Pray – Page 3 – Praying Pint

He hears us

“But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Job 6:2 “Oh that my vexation were weighed, and all my calamity laid in the balances! For then it would be heavier than the sand of the sea; therefore my words have been rash. For the arrows of the Almighty are in me; my spirit drinks their poison; the terrors of God are arrayed against me.

Psalms 88:1 O LORD, God of my salvation, I cry out day and night before you. Let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry! For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.

Psalms 27:9 Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!

Psalms 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

Nehemiah 1:6 let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned.

Even in our darkest moments God is there. When all around us seems to be in turmoil and chaotic God is there. When we turn to Him we find rest for our soul. When we turn to Him we find light in the darkness. When we turn to Him we find peace in the chaos. Our troubles are known by our Heavenly Father. He cares for us and has promised to be our strength, our shield, our hope, our place of refuge.

Refuge / Rock / Shelter

“ do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

“He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.”

“For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.”

Psalms 61:1 Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!

Psalms 5:1 Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning. Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray.

Psalms 55:1 Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan,

Deuteronomy 4:29 But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Psalms 139:9 If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalms 18:46 The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation

Psalms 62:2 He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.

What keeps us from calling on God and seeing Him as a place of refuge and our fortress? Could it be we don’t see a need for Him in our life? I wonder if our need for God is a direct correlation to amount of time we spend in His word. Scripture clearly tells us to seek Him, desire Him, obey Him, believe Him, trust Him, rely on Him, love Him, hope in Him, sing to Him, have peace in Him, praise Him, pray to Him, and listen to Him. When we spend time in His word the more we hear His quiet voice leading us down paths that bring honor and glory to Him. How can we call on someone we hardly know? How can we hold on to His promises if we don’t know what they are? How will we know sin in our life if we can’t compare our actions with what is expected in His word? We become passive, complacent, lukewarm, and have an appearance of being close to God but in reality our substance is shallow words without action. Action from the heart that leads us to repentance, action from the heart the leads us to give, action from the heart that allows us to forgive, action from the heart that leads us to praise, action from the heart that leads us to confess, action from the heart that allows us to be wronged, action from the heart that runs to God. We would do well to spend time in His word, listen for His whispers of guidance, follow and obey Him.

Broken Hearted

take care that you be not ensnared to follow them

Nehemiah 1:2
And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said to me, “The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.”
As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, “O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments

Ezra 9:1
After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.” As soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled. Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel

Daniel 9:18
O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy.

Two separate trials. One the remnant of Jews who escaped exile were living in Jerusalem and the walls were broken down and the gates burned. In the other people of Israel had not separated themselves from others who did not honor God and took wives of nations they were not allowed to marry. In the trail spoken of in Nehemiah he mourned because the city that stood as a symbol of God’s chosen (who by the way had chosen to forsake following Him, and were allowed by God to be, taken into exile) had come to much ruin and were a shame for those who loved God. In Ezra he mourned because of the great sin that had been committed by the Jews. In both cases these two leaders were heart broken over what they heard. Their response was to fast and pray. This is a good example for each of us. When we hear of our culture going down a path away from God – Fast and Pray. When we hear of brothers and sisters fallen away and following a path away from God – Fast and Pray. When Gods word convicts our heart that we are on the wrong path – CONFESS and TURN AWAY from that which God has shown us. Oh God open our ears and our heart to know You and hear Your voice leading us on a path that brings honor and glory to You. Keep God first in all you do.