Written by: John Sernaque
Dear Reader,
Books / Pr - Prayer (2002) / Chapter 1—God Invites Us To Pray Chapter 1—God Invites Us To Pray
Ask and Believe—As you ask the Lord to help you, honor your Saviour by believing that you do receive His blessing. All power, all wisdom, are at our command. We have only to ask. {Pr 16.1}
Walk continually in the light of God. Meditate day and night upon His character. Then you will see His beauty and rejoice in His goodness. Your heart will glow with a sense of His love. You will be uplifted as if borne by everlasting arms. With the power and light that God imparts, you can comprehend more and accomplish more than you ever before deemed possible.—(The Ministry of Healing, 514.) {Pr 16.2}
Go Forward, Trusting God—We are to encourage in one another that living faith which Christ has made it possible for every believer to have. The work is to be carried forward as the Lord prepares the way. When He brings His people into strait places, then it is their privilege to assemble together for prayer, remembering that all things come of God. Those who have not yet shared in the trying experiences that attend the work in these last days will soon have to pass through scenes that will severely test their confidence in God. It is at the time His people see no way to advance, when the Red Sea is before them and the pursuing army behind, that God bids them: “Go forward.” Thus He is working to test their faith. When such experiences come to you, go forward, trusting in Christ. Walk step by step in the path He marks out. Trials will come, but go forward. This will give you an experience that will strengthen your faith in God and fit you for truest service.—(Testimonies for the Church 9:273.) {Pr 16.3}
Asking, and believing in faith is the polar opposite of fear and doubt. When our faith is high, our fear is low. However, when our fear is high, it is because we are lacking in faith. When God told Abraham to go, Abraham went. He did not fear, he believed and had confidence in God. When the Israelites came upon the Red Sea, out of fear they doubted God and cursed Moses, even so much as to wanting him put to death. Moses did not doubt, and God parted the Sea for all to cross. God prepared the way for the Israelites and He will prepare the way for us. Trials will come, but fear not and go forward. God is with you and He will fight for you as He prepares you for His truest service.
Dear God Almighty,
We come to You in prayer and thanksgiving, believing that if we ask, we will receive Your blessing. Your Word says in the book of Mark chapter 5 verse 36, “Be not afraid, only believe.” We come asking that You help us receive Your power, wisdom, and light that we may comprehend and accomplish more than we ever thought possible. We pray that You continue to encourage and empower us to go forward in faith, only believing with full confidence that You are preparing the way. Lead our steps that we continue to walk in the path You have set before us. Let us not fall to the left or to the right, but continue on the narrow path that leads to Your heavenly kingdom. We thank You for the privilege of being able to gather in prayer and bring our petitions before You as we share our trying experiences. We thank You for testing our faith that we may be as gold tried in the fire, so that we may be rich in faith. Increase our faith and remove all doubt and fear. Grant us courage to go forward, even when fear begins to creep in, lest it takes over. May we walk by faith and not by sight, for the things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Lift us up with Your everlasting arms. May we be fit for Your truest service and may we be worthy of having our names written in Your book of life. We are sorry and repent of our sins, and pray for Your forgiveness. We thank you for hearing and answering our prayers that we bring to You in faith. We pray all this in the name of Christ Jesus. Amen.
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