5 Surprising Results of Not Praying

These things may be surprising but they are each a result of not building your prayer life:

1. You will not appear as smart.

James says that if we lack wisdom we should ask God for wisdom and He will give it. The reverse of that is that if we don’t ask for wisdom we may not get the insight we need. Are we not getting the benefits of asking for wisdom?

2. You have to overcome more temptation than needed.

This may seem surprising, but it seems clear from Jesus’ teaching on prayer. He encourages his disciples to pray, “Lead us not into temptation.” This would imply that if we don’t pray that we may face more temptation than if we had. I think I will pass on unneeded temptation, thank you very much!

3. You have less of the things that you need in life.

With the same teaching on prayer about temptation Jesus teaches them to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.” As Mark Batterson says, “The greatest tragedies in life are the prayers that go unanswered because they go unasked.” We shouldn’t miss out by not asking.

4. Your life will be more boring.

Again this may be surprising but true prayer helps to prevent boredom in life. Part of the life of prayer is listening prayer. When we pray God promises, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.” (Psalms 32:8 NIV) I have found that when I listen He often sends me on an adventure that gets my heart pounding. What adventure in life will we miss by not giving Him that space?

5. God may seem further away.

It should be no surprise, but sometimes it is, that spending time in prayer makes us more aware of the presence of God. Henry Blackaby in his classic book Experiencing God says that, “True prayer does not lead to an encounter with God; it is an encounter with God.” How often has God seemed far away when He wouldn’t if I have pressed into a time of prayer?

This post is not to make you feel guilty, but rather encourage you to take advantage of turning each of these negatives around by building your prayer life.

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How to Meditate on the Bible and Find Success

man sitting in the top of the mountain

I love this quote:

When you think about a problem over and over in your mind, that’s called worry. When you think about God’s Word over and over in your mind, that’s meditation. If you know how to worry, you already know how to meditate! You just need to switch your attention from your problems to Bible verses. The more you meditate on God’s Word, the less you will have to worry about. –Rick Warren The Purpose Driven Life page 90

 

 

Bible meditation sometimes is looked down on because it has been high jacked by eastern religions. But we really can’t let that happen because meditating on God’s word can powerfully change our lives. Don’t be intimidated by the idea as the quote says above, “if you know how to worry you know how to meditate.” Let me give you some simple steps. Even these steps may seem a little involved-I am just giving detail in order for you to see it in slow motion.

1.  Find the passage.

This may be as simple as grabbing the verses or story that stands out to you when you are reading your normal reading time. You may pick a few verses or read a large story quickly for themes. If you are new to the idea I recommend a story maybe one about someone’s encounter with Jesus. Another fun way to do this would be to pick a song that is Bible, like the group the Sons of Korah, to listen to a chapter all day long.

2. Get yourself in the story.

This is very easy if it is an actual story of something that happened in the Bible. Begin to imagine that you are each of the people that the story talks about. Imagine you are David walking toward Goliath. Then go on and imagine that you are Goliath and see this small guy coming toward you. Think about the rest of the Philistine army as they watch. Then jump to the Israelites and King Saul.

3. Ask lots of questions.

What emotions would I have felt if I was in this account? What would have been going through my mind? Why would I have song this Psalm? What kind of things is God trying to get across? The more questions you can ask the more the verse or story will come alive.

4. Find God’s activity in the verses or story.

Ultimately when we come to the Bible our focus should be on God. What is He up to? What is He showing us about Himself? This kind of thinking can radically change your life.

5. Look for your action.

When you begin to see God in the verses or story you will be called to a response. Seeing God’s compassion will challenge me to be more compassionate. Seeing the strength of God may call me to trust Him. Now you are seeing the word of God change your life.

Start Somewhere

In this video I give you the place to start if God has put a dream in your heart.

Before you leave and think this doesn’t apply to you let me encourage you to realize this is true no matter what you are working on in your life:

You want a better marriage, maybe you need to buy a book on building your marriage. Start Somewhere.

