Great Themes of the Kingdom: Prayer, 3/6/16

Sermon 3-6-16 great themes of the kingdom  Prayer          James 4:1-6

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? ² You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

⁴ You adulterous people,^[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us^[b]? ⁶ But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

“God opposes the proud   but shows favor to the humble.”^[c]

The evolution of our prayers.

The evolution of our Christianity

Evolution of our spirituality

In the beginning we are indeed the subject and center of our prayers.
But in God’s time and in God’s way a revolution takes place in our heart.
Slowly, almost imperceptibly, there is a shift in our center of gravity.
We pass from thinking of God as part of our life to the realization that we are part of His life.
Mysteriously, God moves from the edges of our prayer experience to the center.
A conversion of the heart takes place, a transformation of the spirit.
It is a wonderful work of Divine Grace

Common misconceptions
the phrase - Prayer changes things – me         PICTURE does gary have it
this is the great “amiss”

We r not in control. We are submitted
The preponderance of scriptural evidence points to the relationship in this matter.

People never find richness because they settle for shallowness
How would you feel if i was always asking.....
Always wanting something, never just enjoying the time toghther

There is a time to ask for things. Just don’t get stuck there

we are taught
What we are taught in prayer- does not serve us well-
bow your head-close your eyes
fold your hands-kneel down
pray for this-ray for that
make a list-ather together a really big list and go over every persons need
feel guilty for not praying enough
fell guilty for wandering thoughts
feel guilty for falling asleep while praying – nothing wrong w that
you have to pray to the right person - father, son or holy spirit
you should have a king james sounding praying voice

We are stuck in concrete thinking about prayer
here is how it is done, do it this way,
[not that any of this is bad, there is just more]

Asking amiss-----To gain, to consume
selfish prayers
During the war, God was good to us, we prayed, and all of the bombs fell on the other side of town.

grandmother "took her grandson to the beach one day, complete with bucket, shovel and sun hat. The grandmother dozed off and as she slept, a large wave dragged the child out to sea. The grandmother awoke and was devastated. She fell to the ground on her knees and prayed, 'God, if you save my grandchild, I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll join whatever club you want me to. I'll volunteer at the hospital, give to the poor and do anything that makes you happy.'

"Suddenly, a huge wave tossed her grandson on the beach at her feet. She noticed color in his cheeks and his eyes were bright. He was alive. As she stood up, however, she seemed to be upset. She put her hands on her hips, looked skyward, and said sharply, 'He had a hat, you know.'"—Bombeck

Prayer isn't always about talking...Anthony Demello
4 stages of prayer

1.   I talk, you listen – god I want

As if In the American version of Christianity;  Jesus gets married, buys a house in the suburbs; has a family; serves as PTA president for a stint; has good health care; has a fat 401K; lives a long life and dies quietly in his sleep.
our ideas of prayer have kept us from prayer

2.   god talks, I listen

What does God say?
Sell all you have and go to china to be a missionary?
Love your neighbor, love your enemy, forgive. Keep no record of wrongs
Trust me, come follow me, fear not. Peace be with you. Turn the other cheek

Do you really already know what to do?

Go tie up your camel

The holy spirit will lead you to places you never thought you would go and invite you to do things that you never thought you would

3. Silence
Explain it – out to dinner

Prayer as relational
Jesus said, if you have seen me, you have seen the father - John14
I and the father are one - they are spending some time together - John10

maybe the most important part of prayer is the just being together.
Think of a friend
What do you like the most about the relationship?
Talking sure. Bit don't you have lots of time when you are just together?

