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Doc
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« on: October 24, 2009, 12:54:35 PM »
Two things prayer is NOT:

1) Prayer is NOT a person’s attempt to change the will of God

2) Prayer is NOT trying to conquer God’s reluctance to answer. 

Prayer IS for the purpose of YOU submitting YOURSELF to God's will and trusting His choices for your life with THANKSGIVING.  Prayer is to change you, not God.

Read Psalm 37:4 and you will find the key to what I have just stated. "Delight yourself also in the Lord and He will grant you the desires of your heart." Only when you decide that you want what God wants - as Jesus did throughout His entire earthly ministry (John 8:29), including the Garden of Gethsemane before going to the cross for your sins and mine - will you begin to understand what the purpose of prayer really is. 1John 5:14 speaks to this very matter.

Most people don't get prayers answered because they "ask amiss" as the Bible tells us in James 4:3. Until we stop trying to give God advice (Romans 11:33-36) on how He should choose to make decisions in our behalf and how to direct our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6) we will continually be frustrated in our Christian “walk”. 

BLESSINGS,

Doc
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« Reply #1 on: October 24, 2009, 01:20:19 PM »

Amen!  Good post Doc.
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« Reply #1 on: October 24, 2009, 01:20:19 PM »
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« Reply #2 on: October 27, 2009, 01:21:35 AM »
That's a wonderful explanation of prayer Doc!  PS.37:4 has always been very near and dear to my heart.  It is misinterpreted by a lot of people, but I believe you nailed it. It's about us being in tune with God's will and his heart for us.

Prayer is also asking.  Did you ever hear the story of the dream of the great preacher DL Moody. He dreamed he went to heaven and Jesus took him into this huge room filled with beautifully wrapped presents.  When Moody asked Jesus what do all the presents mean, Jesus answered him that these were all the things He was would have given to Moody, if he had just asked for them. But he never did.  Moody didn't mean to say they were all 'things' but they were all prayers that would have been answered if they had been asked for.

Blessings to you,
HAH
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Doc
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« Reply #3 on: October 27, 2009, 09:00:47 AM »
Quote from: larry2 on October 24, 2009, 01:20:19 PM

Amen!  Good post Doc.

I appreciate your feedback.  BLESSINGS.  Doc
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Doc
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« Reply #4 on: October 27, 2009, 09:44:23 AM »
Quote from: haveahope on October 27, 2009, 01:21:35 AM
That's a wonderful explanation of prayer Doc!  PS.37:4 has always been very near and dear to my heart.  It is misinterpreted by a lot of people, but I believe you nailed it. It's about us being in tune with God's will and his heart for us.

Prayer is also asking.  Did you ever hear the story of the dream of the great preacher DL Moody. He dreamed he went to heaven and Jesus took him into this huge room filled with beautifully wrapped presents.  When Moody asked Jesus what do all the presents mean, Jesus answered him that these were all the things He was would have given to Moody, if he had just asked for them. But he never did.  Moody didn't mean to say they were all 'things' but they were all prayers that would have been answered if they had been asked for.

Blessings to you,
HAH

HAH: Yes, this is a nice illustration, but I'm not so certain of it's application. 

According to my understanding of Scripture, my role as a child of God is to conform myself to His will, and in so doing, I will lack nothing that my Father has for me.  When I want what God wants for me, He will give me ALL He has for me.  God will never withhold what is good for me, whether I ask for it or not. 

Much of what God has had for me over the last 62 years of my life, I could not have possibly even known to ask for.  What God has for me in the future - I absolutely have no idea.  What I do know is that day-by-day what I ask for is that He conform me to HIS purpose, in whatever way brings honor and glory to Him, and that I will joyfully and thankfully be content  with how He chooses to do so. 

Even though there are a good number of verses I could have cited in this post to support my understanding of this truth, I believe that in Matthew 6:33 Jesus summarizes it quite adequately - “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” 

When we do the FIRST THINGS God expects of us, God then does the BEST THINGS He has for us. 

BLESSINGS,

Doc
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« Reply #5 on: November 01, 2009, 03:58:33 PM »




                                                                    AMEN
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« Reply #5 on: November 01, 2009, 03:58:33 PM »
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