Believe In Your Prayers

Why do we pray?
Do we pray because it's our last option?

As far as I know, people pray hoping that extraordinary work of God would happen in their lives. And if we pray to God, it is obvious that we should have faith as we pray, right?

Unfortunately, most people doubt as the pray. Weird? But its reality.

According to Mar 11:24, "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."

Once we pray, we need to believe that God will do something to answer our prayers. He is all-powerful and there is nothing impossible for Him to do. What we simply need to do is to believe that our prayers will be answered, and in return we will have them fulfilled.


Always Remember:
Faith is the foundation of our believe and relationship with God. The moment we communicate to Him through our prayers, it is a must that we have Faith. As the bible says, "Without faith, it is impossible to please God!".

Your Eternal Destination

READ | Luke 16:19-26


All of us are eternal beings because we were made in God’s image (Gen. 1:26). After physical death, our spirits will live forever. Where we reside—heaven or hell—will depend on whether we have accepted or rejected Jesus as our personal Savior.

Scripture teaches that all have sinned and owe a penalty (Rom. 3:23; 6:23). There isn’t anything we can do to earn God’s forgiveness. Knowing this, our heavenly Father sent His Son Jesus to take our sins upon Himself and experience punishment in our place. In that way, we become part of God’s family and look forward to spending eternity with Him in heaven. His only requirement for this amazing blessing is that we acknowledge we’re sinners who need a Savior and believe that Jesus died to save us (Rom. 10:9-10). Those who reject Christ will spend life after death separated from Him and all else that is good. But those who believe will live with Him forever.

Every person will ultimately dwell in heaven or hell, both of which are real places described in the Bible. In heaven, we’ll never again know pain, sorrow, or tears (Rev. 21:4). But Hell is the opposite. A place of punishment, it will be the scene of everlasting agony and torment. Today’s passage illustrates this hard fact.

Eternal punishment and the reality of hell are never easy topics to consider, but they are vitally important because they will really happen. Don’t let your emotions turn you away from the truths recorded in Scripture. Instead, take heed of the warnings, and be certain you are heaven-bound.


From: InTouch - Early Light Devotionals

A Spiritual Science Experiment

1 John 1:7
If we walk in the light, as he is in the light . . . the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.


Fruit of the Spirit

Suppose a student chooses to test the effects of light and darkness on the growth of seeds for a science fair project. He gets some marigold seeds from the store, plants them in four Styrofoam cups, and waters them. He places two of the cups in a dark closet. The others go into a sunny window. In a couple of weeks, the seedlings appear. For a few hours, the plants in the dark and the ones in the light are quite similar. Two tiny green leaves break through the soil and begin to grow. Within a couple of days however, the plants in the closet turn yellow and begin to die, while the ones in the light grow and get more and more leaves. The experiment proves that plants have to absorb light in order to have the energy needed to grow, bloom, and make seeds.

The same is true of our spiritual lives. We need to live in the light in order to grow and become fruitful. Galatians 5:22-23 describes spiritual fruit as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These attributes are in stark contrast to the ones Paul listed as acts of the sinful nature: Jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambitions, envy, etc.

Let’s imagine a spiritual science fair project in which we try to become more and more kind. At first, we determine to observe how we act after a few days of listening to rap music that encourages rebellion and watching television shows that glamorize gang members who commit violent crimes. We may continue the experiment by hanging out with some kids at school who like to sneak around after dark to paint graffiti on the sidewalks in their neighborhoods. Would we become more kind or less kind after a week or so?

Next, let’s imagine that we do exactly the opposite for a couple of weeks. We listen to music that encourages us to love others in the same way Jesus did. We read accounts of young people helping others through short-term missions projects. We watch uplifting TV programs and movies. We might even volunteer to paint some classrooms at the local community center or play games with the children who gather there after school. Would we become more or less kind after a week or so?

