Come back every day for a new Prayer Devotional from Pastor’s Sean and Faith. AND Don’t forget you can watch the daily live broadcast of “Live with Sean & Faith” talking about the power of prayer by clicking here => CLICK HERE
DAILY PRAYER DEVOTIONALS with PASTORS SEAN & FAITH
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Day 15 – Aug 25, 2021
GET A TATTOO …
We tend to worry about a lot in our culture. We tend to stress about a lot that we can’t do anything about. Things from our past that can’t be undone, things in our present that are in someone else’s hand and even things in the future that you think might happen, but haven’t yet. I love that Jesus addresses this right in the middle of his famous sermon on the mount. Matthew 6:25-27 says:
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
I love verse 27! Can worrying do anything positive for our lives? Worrying has cost me sleep, consumed my thoughts and time, has stifled productivity, stolen joy, but I don’t think it ever produced anything good. I have never spent a day worrying about something and then thought that it was a good decision the next day. But, sometimes it can just be so hard to not let worry take over. Paul gives us a clue how to stop this in his letter to the Philippians. In chapter 4 he says:
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. ~ Phil 4:8
We have to choose to meditate (see yesterday’s post) on those things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable and those things that are excellent and praiseworthy. Every time I have switched gears and been able to focus on those things the worry has disappeared completely. It’s funny that we always realize that worry is worthless after the fact. You can’t enjoy life in a constant state of worry. Enjoy life! Make a intentional choice, when worry tries to come, to think on “anything” that is good.
What’s the take away? Memorize it, write it down, quote it, heck, get a Philippians 4:8 tattoo and look at it often … you’ll be happier, live longer and love better!
Peace is better than worry:)
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 14 – Aug 24, 2021
MEDITATION
One of the original meanings for the word meditate in the Hebrew language is the english word “rumination”. The same word used for a cow that chews the cud. Chewing the cud is when a cow ingests food, chews, swallows, regurgitates and chews and then shallows again about 62 chewing and regurgitation cycles to finish chewing the cud. This ends up being about 6-8 hours of chewing. It usually takes about 24 hours to digest. With that in mind … Faith and I love Psalm 103:1-5. There is hardly a week where this scripture isn’t referenced in our home. Take this with you all day and meditate on it. chew it up, ingest it and then bring it up and do it again, and then again. You’ll be amazed at what you start to realize and what becomes clearer.
1 Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Chew on it all day!!
Take it slow, there’s no hurry:)
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 13 – Aug 23, 2021
ALWAYS PRAY, NEVER GIVE UP!
I am not going to go into the whole parable right now, I just love how Jesus starts with the point. I think the point is enough to go on. If you hang around me or Venue Church long enough, this verse will get brought up.
“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” ~ Luke 18:1
Think about that. No matter the situation, no matter the mountain, no matter how qualified you feel, no matter how resourced you are, you are to never stop praying and never give up. I love this verse because the first temptation we have when things go south is to do what? Yep. Two things: Stop praying and give up! I’m keeping it short today.
What have you stopped praying about? What have you said, “It’s never gonna happen”, “It’s not worth it”, “It’s too hopeless” or “It’s too big” about? Nothing is too big, or too hopeless, or too small or too late!! Always pray, never give up.
Don’t give up on your marriage or your son or daughter. Don’t give up on getting health in your body or financial situation. Don’t give up on your parents or your friend. Don’t give up on your calling or your dreams. You will only ever regret giving up and stop talking to God about the things that matter to you. Jesus said these simple profound word that are packed with enough to live our lives by. Always pray, don’t give up!!
At the tail end of this fast. Keep focused, Don’t give up! Don’t stop praying:)
Happy Fasting:)
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 12 – Aug 22, 2021
PUSH IT!
When you workout physically and you know you are just about done, what do you do? You push it! You push it because you know you’re almost done. You put your all into the last 5 seconds of whatever you’re doing, just one more push up, one more rep, one last burst on the treadmill … you give your all. Well, we only have 4 more days left of this fast. Push it! Dig deep and get passionate about whatever you are believing God for.
