brought to you by the friends
of the Amazing Facts ministry.
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¤¤¤
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Doug Batchelor: You
can be taught to pray.
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John the Baptist taught
his disciples how to pray,
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and they didn't
know how to pray.
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It's possible for people to
be born in a Christian home,
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go to Christian school,
go to church all their lives,
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and never learned how to pray.
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¤¤¤
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Doug: A number of years
ago, famous pastor was traveling
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across the ocean
on a cruise ship,
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and F.B. Meyer was
his name, and, you know,
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that's when it was a more
common form of transportation.
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And word reached the
captain that this famous speaker
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was there on board.
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He said, "Could you please speak
to the first class passengers?
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And he agreed, and he
talked on the subject of prayer.
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Well, a number of the
people were deeply impressed,
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but among them
was a famous agnostic.
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And someone asked,
"Well, what did you think
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of Pastor Meyer's talk?"
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Said, "I didn't
believe a word of it."
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Well, later that day, word
had reached some of the people
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who had been traveling
fourth class, and they said,
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"Any chance that he'd
be willing to come down
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to the lower decks and talk
to the fourth-class passengers?"
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He said, "Absolutely."
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Well, some of the
passengers in first class said,
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"If he's speaking
again, we want to hear him."
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And so they were
all migrating down,
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and someone
said to the agnostic,
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"Are you going to go?"
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He said, "Sure, I'm
curious about what this babbler
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has to say."
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So the agnostic,
before he left his room,
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he thought he'd get a couple of
oranges to have a snack in case
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it took a while, and making
his way down to the lower decks,
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he had to go on
some of the outer decks,
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and he noticed
there was a few people.
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They were out on
these deck chairs,
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trying to take in the fresh
air, and there was one old woman
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that was stretched
out on a deck chair,
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fast asleep, her mouth
open, and her hands open there
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on the chair like that.
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Well, he had a sense of
humor, and so the agnostic took
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the two oranges out of
his pocket, and he placed
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an orange carefully in
each hand without waking her up,
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and he smiled and
went away, went downstairs.
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F.B. Meyer talked to
the fourth-class passengers
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about prayer, and the
man felt himself convicted,
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the agnostic, but he decided
just resist the conviction.
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On his way back up, he
walked by that same deck chair,
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and now the woman was there.
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She was awake, and she
was eating the oranges.
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And he smiled, and he said,
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"Well, those look like
they're very delicious."
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She says, "My
Father gave them to me."
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He said, "Surely, ma'am,
your father's not still alive,"
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because she was an older woman.
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She said, "I'm talking
about my heavenly Father."
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She said, "It was the
most wonderful thing."
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She said, "I've
been up here on the deck,
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trying to take in the fresh air
because I had been dreadfully
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seasick for several
days, and I just had
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the overwhelming sense that,
if I could just eat an orange,
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I'd feel better.
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And I went to sleep, praying
that God would please give me
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an orange, and I woke up, and
my Father gave me two oranges."
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That man was so
convicted that he was converted
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before the cruise was over.
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God answers
prayer, and sometimes
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He can even use
the devil to do it.
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Isn't that wonderful?
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You know, Karen and I,
in our evening worship,
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our Friday evening worship,
we've been reading through
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a book together on prayer.
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It's "The Complete Works of
E.M. Bounds," a tremendous book.
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Matter of fact, it's so heavy
and so convicting and profound
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that we only get through
two or three pages and just go,
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"Wow, I need to pray more."
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And so I'm not going to talk to
you about prayer as one who's an
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expert, but I'm simply a beggar
telling the other beggars where
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the bread is because I'll think
that every blessing that we
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desire as a Christian is going
to be connected with prayer,
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and we would do well to
learn more about that subject.
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So talking about
"The Priority of Prayer,"
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dealing with perpetual praying.
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Now, everywhere
we go these days,
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you can see warnings.
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I remember when they used
to have the little glass--
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there's a fire
alarm on the wall there.
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They don't have the old ones.
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They used to have a little glass
window with a hammer hanging
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on the outside, and you'd hit
this glass that would shatter,
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and then you'd pull the alarm,
and there's a little note above
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it and said, "Break glass
in the event of an emergency."
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You fly on the airplane, and
there, by your seat, it says,
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"In the event of a water
landing, use your cushion."
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And we're
surrounded with these warnings.
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Any of you ever walk
out in the parking lot,
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and you forgot
where your car is,
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and you had to
press the panic button?
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Find your car?
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Anyone that will raise
your hand and admit that?
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"I know it's
out here somewhere."
