We all wake up to the buzz of the alarm and my dreamy mind thinks, this is a typical weekday. School, work, lunches to be packed...ugh! But quickly I recall that today is the Friday after Thanksgiving. Today is Black Friday which used to mean waking up way before dawn and hitting the road to find deals...(that was many moons ago, before hockey schedules started to trump anything and everything on this long weekend...) To some this Friday off is set aside for putting up lights and decking the halls...We all have our traditions. Some boycott all of the buying. But most of us are thinking Christmas. We may go all out like Clark Griswold and light up the town, or we may try to hide under a bush and ignore the whole thing.
For the most part, I live and breath nostalgia. Every single Christmas I fire up Roger Whitaker's original Christmas album. My mama played it every year as long as I can remember and let me tell you, even my husband knows every word to every song. Ridiculous, I know right!? But this explains a bit of my problem...(On a side note, you really do need to google "TINY ANGELS" you have not lived if you have not heard this song...) So these traditions are important to me, and when my plan doesn't go as such, I have a hard time. But...Oh But...sometimes the best new traditions birth from dampers in my plans. My boys started playing hockey about 9 years ago. I knew it would be busy but I had no idea how much time it really entailed. Joe took a head coaching position and helped out with my other son's team as well. September through January became my least favorite season. As much as I loved watching my boys play, and as grateful to God as I was that my husband could coach them, I had a bitter heart. Not only did this sport drain our time, it drained our bank account. I was dragging my baby girl who was just a toddler, from rink to icy cold rink. I packed snacks and toys and my bitterness all up in the diaper bag and drove to the ice arena, wherever it was that day. I sat on cold metal bleachers and cheered on my boys, yelled at refs, and made new friendships. Never in a million years did I think that a cold hockey rink would be the breeding ground for warm, heartfelt relationships that yearned for something more than the commonality of being just a hockey mom together.
And years passed before this bond came to fruition. We would say hi, sit next to each other, or sometimes not so close (I have a very loud voice, I'll just chalk it up to that...lol) But somehow, some of us have come together and started to meet up... This January will mark 4 years of us getting together. There are more of us than just hockey mamas. Maybe we have bonded as I stood behind the chair or crossed paths in this small community of ours, but God has orchestrated something beautiful. Once a week we see each other, we open up our homes and our souls to one another. Some of us work outside of the home part or full time. Some of us are full time homemakers...But all of us have one common thread, we yearn for something more. We seek to know our Maker and look to Him for guidance and instruction in our lives.
As this season of Advent begins may we long for nothing more than waiting. Instead of racing and running, let's slow down and breathe in deep our Savior's grace. He waits for us to turn to Him, let's wait for Him to speak...Year after year we have our traditions, whatever those may be, but this year may we all anticipate the coming King who makes all things new. May we yearn for new meaning to the nostalgia, a new season of knowing a God who became flesh, humbly in a manger, so that He could call us His own. May we continue to allow our icy hearts to be formed into pliable grace as we are melded into what He has called us to be, daughters, heirs to His throne.
Fridays will never be the same for me, I hope they are different for you too, in a good way!
Friday, November 27, 2015
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Day 4: The Lord's Prayer
Matthew 6:5-15
You've made it to Day 4! Thank you for sticking with me and making it this far. I am very excited about this lesson Speak to us O God today for your servants are listening!
The Lord's Prayer is one that most of us are likely very familiar with. Growing up Presbyterian this was one of the only prayers we ever really memorized. (We did the Doxology too but sang that one!) My mom was raised Catholic and converted after getting married and having kids. She went to 8 years of parochial school and had a very devout father (his sister was a nun) and recited prayers at home also on a daily basis. So I have been to many Catholic weddings and funerals in my lifetime. I figured out the debts/debtors difference to trespass/as we forgive those who trespass against us pretty young and always loved the part of the mass when we said this prayer because I felt like I was part of the congregation and maybe people around me would think I was Catholic like the rest of my family. Too bad they all figured out I was a Protestant when they announced that you had to be Catholic to go up and take communion. I really wanted to lie to myself and God and just go and taste the wafer and wine but couldn't bring myself to do it, that is unless the priest just offered communion and didn't happen to announce you had to be Catholic. I have to admit I have had Catholic communion and never got to wear the pretty bride dress and make my first communion. Confession, I was always so jealous of my girlfriends who did that.
But there is a beauty and reverence in reciting a prayer together in unison. As we dig into this portion of scripture I think you all will find Jesus's motive behind these words intriguing.
Matthew 6: 5 And when you pray you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners so that they may be heard by others. Truly I say to you they have earned their reward.
Yesterday we studied Daniel and touched on the fact that he prayed 3 times a day. When the times came to pray, one was expected to do so...the Pharisees motive behind going to the synagogue or on the street corners wasn't because it was more convenient or that they were over-taken by prayer hour when in the street, but their innate love of display made them choose these places that they may be seen of men.