You are in the presence of someone you love.
You don't have to talk. You just hang out

what would you do with a friend. Fish, play darts, listen to music.
Sit on the desk, Go for a drive. Go for a walk

You can do this with God, with Jesus Christ.
This is prayer
This is a relationship with God

Ramifications of this

Prayer becomes a normal part of our conversational life

Our Focus changes
our prayers are not longer just about finding relief to some part of life that we don't like, prayer begins to be enjoying time with a friend

Prayer is not closing the gap between me and a god that is far away
Prayer is the joyful communion between the heart of God and the soul of man

the mystics taught that – who are the mystics

Spirituality is about waking up.  Prayer should wake us up

Out of our slumber of self-indulgence

Prayer brings us to an awareness of god

The great WOW

Awareness - The bus in yellowstone
We are born asleep to God…..we walk around in a stupor…..being religious even…..but unaware, unconnected, out of touch
True prayer wakes us up to the reality of Gods deep love for us
True prayer wakes us up the reality of Gods availability & presence in our daily lives

There are no good and bad moments….they are all Gods moments….
True sanctification is not eliminating the normal moments from your life….it is learning to make those moments that are shared with God
I take you to piano lesson…..God and I take you to piano lesson

The long lines at Walmart- finding joy in difficult moments

Prayer helps us to see

The blind man saw men as sticks

Paul said that we see thru a glass darkly, dimly
See the good, see the sky

Jesus prayed prayers that released him from his human wants
-yet not my will, but thy will be done

-father forgive them, they no not what they do

True prayer teaches us to be released from things and people who upset you so much…

"Father, I thank you for the people in my life who seem to bring more pain than joy, for I believe you have let our paths cross for important reasons. Thank you for the good things you want to do in my life through the things that bother me.”

The story of the fire maker – in detail
Story of the fire……….all the rituals, but none of the fire,
A man invented fire and took it to faraway lands
They loved it.
They worshiped the fire and the man moved on.
They built temples and put the fire tools on the altar.
They developed liturgy and ritual.
They got so busy doing religious things that they forgot the fire and let it burn out
So they had nice temples, but no fire.

Where is the fire of the Christian life? In the prayer.

The fire is prayer…….

Not prayer of desire but prayer of relinquishing

Conclusion
Prayer is the one thing all Christians can do. We cannot all sing. We cannot all teach Sunday School. We cannot all preach. We cannot all even read our Bibles. But we can all pray. 

Something dissolves in water – tide pods
the salt figurine wandered over the earth until it fame to the sea. Where it remained lost in the contemplation of that huge mass of water and waves that it had never seen before. Who are you, it finally asked the sea. Come on in and see, said the sea with a smile. Without further ado, the salt man entered the sea and the deeper it went, the more it dissolved until only a tiny amount of its body was left. Just before being completely dissolved, the salt figure exclaimed, now I know who you are

Stanley jones wrote - I am never so free as when I am bound to him. I am never more completely myself and when I am lost in him. The core of my being yearns to be connected to something bigger than me.

God is waiting. When you are ready, just wade into the water.

Surrender
Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me: I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more. Amen.
St. Ignatius Loyola 

The Holy Spirit moves from high-pressure to low-pressure

Opening the Door to Hope: Prayer, John 4:1-15, 3/16/14

Sermon 3-16-14 the woman at the well prayer

4 Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John— ² although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. ³ So he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee. ⁴ Now he had to go through Samaria. ⁵ So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. ⁶ Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. ⁷ When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” ⁸ (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) ⁹ The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.^[a]) ¹⁰ Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” ¹¹ “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? ¹² Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” ¹³ Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, ¹⁴ but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” ¹⁵ The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

The series…..opening a door of hope

Today.  Prayer. 

Certainly if there is anything that would open a door it would be prayer.

 I have read much and thought much about prayer in the past few years. 

I have written about it and talked with you at length about some of my thoughts.

Though I think repetition is good and important for learning, and though I think my prayer stuff is good stuff -  I am not going to give you the same stuff again.

Today I want to talk about the woman in this story and what I think is the pivotal moment of the encounter.

When She says, sir, give me this water.

 I have been thinking about healthy prayer

I am concluding that All healthy prayer is asking for more of God

The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray

          Thine is the kingdom, the power, the glory

The common man in the temple prayed– God be merciful to me a sinner

Thief on the cross- Jesus remember me

Jesus on the cross – Father into thy hands I commit

 I may pray for a sickness to be healed

I may pray for a relationship to be healed

But at the end of every prayer and the heart of all prayer

Is not, give me what I want, it is – I trust you

All prayer should include the line….i trust you.  No matter what.