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"Where's my car?"
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Some people
treat prayer that way.
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"In the event of an emergency, a
water landing or there's panic,
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pray."
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It's like it's the last
resort for most Christians,
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and in reality,
prayer is an attitude of life
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for the Christian.
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It is a way of life.
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Every blessing in the Christian
life comes in connection
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with prayer.
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Prayer is not the
exception for the Christian.
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It is the rule, and,
yet so many don't pray.
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Now, the reason I'm
talking about this message is
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because I've got
good news for you.
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If you start out as a Christian,
or maybe you even grew up in a
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Christian home and you
thought, "We just didn't pray
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as we should," or maybe,
"We didn't know how to pray,"
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or "We've been,
sort of, working at it"--
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and prayer can be
and must be taught.
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Nobody prayed like Jesus.
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Jesus sometimes spent
the whole night in prayer,
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and you would think, if
anybody didn't need to pray,
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I mean, Jesus sort of
had a hotline to heaven.
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Why would He need to pray?
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But He prayed like
nobody ever prayed,
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and matter of
fact, the Bible says,
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when the disciples
saw Jesus pray, Luke 9:29,
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"He prayed, and the appearance
of His face was altered,
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and His robe became
white and glistening."
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And when Christ
was done praying,
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you read in Luke 11:1, "It
came to pass as He was praying
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in a certain
place, then He stopped--"
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nobody dared
interrupt until He stopped--
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"one of His
disciples said to Him,
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'Lord, teach us to pray as John
also taught his disciples.'"
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Now, that's a
very important point.
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You know what it means?
You can be taught to pray.
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John the Baptist taught
his disciples how to pray.
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They didn't know how to
pray, and these were believers.
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These were Jews.
They had the temple.
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They didn't know how to pray.
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It's possible for people to
be born in a Christian home,
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go to Christian school,
go to church all their lives,
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and never learned how to
pray, and some people think,
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"Well, there are people
who are giants of prayer,
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and they've got the gift
of prayer," but, you know,
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I don't find it
listed that way in the Bible.
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Every believer
is supposed to pray,
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and everybody can
be taught to pray.
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Don't be
thinking that something--
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someone else is good at, "That's
a job of another Christian."
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You hear about prayer warriors.
Anybody can be a prayer warrior.
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John taught his
disciples to pray.
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Jesus taught His disciples
to pray, and prayer must be
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important because it never
says He taught them to preach,
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but He did teach them to pray.
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So we should ask the
Lord, "Teach us to pray."
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Now I'm going to do
some teaching on prayer.
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Is that okay with you?
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I'd like to pray better.
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I'd like to talk about
some of the practical things
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dealing with prayer.
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Some of this may or
may not sound spiritual,
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but it's biblical.
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First of all, when and
how often should we pray?
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Evening and morning
and at noon will I pray,
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and cry aloud, and
He will hear my voice."
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Now, some say,
"Well, now, Pastor,
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that's the Old Testament."
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They had these
three times for prayer.
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They had their
specific hours for prayer.
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They even did it
in the New Testament
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and after the
Resurrection of Christ.
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Acts chapter 3, verse 1,
"Now Peter and John went up
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to the temple at the hour
of prayer, the ninth hour."
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Now, that was what they
would call their evening
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of the third time of
prayer in the day, 3 p.m.
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By the way, that's the
same time of day Jesus died,
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at the ninth hour.
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So they had regular
times where they went to pray.
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They set aside time for prayer.
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And you might be thinking,
"Well, Pastor Doug, hah,
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I get down, and I
pray for five minutes.
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I feel like, well,
I kind of covered it."
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And, you know,
the more you pray,
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don't jump up off your
knees when you feel like,
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"I've run out of things to say."
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Linger and say,
"Lord, what am I forgetting?
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Is there something
that I need to confess?
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Is there
somebody I'm forgetting?"
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So often, our prayers
are about us and our needs.
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Take some time to
intercede for other people,
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and you'll find that
prayer is not just talking.
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Prayer is communion
where you're listening to God,
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and He will begin to make
impressions on your heart.
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Sometimes I've been
praying, and I thought,
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"Oh, my mind is
wandering," and then I realize,
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"No, God is reminding me of
something I need to do today."
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God'll speak to you
when you're on your knees.
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He talks to you through
his spirit, through angels.
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He'll guide you, so
don't be in a hurry.
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You know, the Bible
says, "Do not make haste
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to leave the king's presence."
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Do not make haste to
leave the king's presence.
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When you're on your knees
and you're talking to God,
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you're praying.