I know most you you ladies will really struggle with this urge to pray out loud...
And standing on the street corners of downriver....
(I just pictured a few of you with the dancing Little Caesar pizza girl uttering your petitions upward, come on you know you want to!)
I'm laughing so hard right now!!
Honestly, our little group does not struggle with this type of pious behavior. And I would venture to say most Christians don't yearn to be in the spotlight showing how Holy and prayerful they are. Back in the early New Testament times Pharisees were upper-class religious politicians who were wealthy and highly esteemed by the masses. Their pride and egos were stroked plenty and they probably fed off of the attention.
So we may not long for that type of recognition...We may not yearn to be placed on a holy pedestal...but
What approval or attention are you seeking from the crowd in your own life?
Maybe you want everyone to think you are a great wife or mother....Maybe you want to look like a hipster instead of a mother....Maybe you are trying to create a Utopian looking life on Facebook or Instagram when really it's pretty ugly. I struggle in all of these areas. In a way I tend to live like a modern day Pharisee longing for people to think I have it all together when really I'm a broken mess underneath. Just open up a kitchen cabinet or a closet door...my covered up life will come busting down...probably on your head!
I thank God so much for the grace and forgiveness He bestows upon us in all of our struggles and shortcomings. Maybe if we would start tearing off our masks of perfection a little more we wouldn't feel the need to please the crowds in our lives so much. And on a side note: thank goodness for the Valencia and Lo-Fi filters because they really do make life much more beautiful!
So here is the good news girls,
"But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:6)
I think some of you just did the happy dance in your head!
Now don't get too excited because'Jesus didn't condemn all public prayer as indicated by his own prayers in public (Matthew 14:19 and 15:36) One's internal motivation is his central concern."
What Jesus is rebuking, here are two revolting faults in prayer,
1. Ambition
and as we see in the next verse
2. Vain Babbling
(Geneva Study Bible)
v.7 continues, "And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they thinkg that they will be heard for their many words."
"Pagans repeated the names of their gods or the same words over and over without thinking (Kings 18:26, Acts 19:34) Jesus prohibits mindless repetition, not the earnest repetition that flows from a worshiping heart (Psalm 136, Mark 14:39)" (ESV study bible commentary)
"Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him" (v.8)
How great that God knows in advance what our prayers will be. Keep in mind we are not told to refrain from asking though. Jesus keeps referring to the heart and our motives. So even though we are told to go into our private rooms to pray this, the first word of the prayer is "Our"
"Our Father in heaven" (v.9)
So obviously it is intended to be communal. All seven pronouns of the prayer are communal. Our, Us, We...
On a quick side not, "Our Father in heaven is translated 'Abba' in Aramaic, the everyday language spoken by Jesus. It was the word used by Jewish children for their earthly fathers. However, since the term in both Aramaic and Greek was also used by adults to address their fathers, the claim that "Abba" meant Daddy is misleading..." However, this was a paternal reference Jesus was making.
"hallowed be your name." (v. 9)
Saying this next part of the prayer as a child always made me feel like God's name had something to do with Halloween...The words were so similar and still I tend to think of the hollowing out of a freshly carved pumpkin when reciting this part. But I couldn't be more wrong.
Hallowed is to be set apart as holy and treated with the highest honor. Our God is most holy, most honorable...
"Your kingdom come, your will be done on, on earth as it is in heaven" (v.10)
*What do you think this part of the prayer means?
Jesus is continually praying for God's will, not our will to be done...
"Give us this day our daily bread" (v.11)
We rely on our Father in heaven to meet our daily physical needs. Jesus could have been making a reference to the Israelites who had to trust in God to provide daily manna from heaven each day when they were wandering in the wilderness. (Exodus 6:14) Nowadays sometimes we refer to money as "dough" or "bread" We are to trust in His provision over our lives in every way.
"...and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." (v.12)
When asking forgiveness make sure you have a forgiving heart. God forgave us and showered His grace upon us. He expects us to let Christ's forgiveness pour out into those who have offended us. Just a couple of days ago, Ayla confessed a sin to me. She started to cry and proceeded to tell me that she snuck and wore one of my rings to school. The teacher asked her if she had permission and she lied and said she did. For some reason later that evening when we were getting ready to go to bed she saw the ring she felt horrible and poured out her heart. She was so upset and when I finally got her to calm down we prayed to Jesus to wash away her sin. She was still so sad and guilty feeling. I explained that now she needed to forgive herself.
*Is there an area of past sin in your life that you have a hard time forgiving yourself of?
Remember like I told Ayla, He forgives us our sins as far as the east is from the west. The next day we heard the Casting Crowns song on the radio...I winked at her and she smiled as we sang the words out loud! We have to be able to forgive ourselves before we can even think about forgiving those around us.