Clearly, kindness could grow much better in the latter situation. We tend to become like the people we hang out with. So, if we hang out with mean and violent people, we will become increasingly mean. If we hang out with kind, generous people, we will become kinder. Living in the light means developing relationships with people who will help us become more like Jesus. We grow in godliness when we choose our friends based upon whether they have the kind of qualities God approves.
Those friends will be more likely to do what Jesus would and that will help us do the same. Good friends definitely help us walk in the light as Jesus is in the light.


Today’s Prayer:

Dear Jesus, you are the very best friend I could possibly ever want. You always love me and accept me. You even forgive me when I mess up. Please help me choose friends who will help me grow godly fruit in my life. Also, please me be the kind of friend who encourages others to become more like you every day. Amen.



From: New Wine Skin - Written by Martha E. Menne

The Embers of Love

“God has given us the Holy Spirit, who fills our hearts with his love.”
Romans 5:5 CEV

What if you’re married to someone you don’t love—or who doesn’t love you? Many choose to leave. That may be the step you take. But if it is, take at least a thousand others first. And bathe every one of those steps in prayer. Love is a fruit of the Spirit. Ask God to help you love as he loves. “God has given us the Holy Spirit, who fills our hearts with his love.” Ask everyone you know to pray for you. Your friends. Your family. Your church leaders. Get your name on every prayer list available. And, most of all, pray for and, if possible, with your spouse. Ask the same God who raised the dead to resurrect the embers of your love…

Isn’t it good to know that even when we don’t love with a perfect love, he does? God always nourishes what is right. He always applauds what is right. He has never done wrong, led one person to do wrong, or rejoiced when anyone did wrong. For he is love.



From: Max Lucado

THE BOUNDARY OF OUR BEWILDERMENT

"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." 1 Corinthians 10:13

This is a tremendous promise to every believer! It is easy to read, easy to memorize, and easy to encourage others with this blessed truth. But let me ask you, "Do you sincerely believe it?" Trials, adversities, and difficulties are common to us all. The Christian takes on a different perspective than the unbeliever. The believer has the assurance that God's hand is upon him, that "all things work together for good ...to them who are the called according to his purpose." When adverse times come, do we find our refuge in Him? Do we appropriate what He has purchased and provided for us?

God knows the "boundary of our bewilderment," the length to which our faith can be stretched, the depth to which we may plunge, and the testing to which our trial may take us. But through it all, He has promised, "He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear." Either God will give us the grace, strength, and sufficiency to go through the trial with Him, or He will deliver us from the trial by His mighty power. "In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us" (Romans 8:37).

Some years ago, my wife and I had a situation in which we were tried to the limit. The more we prayed, the worse the situation became. We cried out in prayer, "Lord we can't take any more. We are broken, exhausted, and have no more strength to face this situation any longer. We commit it fully to you." Ah, it was THEN God began a work of His grace and in His faithfulness, the burden was lifted and God took over. He provided a way out. God never comes too late, nor does He come with too little. It is "IN" the trial, "IN" the depths, "IN" the adversities, "IN" the dark encounters of our life that the "light arises" and we find HIM in the midst of it all. In God's way...in God's time...in God's Faithfulness...GOD MEETS US AT THE POINT OF OUR NEED! We are consoled by His presence, comforted by His compassion, blessed by His interceding, and strengthened by His mighty power.

You might ask, "Why does the Lord, in His providence, allow us to go through these heart-wrenching experiences?" I think He sees in the depths of our being those areas that need to be tested. It's like the piano tuner that bangs away time after time, trying to bring each note into the right pitch by tightening the wires, so that the sounds may blend together harmoniously and resound with beautiful music. Our faith needs to be stretched, our character must be refined, our trust needs to be focused, and our endurance needs to be strengthened. It is only through the "trying of our faith" that our character is developed and made strong that we develop unwavering faith in Almighty God, and God gives to us the ability to persevere with purpose. God knows the boundaries of our bewilderment.



From: Literature International Ministry - Ed Powell