Faith in prayer?

[lastpost]

I come to my GOD as a child, knowing that before I ask, He has provided that which is my need.

With faith in His Love, I hand myself over into His care, pushing aside all doubts of the physical mind, confident that what He has promised will come to pass, and I shall go on my way rejoicing in those gifts with which I have been blessed by Him.

My GOD grants that the great Truth - the stretching out of those bound in a physical body to be in communion with Him, the Great Ruling Spirit of all - He grants that this Truth may be spread in all directions; and that those of His children, bound by the things of the earth, fettered to their toys and their enemies, may gain the strength to desire better things...

I ask my loving Father that He will use me as His instrument, that He permits me to take up the service He has laid down for me each moment; and as I give out of that which He has allowed me to make my own, so I am conscious that He is giving all to me because He is my Father and I am His child, bound together in love for ever and for ever.

I thank my Father for all His gracious tender care.

[lastpost]

Before GOD I ask for guidance, strength, courage and wisdom.

I place myself before my GOD, the Ruler of my life, the Consoler of my heart, the Inspirer of my spirit.

I humbly ask to learn of Him, and in learning, to take to myself the greatest lesson of all - the gift, the privilege, the joy of being able to pass on the little I have gleaned to others.

I ask GOD to help me to understand myself, and when that consciousness comes, to grant that I may pass out of things physical - things limited, those which represent self in its many deceptive forms - pass into that great wide continent of endeavour, and there give out the message of hope, the Good News of Christ and His Love for mankind.

I ask GOD to grant me preparedness to be an instrument for Him, and to grant that as a tool I may be conscious of the service in front.

I ask GOD if He will show His children that as we do the next thing, and try to train the mind to reach out to those things which are of the Spirit, that the gates of that which we call revelation may be found wide open, and that we may feel something of His Glory shining upon us.

I ask GOD to place all of His children in His Loving Hands and ask Him to bless them wherever they may be, that they may make their way with happy hearts, confident that the strength they need will be given, certain that it is His Will that we learn of Him to go forth and teach others how His Love overrules us all.

I thank my Father for all that He gives. Gratitude is an essential quality to nurture, and most of all gratitude to the Giver and Sustainer of Life.

[Tom]

I have faith in God, and I think prayer is just talking to God. I don't think you should talk to God expecting God to grant your every wish like some genie in the sky, but God will save you from evil in his own time. And just like talking to a friend, you can't expect God to take you seriously if you don't respect God. If you seek to do God's will, you will be blessed. Sometimes what you think you need is just something you want that God may not think is good for you. So don't lose hope or faith in God because you don't get everything you want in life. We really need very little in life. Scripture says we should be content with food and shelter, and, if you have somebody to love, you're really blessed. I think we need to take some responsibility for our own health but realize we're all dying of something anyway. It's just a matter of time. So don't get mad at God if a loved one dies or you're dying of some disease because dying is a common condition that all humans share. It's just a question of when the process is complete. I'm sorry to be getting morbid here, but I'm just trying to keep it real. I heard Charles Darwin got mad at God because his daughter died, and that's why he came up with his hypothesis of evolution that is the religion of atheists. I think you're better off trusting God than a crazy idea about being the offspring of monkeys, but, hey, that's just my opinion. I think the original post misses the mark because I don't think we should have faith in prayer. We should have faith in God. Faith is belief. Believe God. Talk to God in prayer, but don't expect to have all your requests granted to confirm your belief in God because that's not what prayer is all about. Prayer is communication. Be glad you can communicate with God, and know God is fully aware of everything you say and think. And even be aware that God communicates with you, but sometimes maybe you're not picking up on what God is saying to you. If you want to know God is talking to you, and you want to know what God is saying to you, all you have to do is listen to the word of God. It's that simple. And not only is God talking to you, but God is empowering you through the word of God. That may sound crazy to you, but check it out. It really works.   

[lastpost]

O Thou who hast given us Life and who seeks to comfort our hearts, to Thee our God, our Christ, we come in gratitude, and we ask Thee to still further draw aside that which veils things spiritual and to allow Thy children to partake of that which Thou hast so lovingly prepared for them.

Let us, O Father, mindful of Thy promises, never forget to pass on of those promises to others; mindful of all Thy protecting care, let the words which fall from our lips be of reassurance, of hope, of faith and of perfect trust in the working out of the purpose and the plan.

Teach us to be Thy disciples in very truth; let us not pause over the lessons, but ever stretch out toward the greater, the higher, and the holier, having known the consciousness that we are Thy children - part of Thee, sharing, in miniature, Thy wonderful gifts - and so must strive to attain something of that perfection which Thou art and will be for ever.

Give us that strength within which shall defy all the opposing forces, let us be men and women in the God sense, fighting ever, and pledging ourselves anew to rest not but to pass on the Truth which Thou hast given to us.

Father, for all the benefits received, for Thy guidance and care, we thank Thee with grateful hearts.

