IN GOD WE TRUST? 3

 

IN GOD WE TRUST? 3

I Kings 17:13-16

Many do not put their trust in God because they of self-centeredness. They expect things of God that are never promised. They act as if they were deserving of God’s blessings. They want a “good life”. And when they don’t get what they want or things don’t go as they expect them to do, they see no point in living in a trust relationship with God. Some don’t trust God because they lack a sense of the bigger picture. They can’t see beyond their noses and don’t realize that God does and works things out for our good, not our liking. Some lack a belief in God’s inherent goodness. They refuse to believe that God knows what He is doing and what is happening will work out well for us.

The Spirit of God richly rewards those who put their trust in God. The widow of Zarephath could not see how she and her son would survive the drought. All her resources were depleted. She was down to her last meal. And when Elijah showed up and asked her to use her last meager resources to fix a meal for him, she must have been in a quite emotional turmoil. Yet, she knew Elijah was a man of God and that what he was asking of her must be from God. Rather than reject what God was requiring of her, she did what Elijah asked. She put her trust in God rather than her resources.

The Lord richly blessed her trust in Him. She discovered that not only did she have enough on hand to take care of Elijah, she had enough for her and her son as well. In fact, God so blessed her meager resources that she had enough to continue to meet her their needs for as long as the drought lasted. God takes care of those who trust Him. No matter how much or little we have, if we trust Him with what we have, He will bless us and others will be blessed through us. God will not ask us to give what He won’t supply.

No matter how much or little we may be asked to give to the Lord, it is enough when we trust Him with it. The Lord asks us to trust Him without reservation. Trust Him with all you have. Trust Him with all your heart. Trust Him with your life.

In God we trust. The extent to which you really trust the Lord determines the health of your soul. Your living is a direct reflection of your willingness to trust the Lord. Do you really trust Him with your all?

IN GOD WE TRUST 2

 

IN GOD WE TRUST? 2

I Kings 17: 7-12

When things don’t go as well as you thought they would, do you panic? When something happens that causes you to have to change the course of your life, do you question God? Do you get all bent out of shape when things seem to be going badly for you? How we respond to events that upend our lives say a lot about our faith in God.

We notice some interesting things in our text for today. We seek first of all in verses 1-6 Elijah at rest. Then in verses 7-12, we see Elijah back at it. In order to be effective at whatever we do, we need to take care of ourselves and get the rest we need. When we allow ourselves some time off, we gain a better perspective on things.

Elijah did not panic when things started to go badly for him. He had just come off an encounter with King Ahab and knew it wasn’t safe for him to hang around. God had sent him to Ahab and now he had to flee. He did not panic, he simply obeyed God and went where God directed him to go for a time of recovery. 7-10a God did not abandon him, He took care of his needs. God was not done with Elijah, but in order for him to handle what was next, he needed to rest and rely on God.

When Elijah had been replenished physically and spiritually, God sent him to his next assignment. 10b-12 We don’t know how long Elijah was in the wilderness, but it was long enough for the brook he was drinking from to dry up. Elijah had Ahab that there would be a drought that would not end until he said it would. God punished Ahab and his people because of their evilness. At just the right time, God led Elijah out of the wilderness to a town called Zarephath where a widow was in desperate need. He was ready to be used of God to help someone in need.

Trust in what God is doing. When he closes one door, He has another already opened for you. Don’t panic. Let the Lord refresh you and then walk through the new door He has for you to walk through. Rom. 8:28; Phil. 4:11 Learn from Elijah’s life, God will take care of you wherever He plants you. Also, you are an important cog in the Kingdom of God. When you let Jesus be your Lord, He will use you to help someone in need.

IN GOD WE TRUST?

 

IN GOD WE TRUST?

I Kings 17:1-16

Let’s face it, we say it but more times than not but we don’t really do it. We tend to rely on the wisdom and guidance of others and ourselves more than we do God. If you don’t believe me, ask yourself how often you defy what makes sense to you and take the Lord’s hand and let Him lead you, provide for your needs, and help you through the difficult times of your life? In verses 1-6 of our text today, we discover that the Spirit of God will never lead us where the grace of God can’t keep us.

