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Let’s Pray

Lord, hear our prayer.

Today Todd and I shelved our initial plans for the show after hearing about and watching the events around the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. Who Knew Wednesday? Who knew THIS would be the result? Protestors breaching the doors of our House and Senate?

So, instead, we took a posture of prayer and song as the events continued to unfold.

A special thank you to those area pastors who joined us today and prayed with us over the airwaves:

Rev. Todd Risser, Associate Pastor at Mount Vernon First Church of the Nazarene
Rev. Troy McNichols, Senior Pastor and Mount Vernon New Life Nazarene
Rev. Stephanie Lobdell, Campus Pastor at Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Rev. Tim Overly, Senior Pastor at Covenant Church in Mount Vernon

Todd and I also shared some songs that remind us that in times of uncertainty, we can still root ourselves on the Solid Rock (click the songs for links to videos):

Mandisa and Jon Reddick – You Keep Hope Alive
Matt Redman – You Never Let Go
Ryan Stevenson – Eye of the Storm

Remember, the first step to receiving guidance from God is to want it.

When you are sad or brokenhearted, pray Psalm 34:17-18. “The righteous cry out and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

Whether it be a pain from grief, loss, sorrow or failure, God promises to be close. He is our source of healing.

Thanks for listening!
– Joe and Todd

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Praise Thursday

Today we continued are devotion from “Time with God for Fathers” by Jack Countryman. We talked about the relationship between discipline and love as well as the special love God gives to those in trouble.

Discipline and Love Go Hand and Hand 

Hebrews 12:9-11 New International Version (NIV):  

Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live!10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Now no one likes to be disciplined, especially as adults. Like the verse says it never feels good in the moment. But when we choose to cooperate with God when he corrects us, blessing are sure to follow. It’s during these times our hearts and minds our open to his mercy and grace. It’s also here were we can be blessed with an opportunity for a closer walk with him. When we learn from our discipline, we learn to follow his will and then can do all things through the holy spirit in us.

 

Special Love For Troubled Fathers

1 Peter 1:6-8 New International Version (NIV)

6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,

 

God knows you face difficult situations. He hears your cries even if he doesn’t answer when you want him too.  The fact of the matter is, no one is immune to feelings of hopelessness in dark situations. Sometimes, he’ll let these situations unfold to see where you turn too. It’s a way for Him to test your faith in him and strengthen it as well. When you fall back on him in times of trouble, he will give you the strength and comfort to make it through. In turn, this will bring you closer to him so you can further his kingdom! He can take the darkest situations in your life, and make them into something beautiful

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Prayers for Everyday Needs

Today, we continue sharing devotionals from the book Let’s Pray: Talking to God with the Words of the Bible, by Dr. James Banks, who serves as a pastor at Peace Church in Durham, North Carolina and is a regular writer for Our Daily Bread.

In this short book, we are reminded that the prayers of the Bible are an amazing gift from God and they have so much to teach us.

This is what Alex and Stephen Kendrick talk about in their book The Battle Plan for Prayer in the chapter called ‘Praying the Word.’ In the prayers of scripture, we find words that can help carry our thoughts and emotions to God. He invites us closer to him through the prayers of the Bible.

This week, we’re sharing prayers from the Word for everyday needs.

Dr. Banks reminds us that sometimes we run into heaven’s throne room with our list of needs.  Yes, Hebrews 4 encourages us to come boldly to the throne of grace, but sometimes we can be TOO bold!

As the angels surround the throne, hiding their faces in worship at the awesome wonder of God, we burst in without knocking, like an impatient child, making all of our wants and wishes known!

But still, even as we do this, we meet a Father who welcomes us in grace…and we can approach without fear, because He knows our daily needs and cares about them.  As we mature in our prayer life, we eventually find that our heart also matures, and starts to beat in rhythm with His heart!

Prayers about everyday needs help us gain perspective.  They are not only about things necessary in life, but also our need for a growing relationship with our heavenly father.  God wants us to seek HIM first (Matthew 6:33), then bring our everyday needs to Him with faith and expectation.

Our prayers from the word today start with Psalm 139, which helps us know that God is with us wherever we go. Psalm 139: 7-12 reminds us that we can never escape from his spirit and we can never escape from his presence:
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

Today we’re also going to share some prayer starters. These are verses from The Book of Psalms that can help us start our prayers.

The first is, “please keep my needs in your thoughts,” inspired by Psalm 44:17…
But as for me, I am poor and needy;
may the Lord think of me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
you are my God, do not delay.

The second prayer starter is from Psalm 65: you forgive my sins and bring me joy…

3 When we were overwhelmed by sins,
you forgave[a] our transgressions.
4 Blessed are those you choose
and bring near to live in your courts!
We are filled with the good things of your house,
of your holy temple.

Thanks for listening!
– Hannah and Lilly

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Praise Thursday

Lilly and I started a new section of the devotional by James Banks called “Let’s Pray”.

Today we prefaced for the prayers we are going to share next time about everyday prayers.

Here what we said:
Sometimes we rush into heavens throne room with a list. Though God’s word encourages us to “come boldly unto the throne of our gracious God”, there are moments when I wonder if I’m a little too bold. When my mind is filled with the things of this earth, I can only imagine what it looks like in heaven…
Imagine the father, seated on the throne and ruling in glory, “high and exalted.’ Around his throne, our seraphs, Hiding their faces and in worship before the awesome wonder of the ancient of days.  And like a child bursting in without knocking, here I come, making all of my wants and wishes known.
Rough as that picture is, there still a grace-filled beauty to it. I am a child, a child of the father saved by faith in his crucified son. I can come boldly and entirely without fear because God is “Abba, father “. He knows my daily needs and cares deeply about them. It’s not priority he’s concerned about but it’s the condition of my heart. And the more my heart matures, the more it will be in rhythm with his own. God wants us to grow and “mature’ in our understanding of what it means to have a relationship with him.
Andrew Murray explains, the little boy may ask of the father only what it needs for itself; and yet it soon learn is to say, “give it some for my sister too.’ But the grown-up  Son, who only gives for the father’s interest and takes charge of the fathers business, asks more largely and gets all of that is asked.
Prayers about everyday needs, help us maintain perspective. They are not only about things necessary for life on earth – they’re also about our deepest need:  A growing relationship with our father in heaven. Jesus makes this priority for our living and asking very clear: “seek the kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” God wants us to bring our every day needs to him with faith and expectation so that we will live in loving dependence on him and you know the blessing of being caught up in his purposes. He is the “author of life”,  and we exist for him and because of him. And his kindness, he wants to bless us and drop us near with love that gives life to our souls. There is no blessing greater than God.
Click HERE if you want to know more about The WNZR Sonfest Sync It Contest!!
Thank you for listening!
Hannah Radke
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