One Challenge, One Question and One Tool

Word of God, we know you're always here. But you're not always sensed and we want you to know that we invite you to have your way in our lives for what is life without the knowledge of God. It is a Schuster said it's a tale told by an idiot full of Sound and Fury signifying nothing. Come Holy Spirit make our lives more significant. Tooth filling us with your presence and open our minds to your word. We are spinning sizes.

Many years ago. I was involved in a wedding of a worker was used for Jesus. man and wife I'm the the wife had parents who decided not to come to the wedding cuz they were very upset with Joshua face of the daughter. and

subsequently it turned out the daughter. I prayed for her father of four years. Her father was a psychiatrist. a very manipulative psychiatrist on my head on the basis of Acts chapter 16 verse 31, which says believe in the Lord to show. I'm a sheep. And you shall be saved and your house? Based on her understanding of that first. She prayed that her father would accept you sure. And when he died without accepting a sure she abandon the faith. This is an example.

I think some of you have other examples of people, you know of people who look at Promises of God and drawer drawer unfortunate conclusions. And then when they when those conclusions don't come true, it creates a crisis for them. and today one of the issues we want to look up together is the grandiose Promises of God. He makes extraordinary promises to us sometimes spend them. But even the ones we do understand people have different reactions to it. I'm going to talk about that today. So the same we've been exploring since last week and I think it's a good thing. Is that while the Bible is the fuel prayer is the oxygen in which the fire of God's spirit Burns in a lodge. energizing and Illuminating everything else The scripture the word of God is the fuel. The spirit is the atmosphere in which we encounter God and with the father of the spirit Burns. Now when I talk to you about prayer. I'm not assuming you losers. When I instruct you as I am going to do I feel it's my responsibility. It's not because I'm judging you to be deficient. But it's because I know these things are important to the life of the people of God. I'm the if it doesn't apply to you. It's surely applies to somebody else, you know, so don't let it go to waste.

The god of Israel and relationship with him. If you think about it you find this all over the hundreds of years turns out thousands of years and why is he wrestling with Israel? Because he wants his real to know him deeply.

To know him deeply the show monsters. So you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.

I mean towards I command you this day shall be in your heart and I'll teach them diligently. God wants us to know him. Deeply you should have said so. He also said Sheikh II. authored the kingdom of God first I was out of class today that was covered Shake first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these other things will be added to you but seek first the kingdom of God experience, so In your own life, and I'm sure this I know is true of me if it's not true of you. Well, I admire you greatly. A times when you push God to the periphery on some way when something else becomes number one in your life God's soon becomes a cardboard cutout. He loses all dimensionality. He becomes two dimensional simply symbolic to be out. There is meant to be right here. He wants us to grow in a relationship with himself.

And one of the ways in which God draws us into relationship with himself is that he makes exceedingly great promises now, I'm going to read some of these to you.

If you will, hold on for just a moment.

Hubert

Talk among yourselves.

He makes exceedingly great and what he calls exceedingly great and precious promises in the Old Testament of the New Testament and this is he's not kidding. But one of the reasons he he wants to Dross. soap

Jeremiah 33 call to me and I will answer you and show you Great and Mighty things which you do not know.

Deuteronomy 31:8, this is a passage. I'm depending upon in my desire to go to New York and Minister there the Lord himself goes before you where he will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake do not be afraid do not be discouraged. In the book of Isaiah we meet about King ahaz King ahaz is terrified of Israel and the arameans the syrians are in League together. They're going to attack him and he's scared. And he's been unfaithful Ken and he's got into the habit of not really believe in God not believe in God's promises by Isaiah the prophet goes to him and he makes a half of God, let it be as high as the sky. Wouldn't you love a prophet of God to say that God sent me to you and says ask. Let it be as deep as Shield high as the sky. And they have whose face muscles will atrophy a long time ago.

