Intercessors vs Prayer Contractors - Praise & Pray (for others) November 1, 2022

Intercession is a mighty weapon for God's children. One need only look at the Bible to see how men and women changed the trajectory of entire nations by getting on their knees to stand in the gap. In our modern times, intercession remains an important weapon for transforming individuals, families, businesses, countries and all manner of situations.

When we bow before the Lord as intercessors, we place ourselves in striking distance, ready to take the punishment that would have been meted out to somebody else. We plead with God to have mercy on that person as He would have on us. After all, the word states in James 5:16 - ... The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Thank God for Jesus, the Great Intercessor and Most Righteous One, who remains at the right hand of God, advocating on behalf of each of us against the accusations of satan. He remains the model we must emulate.

Although God has made room for the ministry of intercession, He expects each of His children to have a relationship with Him. This means, the prayers of an intercessor are not a replacement for an individual building intimacy with the Lord. We cannot primarily depend on the prayers of our Big Mama, the intercession team at church, or anyone else. God doesn't want His children to think they can contract out their personal prayer needs to people with a presumed "direct line" to Him. That attitude causes some to believe they don't need to put in the work and time to draw closer to God, whereby they themselves become powerful intercessors.

God has called his children to be intercessors but not prayer contractors.

Some of us don't want to obey God's instructions and rather have a prayer contractor tarry on our behalf instead. That, brothers and sisters, is wrong, no matter how convenient it seems. God expects all of us to follow His commandments and live godly lives. Failure to do so can limit not just our prayers but those of intercessors praying on our behalf. Consider the stern warning contained in Ezekiel 14:16, 18 and 20. The Lord stated that even if Noah, Daniel and Job pleaded on behalf of their nation, they would only be able to save themselves and no one else. Keep in mind that these men were beloved by the Lord. Noah was chosen as the only man to survive the flood and repopulate the world. Daniel was so loved that God sent angels through heavenly battle lines to personally give him answers. And Job was described as blameless in the Bible. A man who held on to God despite his painful trial and came out of it with double for his trouble.

So, why did God say He wouldn't hear the intercessions from these men? Because God's people, at that time, had turned away from Him to serve false gods. They no longer believed He was all they needed and in their pride, they practiced a mix and match type of religion. They bowed to the gods of the peoples around them and went to God's Temple to worship Him as well. God was not pleased.

If God said He wouldn't listen to intercession lifted on their behalf, then we must be careful to not repeat the mistakes that created that situation. We must strive for a close relationship with the Lord, knowing that we join intercessors in prayer not seek prayer contractors to do the hard work.

Please, let us not be confused. This message is not telling people not to pray for others or intercede. No. The lesson here is that each of us needs to build ourselves up in the Lord so that we are not deprived of the blessing of intercession. Each of us has a direct line to God's ear and He wants us to use it at all times. For that to happen, we need to take steps - no matter how small - to build our intimacy with Him. Reading our Bible a little more, shedding ourselves of the sin habits that create distance from Him, and praying for others, not just our personal needs.

May the Lord help us as we grow in Him. All by His grace and to His glory, IJMN, Amen.

Being an employee - Friday Praise & Pray (for others) October 28, 2022

Let's be honest, most of us don't like our employers. Our opinion of our bosses is even worse in most cases. We think very poorly of them because they think we're machines without feelings.

And as a result, we give them the quality of work we believe they deserve for the quality of treatment they give us. I mean think about it. People barely get pensions anymore and the prospect of retirement means working at Walmart or elsewhere for many.

Thus, there are several logical reasons why so many are quiet quitting - doing the bare minimum for a paycheck. Or, hustling employers by working multiple jobs at the same time when they were hired with the expectation that they'd dedicate their work hours to one company only.

As believers we have to ask ourselves a simple question - what does God expect from us at our workplace?

Ephesians 6 makes it clear that we are to do our job as if we were working for Christ himself. We are to treat our jobs as if we were hired by the Savior and give it our best. We are to do so knowing that "the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does..." (Ephesians 6:8).

Our emotions are irrelevant. Meaning, even if our human bosses and employers are the worst, the Lord still expects us to work for them as if we are employed by Him. If you are scratching your head wondering how such is possible, that's understandable. How can you give your best to someone/something you can barely tolerate in some cases? The answer lies in focusing on the fact that you serve a God who tells you to thank Him under all circumstances, whether good or bad. He calls on us to give before we receive. The point is, God's ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8). He tends to do things in a manner that's confusing to us mere mortals, but we still have to obey Him. Therefore, ask God for help and change your behavior for the better.