[Tom]

Anytime you get to thinking about being discontent with your life because you think God doesn't care about your prayer, remember there are a lot of folks who would be really glad to have the simple things you take for granted. Know that you are blessed.

"I learned to be content in that in which I am." (Philippians 4:11)

"Now devoutness with contentment is great capital; for nothing do we carry into the world, and it is evident that neither can we carry anything out. Now, having sustenance and shelter, with these we shall be sufficed." (1 Timothy 6:6-8)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8nTcqwqdU4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5tEag3Pf_s

[rosered]

I come to my GOD as a child, knowing that before I ask, He has provided that which is my need.

With faith in His Love, I hand myself over into His care, pushing aside all doubts of the physical mind, confident that what He has promised will come to pass, and I shall go on my way rejoicing in those gifts with which I have been blessed by Him.

My GOD grants that the great Truth - the stretching out of those bound in a physical body to be in communion with Him, the Great Ruling Spirit of all - He grants that this Truth may be spread in all directions; and that those of His children, bound by the things of the earth, fettered to their toys and their enemies, may gain the strength to desire better things...

I ask my loving Father that He will use me as His instrument, that He permits me to take up the service He has laid down for me each moment; and as I give out of that which He has allowed me to make my own, so I am conscious that He is giving all to me because He is my Father and I am His child, bound together in love for ever and for ever.

I thank my Father for all His gracious tender care.

Greetings  in peace Lastpost

I love what you share   from your heart   , 

  I thought of the ''age ''  or stage  of a child    innocent   

  and the young men  as an age or stage     that have  become strong  in truth and grace   , By Jesus example

  and the fathers    age and stage 
  we  see  3    as a pattern    in

1John 2   

  Until we  become  the fulness of the   Image of Jesus Christ  spiritual body  EPH 4      He   was  born  as a babe    by woman under the law    and walked the earth in a natural body      at the fulness of times     , He  was the head / authority    set  in Place   when He rose  up  taking  with Him  those  firstfruits of the Head    as we can now know the body of Spirit is still being formed  as being Him   forever more .

12for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.


  this   link  has been useful for me  over many years and helped   along the way   

http://www.blbclassic.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G3962&t=KJV

[lastpost]

Yes, Rose, thank you.

I believe that the spiritually mature man or woman will have to finish off their spiritual growth with the innocence of a little child...

"Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven"  Matthew 18:3

To know oneself first, in this context, is to be in a better position to understand others who have not yet understood.

[rosered]

Yes, Rose, thank you.

I believe that the spiritually mature man or woman will have to finish off their spiritual growth with the innocence of a little child...

"Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven"  Matthew 18:3

To know oneself first, in this context, is to be in a better position to understand others who have not yet understood.

Thank you and   I definitely      get what you are  saying    now  ,   and  have   to agree  with , 


    Being a child or children  of  the day is also a  sign

  Of the sons  / children   , innocent  is who ,  the Lord Jesus Christ is ,  and we are to be   just Like Him     , as His little children

  Blessings   Bro !!   very helpful  :HeartThrob:

[lastpost]

Great Controller of all Life, we, Thy children of the Light, thank Thee for this gift that Thou hast bestowed upon us - the gift of Life Eternal, the gift of Love Eternal - and we know that as we ask, seek and knock, Thou art teaching us how to live and how to love.

Oh inspire us to greater efforts; turn our eyes away from doubt, away from those things which would intervene, away from the distractions of the material world, and draw us, as your children, to Thy Side, to receive Thy blessing direct.

O Loving Saviour, help us to understand that, catching the Light of Thy deep Love, in spirit we have wished to be more like Thee, even as Thou didst walk this little earth, disregarding the valley of comfort with its child-souls to take the steeper path with its burdens of love.

Father, we know that we fail so often, we know that the shadows seek to thwart Thy holy purpose, but ever and again the courage comes, and we go on, profiting by the past and leaning ever more on the grace which comes from Thee.

Oh give us greater vision, give us a wider illumination, and grant that the Divine within may dominate our lives now and for ever...

Father, we thank Thee for the gift of Christ; for all He has taught us and shown us, we thank Thee with grateful hearts.

[lomarah]

Amen.

[lastpost]

O Perfect Love, we draw closer than ever, giving out from ourselves that which we wish Thou wouldst take. Oh, help us to grow. Grant that the mind of the body may be able to catch from the mind of the spirit something of its wisdom; and that Thy children, realising that they are the sons and daughters of the Most High, may diligently turn themselves to their various tasks, knowing that every temptation overcome, every task well done, means one step nearer to Thee...

Our blest Redeemer, give unto us the power to aid others, grant that self may be forced back, and that in front may be the light of self-revelation; for we know that only when in a measure we understand ourselves - our weaknesses and our failures - can we be used as instruments in Thy holy work. And when this process of training comes to each of Thy children, oh, grant that despair may be far from them; that they may realise in very truth that the revelation of themselves is as a tool, so that in turn they may understand others...