I love how the author of Hebrews describes Jesus prayers, because it is a good example of what our prayers should look like. Check this out in Hebrews 5:7:
7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
Now read it again … Now read it again and let it sink in … Now read it again and imagine what it looked like. He regularly communicated with God and he made requests to God. AND when he did, it was with fervent cries and tears. Yes, this is saying that Jesus sometimes ugly cried while praying. He didn’t care what anyone thought. Who was he praying to? This says the one who could save him from death. The one that holds the keys to life and death holds the power. Why was he heard? Because of his reverent submission. Because he trusted God with every aspect of his life. He believed that God’s decision on every issue had His good in mind and those that were around Him in mind as well.
This is why the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. Because His prayers had a passion and beauty and relationship that they didn’t have. When was the last time you got passionate in your prayer. Do whatever you have to do to cry out to Him. Lock yourself in a closet, go for a drive by yourself, go to the beach (no one will be there … it’s too cold right now). Do whatever you have to do … you won’t regret it. In these last couple of days of the fast. PUSH IT!
Your Prayers Are Effective!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 11 – Aug 21, 2021
EARNING HOLINESS
Today we complete the 8th and final redemptive name of God that we started 8 days ago. They are all so powerful and this one is a big ole exclamation mark at the end. The name is:
JEHOVAH M’KADDESH – The Lord my Sanctifier
This name comes out of the following passage found in Exodus 31:12-14
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy. 14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death; those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people.
The significance of this verse is that for several chapters, God is giving instructions about all of the exact measurements of the temple, curtains, pillars and furniture that is supposed to go in the temple. Like, what material everything is made out of and what precious metal it is to be overlaid in and what color it is supposed to be. He is so precise and exact about every little piece of the temple and if it isn’t followed, He will not fill the temple and will not accept any of the sacrifices. But at the end of chapter after chapter of specific instructions he says this:
“This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy”. As if God was saying: “You can follow every instruction that I give to you, but remember, even that doesn’t make you holy. Only I can do that, you must rest (take a Sabbath) in this fact!”
And then, He goes on by saying if you don’t take a Sabbath and rest in the fact that I make you holy (not all your works) you shall be put to death! Wow … ummm … a little harsh right? But, He is making a beautiful point right here. What God is saying to us is this …
“Don’t ever think that your good works or your amazing ability to follow instructions can ever make you worthy to come before me. I love you so much that I am choosing to make you holy in spite of all of your weaknesses and I am the only one that can offer forgiveness, throw your sins as far as the east is from the west and make you holy before me!”
As we are now in the final week of the fast, remember, we are not fasting to get God’s attention, get Him to love us more or accept us more. We are simply fasting to align ourselves with God, so we can hear better and see clearer for very specific reasons. Not to earn holiness points. It is about our obedience and love for a holy God who loves us unconditionally. But this question is still one we have to ask.
Q. ARE YOU TRYING TO EARN HOLINESS BEFORE GOD?
If so, settle it in your spirit. There is nothing you can do to ever earn it except accepting it from Him. Approach God with confidence in His love and let your actions be an extension of your love back toward Him.
He loves you so much!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 10 – Aug 20, 2021
WHAT BANNER DO YOU FIGHT UNDER?
There is this phrase that gets repeated around Venue Church on a regular basis. “Focus on things you can control” We spend a lot of time on issues that we have absolutely no control or authority in. You cannot control someone else’s actions or words (if you try, you will probably end up with some sort of restraining order). There are a lot of world issues that we cannot do anything about, and yet people stress and worry about stuff that is completely outside their sphere of influence. There are those battles that are way over our heads. We have a part to play, but our part is lifting up the name of Christ and standing firm. The 7th name that we are looking at is:
JEHOVAH NISSI – The Lord is my banner
The name comes from the story of Moses, Aaron and Hur found in Exodus 17:8-15
8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” 10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. 14 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” 15 Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner.
TWO THINGS TO NOTICE:
1. Some battles are only won by lifting up the staff of God (a representation of Jesus). There maybe quite a few battles that we can’t do anything to win on our own, but God said He is our banner and will fight on our behalf. Lift Christ up in the situation and don’t let go. You, plus God, equally a majority.
2. He didn’t do it alone. Don’t fight these kinds of battles alone. Get people around you that can lift you up and be there with you through it all. God wired us for relationships for a reason.
So, here’s the question to chew on …
Are you fighting for your marriage, financial issues, relationships, emotions, addictions? What banner are you fighting under? Who is in the battle with you?