Nothing spiritual about it and many of us the danger. Is that a times in our lives? And with people we know whose face is week. They don't want to put God to the test. They don't want to step out on a limb with God because their faith has been atrophied the New Covenant scriptures get even more pointed because now the meshiaak has come and the age that is leaking through into the present age will living in the overlap between the present age and the age to come and the age to come is leaking through we live you never heard of this between the old ready and then not yet. It's something I invented. And it's leaking through. And look at the promises of the New Covenant they get even more astounding. John 5. This is the confidence we have in his presence. If we ask anything that Accords with his will he hears us and if we know that he hears us whatever we ask then we know that we have what we have asked from him first John chapter 5. Matthew 17 have trust if you have trust as as a grain of mustard seed you'll be able to say to this mountain move from here to there and it will move and did nothing. Will be impossible for you. Jesus say Amen. It's hard to take it seriously. and a John 7 if you abide in me. And my words abide in you ask whatever you wish and will be done for you. This is I mean just open your eyes as you read your Bible and look for these things. It's pretty astounding one more Mark chapter 11. Yes, I tell you that whoever does not doubt in his heart, but trust that what he says will happen can say to this mountain. This is the power of the other one. Don't throw yourself into the sea. And therefore I tell you whatever you ask for in prayer trust that you are receiving it and it will be yours. Now these promises of grandiose to say the least and I could preach a series on on this and there are things that need to be taken seriously, but I'm going to only look at one facet of it today. There are two common reaction. But these kinds of promises so Rejoice they say hallelujah and some recoil they retreated.

This is too much for me. I don't dare say what I'm really thinking, but they recoiled from it.

So moving forward for today. What are my goals? I want to get a better handle on God's too good to be true promises. I want to get a little handle on that. And secondly, I want to enhance up real lunch, you know.

We've only touched the Hem of His Garment. The best of us, there's so much more to learn about God. So we're always you should always be in the market for answering my prayer lunch. Cuz I pray logs on the atmosphere will be in town to God. So don't say to me. Excuse me right by but my prayer life is already enhanced. Well, that's nice, but you ain't seen nothing yet. So Just a moment. So having technical difficulties. So today is a 3 Stage Road map of Weber of what we're doing today. We got one challenge. We've already covered that sweeping promises from God. We've got one question that I'm going to suggest that you should ask when you pray that will really enhance your prayer life and then one tool to improve your batting average in prayer. That's what I'm going. So I want to look at one passes cuz you know, we can look at 11 different passages, but that would be Overkill one passage John chapter 14.

This is from what you doing as The Upper Room get the course you sure is talking to his tell me dim on the night and what you will be betrayed. The next day he'll give us life for us on the cross and they don't really get that. They don't understand it. The children from them and it starts John 13, 14 15 16 17. It's really powerful.

So he starts out.

First to talks about his intimacy with them and he says don't let your hearts don't let yourselves be disturbed trust in God and trust in me. In my father's house. There are many places to live if they weren't I would have told you it wasn't going there to prepare a place for you. Since I'm going to prepare a place for you, I'll return to you and take you with me so you can be what I am now. That's very intimate. loving reassurance He goes on.

Ford following about intimacy not with them, but I don't know what you're going. How come we know the way you should have said I am the way except through me and now he's told about intimacy with the father. If you have known me you will also know my father from now, you do know him. In fact you're seeing him. Philip Smith employment show us the father and it will be enough for us. You sure reply to him how to deal with you so long without your knowing me Philip. Whoever has seen me has seen the father to father. So there you told me about for them and for us intimacy with the father.