God's instructions seem impossible because we've been conditioned to put our needs and desires first. If, however, we put God's desires first then we'll realize that no matter how horrible our employers, bosses or others are, we must be and give our best. Thank God, we can do so while searching for a position elsewhere if need be. And if that's God's will, He will move you.

Will this be easy? Sadly no. Yet, it is in our weakness that God's power is revealed mightily. I've shared my testimony of how the Lord helped me when I once dealt with a disrespectful coworker. It was hard to not express myself as I would have in my Before Christ Days. I opted to take my grievance to God and in less than 48 hours, the coworker was gone.

Doing things God's way can be a challenge but if we trust Him and sincerely call Him into the matter, He will always rise to the occasion. He will do this for you in your work environment, bringing you favor before your higher ups and peers. That you may obey His instructions and work at your earthly job as if unto the Lord, IJMN Amen.

P&P 200: The Ticket to Heaven - Tuesday Praise & Pray (for others) October 25, 2022

Have you ever asked yourself what it takes to get to Heaven?

Jesus gave us the answer when He said nobody could get to God the Father except through Him (John 14:6). As God resides in heaven, it is clear Jesus is integral to reaching those pearly gates and gaining admission. This is why believers share the gospel, encouraging people (Christians included) to choose Jesus, submit their lives to Him and thereby gain access to God the Father who lives in Heaven.

Yet, many say the Sinner's Prayer or some version of it, and think that's it. They don't realize that there's more in store for them. Jesus promised that all who believed in Him and kept His commandments would receive "another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth" (John 14:15-17). Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to His people. He revealed some functions of this great gift in John 14:26 - But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

The Holy Spirit is charged with reminding us of what we've learned from Christ's Gospel. After all, most of us can hardly remember what we had for breakfast, talk less of the many mysteries Jesus taught. The Holy Spirit acts as the Voice of God and His job is to help us "turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”" (Isaiah 30:21). Without Him, we'll never get out of the sin habits that our intelligence can't rescue us from.

Ephesians 1:13-14 - And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him (NLT).

Jesus marks believers with the Holy Spirit and this is a guarantee of the promise of eternal life with Jesus in Heaven (Romans 6:4). This makes the Holy Spirit incredibly special because Holy Spirit is therefore our literal ticket to Heaven. In addition, the Holy Spirit ensures we get everything God promised to us here in this realm. All that was stolen from us or that we neglected to claim. He gives us hope and guidance on how to get all that's ours. We therefore cannot afford to ignore the Holy Spirit and act as if He doesn't exist. He is part of the Trinity - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. He is assigned to each of us who have chosen to believe and obey Christ, and thereby be identified as His own.

To get to Heaven, you need Jesus and one you have Him you get the Holy Spirit who will walk with you through every situation to get you to eternal life. Would you start the process of submitting your life to Jesus today? Would you do this so you can be blessed here on earth and receive your ticket to Heaven? Today is P&P 200 and we are celebrating the anniversary of the 200th gathering to fellowship via Praise & Prayer (for others). This is the perfect opportunity to give your life over to Christ and receive the promise. This decision is a choice to be subject to Jesus, having Him as your Lord and Savior. Do not assume that you were raised Christian and that will suffice. Salvation is an individual journey. Do not think you've done great good and will thus get into Heaven. There are many good people in hell, unfortunately. Jesus was clear - nobody gets to eternity except through Him. And through Him, you get Holy Spirit who takes you from good to godly.

So, tell Him you want Him as Your Lord, tell Him you need Him to teach you and send you the Holy Spirit to help you remember all you learn at His feet. Say the following prayer - Thank you Jesus, for sacrificing yourself for me. Lord Jesus, I come to you as a sinner in need of repentance. I ask for your forgiveness. Today, I renounce satan and proclaim Jesus as the new Lord of my life. From this day onward, I am a child of God, redeemed and anointed to live a life of light. A life that illustrates the grace of my Lord. Thank you God for coming into my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen!

Rejoice and let the rest of us know you picked the Holy Spirit, Jesus and Almighty God! Then come back at Noon EST for a praise party so we can join you in thanking the Lord for your life and the ticket you shall surely receive as a child of God.

Come leave your comments to this post over here - https://www.themiraclealley.com/forum/praise-pray/p-p-200-the-ticket-to-heaven-tuesday-praise-pray-for-others-october-25-2022