And so, Father, commending ourselves to Thy care, certain that the power is sent down, once more we pick up our cross with grateful hearts - with gratitude and love that Thou hast provided a holy communion with Thee, that Thy little ones can stretch out and find that which is Holiness Itself as the veil is lifted and the Holy of Holies is entered by our Saviour in front. Father we thank Thee. Amen...

[Caffus]

 :HeartThrob: Lovely post! I believe God chose to work often though our prayers for our benefit. Because we need Him, not because He needs our prayers to accomplish His will. We need our relationship and trust in Him to develop.

[lastpost]

Caffus, it is good to hear someone who believes in the power of Prayer.

Most of these prayers are from the Spirit, not me, I am just relaying them on hoping that the Reality of Spirit will benefit someone.

I also believe that Prayer is power. When we pray, we are using a gift from GOD, and power is being created which GOD can use, although HE does not need us to create power, but He has included us in the scheme of things, He uses us, as He has always used people - so Prayer is  part of the Great Plan [in my opinion].

If we could be prayerful in our dealings in the world too - even one person can make a huge difference to the atmosphere, I believe.

Peace.

[Caffus]

There are times..when I pray for others, that I feel lead to speak by the Holy Spirit to them. Don't know, if you know what I mean or if anyone else ever prays this way. Cause I've never heard of anyone praying like that before.

[sheila]

 yes, me too,sometimes.  And sometimes,according to His will,He may give me a vision during that prayer regarding them

  so I can minister to them. Sometimes dreams in the night He will give me about someone..so I know I need to go see them.

   and even their names..and I know He wants me to go see them.   

    I didn't know what was going on when all these things started happening...but I come across a sister who helped

  me understand what was happening...and I found things in the scriptures about it,too.

    It's Him equipping us to serve/minister to other's.

[Caffus]

Awesome Sheila...so glad to hear theres others of us who pray that way! :gimmefive: :girlheart:

[eaglesway]

more and more lately I hear the Lord say to me, "Don't think, pray."

[Dandelion]

Faith can seem very illusive, at times. I remember an article that came out in many popular news magazines, quite a while after Mother Teresa had died, saying that she had many times that her faith was weak, or 'shakey' is perhaps a better way to explain it.

The point being, that all of us will have times that our faith is challenged. Our flesh is weak, but, we are told, that when we are weak, He is strong.

2 Corinthians 12:9    New Living Translation (NLT)
9 Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me."

Lutherans are taught that we cannot do any good of ourselves, but only through the Holy Spirit, can we even say 'yes' to God.

In the Bible, we are told, that when we cannot pray, we can ask the Holy Spirit to cry out for us.

...25But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. 26In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; 27and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."  Romans 8: 25 - 27

So, when we feel weak in faith, we only need to cry out to the Holy Spirit, who is ready and willingly to help us.  :Pray:

Remember, too, that faith the size of a mustard seed, can move mountains. Even our smallest attempts are acknowledged and nutured by God.

...19Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" 20And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. 21"But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." Matthew 17: 19 - 21

IMO.  :2c:

[Dandelion]

more and more lately I hear the Lord say to me, "Don't think, pray."

My favorite Bible quote: Proverbs 3:5 - 6

5Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. 6In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight....

I so agree with the Lord. :cheerleader:

[lastpost]

yes, me too,sometimes.  And sometimes,according to His will,He may give me a vision during that prayer regarding them

  so I can minister to them. Sometimes dreams in the night He will give me about someone..so I know I need to go see them.

   and even their names..and I know He wants me to go see them.   

    I didn't know what was going on when all these things started happening...but I come across a sister who helped

  me understand what was happening...and I found things in the scriptures about it,too.

    It's Him equipping us to serve/minister to other's.

Thank you for this testimony Sheila. I believe that loving and prayerful gifts are given by God through the Holy Spirit - and really, one could wonder why such a loving gift should not be normal from a God who loves His children. Some are taken aback by them and some become so used to them that it is an integral part of life. The God who is Love has given His children the means to serve Him by serving others in Prayer.

[lastpost]

...19Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" 20And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. 21"But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." Matthew 17: 19 - 21

IMO.  :2c:

My opinon is that we are truly blessed, if we could see it, we would see The Holy Spirit is always at hand, Christ is always near, so near, within, He is the Light that lights every man who comes into the World.

Yet, Faith I believe must be tested, and this is part of what I believe is a probation - God's way of allowing us the greatest happiness and joy when we see the abundance of life in the Spirit is after all true.

I noticed the unbolded part of your quote: 21"But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." Matthew 17: 19 - 21

The reference to Prayer (which can take a variety of expressions) and fasting (which I believe is self-abnegation or self-denial, not necessarily abstaining from food) as being an integral part of spiritual cleansing is, I believe, sometimes dismissed as not being a necessary part of spiritual life for the followers of Christ, thinking that the only reason for life on earth is to make one single decision.

For me, Christ is the Way - and the only way I can attempt to follow Him is by taking His yoke upon me...

"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls"

...and once it is there, why would anyone want it removed?

That is my opinion.

Peace.