Fight for what matters!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 9 – Aug 19, 2021
DON’T FORGET, HE’S THERE
What things are you holding on to in prayer during this 21 days? It is also, important to realize that God is with you through the whole thing. There are those times when you might wonder if God even sees anything you are doing … if he hears anything you are praying … if all of this is even having any effect. That’s where this 6th Redemptive name comes into play:
JEHOVAH SHAMMAH – The Lord is there
This name is found in Ezekiel 48:35
35 “The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits“ And the name of the city from that time on will be: The Lord is There
Ezekiel wrote this when he was in exile. At this time there was no Jerusalem and no temple. Ezekiel was looking forward to a time when God was going to near them all the time. In the Jewish mind, when they heard that will be when “the Lord is there”, their minds would have gone to some examples. Like in Genesis 3 where the Adam and Eve walked with God in the garden in the cool of the day. All beauty, nothing disturbed, no sickness or disease. Or when Israel was lead out of Egypt and to the promised land by a cloud in the day and a fire by night. Or maybe when Solomon’s temple filled up with the glory of God presence.
The Great Shepherd King David wrote in Psalm 139:7-12:
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.
Ezekiel was seeing that Jerusalem would someday be restored and the temple rebuilt. But, he was was also seeing that someday God would not rest in a place, but that he would always be there. He would always be present and with us no matter where we were. This is what Jesus did. He provided a way to this new temple. 1 Corinthians 3:16 says:
16 Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?
You are the temple. You are now holy and consecrated and set aside … His spirit resides in you. Where you are there He is. As a matter of fact, Ephesians 2:19-21 says:
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.
He does see, He does hear and He is moving even when you can’t tell. The Lord is There. So the question is really this:
Q. IN WHAT AREAS DO YOU ALLOW GOD TO BE THERE?
He wants to be everywhere … involved in every aspect of your life. Let Him in.
God is on your side!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 8 – Aug 18, 2021
FORGIVE
As a parent there have been times where I have had to ground a child and then the next day I couldn’t exactly remember why the grounding occurred. He didn’t get out of it completely, but it was greatly reduced. That actually happened this past week. If you are a parent that has probably happened to you as well. With that in mind we’re going to talk about the 5th redemptive name:
JEHOVAH TSIDKENU – The Lord, our righteousness
This name is found in Jeremiah.
6 “In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior.” ~ Jeremiah 23:6
When we think about God being 100% completely righteous and that his character is that of a pure judge, we have to keep a couple of things in mind. He isn’t like us: 1. He cannot forget 2. He cannot lessen the punishment, for any reason 3. He will always exact the perfect judgement without any partiality.
AND even though that is harsh, when we process through it … there is no other way we would want Him to be. What if God let certain people into heaven because He just liked them better, but He just didn’t like your personality? What if your punishment was a slap on the wrist, but the same thing tomorrow warranted a death penalty? His character would be flawed and we would have no clue how to please Him. The way to heaven would be completely convoluted and unfair.
There is another side to this coin. The Apostle Paul writes this in His letter to the Romans:
10 “As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one;”
If there is no one in all humanity that is Righteous and God is the Righteous Judge, where does that leave us? We would not be allowed in His presence, so, that leaves us banished from his presence for eternity (other wise know as Hell).
Here is the beautiful part of the whole thing. Because of His righteousness, His judgement demanded the payment for our sin. Because of His mercy He delayed the payment (not lessened it, just push the actual punishment date). Then, because of His Grace he paid the full payment of our sins, through Jesus Christ. God had to come to earth in the form of man to be a perfect righteous man and be the only one ever worthy enough to make the payment. AND when he did it was enough for all of humanity.
21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” ~ 2 Corinthians 5:21
Now, because of the blood of Jesus, we have been made completely righteous, because the penalty has been paid. Our problem is that we still have a hard time understanding that great gift that we have been given. I think part of this is because we ourselves have a hard time forgiving and restoring someone’s place in our lives. Here’s today’s questions to ponder on.