"And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil." (v.13)
Temptation here can also indicate testing. God never tempts us, we are reminded in James 1:13 that God cannot be tempted with evil , and he himself tempts no one. Rather he uses circumstances to shape and test our faith. A few verses before in James we are asked to, (v.2) "Count it all joy, when you meet trials of various kinds for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness (perseverance)" The delivering from evil can be referring to Satan or the evil one or even our own fleshly desires...James 1:14 continues "But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death."
As we finish up today
*Recite the Lord's Prayer
Hopefully we've gained some new understanding and meaning of these familiar words!
What a glorious hope we have knowing that God has saved and redeemed us from our sins. He is holy, set apart, His Kingdom is coming and His will is being done, He provides for our every need, He forgives and gives us strength to forgive (ourselves and others) He delivers us from evil, the dark forces around us and of our flesh....
You've made it to Day 4! Thank you for sticking with me and making it this far. I am very excited about this lesson Speak to us O God today for your servants are listening!
The Lord's Prayer is one that most of us are likely very familiar with. Growing up Presbyterian this was one of the only prayers we ever really memorized. (We did the Doxology too but sang that one!) My mom was raised Catholic and converted after getting married and having kids. She went to 8 years of parochial school and had a very devout father (his sister was a nun) and recited prayers at home also on a daily basis. So I have been to many Catholic weddings and funerals in my lifetime. I figured out the debts/debtors difference to trespass/as we forgive those who trespass against us pretty young and always loved the part of the mass when we said this prayer because I felt like I was part of the congregation and maybe people around me would think I was Catholic like the rest of my family. Too bad they all figured out I was a Protestant when they announced that you had to be Catholic to go up and take communion. I really wanted to lie to myself and God and just go and taste the wafer and wine but couldn't bring myself to do it, that is unless the priest just offered communion and didn't happen to announce you had to be Catholic. I have to admit I have had Catholic communion and never got to wear the pretty bride dress and make my first communion. Confession, I was always so jealous of my girlfriends who did that.
But there is a beauty and reverence in reciting a prayer together in unison. As we dig into this portion of scripture I think you all will find Jesus's motive behind these words intriguing.
Matthew 6: 5 And when you pray you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners so that they may be heard by others. Truly I say to you they have earned their reward.
Yesterday we studied Daniel and touched on the fact that he prayed 3 times a day. When the times came to pray, one was expected to do so...the Pharisees motive behind going to the synagogue or on the street corners wasn't because it was more convenient or that they were over-taken by prayer hour when in the street, but their innate love of display made them choose these places that they may be seen of men.
I know most you you ladies will really struggle with this urge to pray out loud...
And standing on the street corners of downriver....
(I just pictured a few of you with the dancing Little Caesar pizza girl uttering your petitions upward, come on you know you want to!)
I'm laughing so hard right now!!
Honestly, our little group does not struggle with this type of pious behavior. And I would venture to say most Christians don't yearn to be in the spotlight showing how Holy and prayerful they are. Back in the early New Testament times Pharisees were upper-class religious politicians who were wealthy and highly esteemed by the masses. Their pride and egos were stroked plenty and they probably fed off of the attention.
So we may not long for that type of recognition...We may not yearn to be placed on a holy pedestal...but
What approval or attention are you seeking from the crowd in your own life?
Maybe you want everyone to think you are a great wife or mother....Maybe you want to look like a hipster instead of a mother....Maybe you are trying to create a Utopian looking life on Facebook or Instagram when really it's pretty ugly. I struggle in all of these areas. In a way I tend to live like a modern day Pharisee longing for people to think I have it all together when really I'm a broken mess underneath. Just open up a kitchen cabinet or a closet door...my covered up life will come busting down...probably on your head!
If we were being honest, most of us struggle with wanting to look good. We hope for people to think we've got it handled when deep down inside we are struggling. But hopefully our hearts aren't hard like the Pharisees. God has softened us with Jesus!
I thank God so much for the grace and forgiveness He bestows upon us in all of our struggles and shortcomings. Maybe if we would start tearing off our masks of perfection a little more we wouldn't feel the need to please the crowds in our lives so much. And on a side note: thank goodness for the Valencia and Lo-Fi filters because they really do make life much more beautiful!
So here is the good news girls,
"But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:6)
I think some of you just did the happy dance in your head!
Now don't get too excited because'Jesus didn't condemn all public prayer as indicated by his own prayers in public (Matthew 14:19 and 15:36) One's internal motivation is his central concern."
What Jesus is rebuking, here are two revolting faults in prayer,
1. Ambition
and as we see in the next verse
2. Vain Babbling
(Geneva Study Bible)
v.7 continues, "And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they thinkg that they will be heard for their many words."
