“In His prayer, Jesus calls us not only to reach out to God for His forgiveness, but also to reach out to others and extend to them our own. That is the only ultimate way to conquer evil. Our willing sacrifice is required. Evil will be healed only through the love of individuals – that is, through you and me.”
david jeremiah, prayer: the great adventure, p. 52.
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 1 Kings 6:15-17
15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Connect the Heart
The prophet Elisha’s servant was afraid, and for good reason. The king of Syria had sent a great army to capture his master! The king of Syria had learned that Elisha had been revealing all of his secret battle plans to the king of Israel, and he was determined to put a stop to it. Elisha’s servant sees the army and his heart fills with fear, “What shall we do?” However, Elisha’s heart is full of faith. He tells his servant, “Do not be afraid.” And then he says something that must have befuddled his servant. “…those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” In our sanctified imaginations, we can picture his servant squinting. He only sees a few cows, a horse, a bumblebee, and an old dog wandering around the yard. “Umm…am I missing something?” Elisha smiles and prays, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.”
Suddenly, his servant gasps as he sees the mountain “full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” Chariots of fire! What a sight. Every ounce of fear in the servant’s heart flees and now only faith fills the space.
Do you ever get overwhelmed by the “forces” that seem to be against you, against us? Does your heart fill with fear, asking, “What are we going to do?” When we keep our eyes fixed on the earthly opposition and obstacles that stand in our way, we can tend towards pessimism, or we might even call it “realism.” But what if our eyes were opened to see the spiritual battle going on around us, how angel armies and chariots of fire are fighting for us- and winning? May God root out every ounce of fear in your heart today as you make room for faith.
Reflect on the Truth
- What are some of the fears you are facing today? How does it feel to live life with a heart full of fear? How does it feel to live life with a heart of faith?
- If your eyes could see the angel armies that are fighting for you, your family, and for The Ascent Church, what would it look like? Take some time to write in your journal and describe it.
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, “I want to believe that angel armies are fighting for me, but sometimes it’s hard to have that kind of faith. Please help me.”) 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 trust that not only is God for each of us, but that He is fighting for each of us. Pray that every man, woman, student and child would take a step toward laying aside fear, and step into faith, trusting that God is at work – even in the midst of the difficulties, conflicts and trials of life on this earth.
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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