Q. ARE YOU WILLING TO FORGIVE MORE, TO UNDERSTAND RIGHTEOUSNESS BETTER?
Forgiving is Freedom,
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 7 – Aug 17, 2021
LEMON WATER
If you get a glass of pure water and then squeeze just a little bit of lemon in it, what happens? All of the water tastes like it has some lemon in it. Our lives are like that. If you pollute one area of your life, it actually affects every area. Most of the time we don’t even realize it. If you get sloppy at work, then you will probably be sloppy in your finances, marriage, consistency with the kids, friendship, relationship with God, and fill in the blank.
JEHOVAH ROPHI [RAPHA] – The Lord My Healer
With all the pollution that is around us on a regular basis it is impossible to not be affected by it. We need supernatural healing to flood us. Check out this story in Exodus:
Exodus 15:26
22 Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) 24 So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?” 25 Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink. There the Lord issued a ruling and instruction for them and put them to the test. 26 He said, “If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.” 27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.
Isn’t it interesting that humanity’s soul has been tainted and sin is present in all of us. It was in our parents and it is in our children. The only thing that could make it alright and heal our bitter waters was a piece of wood. The cross of Christ. He came to heal. I love that God says He is our healer when he is talking about all of the water being bitter. Christ came to heal our mind, our brokenness, our emotions, the scar tissue of past relationship, our physical bodies and our brokenness. He came to infiltrate every part of our being and make it whole again … if you would just let him. Don’t get used to the water being bitter and think that it is the way it has to be. Let Him in. Meditate on this question today:
Q. Are you willing to admit that your aren’t whole, to get God’s healing?
Don’t read over this question. Ask it … then ask it again … ponder and then ask it again … and then … you get the idea. You will find their are layers that you have built up that may take a little time to get through.
Until Tomorrow …Nothing is impossible through prayer!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 6 – Aug 16, 2021
WANT SOME PEACE?
I am sure that there have been some days where you have lost your peace and all you are just off. Maybe you experienced stress or anxiety from people around you. Maybe it was some situation that is bearing down on you. -OR- Maybe you were irritable and caused someone else to loose their peace. Whatever the case the third redemptive name we are going to talk about is this:
JEHOVAH SHALOM – The Lord is my peace (Judges 6:24)
The story that we get this redemptive name from is that of Gideon. Israel had being oppressed by the Midianites for 7 years and the bible tells us that they “Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the Lord for help.”(v6) Isn’t that just like us? Our situation turns bad and then goes to worse and then goes to even worse and finally … we cry out to God about it. Our man Gideon lived in so much anxiety and fear that he was cowering under ground level in a winepress threshing his wheat. Then I just love what happens right in the middle of this! The angel of the Lord appears to Gideon and says: “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” The angel of the Lord knew who Gideon was, but Gideon didn’t know who Gideon was. He was the weakest in his clan and his clan was the weakest in the tribe of Manasseh.
Gideon was in an impossible situation, he was full of fear, stress and anxiety racked his body, he had no self worth or confidence and he wasn’t even sure if God heard any of his prayers. Then God picked Him out, declared him a “Mighty Warrior” and then asked him to save the whole nation. The angel of the Lord continued to try and convince Gideon that he was God’s chosen to do the impossible and Gideon continued to tell Him He had the wrong kid. But, all of a sudden in verse 22, Gideon’s eyes were opened and He realized that God was powerful enough to do whatever He wanted to through even the weakest. It was there that he built an altar and called it “The Lord Is Peace”.
We love to think that peace is where you are lying on a beach on some resort, with no worries, no issues, no responsibilities and no where you have to be. If you have ever been there it is great, however, that is not where you need the Lord to be “your peace” is it? No, you are already “at peace” and that is not where we live our daily lives. We need the Lord to be “our peace” right in the middle of the hairiest of situations and then stay there all the way through to the other side. After Gideon “saw the light”, signed up for the Lord’s army and created an alter with God being his peace, what do you think happened next? Yep, it got worse! Gideon followed God’s plan and the whole village brought him outside to killed him! How about that? That’s when we need peace! As a matter of fact God’s Peace stayed with him and brought this weak little Gideon from the weakest clan even more trials. God’s peace brought him and his tiny army of 300 face to face with a 120K man army. God’s peace worked through him and his men to defeat the midianites and then get this … The whole nation experienced peace for 40 years.