"Pagans repeated the names of their gods or the same words over and over without thinking (Kings 18:26, Acts 19:34) Jesus prohibits mindless repetition, not the earnest repetition that flows from a worshiping heart (Psalm 136, Mark 14:39)" (ESV study bible commentary)
"Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him" (v.8)
How great that God knows in advance what our prayers will be. Keep in mind we are not told to refrain from asking though. Jesus keeps referring to the heart and our motives. So even though we are told to go into our private rooms to pray this, the first word of the prayer is "Our"
"Our Father in heaven" (v.9)
So obviously it is intended to be communal. All seven pronouns of the prayer are communal. Our, Us, We...
On a quick side not, "Our Father in heaven is translated 'Abba' in Aramaic, the everyday language spoken by Jesus. It was the word used by Jewish children for their earthly fathers. However, since the term in both Aramaic and Greek was also used by adults to address their fathers, the claim that "Abba" meant Daddy is misleading..." However, this was a paternal reference Jesus was making.
"hallowed be your name." (v. 9)
Saying this next part of the prayer as a child always made me feel like God's name had something to do with Halloween...The words were so similar and still I tend to think of the hollowing out of a freshly carved pumpkin when reciting this part. But I couldn't be more wrong.
Hallowed is to be set apart as holy and treated with the highest honor. Our God is most holy, most honorable...
"Your kingdom come, your will be done on, on earth as it is in heaven" (v.10)
*What do you think this part of the prayer means?
Jesus is continually praying for God's will, not our will to be done...
"Give us this day our daily bread" (v.11)
We rely on our Father in heaven to meet our daily physical needs. Jesus could have been making a reference to the Israelites who had to trust in God to provide daily manna from heaven each day when they were wandering in the wilderness. (Exodus 6:14) Nowadays sometimes we refer to money as "dough" or "bread" We are to trust in His provision over our lives in every way.
"...and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." (v.12)
When asking forgiveness make sure you have a forgiving heart. God forgave us and showered His grace upon us. He expects us to let Christ's forgiveness pour out into those who have offended us. Just a couple of days ago, Ayla confessed a sin to me. She started to cry and proceeded to tell me that she snuck and wore one of my rings to school. The teacher asked her if she had permission and she lied and said she did. For some reason later that evening when we were getting ready to go to bed she saw the ring she felt horrible and poured out her heart. She was so upset and when I finally got her to calm down we prayed to Jesus to wash away her sin. She was still so sad and guilty feeling. I explained that now she needed to forgive herself.
*Is there an area of past sin in your life that you have a hard time forgiving yourself of?
Remember like I told Ayla, He forgives us our sins as far as the east is from the west. The next day we heard the Casting Crowns song on the radio...I winked at her and she smiled as we sang the words out loud! We have to be able to forgive ourselves before we can even think about forgiving those around us.
"And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil." (v.13)
Temptation here can also indicate testing. God never tempts us, we are reminded in James 1:13 that God cannot be tempted with evil , and he himself tempts no one. Rather he uses circumstances to shape and test our faith. A few verses before in James we are asked to, (v.2) "Count it all joy, when you meet trials of various kinds for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness (perseverance)" The delivering from evil can be referring to Satan or the evil one or even our own fleshly desires...James 1:14 continues "But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death."
As we finish up today
*Recite the Lord's Prayer
Hopefully we've gained some new understanding and meaning of these familiar words!
What a glorious hope we have knowing that God has saved and redeemed us from our sins. He is holy, set apart, His Kingdom is coming and His will is being done, He provides for our every need, He forgives and gives us strength to forgive (ourselves and others) He delivers us from evil, the dark forces around us and of our flesh....
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Prayer Day 3: Daniel's Prayer for His People
Daniel 9: 1-19
Some of you girls know how much I can identify with Daniel...(wink, wink) But one doesn't have to have played his part in a children's church skit to appreciate his faithfulness and heart toward God.
Read Daniel 9: 1-2 (focus on verse 2)
Daniel had been studying the scriptures. Not long before he was facing a den of lions. I would like to give a quick summary of why Daniel was thrown in the den. King Darius had issued a biblical day type of audit on 3 high officials of the kingdom, one of which was Daniel to make sure no one was stealing from the kingdom's profits. In Daniel 6: 3-4 we read, "an excellent spirit was in him and the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint because he was faithful and no error or fault was found in him." These other high officials were green with envy over this fact so they "...agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce and injunction, that whoever makes petition to any god or man for 30 days, except you oh king, shall be cast into the den of lions" Dn.6: 7 So, lo and behold, they found him praying 3 times a day as he always had, giving thanks to his Lord...and next we know what happened. Daniel was thrown into the den of vicious beasts! But he trusted God. No harm was found on him! King Darius wrote a decree that all people in his royal dominion were to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. If that's not God making a name for Himself I don't know what is!
Now that we have a little background on Daniel's story lets continue....
Daniel was reading the book of Jeremiah and referring to chapter 29:10
"For thus says the Lord: When 70 years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place" He at this point realizes that the 70 years are almost over. Daniel does what he does well and turns to the Lord in prayer seeking mercy for Jerusalem.
