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Praying the Promises of God
By Lowell Lundstrom |
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| Do
you need God's help? Are members of your family lost in sin- needing
God's intervention? Are you desperate for a miracle of God's provision? Then
consider praying the promises of God. When
our daughter, Lisa, took a ten-year detour into a very sinful and
dangerous lifestyle, it broke our hearts. Connie and I cried and prayed
day after day. Years went by and we seemed to make little headway. Nothing
was happening. However, we searched the scriptures daily and discovered
many great promises of God. These bolstered our faith and motivated us to
seek God even more. Here
are a couple of examples:
You
should see my Bible markings for the years that Lisa was gone. Each time I
discovered a promise of God in the scriptures, I underlined it or
highlighted it with a yellow marker. I also placed the date and location
where I was when each one of these scripture came alive to me. In
case you don't know Lisa's testimony, she has returned to God and our
family. She has been serving the Lord for nearly ten years now. Lisa
teaches Sunday school for around 75 children each week at Celebration
Church. I was honored when Lisa asked if she could have the Bible where I
marked the promises of God during the 10 years she was away. God
has given us wonderful promises that we can claim on behalf of our loved
ones. We can even claim these promises for our health and wealth. Jesus
built his life and ministry on the promises of God. Again and again he
said, "It is written." Jesus knew our Father in
heaven would never lie. The
lowest point in the lives of the disciples came when Jesus was crucified.
Their hopes were crushed. They had believed He was the Messiah, but now
they were despondent. It appeared that Jesus lay dead in the tomb. As
they walked along the road to Emmaus, their hearts were heavy. Then a
stranger approached and began to visit with them about the tragic news of
all that had happened. The
stranger was Jesus, disguised as a caring friend. However, as they visited
and discussed the promises of God, their faith began to return, their
hearts grew lighter and when Jesus finally revealed himself to them, they
said, "Did not our hearts burn within us, while he talked with
us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" (Luke
24:32 KJV). Dear
reader, if your feel like your faith has died, your heart is broken, and
hope has vanished, there is a way you can recover. Begin
to pray the promises of God. Follow
these three easy steps: 1.
Discover what God has promised to do for you. Mark the scripture-you may
want to memorize the verse. 2.
Begin thanking God for His wonderful promises. Say, "God, you cannot
lie. You have promised me that you will hear my prayers. Your holy Word
says (then read or quote the scripture) that you will, "save, heal,
deliver, etc., and I claim your promise on my behalf." 3.
Offer praises of appreciation for the answer to your prayers. Allow
the Holy Spirit to sweep into your soul and renew your heart, mind and
spirit. The psalmist David said, "He restoreth my soul" (Psalm
23:3). Soon
your heart will begin to burn like the doubting disciples on the road to
Emmaus. Remember feelings follow faith and faith follows fact. The
promises of God are facts that will remain forever and they will revive
your faith and feelings. The
Bible says in Hebrews 4:14-16: "Seeing then that we have a great high priest,
that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast
our profession. "For we have not an high priest which cannot be
touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted
like as we are, yet without sin. "LET US THEREFORE COME BOLDLY UNTO THE THRONE OF
GRACE, THAT WE MAY OBTAIN MERCY, AND FIND GRACE TO HELP IN TIME OF
NEED." Remember, when you know what God has promised
you-it will give you the boldness and faith to claim it. Pray
the promises of God! |
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