I am asking for this, but what I need most of all is you

At the root of my life – I want more of you

I want more of you because I sense that you are the real thing

I sense that you are the living water

I sense that you are the ground of my being

If I have more of you, everything will be ok

So here is this encounter w this woman

Jesus is journeying thru Samaria

Samaritans were left behind during the Babylonian captivity

They intermarried and picked a new place to worship

When the remnant returned

They resented the Samaritans

They intermarried, they changed the faith

They don’t look like us.  And they didn’t suffer

They had it easy

There was a great divide. Jew did not eat with Samaritans. 

They did not share a cup.

MAP

On a journey They often took the long way around to avoid them

Not jesus

And so They meet at a well in the middle of the day

Maybe she is a prostitute

She is looking for a job

No self respecting husband would allow his wife to be out there alone

Jesus asks her for a drink……..she questions him

They get into a discussion about water

She asks for water

He asks about her husband

Kind of a non Jesus move

Usually Jesus heals people when they ask.  Gives them the goods.

Not this time.

He asks about her husband.

He is not insulting her, he is not judging her, he is establishing her need

She is still thinking of water as the kind in the well.

She does not understand that Jesus is running a little deeper

He does not get hung up on the fact that she wants to worship somewhere else

Jesus does not get hung up on the fact that she has 5 husbands

[this is the part of the story where I always feel badly for people who actually have been married five time!]

We have made a big deal of this……..how loose she is

Maybe there is something else going on

I apologize for how I have talked about this in the past.

She must be a loose woman……

Maybe there is something else going on

Women in Jesus day did not make decisions regarding marriage and divorce

They were property

When her husband died or kicked her out, she had to find another man to take care of her

She has had to do this five times

The woman is broken

She has settled for this kind of life

Jesus looks past this

But he helps her see the depth of her need.

Before she was shallow……..

Now he has reached more deeply into her life.

Shallow prayers vs deeper prayers

Where does a need hit you?

When life gets ahold of us, we have a great opportunity to get ahold of God

this encounter with jesus  that changes her

He offers her something better

She runs off and tells her friends

It changes the community

³⁹ Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. ⁴¹ And because of his words many more became believers.

⁴² They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

He didn’t just hang w a samaritain woman

He didn’t just eat with them

He didn’t just drag the disciples along for this adventure

He stayed with them for two days!

He treated them like normal people

Because they are

Jesus love changes her and she shares her newfound faith.

She found the people in her sphere of influence

She told them.  I have found someone who has changed my life……..

yesterday She is trying to survive-

recovering from a life of rejection.

Making money the only way that she can

Lost, discouraged, and down.

Is this the story of your life?

Do you ever feel like you are trying to survive?

There is a better way.

Jesus talks about the water.  The living water.

It is the presence of the holy spirit that comes into the life of a person that asks.

It is gods amazing grace.

It is available to anyone who asks

And it will change your life

whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

The root of every prayer is “God I want more of you.”

Call upon him.  You will be glad that you did.

Parable of the Unjust Judge, Luke 18:1-8, 02/02/14

Sermon 2-2-14 the parable of the unjust judge  Lk 18:1-8

 

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

 

Persistence

This is a topic that has been on my mind.

Another topic that has been on my mind recently is the selective way that we tend to look at scriptures.

 

ONE - At first it seems a parable that indicates that if you stay after it long enough, god will give you what you want. 

 

Is that the purpose of Prayer…

Does God change His mind?

          If I get more people to pray will that work?

Is prayer about us changing God?

Is prayer about us getting what we want or God getting what he wants.

Or in prayer does God change our hearts?

 

Although we are encouraged not to pray with vain repetitions,

Prayer is intended to be an ongoing life of communication with God

I was reading the other day about how little Americans pray. 

That people should have a set time and pray for at least five minutes in the morning and 5 before bed.

Really?  Then the rest of the day belongs to me?