"Daniel's search of scripture prompted interaction...Scripture reading was the way Daniel allowed God to speak to Him in this context, then prayer was the way Daniel spoke back" (Beth Moore "Daniel": Lives of Integrity Words of Prophecy")
Through Jesus we have an open line of communication with God. One way to hear from Him is to read His word. Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Not only can we hear what the Lord wants to say to us, we also are changed when we take in scripture. Our thoughts and intentions are penetrated down into our the marrow of our bones. In 1 Peter 1:23 we are told,"for you have been born again...through the living and enduring word of God." Christ also says this in John 6:63, "The words that I speak to you they are spirit and they are life"
And now we see Daniel fervently seeking the Lord...Daniel 9: 3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes...
In chapter 10 we see Daniel fast again for 3 weeks he went without meat, wine or use of lotions. This may have been the same type of refrain he used but whatever type of fast he participated in we know that fasting was known specifically for pleas and petitions to God with a spirit of mourning.
*Have you ever fasted along with praying? It does not have to be limited to food or types of food and drink...fasting can include giving up Facebook or television)...
Some of you girls know how much I can identify with Daniel...(wink, wink) But one doesn't have to have played his part in a children's church skit to appreciate his faithfulness and heart toward God.
Read Daniel 9: 1-2 (focus on verse 2)
Daniel had been studying the scriptures. Not long before he was facing a den of lions. I would like to give a quick summary of why Daniel was thrown in the den. King Darius had issued a biblical day type of audit on 3 high officials of the kingdom, one of which was Daniel to make sure no one was stealing from the kingdom's profits. In Daniel 6: 3-4 we read, "an excellent spirit was in him and the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint because he was faithful and no error or fault was found in him." These other high officials were green with envy over this fact so they "...agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce and injunction, that whoever makes petition to any god or man for 30 days, except you oh king, shall be cast into the den of lions" Dn.6: 7 So, lo and behold, they found him praying 3 times a day as he always had, giving thanks to his Lord...and next we know what happened. Daniel was thrown into the den of vicious beasts! But he trusted God. No harm was found on him! King Darius wrote a decree that all people in his royal dominion were to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. If that's not God making a name for Himself I don't know what is!
Now that we have a little background on Daniel's story lets continue....
Daniel was reading the book of Jeremiah and referring to chapter 29:10
"For thus says the Lord: When 70 years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place" He at this point realizes that the 70 years are almost over. Daniel does what he does well and turns to the Lord in prayer seeking mercy for Jerusalem.
"Daniel's search of scripture prompted interaction...Scripture reading was the way Daniel allowed God to speak to Him in this context, then prayer was the way Daniel spoke back" (Beth Moore "Daniel": Lives of Integrity Words of Prophecy")
Through Jesus we have an open line of communication with God. One way to hear from Him is to read His word. Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."
Not only can we hear what the Lord wants to say to us, we also are changed when we take in scripture. Our thoughts and intentions are penetrated down into our the marrow of our bones. In 1 Peter 1:23 we are told,"for you have been born again...through the living and enduring word of God." Christ also says this in John 6:63, "The words that I speak to you they are spirit and they are life"
And now we see Daniel fervently seeking the Lord...Daniel 9: 3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes...
In chapter 10 we see Daniel fast again for 3 weeks he went without meat, wine or use of lotions. This may have been the same type of refrain he used but whatever type of fast he participated in we know that fasting was known specifically for pleas and petitions to God with a spirit of mourning.
*Have you ever fasted along with praying? It does not have to be limited to food or types of food and drink...fasting can include giving up Facebook or television)...
*If so, did you experience anything special? Did you feel like you heard from God or that He heard you?
I find it interesting that Daniel gave up using his lotion...The Bath and Body Works of Babylon's stock may have dropped significantly with all the fasting Daniel was up to. :) And this guy just wasn't dried out from lack of luxurious cream. He was literally wearing sackcloth which is defined as a very coarse, rough fabric woven from flax or hemp, sometimes goat hair. If that wasn't uncomfortable enough he was sitting in ashes and piling them on his head. These were used as a symbol of debasement, mourning and/or repentance. The ashes signified desolation and ruin. Many different people in the Old Testament wore sackcloth and ashes while grieving over death or repenting for their sins or the sins of Israel. A humble change of heart was represented while doing so. Very simply, it was used as an outward sign of one's inward condition. Psalm 30:11 expresses God's forgiveness to David, "You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy". (got questions.org)
Humbly Daniel bows before the Lord and in verse 4 he addresses God by praising Him and acknowledging His sovereignty and justice. He proceeds in verses 5-16 to confess the sins of Israel.
*Go ahead and read Daniel 9:4-16 Notice how Daniel includes himself in this prayer. He continually says "WE". I want to yell, you didn't do anything! For goodness sakes you were just hanging out with the lions (and not the ones from Detroit!) because he prayed to his Lord. He has been faithful to God. But Daniel is Hebrew. He is one of God's chosen people. He is pleading on the behalf of his brothers and sisters who share his faith and are in exile.