We don’t know anything about Elijah’s background except where he came from. He just appears on the scene as a prophet and that God had sent him to King Ahab with a proclamation of a drought. We then find Elijah leaving Ahab and being led by God to go into the wilderness for a season.

God knew what Elijah needed. He needed food, something to drink, and a shelter. True to His nature, God supplied what he needed. It wasn’t quite the way that one might expect, but God supplied. Matt. 6:19-34 God did not abandon Elijah in his hour of need. Matt. 28:20; Ps. 139:7-12 Elijah trusted God, followed His leading, and God blessed him with all he needed. God does that doesn’t He? He is gracious and kind and always is there for us if we trust Him with what we need. Phil. 4:19 In fact, not only does God provide for us, He gives us so much more if we immerse our lives in His and let Him be our Lord. John 10:10

When he learned it, we don’t know, but Elijah learned a lesson in his life that we must also learn well—Jesus is Lord of life. Col. 1:15-20; Eph. 3:20-21 We sometimes get the idea that we are the center of the universe. We like to think we are in control of our destiny. We are delusional. Jesus is Lord. All things were made by Him and for Him. He is the one whom God has exalted above all things. It is before Jesus that every knee will bow and proclaim Him as King and Lord of life. Elijah let the Lord take care of him. He didn’t take matters in his own hands, he let God take care of him as he rested in preparation for his next task.

Let the Spirit of God lead you. He will take care of you there. He will supply all that you need for as long as you need it, and He will prepare you for what He next has for you to do.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 6

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 6

Nehemiah 1:10-11

It may seem so obvious, but when you pray, pray specifically. Don’t beat around the bush. Tell the Lord all that is on your mind.

Acknowledge what God has already done for you. Nehemiah recalled God’s saving His children. He recalled God’s gracious hand on them and seeing them through the good and bad times of their life as a nation. He recalled God embracing them as His own.

When was the last time you took the time to acknowledge God’s hand on your life? Have you thanked the Lord lately for saving you from your past and giving you a new life? What would your life be like today if the Lord would not have stepped into it and pulled you out of the mess you had made of yourself? Have you thought much about how God has been with you and seen you through the roller coaster of life? Have you given much thought as to what it means to be a child of God?

When was the last time you took an inventory of your heart’s desire? Nehemiah expressed his, “We delight in revering your name.” Can you honestly say that you delight yourself in the Lord? Does the Lord thrill your soul? Do you take pleasure in humbling yourself before the Lord and worshiping Him? Does your soul pant for the Lord? If you want answers to your prayers, you must learn to love Him enough that your heart’s desire is to honor Him, please Him, and serve Him.

Nehemiah asked the Lord for success on his journey. He put His confidence and trust in the Lord and asked God to honor His trust by giving Him a successful trip. It’s not wrong to ask the Lord for success if being successful will honor and glorify God. It is not wrong to ask the Lord for success if you pray submissively to His will for you.

Successful praying is living in close fellowship with God and living in submission to Him. The closer we live in fellowship to the Lord, the more we will pray within the will of God for us, and the more answers to our prayers we will see.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 5

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 5

Nehemiah 1:8-9

One of the things most people find it hard to do when they pray is being bold. Yet, I believe it is something that we need to be in order to pray successfully.

Be bold when you recall God’s promises and remind Him of them. God promises us many things, and we often fail to take Him at His word. We know God’s keeps His word, but we assume it will happen and don’t actually bring them up to Him and hold Him accountable for them. Speak God’s promises back to Him and ask Him to do what He has promised.

We need to be bold when expressing our needs. We need to be honest with ourselves and then tell God what we perceive our needs to be.

We need to be bold with our emotions. There are times in which we need to let our raw emotions show. Don’t be afraid to express yourself before God, He can handle it. We have no problem with expressing joy and gratitude before God, but struggle expressing our anger, bitterness, loneliness, etc. to Him.

We need to be bold in our requests. Jesus instructed us to ask for anything in His name and it will be granted to us. We often limit what God will do for us by our lack of faith in what He can and will do. Now, we must always ask in accordance to God’s will for us. We must always accept that God’s knowledge of what we need takes precedence over what we think we need. God’s supply is always right and good for us.

