Be Encouraged To Pray In Faith Luke 18:1-8 Matthew 7:7-11 Ephesians 3:14-21 Ephesians 6:18-20 Romans 8:26-27 James 5:13-16 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 08.26.20

 

BE ENCOURAGED TO PRAY IN FAITH

BREAD

¹ Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. ² He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’  ⁴ For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’  ⁶ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷ And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸ I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?’”  Luke 18:1-8 (NIV) 

⁷ “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. ⁹ Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”  Matthew 7:7-11 (NIV) 

¹⁴ For this reason I kneel before the Father, ¹⁵ from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. ¹⁶ I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷ so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸ may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹ and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. ²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.  Ephesians 3:14-21 (NIV) 

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 saints. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, 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.  Ephesians 6:18-20 (NIV) 

²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.   Romans 8:26-27 (NIV) 

¹³ Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. ¹⁴ Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. ¹⁶ Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.  James 5:13-16 (NIV)

¹⁶ Be joyful always; ¹⁷ pray continually; ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV) 

BUTTER 

“We are called each day to present to the Lord the whole of our lives—our joys as well as sorrows, our successes as well as failures, our hopes as well as fears. We are called to do so with our limited means, our stuttering words and halting expressions. In this way we will come to know in mind and heart the unceasing prayer of God’s Spirit in us. Our many prayers are in fact confessions of our inability to pray. But they are confessions that enable us to perceive the merciful presence of God.”  Henri Nouwen 

“To pray without ceasing means to be in a praying frame all the time.  The Soldier always has his weapon ready, though he is not always at battle.  Your heart should always be in tune so you can make heavenly music.  The believer’s spirit is like fire upon the hearth; though it is not blazing, it is ready upon any opportunity to be blown into a flame.  No important business is undertaken without prayer.  You are God’s servant, and must ask permission in all that you do.  When you rise up or lie down, when you go out or come in, prayer is with you.  The world’s poison can be expelled with this antidote.  Prayer is the key of the morning to open the door of mercy, and prayer is the bolt at night to secure him in safety.  He that prays continually will lift up his supplication to God even during the day.”  George Swinnock 

“Life is war. That’s not all it is. But it is always that. Our weakness in prayer is owing largely to our neglect of this truth. Prayer is primarily a wartime walkie-talkie for the mission of the church as it advances against the powers of darkness and unbelief. It is not surprising that prayer malfunctions when we try to make it a domestic intercom to call upstairs for more comforts in the den. God has given prayer as a wartime walkie-talkie so that we can call headquarters for everything we need as the kingdom of Christ advances in the world. Prayer gives us the significance of frontline forces and gives God the glory of a limitless Provider. The one who gives the power gets the glory. Thus, prayer safeguards the supremacy of God in missions while linking us with endless grace for every need.”   John Piper

“Let a few of God’s people, they don’t need to be many, get thoroughly right with God themselves—the rest will count for nothing unless you start right there; then let them band themselves together to pray for a revival until God opens the heavens and comes down. Then let them put themselves at God’s disposal to use them as He sees fit. That will bring a revival to any church, any community.”  R. A. Torrey

“A prayerless soul is a Christless soul.”  Charles Spurgeon

“Their fear set them a praying, and that was a good effect of it.  God brings us into straits that He may bring us to our knees.”  Matthew Henry

“There comes a time, in spite of our soft, modern ways, when we must be desperate in prayer, when we must wrestle, when we must be outspoken, shameless and importunate.  Many of the prayers recorded in Scripture are ‘cries,’ and the Hebrew and Greek words are very strong.  Despite opinions to the contrary, the Bible recognizes such a thing as storming heaven- ‘praying through.’  The fervent prayer of a righteous man is mighty in its working.”  Cameron Thompson 

“Faith is to prayer, what the feather is to the arrow; it feathers the arrow of prayer, and makes it fly swifter, and pierce the throne of grace.”  Thomas Watson

“Grant especially, blessed Lord, that Your church may believe that it is by the power of united prayer that she can bind and loose in heaven, cast out Satan, save souls, remove mountains, and hasten the coming of the kingdom." A prayer from Andrew Murray

“Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons; but they are helpless against our prayers.”   J. Sidlow Baxter 

This prayer of Charles Spurgeon expresses the heart that pursues God passionately. “Thou hast made me, be pleased to new-make me. I am thy work, complete me; I am thy harp, tune me; I am thy child, teach me.” 

“The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.”   Samuel Chadwick  

“Philippians 4:6 instructs us to pray about everything. If Paul had wanted us to limit our praying to everything big, he certainly would have told us. God is as interested in your small, seemingly insignificant requests as he is your kingdom-level, life changing needs. God’s interest in your prayers isn’t dependent upon their relative kingdom weightiness. Its’ based on his love for and interest in you. Praying for the little things teaches you to depend on God. Since prayer is communication and dialogue with God, praying for little things teaches you to enjoy his presence.  Seeking God in the little things increases your gratitude and offers perspective.  You should pray for little things, because they often turn into big things.”   Anonymous

HEART SAVOR

•           Prayer is infinitely powerful and a priceless privilege.
• ·        “Oh dear soul, pray, and tell Him everything that is wanting, be it ever so great or ever so small.”  Bogatzky
• ·        Be earnest in prayer for His help.  He can do all things.  We can do nothing eternal apart from His strength.