Read the rest of the passage, Dan. 9: 16-19 and fill in the blank
"Now therefore, O our God, ___________ to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for ________ _____ _________, O Lord, make your face shine upon _______ _____________, which is desolate. O my God, ___________ your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by _________ __________. For we do not present your pleas before you because of _______ ___________________, but because of _________ _________ _______. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by _________ __________."
What I think is really neat about this prayer is that Daniel is not whining and fussing about the poor nation. He acknowledges that the reason they are in exile is because of their own sins and because they did not keep God's laws and commandments. I also love how he asks God to deliver the people not for their sake but for God's honor. May we be encouraged to pray for those around us, to fast and mourn for our brothers and sisters not for their own sakes but all for the glory of God. May He be honored! May we remember to acknowledge our sin and how we can bring nothing to salvation except that...The rest is up to Him. He washes us clean and brings us out of exile, out of our sackcloth and ashes and into His kingdom!
The same God of Daniel hears our prayers. He inclines His ear to hear your voice. Remember that His word penetrates and transforms our hearts. He speaks to us through it just as He spoke to Daniel. Listen to Him as he communicates through the word and talk to Him as you lay your petitions at His feet...
Let us humble our hearts and cry out to God on behalf of our families, churches, friends, co-workers, neighbors....Pray for anyone who the Holy Spirit brings into your mind and include yourself. Take some time to get down on your knees today. It doesn't have to be fancy and it doesn't have to be eloquent. Just pour your heart out to your Savior....
Humbly Daniel bows before the Lord and in verse 4 he addresses God by praising Him and acknowledging His sovereignty and justice. He proceeds in verses 5-16 to confess the sins of Israel.
*Go ahead and read Daniel 9:4-16 Notice how Daniel includes himself in this prayer. He continually says "WE". I want to yell, you didn't do anything! For goodness sakes you were just hanging out with the lions (and not the ones from Detroit!) because he prayed to his Lord. He has been faithful to God. But Daniel is Hebrew. He is one of God's chosen people. He is pleading on the behalf of his brothers and sisters who share his faith and are in exile.
Read the rest of the passage, Dan. 9: 16-19 and fill in the blank
"Now therefore, O our God, ___________ to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for ________ _____ _________, O Lord, make your face shine upon _______ _____________, which is desolate. O my God, ___________ your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by _________ __________. For we do not present your pleas before you because of _______ ___________________, but because of _________ _________ _______. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by _________ __________."
What I think is really neat about this prayer is that Daniel is not whining and fussing about the poor nation. He acknowledges that the reason they are in exile is because of their own sins and because they did not keep God's laws and commandments. I also love how he asks God to deliver the people not for their sake but for God's honor. May we be encouraged to pray for those around us, to fast and mourn for our brothers and sisters not for their own sakes but all for the glory of God. May He be honored! May we remember to acknowledge our sin and how we can bring nothing to salvation except that...The rest is up to Him. He washes us clean and brings us out of exile, out of our sackcloth and ashes and into His kingdom!
The same God of Daniel hears our prayers. He inclines His ear to hear your voice. Remember that His word penetrates and transforms our hearts. He speaks to us through it just as He spoke to Daniel. Listen to Him as he communicates through the word and talk to Him as you lay your petitions at His feet...
Let us humble our hearts and cry out to God on behalf of our families, churches, friends, co-workers, neighbors....Pray for anyone who the Holy Spirit brings into your mind and include yourself. Take some time to get down on your knees today. It doesn't have to be fancy and it doesn't have to be eloquent. Just pour your heart out to your Savior....
Friday, November 13, 2015
Prayer Day 2: Paul's Prayer for Spiritual Strength
Day 2: Paul’s Prayer for Spiritual Strength
What is the first image that pops into your head when you
think of the word Prayer? For me, tiny,
dimpled up, cherub-like hands pressed together.
The young child’s eyes are closed and rosy cheeks adorn his face. There is an innocence that can almost be felt
in the vision. For some of us, “Now I
lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep” brings back childhood
memories of bed times. There is
something sacred about praying before bed.
Remembering the day and asking for forgiveness of sins and blessings
onto family members and friends. I pray
with Ayla for sweet dreams of sunsets and sand beneath her toes. Our God hears us. He hears our pleas and heartaches right along
our mundane small potato prayers.
We can have constant communion with our Lord. We can be driving in the car or taking a
shower. As we talked about yesterday, we
can write out our prayers. There are a
few different ways to pray that the Bible tells us about.
“BOW: Psalm
5…I will bow down to your holy temple
Psalm 95: 6 ‘Oh come let us worship and
bow down…”
KNEEL:
Psalm 95: 6 ‘…let us kneel before the Lord, our
Maker!”