You want to exercise more, maybe simply start by taking the stairs over the elevator. Start Somewhere.

You want to eat healthier, maybe you start with a little protein first thing when you wake up. Start Somewhere.

You want a better prayer life, begin by praying while you brush your teeth. Start Somewhere.

You want better relationships, start by committing to one church event other that Sunday AM. Start Somewhere.

I hope that you are beginning to get the idea. Charles Duhigg in his book, The Power of Habit, talks about keystone habits. These are habits that become the foundation of changing a bunch of habits. But again you have to start somewhere.

In the video you hear me talking about some action for 20 seconds. This is a reference to a quote from the movie We Bought A Zoo.

So before you go on with your day, send an email to ask someone to be your accountability partner, update your status committing to being at the prayer meeting once a month, or buy the book on prayer. Start Somewhere!

 

My Week After Easter Prayer (Expanded)

I enjoyed looking at my news feed on social media and reading the stories of all that God did in churches of pastor friends around the world. But it reminds me of an important and practical principle for the week after Easter.

I don’t remember where I heard this but, Billy Graham was once asked what was going through his mind as he saw hundreds of people respond by coming to the front after he had presented the Gospel message. He said that he thought about the parable of the farmer who sows the seed. Some of those who have heard the Gospel would have the seed stolen quickly. Others would grow, but quickly die out. He thought about the fact that maybe only 1 in 4 would last.

It was put another way by the famous missionary to India Praying Hyde that might be helpful. He talked about how when a major event is coming up we spend a lot of time praying for the events success. We ask God to bring in a harvest and similar prayers. Praying Hyde encouraged people not to forget to pray after the event for the fruit that came in as a result. Pray that people stay with their commitments to God whether for the first time or growing in that relationship. A great reminder and very practical.

So before you go on with your day would you pray these things with me?

  1. For protection of the seed of the Gospel presented on Easter around the world.

The enemy would desire to steal, kill and destroy. Let’s pray that the seed would go down deep into the soil of people’s hearts.

  1. For the people who made decisions at your church as they start out in this first week of new life.

Many people who started a journey toward Jesus will face the challenges of a real life struggles. Let’s pray that they have a week that would bring them back to church the next week.

  1. For friendships with Christians who will disciple them in following Jesus.

Friendships with other Christians are vital to our faith. They are also vital to a new believer. Let’s pray that they form quickly.

  1. For excited opportunities for these new believers to share their faith.

New believers often have some great opportunities to share their faith that can have a snowball effect. Let’s pray that they have the boldness to take advantage of these opportunities.

If we pray these things who knows if the Sunday after Easter may be even better than the harvest of Easter itself!

A Real Super Power That Could Change Your Life

For my mutual nerd friends, we sometimes may not feel powerful, but we like our superheroes. What if you really had a superpower?  I want you to know that thanksgiving in prayer has superpowers.

1. Thanksgiving protects you from the dreaded “Woe is me” blues Super Villain.

Our life can turn into a death spiral of despair if we are not careful. Thankfulness helps us take the turn out of the death loop and launches us to a place of victory (even if the circumstances don’t change.)

2. Thanksgiving keeps you from turning God into the mighty Mr. Prayer Request Slot Machine.

Mr. Prayer Request Slot Machine is a real threat to a fun prayer life. We become like a whiny blob when under his power. Thankfulness to God frees us to experience a broader friendship with God than just asking.

3. Thanksgiving gives you super vision to see the activity of God in your life.

In Enjoying Prayer I write about my habit of writing down 5 things I am thankful to God for everyday. These are not always big things and are normally only a few words each. But knowing that my eyes lookout for that activity. How much do we miss without the super vision of thankfulness activated?

You may never fly through the air, but being thankful really is a superpower. Don’t be afraid to use your superpower friends!

“but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

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