Psalm 127 NIV 7.13.08
INTRODUCTION:
Thanks for supporting the Cooperative Program
Galatians 6:6 Marriage Retreat
Marriage retreat for couples
-Praying before each session
See if any of these prayers sound familiar . . .
Now I lay me down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep. . .
God is great, God is good, let us thank him for our food.
How’s your prayer life?
Do you ever feel like your prayer life is dull? That you seem to pray the same way about the same things?
I want to challenge you to be an expository prayer. Use Scripture to guide your prayers in a creative way.
Tomorrow is July 7 Read Psalm 7, 37, 67, 97, 127. Pick one psalm and go back and meditate on it some and then as you pray use some of the phrases or things you learn to guide your prayers.
Read 5 Psalms this way every month.
Read 1 Proverbs a day through a month.
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1. ASK THE LORD FOR DIRECTION IN PRODUCING A GODLY FAMILY.
Psalm 127:1a “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain.
Interpretation: USELESS! Meaningless! Vanity! Worthless! These are words that could describe you if God is not the center of your world.
Building a house is futile unless God is in the center of the process. Striving to build up your family is useless unless God is in the center of the process.
Joshua 24:15 “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
Illustration: Son asking about God’s direction. This past week in our morning devotion time with my family I was sharing how I had listened to God and obeyed his will for my life by leaving Illinois and going to seminary in Ft. Worth, and then to SAU in Magnolia as a campus minister, and now to Little Rock as a Family minister. My 6 year old son asked, “Dad, how did you know God was leading you and speaking to you?” My comment to him was that I spent time praying and reading my Bible to discover the direction God had for my life.
What I was trying to convey to my son was that we followed the Lord’s direction in our lives and I want him to grow up knowing that his daddy depended upon the Lord for direction so he will learn to as well.
Illustration: Quotes from George Barna
Transforming Children into Spiritual Champions
n While more than 4 out of 5 parents (85%) believe they have the primary responsibility for the moral and spiritual development of their children, more than 2 out of 3 of them abdicate that responsibility to their church.
n In a typical week fewer than 10% of parents who regularly attend church with their kids read the Bible together, pray together (other than at meal times) or participate in an act of service as a family unit. Less than 1 out of 20 families have any type of worship experience with their kids, other than while they are at church during a typical month.
If we want to have strong families, and strong marriages, and strong children, and strong churches, then the Lord must be a part of our families consistently and more than just on Sundays and Wednesdays.
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2. ASK THE LORD FOR WISDOM IN PROTECTING YOUR FAMILY.
Psalm 127:1b “Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.
You can have the best security system, an electric fence around your house, a pit bull, but unless God is watching over your family then it’s futile.
Psalm 121:1-8
1 I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
7 The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul.
8 The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.
Illustration: Guys, how many times has your wife turned over to you and said something like, “Did you hear that. I think someone is in the house. Will you go check that out?”
My wife did this a lot when we were first married and I remember one night I thought I would have some fun. I must tell you I grew up in a family where we were always jumping out from behind doors and scaring each other and my wife did not grow up in that kind of family. She got up one night to go to the bathroom and I got up and went and hid on the other side of a door and when she came out of the bathroom I jumped out and screamed boo. She literally stabbed me with her fingernails and drew blood.
I’ve talked to many older parents and one of the common themes that I’ve heard about how they have survived parenthood has been prayer.
I keep an eagle eye on my family and if anyone messes with my family then they’ve messed up because they have to deal with me and I have very little mercy when someone messes with my family.
I think God has built that into guys to have a protector mentality. But, one of the things that I’m learning is I can’t always be there to protect them. I have to trust the Lord to protect them.
3. ASK THE LORD FOR STEWARDSHIP TO PROVIDE FOR YOUR FAMILY.
Psalm 127:2 “In vain, you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat. For He grants sleep to those He loves.”
What we do:
Rise Early
Stay Up Late
Toiling for food to eat
Colossians 3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men,
What He does:
Gives rest
7th day – God rested
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Illustration: Karen’s car catching on fire and God providing a Buick Skylark.
-Karen drove a Ford Tempo from apartment to school.
-Karen runs downstairs to tell me car is on fire.
-It’s just overheating.
-No, it’s on fire.
-It will be ok, I’ll go and check on it later.
-Andy Griffith was on.
-Finally, I went outside to check on it and, guess what, IT WAS ON FIRE!
-wedding pictures.
-BOOM! BOOM! Tires explode.
-We prayed specifically for a car that was $10,000 or under
Had less that 20,000 miles on it
Was less than 2 years old.
It later burned up as well and God has since provided us with another vehicle.
-Guys, God has given us a desire to provide for our families but sometimes we work so much we never spend any time with the family we’re providing for.
-Guys, I think our families would be willing to do with less stuff if they had more of us.
4. ASK THE LORD F0R A VISION TO PERPETUATE YOUR FAMILY.
Psalm 127:3-4 “Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from Him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one’s youth.”
Interpretation: Sons are:
A heritage (an inheritance given by God)
A reward (an incentive to be faithful)
Like arrows (an instrument to release)
Children are given to you by God. They’re a reward from God. However, they are not ours to keep. We have to point them in the right direction, aim, pull, and release them.