Fight to get God’s peace in and on your life. Ask him for it. Ask him to show it you. Ask him what you must do to make it happen. He longs to give it to you, don’t get in the way. So, here’s the question?
Q. HOW HARD ARE YOU WILLING TO FIGHT TO GET THE PEACE OF GOD?
How hard are you willing to fight to get:
Peace in you marriage?
Peace in your finances?
Peace in your relationship?
Peace in your mind?
Peace in your situations?
Fight hard. Live well. Prayer is the key!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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Day 5 – Aug 15, 2021
YOUR AGENDA OR HIS?
The next redemptive name in our list (2 of 8) is “Jehovah Jireh”, which means “The Lord my Provider”.
JEVHOVAH JIREH
We get this name from the story of Abraham and Isaac found in Genesis 22:14. In short God promised to Abraham that He and his wife Sarah would bear a son and that through him their descendants would be as numerous as the sands on the sea shore. AND that there was a promised land waiting for them to inhabit when they become a nation. In their old age, when their bodies were ‘dead’, God awoken Abrahams seed and cause Sarah to be fertile. Out of this came their one and only son together. This son was the only way in which God’s word to Abraham could be fulfilled. All of Abraham’s purpose in all that he did through his entire life, was resting on the shoulders of this one baby. No pressure right. Then catch this many, many years later check out what happens in Genesis.
2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” – Genesis 22:2
Are you kidding me?!?! If he does what God says, Abraham’s whole purpose and that of the future nation of Israel would completely void out the promise that God Himself gave to him. How do you reconcile that one? Well Hebrews gives us some insight. It says:
17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” 19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death. Hebrews 11:17-19
Basically Abraham was saying: “God, I give you my agenda, my purposes, my thoughts and worries and everything that I have lived for up to this point. I am giving you my life and everything I care about. BUT, I know that your promises are always true, that you never go back on your word and I trust that somehow you will make it happen, even if you have to raise my only son from the dead. He was committed to everything the Lord asked Him to do, because he knew his God. And then when Abraham had his son on the alter and ready bring down the knife Genesis records this:
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns.He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” – Genesis 22:13-14
Abraham said that God would provide a lamb (Gen. 22:8), but instead He provided a Ram. Why? Because God would provide a lamb … 2000 or so years later on that very same mountain the “lamb of God”, God’s only son, would be sacrificed for the sins of the world and fulfill His promise to the world. What amazing, daring faith! But, it does raise one question that you can meditate on for the rest of the day.
Q. WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO GIVE, IN ORDER TO LET GOD PROVIDE?
Your hurts … identity … agenda … future … today … finances … time? What is it for you? Let this question marinate all day. What’s your answer?
Until Tomorrow:)
Ps. Sean & Faith
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DAY 4 – Aug 14, 2021
IS CHRIST LEADING
I have really grown to appreciate and love the names of God over time. The more you dive into and pray through them the more alive the become to you. When Jesus prayed (in Matthew 6:9) “… Hallowed be your Name” it is super easy to just read through this verse and not give it a second thought. But if do that, you read right through all the power that it contains. What is Holy about His name? In the Old Testament we see that God gives us 8 of His names AND these are the names He wants us to call Him. Let’s look at the first one.
JEHOVAH RA’AH – The Lord is my Shepherd!
This name is found in Psalm 23:1
Psalm 23:1a The Lord is my shepherd (Jehovah Rohi [Ra’ah]), I lack nothing.
Here King David (probably reflecting and at an older point in his life) is describing himself as a sheep, with the LORD as his shepherd. This is not a very flattering picture for David to paint of himself. Sheep are dirty, smelly, stubborn, stupid, and totally helpless. When talking about sheep it is good to know that sheep need 3 things before they can be at rest.
1. They need to be within sight of the shepherd.
– If they can’t see the shepherd, sheep will stand up looking until they collapse from exhaustion. We do this … if we don’t know the shepherd, We will take control of every aspect of our lives until we collapse.
2. Sheep need the safety of the flock.
Even a sheep that is tired and hungry will not stop wandering if it is alone. We were wired for relationships
3. Sheep need freedom from predators.
– As long as a wolf or a lion is near them, sheep will not lie down or eat. Why do we have stress, fear and anxiety? Because we don’t really know the Shepherd.
