just need to speak it into the situations we see and those arising in our lives.

If for some reason the word of God escapes you, the Holy Spirit is assigned to take over at that point. Romans 8:26 - And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words (NLT). And this is a reason why we must give our lives to Christ to receive a deposit of the Spirit of the Lord who intercede for us in this way.

Furthermore, by becoming born again in Christ and thus the Spirit, we become sealed with the gift of speaking in tongues, which also does not depend on how one feels to be effectively utilized in prayer.

And be aware that complaining and grumbling are not prayers. They are therefore not effective in getting what you need from the Lord. The Bible warns that believers should be careful how much they speak. Proverbs 10:19 - Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut (NLT). Complaining and grumbling increases the risk of speaking in sin because of the negative emotions involved.

Let us never forget to talk to the Lord, expressing our concerns and joys in reverence. Let us learn to apply His word, to call on the Holy Spirit to groan on our behalf, and to speak in tongues as stated in Ephesians 6:18. In doing so, we will stay far away from the complaining and grumbling which can lead us to sin with our lips and speak in a manner that displeases the Lord or that blasphemes the Holy Spirit - the only stated sin from where there is no return (Matthew 12:31).