I would offers something else.

Prayer is intended to be an ongoing communication with God.

 

Prior to cell phones and email, I had to go to a phone to call you. 

I had to wait for a pay phone to open up.

Now that we have cell phones, I can talk to you anytime. 

We can be in constant communication.

So how I pray is no longer a hit and miss thing, but an all the time thing

My praying becomes a fluid experience.

 

usually this relationship happens over time. It takes time to build

in time - My vantage point –view point begins to shift toward God’s.

My will to his will

That is when I can begin to see something that that I had not before….

Realize a Story bigger than me is happening in and around my life. 

 

The prayer in this story is not about me getting what I want for my consumption

TWO - It is about justice.

I am not going to chase this a lot this morning, it is very painful to us

But imagine if our lives and brains,

instead of thinking about what I want and desire

Thought instead about making things fair in life.  Giving others a fair shot.

 

Micah 6:8

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good -And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy  and to walk humbly^[a] with your God.

 

Justice conference dates……..Feb 21-22

 

Lets talk about the spiritual nature of persistence……

In life, it is a character trait……. To persist.  To be determined. 

To stay with a thing.

It is a character trait that we honor, it is a spiritual character trait

·        The little engine that could

·        The tortoise and the hair [the tortise]

·        Getting up and getting after things.

·        When the going gets tough, the tough gets going

That is why we love underdog stories

Great come from behind stories- where someone stayed at a thing

 

It is a skill that is mandatory for a successful life.

You have to say with a thing

You have to work at a thing- did I say work?

          2 thess 3:10 Paul – if a man would not work, neither would he eat

You have to work for a living. – I have been trying to teach my kids this their entire life

If you work in life, you have a chance, if you don’t, you are doomed to a life of victimhood

 

          Get up when you get knocked down

          Work hard

          Work first.  Play second

Go to work, work all week.

You can solve your problems on the nights and weekends.

You have to keep going.

 

Some people quit.

Its too hard - Its not easy

They become Bitter and angry - There is never anything to gain from this.

 

Do you want to quit? --You can always quit tomorrow

Don’t give up today

[some relationships should end, but that is not what I am talking about]

 

You have to keep after a thing.

The same implies to spirituality. The importance of staying with it

Praying thru to the other side

Adonijah -Holding on to the horns of the altar 1 kings 1

Jacob wrestling with the angel [before meeting esau]

 

The nature of the spiritual walk in engaged for the long haul

Leland high school 1973 - Story of first track meet – fastest 880 man.

          Passed by their three. 

At the end of the season, I was the slowest 880 man

 

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart….

 

The nature of the spiritual walk is Engaged for the long haul

THREE - Will the son of man find faith on the earth

If it doesn’t go the way that we want it to go, will we still remain faithful?

The parable does not end with an insistence on the promise of God

But on a question of whether or not we will remain faithful, even if things don’t go our way

 

James 1:2-4 ² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

 

Maybe you know the story of Derek Redmond,

400 m runner for the British in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. 

Invested his life in training for this race. – he was favored to win

 

150 m short of the finish—

He pulls up lame                                                                                                      PHOTO 1

torn ham-string and down on his knees. 

He was leading only a couple of seconds before, now everyone passes him on the way to the finish. 

He is in great pain                                                                                                   PHOTO 2

Track personnel gathered around him, stretcher bearers huddled…

then, Derek Redmund emerged up from the midst of the huddle and started limping/hopping his way toward the finish.                                                     Photo 3

The crowd of 65000 rises to its feet…cheering him on                                    

 

After he struggled to go some 30 m or so…a man appeared on the track…

fighting his way past security…                                                                            Photo 4

he put his arms around Derek and helped him to the last leg of the journey. 

It was his father       

 

You may have collapsed under…

a heavy load,  a physical condition,  a broken heart,  a conflict,  a disappointment,  a loss…

 

Will everything turn out as you want?  Perhaps not…

Did Derek Redmund lose?  Who defines losing? 

Maybe God has a different finish line…

 

A broken son…was joined together in the arms of a loving Father.

