“Here, I believe, is the key to understanding what is most personal in prayer. We do not pray to tell God what he does not know, nor to remind him of things he has forgotten. He already cares for the things we pray about… He has simply been waiting for us to care about them with him.”
Tim stafford
Share a Comment: Consider sharing a comment in the box below with something God is showing you either about fasting, prayer, or making room in your heart – as an encouragement to others.
Daily Devotionals: As we step into this next season in the life of our church, we are asking the Lord to help us “Make Room in our Hearts” – for the people Jesus loves, and the people Jesus brings. During these 21 Days, our whole church will be reflecting and meditating on these same thoughts and prayers together, with one mind, guided by and depending on one Spirit.
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Engage the Word: Making Room In Our Hearts
Read Matthew 6:9-13, as Jesus taught His disciples how to pray. He said to them:
9 Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Connect the Heart
Jesus said, Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Some of our recent devotional times have focused on the reign of Christ over our priorities. Today, we focus on the rule of Christ in our priorities. Author Clarence Macartney says that praying “your will be done” is basically saying “Lord, whatever you want, wherever you want it, and whenever you want it, that’s what I want.” I don’t know about you, but saying these words is a struggle for me… Am I really open to what this means in my life? Whatever, wherever, whenever!? This really means letting go of control over my life and handing it completely over to God. If I’m honest, I want to be able to say this, but actually living it is a different story. Another author has said, “God expects us to be orderly. He expects us to manage our time, to discipline ourselves, to prepare well… But if we could learn to pray first and plan afterward, how different would be our homes, our churches, whatever we are doing… Maybe, just maybe, we are planning in one direction and God’s will is in another direction.”
Reflect on the Truth
- How is your heart – your words, your actions, your desires, your motivations – welcoming the rule of Christ in how you live?
- Pray these words: “Lord, whatever you want, wherever you want it, and whenever you want it, that’s what I want.” What do you feel, sense or think about as you lift these words to Him?
- What do you sense the Lord is wanting to say to you right now in this moment?
Depend on the Spirit
Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see the deeper longings, desires or motives in your heart that these thoughts are pointing to. (For example: you may write down, “O Father in heaven, it is my heart’s desire to be able to authentically say whatever, wherever, whenever. It is so difficult. Please do this hard work in my life, by your Spirit.”) The Lord can help us discern the path forward – through His word, His Spirit, His people.
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For Prayer
As we conclude our devotional time, let each of us pray for the Ascent Church family to be a people who would be able to say “Lord, whatever you want, wherever you want it, and whenever you want it, that’s what we want.”
Fasting
Please read the first blog post entitled “Why Fast?” This explains what fasting is and why we follow Jesus in this spiritual discipline as together we seek the heart of God.
Previous Posts
To read yesterday’s blog post devotional, please click here.
To read our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting Introduction, please click here.
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Some parts of our 21 Days devotionals are adapted using various resources on scripture and prayer like The Bible Exposition Commentary, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, The New Bible Commentary, Logos Bible Software and other resources.
Share a Comment: Consider sharing a comment in the box below with something God is showing you either about fasting, prayer, or making room in your heart – as an encouragement to others.
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