Week 22 of 52 Prayers of Faith - Faith is seeking first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness

Faith is seeking first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness - Lord increase our faith

In the world around us we are receiving all kinds of conflicting advice about what we need and what is the most important thing. Many people of faith have been led astray by the deceitfulness of riches and the cares of this life. But Jesus asks us, "What does it profit us if we gain the whole world and lose your immortal souls." As people of faith the words of Christ are paramount. They aren't something we relegate to some minor importance. What He says is of primary importance because it affects our immortal souls. Our life is not just here on earth. Earth is just bootcamp for we Christians, a testing ground to see if we can follow some simple instructions like "Love God and love your neighbor"

When Jesus tells us that we should seek first God's Kingdom and its righteousness, He is actually trying to make life better for us. The world around us and even God's Law can cause us to worry. We ask ourselves things like: "Am I eating the right thing?" "What is really important?" "What should I wear?"; "Am I going to die young?"; "Is that mole cancerous?" "Will they like me?"

Questions like this rob us of joy. They make life worrisome and scary. Ultimately God doesn't want us wasting time worrying about things which we may or may not be able to control. Jesus tells us that God knows all our needs; if we will just seek God's Kingdom and His ways first, then the rest will get sorted out.

None of us are immune to life's difficulties, but if all we do is focus on the problems, then we won't get to enjoy the life God has given us. That is why we must accept by faith that God's ways are the best ways. We must seek His Kingdom and its Righteousness by faith, trusting that in the end God will help us sort it all out. We may die young, we may die of cancer or we may live a good long life. But what is most important is that we live it trusting that The God of all Creation has good plans for us.

Lord we acknowledge that your Kingdom and your righteousness are more important than the daily cares of life. Lord, increase or faith.

Week 16 of 52 Prayers of faith - Faith is knowing that the Love of God transcends all things

Faith is knowing that the Love of God transcends all things - Lord, increase our faith

The love of God, God's love or Agape love is a love that is not rooted primarily in the human condition. There are many kinds of love. The love of a man for a woman, the love of a parent for a child, the love of a friend for a friend. But all these kinds of love come from the human heart. The human heart can be a very dark place. We can harbor secret lusts and hatred in our hearts. Human love is tainted; tainted by our sinful proclivities.

On the other hand God's love comes form the wellspring of God's heart. God is everything good and right. There is no darkness in Him. The Apostle John even goes so far to say that God is love, or stated another way, God's very nature is love. God may hate sin, but He loves sinners. God so loved the world that He sent is only begotten Son into the world to make a way possible for us to experience His love first hand.

Then He sent his Holy Spirit to dwell in those who believed in his Son, so that we would have the power to love others as He first loved us. That is a powerful thing. So powerful that the Apostle Paul said that this Agape love, never fails. This love gives us the power to love even our enemies. It grants us forgiveness so that we can receive God's forgiveness and so that we can forgive those who have transgressed against us.

God's Agape love in us is proof of God living in us. The Apostle John goes so far to say that if we don't love our brother or sister (referring to others of our faith) then God is not in us. That makes for quite the charge against us. Jesus says that our love is the evidence of our faith. We will be known by our love, not our piety or our theology. God's love makes it possible for us to love the unlovable. This is truly transcendent. Jesus said that anyone can love someone who loves them. But with his Love we can love anyone.

Thank you Lord, that your Love transcends: our fears, our hatred, our sin, our selfishness. Lord, your love transcends all of our shortcomings and makes us more like You. Lord, increase our faith.

Week 15 of 52 Prayers of Faith - Faith is knowing that God knows all the dark recesses of our hearts and still loves us

Faith is knowing that God knows all the dark recesses of our hearts and still loves us - Lord increase our faith

I find it interesting that we find in the very beginning of the Bible that there is sibling rivalry and murder in the first children born to Adam and Eve and by the 6th chapter we read "and that every inclination of the thoughts of their (humanity's) hearts was only evil continually." Yet already God had Jesus in mind in "God so loved the world..." that God provided away out of moral depravity.

Jesus didn't die on the cross because we were so deserving. Jesus died on the cross because we were in need of help and because God loved us so much. God loves us so much that He doesn't want to leave us in that mess. Not only has He paid for our sins, but He has made a way for us to have victory over sin. God did this because He loves us. "While we were yet sinners Christ died for us. God doesn't expect us to get it together in order for us to earn is love. He loves us even while hating our sin.

Faith in Christ's crucifixion and resurrection is foundational for us as Christians. We must believe that He died for us because of our depravity not because we deserved it. His love is what empowers us to love others. His love is what draws us to Him. He doesn't love us because we sin, He loves us in spite of our sinful inclinations.

Lord, thank you for loving us in spite of the darkness in our hearts. Lord, increase our faith.

Week 9 of 52 - Faith is knowing that Jesus Christ is the one who baptizes us with fire and the Holy Spirit

Faith is knowing that Jesus Christ is the one who baptizes us with fire and the Holy Spirit -Lord increase our faith

Again I encourage you as you embrace this prayer of faith that you weigh it in your heart, meditate upon it and even journal it. Say it out load as our brains are stubborn, they only believe what they hear. Remember your expectation is that through this meditation that God will hear and answer your prayer.

This weeks prayer is important because it embraces the supernatural side of our faith. Some times we are temped to think of Christianity as merely a philosophy. On one side it is a philosophy in that it dictates how we view the world, but on the other side it is a supernatural, life altering encounter with The God of All Creation and He doesn't want to leave us unarmed, unaware or unprepared.

The Holy Spirit is important in that He resides in every believer. He empowers the believer to do more that is humanly possible. First the Holy Spirit is a seal that says we belong to God, second, it is the Holy Spirit that grants us gifts so that we can be a blessing the family of faith. All spiritual gifts serve to help others. They are not for our personal benefit outside tongues which in one manner edifies our own spirits. Another reason we need to be baptized in the Holy Spirit is so that are minds can be opened to the deep spiritual things of God that are revealed in the Bible and only available to those who are reborn. He reminds us off all that the Lord Jesus has taught us when we need it and the Holy Spirit works in both believers and pre-Christians by convicting us/them of sin and righteousness.

Lord, we thank you that You baptize us with your Holy Spirit and empower us to live the life You did. Lord, increase our faith.

Week 8 of 52 Prayers of Faith faith is know knowing that Jesus Christ is our soon and coming King

Faith is knowing that Jesus Christ is our soon and coming King - Lord increase our faith

Our faith in Jesus Christ encompasses the past the present and the future. What He has done in the past affects our present and He has promised his return. There is a day that all Christians can look forward to when the King returns.  

When Jesus was on the earth the Jewish nation was waiting for a king who would restore Israel to it's rightful position among the nations - no longer a occupied land ruled by a foreign and pagan people. Jesus was not what they were expecting, but He is who God had planned for all people. God's heart is that all people would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, repent and enter into his rule and reign.  

Until He returns we are called to be ambassadors of that Kingdom, ministers of reconciliation until in the fullness of time He returns. Jesus is our soon and coming King. We must take this by faith - faith in the Word of God, and faith that Jesus is who He says He is and that He will keep his word and return for us.

As usually I encourage you to journal this prayer and meditate on this in the coming days and consider what it means to you to believe by faith the Jesus is coming again.

Lord Jesus we believe that You are our soon and coming King - Lord, increase our faith.