65,000 in the stadium cheered on as they witnessed courage, persistence, and faithfulness.

All of heaven rises for you.  we still cheer on courage, persistence and faithfulness

 

God expects us to keep trying.

He promises to be with us.

 

Isaiah 40:29-31 says:

“He gives strength to the weary   and increases the power of the weak. ³⁰ Even youths grow tired and weary,  and young men stumble and fall; ³¹ but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

 

Let us pray

Spiritual Disciplines - Prayer 09/09/12

Sermon spiritual disciplines 9-9-12 prayer

16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Ever wonder about God’s will? Wonder no more.

Pray continually - Pray without ceasing KJV
We don’t get this

We are stuck in concrete thinking about prayer
here is how it is done, do it this way,
[not that any of this is bad, there is just more]

bow your head-close your eyes
fold your hands-nee down
pray for this-ray for that
make a list-ather together a really big list and go over every persons need
feel guilty for not praying enough
fell guilty for wandering thoughts
feel guilty for falling asleep while praying
you have to pray to the right person - father, son or holy spirit
you should have a king james sounding praying voice
these are the nutsy-boltsy ideas that we have all learned about prayer
[not that any of this is bad, there is just more]

We think prayer is only asking for stuff
Asking is ok, but we cant get stuck there
I was certain of the shallowness of it, then I came into a painful problem……
Yet when asking we must be careful………James 4 …..understand context
1What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

Asking amiss-----To gain, to consume
selfish prayers
During the war, God was good to us, we prayed, and all of the bombs fell on the other side of town.

grandmother "took her grandson to the beach one day, complete with bucket, shovel and sun hat. The grandmother dozed off and as she slept, a large wave dragged the child out to sea. The grandmother awoke and was devastated. She fell to the ground on her knees and prayed, 'God, if you save my grandchild, I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll join whatever club you want me to. I'll volunteer at the hospital, give to the poor and do anything that makes you happy.'

"Suddenly, a huge wave tossed her grandson on the beach at her feet. She noticed color in his cheeks and his eyes were bright. He was alive. As she stood up, however, she seemed to be upset. She put her hands on her hips, looked skyward, and said sharply, 'He had a hat, you know.'"—Bombeck


Asking for things in prayer
Ask for what you want,
Lord I am praying for the outcome that I want
But in all things, I put my trust in you
Anything else Results in anger and confusion

Another way

there is another way
paul says pray without ceasing…….how can this be?
Prayer is about conversation in a relationship

Demello, Anthony – 4 stages of prayer
I talk you listen
I listen you talk
neither talks both listen
neither talks nor listens....enjoy the presence

Conversation

See the sky
I have learned something in the last 2 years that has totally changed my perception of prayer
when you pray Do you see the problems or do you see the good
If in your prayer life you look up, do you see the clouds or do you see the sky

Change
The Conversion of the Heart
Metamorphosis
[not simply turning from, but turning towards…………]
In the beginning we are indeed the subject and center of our prayers.
But in God’s time and in God’s way a revolution takes place in our heart.
Slowly, almost imperceptibly, there is a shift in our center of gravity.
We pass from thinking of God as part of our life to the realization that we are part of His life.
Mysteriously, God moves from the edges of our prayer experience to the center.
A conversion of the heart takes place, a transformation of the spirit.
It is a wonderful work of Divine Grace

Jesus prayed prayers that released him from his human wants
-father forgive them, they no not what they do
-yet not my will, but thy will be done

True prayer teaches us to be released from things and people who upset you so much…

"Father, I thank you for the people in my life who seem to bring more pain than joy, for I believe you have let our paths cross for important reasons. Thank you for the good things you want to do in my life through the things that bother me.