Intimacy with the father and will learn later, especially in chapter 16. Not. It's through the Holy Spirit. You sure will send but this intimacy is mediated to us and it expands and I don't have time to go into them. Just trust me on that one. Joe hold on just had technical difficulties again. Now he talks about intimacy with within God's true Unity. This is extraordinary never saw this until your two ago. We're promised not only intimacy with the shore. Not only but we're promised we're invited into the intimacy that the Father the Son of the spirit share with each other. It's cold paraparesis. You never heard of that word either. I know your stuff perichoresis and I'll talk to you about it sometime. It was not a singer so okay, but it's the it's not the Father the Son of the spirit remained at the stink. But they interpenetrate each other and we are invited into that community of the beings of God. You going to ask me to explain that to you? No one can explain it to you. We just know that it's so.

So he says don't you believe that I am United with the father. I'm in Union with the father and the father is united with me later on is going to say she was praying to the father. I am them and Darwin me that they may be enough as we are in wanting each other we're invited in.

What I'm telling you, I'm not staying on my own initiative. My father living in me is doing his works. Trust me that I am United with Father. The father is united in me. And if you can't then trust because of the works themselves. So then he moves from that he's talked about intimacy with him intimacy with the father.

And then he told you about an issue that is shared with us. Yes, indeed I tell you. The weather trust in me will also do the works that I do you're coming in and you're going to I'm going to pass on to you the capacities, which I have demonstrated to you. In my life with you. Indeed he that is whoever trusts in him will do Greater Works because I'm going to the father and we learned later that what he means. I'm going to the father and from going to father. He's going to send the spirit to be with us forever. That's why his going to the father is the key to are participating in living. Are you sure type life in the world? Cuz he did what he did through the Spirit dwelling in him. And he's going to send the spirit controlling us so we can do the same works that he did. I know that sounds. But a grandiose, yes, absolutely. In fact, whatever you ask for in my name, I will do. Why so that the father may be glorified in the son has the father in John 17 glorified you in the world? Not restore to me the glory which I had with you before the world was made this shoe has lived to glorify the father. And the spirit is coming to inhabit us. In order that the father that that that we might glorify the father for glorifying the son. He said if you ask if you ask me for something if you ask for something in my name. I will do it. What's it mean to pray in the size name? I'm glad that hauling grain is here today cuz he's a lawyer. And he would tell you and I won't ask you to tell you I'm to tell you now, but if if let's say he delegate to me. What you'd never do casinos man if he delegated me to be his representative in a certain matter legally, then I go and I act in his name I act on his behalf. I'm in a sense. I'm an extension of him in that situation. So it's a Praying messiah's name means to come to prayer as a representative of what matters to the Messiah. Woman come with the prayer praying and his name is we are are as much as possible. We have made his passions his heart his mind his will to be our passions our hard online his will then we have a right to act on his behalf. Otherwise if I just went into a bank in Beverly Hills and said hi, and green sent me and you know, and I want to do business with you. They'd called hauling rain dial 911 and get rid of this guy.

so

we've talked about what do I call a cold one question now we talked about what we talked about. What was the first one?

We talked about one issue now. We talked about one question. This is the question that I think we all to use when we go to prayer the first thing. We should say to God, I believe when we go to prayer. Especially some version, What do you want? When I pray I got a call yesterday from a friend of mine and Jill she is in Florida. Actually, she's probably back home in Maryland. Her husband is in the hospital just had stents put in his heart. And when I want me to pray for him, but when you go to prayer for a minute, or the first question is what does God want in this situation? It's not God what you do for me what I want, but first you ask yourself gone. What do you want from Howard? And then pray about that. So you can pick one of these two questions as your one question or you might alternate how can God receive glory in this situation? Or perhaps what does God want in the situation is different from going to God simply with the shopping list and beginning with you. Always the question is what do you want in this situation? I've been make you and make his will his heart. You're willing heart then you're praying in the shores night. You're praying. And Union with what matters to him. Does that make sense? All right. We're almost done. one tool

How how can we make sure we'll pregnant God's will. So we're asking what he wants. How can we be a short? That's something my bring him glory. That's a good question. Now look at this.

Next please.