With that I have a Question for you to meditate on today. It is this:
Q. WHAT ARE YOU LETTING GOD LEAD?
Is it all of your life or just the parts you feel secure in? Meditate on this question and don’t shut Him out when it becomes uncomfortable.
Happy Fasting!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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DAY 3 – Aug 13, 2021
So, yesterday we covered the foundation of prayer which is the state of the actual relationship. Today, I want to dive into the foundational prayer. This is an extremely important part of our fast. Set aside the time and pray. I believe these foundations will be helpful.
I think it is awesome that the scripture records that even the disciples of Jesus were curious about prayer. As Jewish children that would have taught prayer and memorized prayers. They probably prayed several times a day, and yet look what Luke records.
Luke 11:1
1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”
I think what they were saying here is: “We know how to pray, but when we pray and then we watch you pray, it looks completely different.” I think they saw passion, intensity and a boldness that only comes from a true relationship and it created a desire for them to have the same. Jesus then began to teach them a prayer and as a Rabbi would do he lined out the topics and order that they should pray in. Matthew 6:7-8 tells us that this prayer was never meant to be memorized and repeated verbatim.
Let me break down these areas into 8 topics in the order Jesus gave. The purpose of this blog is one of an overview, I will not be going into detail at this time (You can click here for an audio message on this)
9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “Our Father in heaven,
– You are to realize that he wants the intimate relationship of a perfect father, who wants to be involved in the minute details of your everyday life. At the same time understanding that he is also has limitless power and authority. He created the universe by the power of his words and breathed out suns. There is nothing he cannot do! In your own words acknowledge these concepts and say it out loud in your prayer
9 … hallowed be your name,
– This is one of my favorite parts. Proverbs 18:10 says that the “name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe” This is so true, especially when we realize what is in His name. In the next several blogs we will unpack this in detail because I think they ask amazing question that will help in our quiet time while fasting.
10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
– Put God’s concerns first in our prayer and He will bless ours. But putting him first is always going to lead to your life being better. What is He concerned about? His lost sheep, or in other words all those who are far away from Him. Don’t ever forget, you are an ambassador for Christ!
11 Give us today our daily bread.
– This is where you express your needs, like get Him involved in every part of your life.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
– I love that you aren’t even asking for forgiveness until the 5th part of this prayer. I think so many times we think that we can’t come to him unless we repent, but Jesus is here saying come to me the way you are and after you have acknowledge who God is, what His name means, put His concerns first and asked for your needs …… then confess your sins. Probably the hardest part is asking the question: “Am I forgiving to the degree that I want to be forgiven”.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
– This should really be translated as: “Don’t allow us to be lead into temptation”. Realizing that there are temptations all around us, but God can always give you a way out.
… but deliver us from the evil one.
– We have to realize, like Ephesians says, that our battles aren’t just natural things that we can control.
“12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” ~Ephesians 6
I think sometimes we completely forget this aspect and it is an important reminder at the end of this prayer in Matthew 6.
13 … For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, amen.
– This is just a big ‘ole exclamation point! It is finished. It is done. It is ending the same way it began. Our God is infinitely powerful, He wants to be intimately involved in our lives and there is nothing he cannot do!!!
Prayer is powerful!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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DAY 2 – Aug 12, 2021
WHAT IS PERSONAL PRAYER
BUT, for today let’s talk about prayer:) Prayer is the fuel that we need for our daily lives. Especially during a fast, it is a way in which we can plug into and rely on God to give us the strength and energy to get through the day and still love in the process. With out this fuel you may find that you will sputter and sometime come to a complete halt not knowing how to move forward. You lose the purpose of fast and let go of those things that you are believing for (remember the DAY 3 post?). The issue for a lot of us is then either: “What is prayer really?” or “How do I really pray?”. We may not ask the question, I have found that many people struggle with what it is supposed to look like, what’s it’s true purpose is and it can be a little embarrassing as a Christian to state that you don’t really get it (even though it is fairly common among believers).
JESUS PRAYED
First we know that Jesus prayed (Luke 3:21, Luke 5:16 and Luke 6:12). As Christ followers we should be following the ways of Christ. Jesus prayed, therefore, we should pray.
