New Year New Prayerful Me

So far this month we’ve been discussing some different new year’s resolutions. What have the the three that we’ve covered been so far?

Be Reverent

Be a Leader

Be a Friend

How many of you would say that when you really true need something that you cant get for yourself you ask for it? If you need a ride somewhere you ask your parents probably and they make sure that you are taken care of. If you need some money for something at school then most likely your parents are gonna do what they can to make it happen. If you ask your parents for something they will always try their best to make sure that you are taken care of.

How many of you would say that you have a truly good prayer life?

How many of you would say that you have have a mediocre prayer life?

What about non existent?

Can anyone define prayer?

Prayer is the addressing and petitioning of God.

God is a good Father

Matthew 7:11 “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

God is a good father who loves his creation. If God is our father then why is it so difficult to go him with requests? When we need things we go to others that are in the world over our Holy Father.

While we are yet sinners our Father wants to still provide for us.

How many of you no matter what you do your parents will still love you?

I hope that is all of you.

No matter what you do, no matter how much disgrace God, no matter the evil we commit because without Christ that’s all we can commit is evil.

Who in here likes to think they’re a good gift giver? What’s the best gift you have ever given anyone?

When we ask God our Father for things that we need he will give to us good things and blessings. But as this verse says we must ask we must ask him.

Hope Giver

Jeremiah 29:11–13 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

Our Father wants us to prosper. He wants us to have hope.

He has our whole future planned out before us. He knows the plans that he has for us. He knows that we will pray to him.

For us to prosper in his light we must pray to him.

We must seek him.

When we do this God will hear our prayer and he will bless us. He will give us what we need when we need it. It may not always be exactly what we need or exactly what we think we need but God has a plan for our welfare.

Sometimes the things that we think that we want are the things that end up hurting us in the end. Maybe its something that we’ve been praying about and weve feel like we havent heard anything. Maybe thats God answering it and saying that that thing that we want is dangerous for us or gonna lead us astray.

ABC of Prayer

Matthew 6:5–8 ESV

“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, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 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. “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Prayer is the second most important spiritual discipline. Which its called that for a reason it takes discipline to take time out of lives to read scripture and pray. But prayer was so important that scripture teaches us more how to pray than it does how to preach.

Who all has seen the movie war room? That movie takes the principles given to us and puts them into practice. In verse 6 Jesus tells us to go into private to pray much like Miss Clara has here closet that she uses.

Basically Jesus is saying not to make a spectacle out of praying to God. Not that you cant go out and pray for people but don’t do it just so the world can see you do it.

When our father sees you pray to him in secret in your “war room” whatever that may look like for you then he will reward you.

When you do pray don’t just use empty words just have a conversation. Talk to God. He talks to us through scripture so complete your part of the conversation.

How awkward would it be if you went to your best friend and were trying to have this really important conversation with them but they just stared at you and didn’t say anything back to you at all. They didn’t acknowledge you in any way. That is how it is when we read scripture and then we don’t pray. If we aren’t in communication with God then we are not holding up our part of the relationship.

If you cant ever think of what to pray Jesus gives us an example

Matthew 6:8–13 “Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

Go into invitation

Maybe you don’t have much of a prayer life

maybe you don’t have Jesus

Maybe tonight is the night that you want to change your life

Maybe these New Years resolutions are some things that you want to implement if you havent already but dont know how

Lets Pray

Matthew 6:8–13 “Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”