Psalm 78:4-7 “We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done. 5 He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children, 6 so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. 7 Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.
What’s your vision for your family? Where are you going? What will you accomplish this year? What improvements did you make last year?
FMT Vision: My vision is to lead families to experience Jesus in the home and mature in loving relationships and declare God’s story to future generations of the world.
Application:
a. Recognize children are God’s gift.
They are yours for a moment. Psalm 24:1
b. Receive them with joy in spite of the challenges.
c. Return them to the Lord.
-Point them in his direction.
-Pray diligently for them.
-Provide an environment for spiritual growth.
5. ASK THE LORD FOR INTEGRITY TO PREPARE YOUR FAMILY.
Psalm 127:5 “Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their enemies in the gate.”
Interpretation:
Children are tough work but they are also an incredible blessing.
Psalm 112:1-2 “Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands. His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
Illustration: What’s in a name? Names were important in those days and they still are today. One of the things that kept me out of some trouble not all trouble was the fact that I did not want to shame the name of my mom and dad.
When a godly man raises godly children, then their name get around. The father or mother will not be embarrassed because of what their son or daughter did this past weekend.
Illustration: I did many stupid things as a boy. I grew up watching the Dukes of Hazard. One night up down I thought I would run and jump and slide across the hood of this guys truck. Apparently I didn’t do it like they did in the movies because I left a big dent where I landed and on the hood. The boy said he would come out to the house and figure out what to do the next day. I went home but didn’t tell my dad until Sunday afternoon I see this truck drive up with a big dent in the hood. I said, “Dad, there is something that I need to tell you.” That was one of the moments that I’m sure my dad just wanted to knock me up side the head and say, “Son, what were you thinking?” Moments like that when I was embarrassed and ashamed I’m sure made my parents feel similarly. However, as I matured there has been this strong desire to honor my parents so that they are not ashamed of me in any kind of forum.
Application:
When you live a godly life and you raise godly children it is a blessing from the Lord that not only you can delight in but others as well.
CONCLUSION:
BOB who changed Africa by praying for one thing a single country.
Illustration: BOB: Doug Coe had a ministry in Washington DC and became acquainted with a guy by the name of Bob who was an insurance salesman. Bob became a Christian and began to meet with Doug weekly to learn about his faith.
One day Bob came in all excited about a statement he had read in the Bible where Jesus says, “Ask whatever you wish and it will be given to you.” Bob asked if it was really true.
Doug said it’s not a blank check but yes it really is true. God does answer prayer. Great Bob, I gotta start praying for something. I think I’ll pray for Africa. That’s a broad target, why don’t you narrow it down to a country said Doug.
All right, I’ll pray for Kenya. Do you know anyone in Kenya? No. Ever been to Kenya? No. Bob just wanted to pray for Kenya.
Doug mad an unusual arrangement. He challenged Bob to pray every day for six months for Kenya. If Bob would do that and nothing extraordinary happened, Doug would pay him $500. But if something remarkable happened, Bob would pay Doug $500. And if Bob did not pray every day, then the whole deal was off.
Bob began to pray and for a while nothing happened. Then one night Bob was at a dinner in Washington. The people around the table explained what they did for a living. One woman said she helped run an orphanage in Kenya. It was the largest of its kind.
Bob could not keep quiet and relentlessly pounded the lady with question after question. You have such an interest in my country, have you been to Kenya before? No. Do you know someone in Kenya? No. Then how do you happen to be so curious? Well, someone is kind of paying me $500 to pray. . .” She asked if Bob would like to go to Kenya. Bob was so eager to go he probably would have left that night.
When Bob arrived in Kenya, he was appalled by the poverty and lack of health care. When he returned to Washington he began to write pharmaceutical companies and ask them to donate supplies. This orphanage eventually received over $1 million worth of medical supplies.
The lady invited Bob back over for a big party. Bob got on the plane to Kenya. While he was there, the president of Kenya was there and offered to take Bob on a tour of Nairobi, the capital city.
Bob saw a building and inquired about it to discover that it was a prison that held some political prisoners. That’s a bad idea and you should let them out said Bob. They finished the tour and Bob flew back home.
Sometime later Bob got a call from the US State Department. Is this Bob? Did you recently take a trip to Kenya? Yes. Did you make any statements to the president about political prisoners? Yes. What did you say? I told him he should let them out.
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The State Department official explained that the department had been working for years to get the release of these prisoners, to no avail. Normal diplomatic channels and political maneuverings had led to a dead end. But now the prisoners had been released, and the state department was told it had been largely because of Bob. So the government was calling to say thanks.
Several months later, the president of Kenya made a phone call to Bob. He was going to rearrange his government and select a new cabinet. Would Bob be willing to fly over and pray for him for three days while he worked on this very important task?
So Bob – who was not politically connected at all – boarded a plane once more and flew back to Kenya, where he prayed and asked God to give wisdom for the leader of the nation as he selected his government. All this happened because one man prayed.
INVITATION: X
1. Ask the Lord for direction in producing a godly family.
2. Ask the Lord for wisdom for protecting your family.
3. Ask the Lord for stewardship to provide for your family.
4. Ask the Lord for a vision to perpetuate your family.
5. Ask the Lord for integrity to prepare your family.
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