We need to be bold in our actions. When we pray, we must act on faith that our prayers are heard and answered. We sometimes have to step out boldly trusting the Lord is at work to work everything out for us. Sometimes we need to make changes. Sometimes we have to keep doing what we do and wait for God to answer our prayers. Whether our prayers are answered right away or even years later, we must boldly trust God to answer our prayers.

Every prayer we pray is heard in heaven and moves God to act on our behalf.

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 4

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 4

Nehemiah 1:6 “………..I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned!” NLT

One of the most essential parts of successful praying is to be repentant. II Chron. 7:14; I John 1:8-10 Notice how Nehemiah prayed.

He prayed for the sins of his nation. He understood the need to pray for his nation. He was well aware of what was going on around him and why things were the way they were. If there ever was a time in we must be in prayer for our country, it is now. No matter who you may think is to blame for the way things are now, the root cause is sin. We as a nation have wandered far away from God and are now living with the consequences of it. Nothing short of repentant hearts is going to change anything. We will continue to self-destruct. Our nation needs a people who are willing to stand in the gap before God on her behalf. Scriptures tells us to pray for our government leaders. We have no right to complain about how badly they may govern if we aren’t supporting their efforts in prayer. Pray for their souls. Pray that they may govern with wisdom and compassion. Pray that they may govern with integrity. Pray.

But, Nehemiah understood that it was not just the fault of others. He included himself and his family in his prayer. He took personal responsibility for the condition of the land. Romans 3:23 reminds us that all of us have sinned. We all are guilty of contributing to the accumulated sins of our nation. No sin is done in isolation. It affects us and those around us. When we ignore sin and compromise it, it causes great spiritual harm to us, the church, and to our nation.

We need to be praying for our families. We need to beseech God on their behalf. We need to pray for lost loved ones. We need to pray for struggling believers. We need to pray for mature believers to remain strong in faith. No one is beyond the reach of Satan’s attack on their soul. Pray.

We need to pray for our own sins. And yes, we are all guilty. No one can honestly claim spiritual perfection. We all are guilty before God and need to seek His forgiveness. As long as we are in the flesh, we will be in a spiritual war over our souls. We will always face temptations to sin and sometimes yield to them. We need Jesus. We need His forgiveness, righteousness, holiness, and grace. Pray.

“It’s me, it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.”

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 3

 

PRAYING SUCCESSFULLY 3

Nehemiah 1:6 …..listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel.”

When you pray, be expectant. James 1:5-8 reminds us of this truth. Expect God to hear you when you pray. Expect Him to listen with a willing and loving heart. Expect Him to patient with you, especially if you are emotionally upset and spill your guts out to Him. Expect God to understand you when you pray.

In Romans 8:26-27, we find some very comforting words to help us as we pray. The Apostle Paul tells us the role of the Holy Spirit in our praying. He takes what we pray for and puts it into a heavenly language that God hears. If you don’t know how to put into words what is troubling you, don’t worry, the Spirit does and prays on your behalf. If you sense that you need to pray but don’t know what to pray for, the Spirit knows and will help you as you pray. Expect the Spirit of Christ to help you as you pray and He will.

In Matthew 6:5-18, Jesus gave us some guidance on how to pray. While the Lord’s Prayer offers us some basic guidance, it is not an ironclad model for prayer. Prayer is carrying on a conversation with God, our Father. It is a two-way communication. God listens to us and we listen to Him. Jesus emphasized our need to acknowledge God’s greatness, gracious provision for our needs, and goodness to us. We are to ask for what we need. We are to have humble and forgiving hearts as we pray. We are to ask for forgiveness for our sins. We are to pray to God, not to impress others. We pray for what is on our hearts. Our prayers can be long or they can be short. We can pray anywhere and anytime we sense the prompting of God to pray.

We are to pray for ourselves, and we are to pray for others. There is never a shortage of things to pray for. Pray is essential for a healthy soul and nation. We must be willing and able to pray all the time. People need us to pray for them. The church and her leaders need us to pray for them. Our nation needs us to pray for it. Those who are actively serving the Lord in ministries outside the church need our prayers. People who we know need prayer. People who surround us need our prayers. People who are suffering or destitute need someone to pray for them.

Pray day and night. God always listens to the prayers of His children. Tell it all to Jesus. Pray often, the more you do, the more comfortable you become with it, and the more you will want to pray.