Morning Goodness: The Impact of Prayer
By: Charles Stanley
May 24, 2011
The Impact of Prayer
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18
Prayer is the lifeblood of an intimate relationship with the Father. But believers often have questions about its power and effectiveness. Don’t hesitate to take your queries to the Lord, dig into Scripture for answers, and seek the counsel of a trusted spiritual mentor. Prayer is too important to neglect.
Will God’s plans fail if I don’t pray? God is not subservient to believers or dependent upon their prayers. The time we invest in speaking with Him involves us in the work that He is doing in our lives and in the world, but He will carry on without us.Laboring alongside the Lord is our privilege.
Does my prayer (or lack thereof) impact God’s work? I believe that Scripture indicates the answer to this question is both yes and no, depending upon the situation. There are times when God’s purpose is set. He is in control and has determined the best course. In the Old Testament, the Lord often prophesied what He would do and then brought those events to pass.
In other cases, “you do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:2). There are some good things that He holds back until we put out prayerful hands to receive them. But because God is a loving Father, He also pours our blessings that we wouldn’t even think to request.
Believer’s prayers have tremendous impact, particularly on their own faith and life. Do you understand what an awesome privilege it is to kneel before the all-powerful Father and know that He listens and will respond? God loves to be good to His children and answer their prayers.
We must alter our lives in order to alter our hearts, for it is impossible to live one way and pray another.
-William Law (1686 -1761)
Happy Friday!
May, 20, 2011
Embrace the newness of today. It's fresh and exciting! Stay optimistic and look forward to God's favor to be evident in every area of your life. Live, love, laugh & be a blessing to someone in need.
XO
The Power of Love
By: Charles Stanley
The Power of Love
1 Corinthians 13:4-6
Today’s verses teach that love does not “rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth.” This means believers aren’t to dwell on another man’s wrongs and give up on him as a hopeless, despicable criminal. Love enables us to hate the evil unjustly visited upon the innocent while valuing the one who committed the act. More simply, we hate the sin but love the sinner.
In spite of everything that seems apparent about someone who’s been driven to sinful actions, God has created him or her with the potential to be made into something good. Outwardly, it may seem as if substandard upbringing, poor treatment, or negative influences have corrupted a person’s morality and worldview beyond repair. For such individuals, the capacity to love and rise above circumstances can get buried so deep that it may seem nonexistent.
God still considers the most evil and corrupt person worth saving. How do I know this is true? Because in the first verse we teach our school children, He said that whoever believes in God’s Son will haveeternal life (John 3:16). Many of us are guilty of thinking we deserveHis love because we look so good compared to unlovable kinds of people. God doesn’t work that way. He loves every single person, no matter how awful his or her sin may be.
God doesn’t want anyone to mistreat others; such sinful action will bring repercussions or divine discipline. But the Lord does extend His care, His mercy, and His salvation to anybody who wants it. He keeps no record of wrongs. He loves without conditions. And He wants us to love in the same way.
We must alter our lives in order to alter our hearts, for it is impossible to live one way and pray another.
-William Law (1686 -1761)
You're the Victor!
Written By: Dymonique Colon
We are not Victims...
We must rid ourselves of the Victim Mentality: The excuses that allow us to delve into immature and childish ways.
We stomp our feet when we can’t get our way, say “This is too hard” and walk away. We settle for the convenient rather than challenge ourselves to blaze new trails. We dishonor the memory of men and women who fought to give us opportunity. We waste our time as though life is but for the moment; the only thing eternal is God.
We must rid ourselves of the Victim Mentality. “My father left me”,” my mother abused me”,” my life isn’t fair”, we cry out… So we make excuses for rash behaviors and poor decisions. We’re more interested in seeing the bottom of liquor bottles and inhaling the loss of our senses…we numb the pain for as long as we can, refusing to face the growing epidemic. I’m tired of the Victim Mentality. I’m tired of settling and believing that what I am is enough. Tired of going in circles, playing the same games, predicting the next steps and still falling into the traps. Tired of watching and listening to my community spiral out of control, and watching the next generations inherit depression, anxiety, turmoil, lust, anger, and pain.
I’m tired of seeing children with the Victim Mentality; that’s their inheritance from us and our parents. We pass down excuses, debt, and an entrapped mind-state rather than CD’s, Savings, homes, and the love of Christ. We listen to the lies the World teaches us and believe that this is all there is, and will be. We are not Victims.
Christ died so we didn’t have to be in bondage any longer. With His blood, we’ve conquered the Victim Mentality. So when you feel yourself slipping back into the old you, finding excuses, chasing the same doomed relationships, remember: Jesus conquered the Victim Mentality.
Reflective Scriptures:
Romans 8
1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power[a] of the life-giving Spirit has freed you[b] from the power of sin that leads to death. 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature.[c] So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.
Peace & Love.
Life's 3 C's
The 3 C's of life...Choice, Chance, Change.. You must make the Choice to take the Chance if you want anything to Change
Reality
Change isn't always easy, but it is necessary to accept change in order to achieve new goals.- Jeanette Jenkins
Meditation
The Discipline of Meditation
As God instructed Joshua about how the Israelites would take possession of the Promised Land, He included a vital instruction: to meditate on His law day and night and to obey everything it said. This would guarantee success.
Meditation is still crucial for believers today. In our culture, we are inundated by worldly values and godless priorities. Unless we guard our hearts, they will slowly begin to accept these unrighteous standards.
Therefore, we should discipline ourselves to meditate daily upon God’s Word, focusing our attention on His character and His ways. This involves prayerfully reading Scripture, being silent before the Lord so we can hear from Him, and applying biblical truth to our lives.
Of course, these things don’t just happen. Distractions take away from our ability to focus, so it is necessary to set aside a time when we can be still and listen. Consider the benefits of doing so. Meditation . . .
• Quiets our spirit and provides an avenue for God to purify our hearts.
• Develops a hunger for the Word so we can gain deeper understanding of Jesus and greater sense of His power.
• Improves our discernment about direction for our lives.
• Sharpens our awareness of His presence.
Meditation may involve a small sacrifice of rising earlier or giving up free time during the day. But living a Christ-centered life filled with peace and joy depends upon our commitment to focus our minds and hearts on Him regularly. Are you willing to discipline yourself to set aside time each day?
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