Daniel 6: 10 ‘Daniel knelt’
Luke 22:41 ‘Jesus knelt and
prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane’
STAND:
2 Chronicles 20: 8 ‘Jehoshaphat stood
in the assembly’
LYING PROSTRATE: Numbers 16: 22 ‘Moses fell in the presence of the LORD’
HANDS RAISED: Psalm 134, 141 …priests worshiped with hands raised in the temple”
(Tim Challies)
I can guess that most of us don’t lie prostrate most of the
time while praying. I sure don’t! (That
is unless I accidentally fall asleep which may have happened once or twice or
ok a lot…) But these are some ideas and tangible ways to change up our prayer
lives. Please don’t panic, I won’t make
us kneel down next week with our hands raised, I promise!!
Paul actually bows down in this passage we are going to read
today.
Ephesians 3: 14-21
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father from whom every
family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his
glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your
inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you,
being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the
saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the
love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness
of God. Now to him who is able to do far
more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work
within us, to him be all glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all
generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
WOW! I think we need
to take a couple of minutes and read that again.
Paul is writing this letter not only to the church of
Ephesus but to the Church of Jesus Christ.
Remember he is in prison while praying these words.
First he bows before our Lord and acknowledges His eternal
riches of glory and His sovereignty as the creator.
Does this fact that God is a King who is filled with riches of glory give you
hope? Why or Why Not?
If there is no power behind what is strengthening something
than the object will remain weak. How
reassuring to know that almost 2,000 years ago the apostle Paul was praying for
our hearts to be strengthened through the power of the Spirit of God!
Here are some more verses to remind and reveal to us that
Christ lives in our hearts…
(fill in the blank)
Romans 8:10 “But if Christ is ____ you, though the body is dead because
of sin, the ________ is life because of__________________”
Galatians 2: 20 “I am crucified with ___________; and it is no longer I
who live but__________ who lives in me”
Ephesians 3:17 “That Christ may ___________in your___________ through
faith” (hint: you should know this one!)
My bible states, in verse 16 Paul speaks of the indwelling
“Spirit” and here of the indwelling Christ.
This suggests that the Spirit and the Son are both God.
He prays for us to be rooted and grounded first in LOVE and
then in knowledge, that we might comprehend….
Read 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8
Ask God to help you understand that it is His love that is being talked about here.
He is Love!
Fill us with your love Oh Lord!
Back to Ephesians 3: 17 and 18
Read 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8
Ask God to help you understand that it is His love that is being talked about here.
He is Love!
Fill us with your love Oh Lord!
Back to Ephesians 3: 17 and 18
My bible goes on to say….breadth…length…height…depth. The
immeasurable dimensions of God’s riches in Christ. One commentator I looked up says this
breadth, length, height, depth…, “The early fathers delighted to refer it to
the cross, and to trace in the four dimensions of the cross a symbol of this
four-fold extension of the love of God in Christ. All I know is this analogy makes me feel like
his love spans far and wide and high and low.
Christ’s blood covered it all.
Every sin that has kept us separated from God has been paid for and now
He dwells inside of our hearts.
As I type this I am reminded of my walks to the bus stop
when I was in 1st grade. My
mom had started taking us to church and I learned in Sunday School that I could
ask Jesus into my heart and that I really should do it if I wanted to go to
heaven one day. So Every. Single. Day as I
made my way up to our very safe stop right on West Jefferson (it was the 80’s I
guess they didn’t worry about children getting hit by heavy traffic back
then. Kind of like the lack of baby car
seats or bike helmets…who knew?) Every
day I asked Jesus to come into my heart.
I have felt bad for not knowing better in the past but as I read this
prayer of Paul’s I realize maybe I was onto something…
Every. Single. Day
we should pray for God to fill us up to overflowing. We can get so distracted and busy that we
tend to forget. I yearn to walk in the
fullness of God. He has the power to
fill us and our children and our children’s children for many generations to
come! Praise His Holy Name!
Write a prayer asking Jesus to come and dwell in your heart with a new
fullness that spans far, wide, high and low! End it with some words of
thanksgiving and praise.
Prayer Day 1: "Abraham's Plea for Sodom" Genesis 18: 22-23
This is my first attempt at putting together a Bible
study. We have two weeks until our next
one starts so I thought we would focus on PRAYER. I did not come up with this format on my own,
the internet is wonderful for these things but I have added scripture and
commentary and some questions to help us reflect and hopefully grow in our
prayer lives. It is my prayer that we
all will start to feel encouraged and comfortable lifting not only our requests
but other people’s burdens as well to our Holy God who longs for our communion
with Him. So here we go!
Day 1: “Abraham’s
Plea for Sodom” Genesis 18: 22-33
I have a confession to make.
Prayer has not and still does not come easy to me. As a little girl, my mom would tuck me in and
pray with me for what felt like FOREVER.