MEETING, DATING AND MARRYING
You should also know that the foundation of prayer is your relationship with God. Prayer is simply having an ongoing conversation with God. As we all know, the type of conversation you have with someone is greatly dependent upon the kind of relationship you have with the person. I like to look at the difference between meeting someone, dating them and then marrying them. When you meet someone and they intrigue you, you might them have surface level conversations about likes and dislikes or whatever. You don’t really know them. I mean you know who they are, but you don’t really know them in any significant way. If you want to get to know them, that is called dating. You think … hmmmm … there is a possibility this could go somewhere, based solely on attraction and commonalities. In dating you then have many conversations about deeper things. You want to really get to know them. You become interested in everything they are interested in. You will drop everything you are doing at the drop of a hat to spend more time with them and sleep isn’t an issue. You find out what you can ask of them and what you are willing to do for them. Then you ask the ultimate thing from them and say. The question is: “Are you willing to spend the rest of your life with me, commit to only me and eventually start a family?” In other words … “Will you marry me?”. In marriage, you are completely committed. You commit to living your life for the good of your spouse and kids. You enter deeper levels of understanding about the one you are committed to. You communicate in deeper ways. You have an intimacy not experienced in the dating relationship. But, if you don’t watch it, if communication deteriorates, so does your relationship. You have to add dating back into your marriage and communicate with the same intensity you did then if you are to maintain a healthy relationship.
COMMITTED TO CHRIST
So, all of that is nothing new, right? What we might not have considered is that our prayer life goes through the same transitions. At first God intrigues as and our conversations (prayers) are fairly superficial. Once you realize God is for you and you realize that you want to know more about Him. You date God. Your conversations become more frequent, you reveal your struggles, you ask Him His thoughts, you even stop talking as much and start listening to the response. Eventually the more you realize what he is willing to do (supplemented by the beautiful love letter He wrote you … i.e. The Bible) and what you are will to do for Him, you relationship grows. Even to the point of saying: “I want to commit the rest of my life to you, I want to enter into a marriage type covenant with you”. Many of us are simply dating God. We want the benefits of a relationship with actually full commit. Your conversations (i.e. prayer) will never actually progress beyond dating if that is the case. When you are fully committed, you realize just how much He is committed to you. You realize the boundaries of what He is willing to do for you are way greater than you ever imagined. You also realize that your boundaries have increase and are way greater as well. Your conversations become way more intimate. You sometime even argue, because you don’t understand and need too understand. Your love deepens to new levels and so does your understanding. If you have ever experienced this you know that you need the dating intensity to remain through the rest of the relationship or it will fade and along with it, your passion, understanding and love. Dive deep and remember the more you give and the more committed you are the better your prayer life will be … and the more power to will see from it. (kinda like marriage)
Now that we have covered the foundation, tomorrow we will cover the how. Jesus actually spells it out in plain terms for us.
Thanks for praying with us!
Ps. Sean & Faith
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DAY 1 – Aug 11, 2021
This is just an introduction into what we will be doing for the next 21 days! Thanks for joining with us in prayer!!
WHAT IS 21 DAYS OF PRAYER?
It is simply 21 days that we set aside every year in August to pray for our country, our community, our family/friends and our church. During the summer our focus and priorities tend to shift, our schedules change and it’s easy to let live just take over. We believe that as we go into this new season and school starts back up, vacations are over, schedules normalize that we need to take some time in prayer to focus on that which is actually going to make the biggest difference in every area of our lives.
Join us for these 21 days to pray for these 4 things:
- Our Country
– Regardless of who is in charge, we are required to prayer for those that are leading this nation. Pray for a revival in it’s leadership and a turn back the things of God. - Our Community
– These are the people that we can personally reach: Our neighbors, co-workers, the city leadership and those that we seeing in the market place. This is our great commission and our greatest mission. To tell the people in our world about the one who saves and delivers. We actually believe that our neighbors life will be better if Jesus were in it. So, let show them Jesus:) - Our Family/Friends
– The most important people we will ever share Jesus with are those that we are closest with and those that live in our homes. Pray that we can lead our homes in a way that is an example of the love of Christ. Pray that our friends can see Jesus in such a way that they will want to meet Him to. - Our Church
– As a church we are believing for more people to steward in His kingdom. More free people reaching more people to free. AND for a permanent building to call home and be a beacon of healing and light to all that live in our cities!