You know what one of those things has anybody wears glasses or contact lens? You know what that is, you go to the optometrist and he's got all of these lenses that he he he overlaps with each other and he tested Mountain custom out this way that way the other way and order it. It says which is clear on this or this and you showing has given us a set of lenses by which we can gauge if we're seeing the will of God the heart of God. clearly or if we're on the trunk of what will bring God glory next one here at Lowe's lenses use the Lord's Prayer as a series of lenses for seen the will of God and the situation free sports. You're praying, you know, this truck me recently. Normally we think of the Lord's Prayer as we pray the words but I'm not suggesting that I'm suggesting using. This is a grit as a series of lenses. So which to evaluate each sing you pray about There It Is Our Father in Heaven full of let's take this guy Howard. If I was praying for Howard in hospital, he is a believer's wife is a believer. And unexpectedly he's got heart issues. They just came back from months away from home and now he's got pneumonia hospital hospital gifted him as pneumonia. So when I pray for him, I'd say I'm being our father in Heaven God. You don't know my father. Joe Howard's father Your Jill's father.

So I ask you father that you would hear my prayer. flower May your name be kept Holy Mary whatever happens in Howard situation may reflect. Well on you. May it bring you glory.

May your kingdom come and soon. Not only met the world.

Be covered with your presence so that your will is done everywhere as it is in heaven, but may your kingdom be manifest in Howard's room May the powers of the Kingdom May the glory of the Kingdom May the health in the wellness of the Kingdom leaks rule. the Howard give us to the food we need would you give Howard and she'll what they need? for today

Would you forgive? Any singers that Howard or Joe might have at this time that are obscuring their relationship with you as they forgive those who sin against them? And Lord don't leave them into temptation. Don't let the situation be more than they can handle Lord deliver them from Evil. You notice you see that now is this a Magic Bullet? No. But it is a tool to use in your prayers too because we know that you shua cares about all these issues cuz he gave it to his disciples as a way to pray and using this is a grid or the series of lenses switch to look at a situation will help us to be more confident that what we're praying is for God's glory and according to his will so reviewing then one challenge. That was the word. I couldn't remember before one challenge God's Great exceedingly great promises, and how come we see them fulfilled in a large one question. Are the how can God receive glory in the situation of what does God want in the situation? I suggest you bring that not question into each time you pray. And one Tool The Lord's Prayer as a series of lenses for which to see more clearly the path to God's glory. So I hope that will go out from this place you and me.

Improve God promises us indeed. I tell you that whoever trusts in you. Shua will also do the work that he did indeed he will do or she will do Greater Works because you sure went to the father and found whatever you ask for his name he will do so that the father may receive glory for the sun if you ask him for something in his name.

From within his will his heart his passion. He will do it and may God bless us all I'm going to ask Roy to come up for a minute.

Roy was one of the people in the congregation that is known as a personal traits a lot

How long would you say that you've been passionate about prayer with her from the very beginning of the synagogue and we spend a lot of time together and she was really mentoring me into prayer life you admire. And your sense that you want your own cry like to improve. That's good. One more question. Do you pray each day unemployed? You have to make it a matter of your schedule to use a predetermined. You set aside time for it a question. It's also not only to Mentor but also I spending a lot of time weekly studying the Bible with a group of women. That's really help me know. I have learned throughout my life. Have to put God first and and really and when the kids were little this was this is God's joy and the kids were little we had to get up and go to school and be ready but I used to wake up. I mean it I'm not just saying this but as encouragement to everybody I used to wake up 5:30 in the morning everyday. I like that is schedule. Thank you. That's it. I've got another woman like this.

Ellen Goldsmith was the busiest woman on the face of the Earth. She worked like 16 hours a day. But you was up at 4 every morning. I'm reading the Bible for an hour or two and praying. It was a matter of habit.

I'm done for now. May God bless us all may we pray not because it's nice religious thing to do but because The hungry for God bless you shabbat shalom.

We are to remain standing as we recite and honor them.