Her passion for the God she loved was obvious but I would go to bed with
my mind spinning and questioning things like eternity and what God looked
like. I mean was He a great swirl of
light and stars twisting in space flashing throughout the universe or more like
a white bearded Father Time/Santa Claus figure? Who knew?
But the fellowship that my mama had with her Lord definitely stayed with
me as I grew. I never fully understood
it until several years later when I
found myself longing for that kind of closeness with that same Master of the
Universe (and He-Man isn’t who I’m talkin’ about girls)
Laying down our burdens and the burdens of others at the
feet of Jesus is an important part of our Christian walk.
The definition of prayer
is: “a
solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God or an object
of worship”
There are two kinds:
1.
a request (a solemn one) for help
2.
an expression of thanks
As a group in the past we have learned about the art of
counting our blessings. Some of us have
gratitude journals that we still write in.
As we explore these prayers of the Bible, I hope we are inspired to
start journaling prayers. I started
writing prayers down back as a senior in high school and have continued on and
off through the years. Every time I come
across an old journal (sometimes even jots on scraps of paper) I am reminded of
God’s hand in my life. Sometimes the
prayers weren’t answered for years after the fact. Some had amazing outcomes that I couldn’t have
dreamed up better for and others weren’t answered how I imagined at all. There are many are areas in my life that I
still struggle with but I know He’s at work.
We are all “His Works in Progress”.
May we submit to Him continually, every single time we stumble He is
there picking us up and dusting off our dirt making us precious in His sight. I
think I will start prayer journaling again!
Now back to the homework….
Read Genesis 18:22-33
A commentary from “Christ Notes” (I found online ) states,
‘Here is the first
solemn prayer upon record in the Bible; and it is a prayer for the sparing of
Sodom. Abraham prayed earnestly that
Sodom might be spared, if but a few righteous persons should be found in it. Come and learn from Abraham what compassion
we should feel for sinners, and how earnestly we should pray for them. We see here that the effectual, fervent
prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Abraham, indeed, failed in his request for the whole place, but Lot was
miraculously delivered. Be encouraged
then to expect, by earnest prayer, the blessing of God upon your families, your
friends, your neighborhood. To this end
you must not only pray, but you must live like Abraham. He knew the judge of all the earth would do
right. He does not plead that the wicked
may be spared for their own sake, or because it would be severe to destroy
them, but for the sake of the righteous who might be found among them. And righteousness only can be made a plea
before God. How then did Christ make
intercession for transgressors? Not by blaming the divine law, nor by alleging
aught in extenuation or excuse of human guilt; but by pleading HIS OWN
obedience unto death. ‘
‘Our righteousness can never add up. We will never ever be good enough. Isaiah 64: 6 states, “All of us have become
like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we
all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away” The term ‘filthy
rags’ is quite strong. The word
filthy is a translation of the Hebrew word iddah, which literally means “the bodily fluids from a woman’s menstrual
cycle.” The word ‘rags’ is a
translation of begged, meaning, “rag or
garment” Therefore, these righteous
acts are considered by God as repugnant as a soiled feminine hygiene product.
‘ (Gotquestions.org) GAG!!
Martin Luther said, “The
most damnable and pernicious heresy that has ever plagued the mind of man is
that somehow he can make himself good enough to deserve to live forever with an
all-holy God”
Yet we are still commanded to do good works but laced with
something else.
Look up Ephesians: 2
8-9(ESV)
You been saved
by____________ through_____________?
(It is not by us or by anything we have ever or will ever
do. Praise Jesus!!)
And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a
result of works, so that no one may______________.
For we are His_____________________, created in Christ Jesus
for good works, which God prepared __________________ that we should walk in
them.
Romans 3:27
states, “Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No,
but by the law of faith. “
Romans 4:20-25 reminds us of Abraham’s faith and how it was
credited to Him as righteousness. Paul
assures us that these words weren’t written only for Abraham but for our sakes
as well. “It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead
Jesus our Lord who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our
justification. “
In Genesis 15:6
Abram ______________the Lord and it was ___________________to
him as___________________.
Just to keep us all in check. Our faith in Christ Jesus is what makes us
righteous in God’s sight. We should all be eternally grateful like the little
aliens on Toy Story to Him who has saved our lives…(yes the cheese whiz just
dripped right off of me and onto the page)
As we pray for the unrighteous people around us, in this
world full of darkness may we never forget that we all have sinned and fallen
short of the God’s glory. (Rom.3:23)
Take a moment to write out a prayer. Thank God for the grace He has bestowed upon
you and pray for those around you who come to your mind as the people of Sodom
were to Abraham.
Oh, to grace how great
a debtor…Daily I’m constrained to be…Let Thy grace now like a fetter…Bind my
wandering heart to Thee…Prone to wander…Lord I feel it…Prone to leave the God I
love…Here’s my heart, oh, take and seal it…Seal it for Thy courts above!
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