I'm so glad that you are also within me working to make me more like Jesus -- more patient, more gentle, more loving -- through the very things I dislike.
Goal of prayer = God
think of God as much as you can, as often as you can
quote page 13-Brother Lawrence

Pray remember what I have recommended to you, which is, to think often on GOD, by day, by
night, in your business, and even in your diversions. He is always near you and with you; leave
Him not alone. You would think it rude to leave a friend alone, who came to visit you: why then
must GOD be neglected? Do not then forget Him, but think on Him often, adore Him continually
live and die with Him; this is the glorious employment of a Christian; in a word, this is our
profession, if we do not know it we must learn it

Not his help, not his guidance, not is healing, but just him
In marriage, do I always want something from the partner, or do I just want ot spend time

when not primarily in prayer…..still give the moment to God
I thank you for the feeling that I have when I listen to the eagles sing seven bridges road
I thank you for the feeling that I have when I watch the superbowl with my friends
I thank you for the feeling that I feel when I am arguing with someone because it drives me back to you

we connected to God in prayer…..like by a rope.
1. tug of war
2. dog on a walk
3. ship to a pier

We are born asleep to God…..we walk around in a stupor…..being religious even…..but unaware, unconnected, out of touch
True prayer wakes us up to the reality of Gods deep love for us
True prayer wakes us up the reality of Gods availability & presence in our daily lives

Is it possible to pray without ceasing? Can we invite God to share more of our daily lives? Is there someone here who wants to find out?

To be with him
You have heard the story of the little boy who kept following his mother around the house, from one room to another, until she said: "What is it that you want?" The lad replied, "Nothing, I just want to be where you are."

That, is prayer. We simply want to be where God is
Does this feel good? It is what we are created for

Result
Your light will break forth
Finger pointing is over
Malicious talk is done
You will become known as a healer, one who restores the breach
098i876

What if I prayed and did not ask for gods healing
What if I prayed and did not ask for gods guidance, answers, assistance
What if I prayed, and all I asked for was God himself.
If I found him, wouldn’t I have everything that I needed?

Conculsion
Prayer is the one thing all Christians can do. We can not all sing. We can not all teach Sunday School. We can not all preach. We can not all even read our Bibles. But we can all pray.

Separate yourself- contemplate – experience God
Its like dancing with Jesus

the salt figurine wandered over the earth until it fame to the sea. Where it remained lost in the comtemplation of that huge mass of water and waves tat it had never seen before. Who are you, it finally asked the sea. Com on in and see, said the sea with a smile. Without further ado, the salt man entered the sea and the deeper it went, the more it dissolved until only a tiny amount of its body was left. Just before being completely dissolved, the salt figure exclaimed, now I know who you are

God is waiting. When you are ready, just wade into the water.
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Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess You have given me: I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough, and will desire nothing more. Amen.
St. Ignatius Loyola
Lora storey blessings song=-=-=

The song “Blessings” is about just that: the redefining of blessings in my own life. As a child, I grew up hearing songs like “God Bless America” and saying “the blessing” every time we ate a meal. Although patriotic songs and mealtime prayers are wonderful, they may have conveyed a subtle message that was decidedly unhelpful – they taught me that God’s blessings always arrive in the form of health, happiness, and prosperity.

But, where does that leave the other things that come into our lives? If I experience hardship or heartbreak, am I being punished? If my husband has poor health, is that from God? Some may think so.

When my husband Martin was first diagnosed with a brain tumor, well-meaning strangers asked him if he had any unconfessed sin in his life, for surely God would not curse him for no reason. But the more my husband and I looked to God’s Word, the more we came to realize that sometimes God actually blesses His children through the absence of the very things they pray for.

Paul asked God to remove the thorn from His flesh; instead, God chose to teach Paul about a power that is only made perfect in weakness. Job deeply mourned the loss of his possessions and his health, yet he learned to worship God in the midst of his nakedness.

So how do I define blessings now? I’m still no t sure. Every “what if” of the song “Blessings” symbolizes a thousand questions God seems to have left unanswered. But this I do know: There is a depth of intimacy with God that can only be known through suffering. There is a reliance on Him that can only be experienced when everything else around my soul seems to give way. And if that’s what it takes to make this stubborn child cling to that old rugged cross, you can have your prosperity.

I’d rather have Jesus.