Pray like Jesus

Currently Studying Jesus' Example of Prayer. Some thoughts from Today's devotion... 

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our prayers are to be "TO the father, THROUGH the son, BY the Spirit." 

Something I've really been noticing as of late is how much my prayer life has changed since I was younger. A few years back, when I was between ten and probably sixteen, 

I was under a mis-conception that prayer has to always be SO formal. 

I didn't understand the meaning of "approaching the throne of grace boldly!" 

Don't get me wrong, I know what it means to be respectful and to be reverent...

... but reverence doesn't mean heartless. 

And reverence doesn't mean boring.

Our Prayers are to be TO the father. Always remember who you are talking to.

Remember to be respectful, remember the character of God and his attributes.

Don't be lazy, don't be half-hearted, don't be careless.

But PLEASE do not be heart-less and impersonal.

When we Pray, we depend on GOD's love and grace, we can be confident in knowing 

God HEARS me, God LOVES me and God IS good! 

Be bold!

Don't get caught up in ritualistic rules.

God wants us to be personal, to show emotion, to spend time with him sharing the depths of our hearts.

How can we do that if our prayer life is so... boring?...

Some people pray the same prayer every day, with out any heart in it.

Some people pray before their meals because they 'should'. 

Some people only pray in church.

Some churches only pray pre-planned, written out, formal and ritualistic prayers.

Leave room for the SPIRIT to move. 

Most of the time, prayer is not to move the hand of God (although prayer can definitely do that)

but rather prayer is used to change our hearts. 

Trust God. Learn from Him and Obey Him. 

This builds a stronger and more personal relationship with Him. 

But this can only happen when we pray with hearts and souls, rather than with empty words

and heart-less phrases. 

Pray Without Ceasing.

Prayer is to be woven into our lives; Into everything we do and in every moment of every day,

acknowledge God and involve him in your thoughts, actions, words, plans etc.

Jesus didn't teach one basic outline of prayer. 

Prayer was woven into all of his teachings, into his life example through -out all of the gospels. 

If communicating is part of a relationship, 

and prayer is communicating to God,

then prayer MUST be essential in order to have a relationship with God.

Pray Scripture. 

Prayer and the Word go hand in hand.

In prayer, we speak to God and in reading the Word, God speaks to us.

Pray before you read, pray while you read, pray after while you reflect.

Pray PAINFUL prayers.

Jesus didn't just prayer about his victories. 

He was betrayed, beaten, mocked - and yet He prayed in his anguish.

Tell God how hard it is. Be real.

With the cross on the horizon, Jesus didn't pray, "Father, get me OUT of this!"

No! Rather he prayed, "Father, get me THROUGH this!"

He prayed so he could remain faithful,

so he could glorify God, so he could honour God,

and so he could worship God!

Sometimes it can't be about our comfort,

rather it is about God's purpose. 

Pray that God would reveal his purpose to you, 

and until then, whether he does it in this life or the next,

take faith and TRUST him. 

the secret to being content

Contentment is only found in God

This is another devotional writing of mine from last week. I've been wanting to share it on here, but haven't had the chance to write it out until now. Although Sunday's service at Willow Creek Baptist Church (midhurst, ontario - share us a visit!!) was a total confirmation that God has really been putting this on my heart for a reason - so I'm glad I got to taste that before sharing this with you. Anyways, here we go...

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During a time of high stress and frustration, I'm reminded today to:

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances..." 
 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

As I was reflecting on this passage, I kept coming back to one of my favourite passages that has a very similar idea behind it; Paul's teaching to be content in any & every circumstance. Paul says:

"I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. 
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, 
whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 
I can do everything through him who gives me strength." 
Philippians 4:11-13

So what is the secret to being truly content?
Contentment is only found in God.

Some may think they are content, they may feel at ease, but their contentment only comes from money and material things. If they lose all of that, they are lost. They are no longer able to be productive for the Lord because their focus becomes exactly what they were dependant upon: worldly things. We must remember that if we are dependant on the Lord and if we are content with only Jesus, then when troubles come we will focus all the more on what we believe will get us through: God. Jeremiah 17:5-7 says, "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his own strength... blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

*In some way, not being rich; not having an abundance of materials things { the things that are SO easy to crave and long for} - is a blessing in disguise (in disguise because it is so hard to have this lifestyle in this money-run world, it goes against the pull of society) BUT it may actually make it easier to not love the world or find our contentment in the world, but rather in God*

What makes Paul able to say He knows how to remain content when in plenty AND when in need? He "can do all things through Christ who gives {him} strength".

Only Christ can bring contentment. A lot of the time people miss the actual context of this verse, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength". We apply it to almost every situation you can think of, which isn't wrong - but the verse is actually specifically referring to how is Paul able to be content and remain content through the ups and downs. Being content has nothing to do with what you have, or what you own. Rely on Christ for everything. It may even be better translated, "I have strength for all circumstances through him who strengthens me."

Without Christ, we don't truly have the ability to enjoy life to its fullest. Our joy will be taken from us with every hardship, every trial, every failure, every disappointment etc. And I think we can all agree that these things happen all the time. We may have days where we don't feel happy {but thats just an emotion, and the bible tells us that emotions are fleeting}, our JOY however, will remain because we know that Jesus always remains. 

Obstacles to contentment:
1. Greed {Hebrews 13:5-6}
2. Envy
3. unhealthy sense of entitlement {1 Timothy 6:6-8}

Learn contentment:
1. Give. Giving will adjust your priorities and remind you of your blessings.
2. Be thankful and SHOW your appreciation constantly.

Contentment ultimately is an outworking of our faith, it is actually not something to be over-looked, it is key to our relationship with Christ. The closer our personal relationship to God is, the more we trust Him and the less we will be bothered by the circumstances of life. We can rest easy because we are resting in his power and sufficiency, not our own. 

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After hearing a missionary from Japan speak on Sunday, sharing of the major challenges they faced after the earthquakes and tsunami's in Japan, I was reminded of Paul's crucial message of contentment, {Ironically enough, this specific missionary's name was also Paul}.
Despite life's challenges, big or small, we can do ALL things with CHRIST's STRENGTH
IF we learn to find our contentment in Christ Alone. He will steady our feet when the path before us is rough, He will hold us up when the waters rise, He will be our light through the ever increasing darkness. We will trust in Him to provide our every need and we believe that he makes beautiful things out of dust.