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But since we're talking
about perpetual praying,
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I'm not just talking about
where the Bible says you should
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set aside a time, at least
in the morning and the evening.
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If you want to do
what David and Daniel did,
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you do morning, evening,
and at noon, I will pray
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to set aside some
time to pray, but, really,
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the Bible says
praying doesn't end.
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If you're a
Christian and you're awake,
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you want to live in a constant
walking relationship with God.
00:10:02.26\00:10:06.70
The Bible says,
"Enoch walked with God,
00:10:06.74\00:10:09.10
and he was not,
for God took him."
00:10:09.14\00:10:12.14
Enoch was translated
to heaven without dying.
00:10:12.17\00:10:14.41
Why?
00:10:14.44\00:10:15.74
Because he walked with God.
00:10:15.78\00:10:17.08
How many want to be among
those who will not see death?
00:10:17.11\00:10:18.41
But you can be caught up
to meet the Lord in the air.
00:10:18.45\00:10:20.28
Wouldn't you
prefer to avoid death?
00:10:20.32\00:10:22.28
If you can, I
mean, given the option.
00:10:22.32\00:10:25.72
How did Enoch do it?
"He walked with God."
00:10:25.75\00:10:27.89
What does that mean?
00:10:27.92\00:10:29.22
The Bible says,
"Noah walked with God."
00:10:29.26\00:10:31.63
Bible doesn't say
it, but you can be safe
00:10:31.66\00:10:33.56
in assuming Moses walked
with God, and many others.
00:10:33.60\00:10:38.10
That means that you
spend your time abiding
00:10:38.13\00:10:41.44
in the presence of God.
00:10:41.47\00:10:43.47
You are praying always.
00:10:43.51\00:10:47.34
Now, the Bible, you'd be
surprised how often it tells us
00:10:47.38\00:10:49.74
to always be praying.
00:10:49.78\00:10:54.12
Let me just give
you a few verses.
00:10:54.15\00:10:56.48
Luke 18:1, "Then he
spoke a parable to them,
00:10:56.52\00:10:59.72
that men ought always
the pray and not lose heart,"
00:10:59.75\00:11:03.59
and you got to always to pray.
00:11:03.63\00:11:05.76
Look at 1 Thessalonians 5:16,
00:11:05.79\00:11:08.20
"Rejoice always,
pray without ceasing."
00:11:08.23\00:11:12.13
Now, obviously, I think everyone
here knows the Bible is not
00:11:12.17\00:11:15.37
suggesting that you go around
all day long on your knees,
00:11:15.40\00:11:18.77
your hands folded, and
you bumping into things
00:11:18.81\00:11:20.74
because your eyes are closed.
00:11:20.78\00:11:22.34
There's always praying--
no, it's obviously talking
00:11:22.38\00:11:25.55
about an attitude of
constant communion with God.
00:11:25.58\00:11:30.39
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Doug: Jesus
said, "Watch therefore,
00:12:06.45\00:12:08.26
and pray always--" how often?
00:12:08.29\00:12:11.56
"That you may be counted worthy
to escape all these things
00:12:11.59\00:12:14.46
that will come to pass, and
stand before the Son of Man."
00:12:14.46\00:12:18.60
Jesus said we need
to watch and pray lest
00:12:18.63\00:12:20.50
we enter into temptation.
00:12:20.54\00:12:21.87
Anyone struggle with temptation?
00:12:21.90\00:12:23.87
How often do you
struggle with temptation?
00:12:23.91\00:12:25.61
Once a month? Once a week?
00:12:25.64\00:12:28.48
Every day? More than once a day?
00:12:28.51\00:12:31.45
So how often should we pray that
we enter not into temptation?
00:12:31.48\00:12:34.68
In the Lord's Prayer, "Give
us this day our daily bread,"
00:12:34.72\00:12:38.72
that's a prayer that's dealing
with daily needs, and it says,
00:12:38.75\00:12:41.69
"Lead us not into temptation."
00:12:41.72\00:12:43.69
That means, through
prayer, we come to God
00:12:43.73\00:12:46.13
and ask for that power.
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Ephesians 6:18,
"Praying always--"
00:12:48.60\00:12:52.17
there you have it again.
00:12:52.20\00:12:53.77
"Praying always with all prayer
and supplication in the Spirit,
00:12:53.80\00:12:56.71
praying in the Spirit, being
watchful to this end with all
00:12:56.74\00:13:00.38
perseverance and supplication
for all of the saints."
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Are you getting
the picture here?
00:13:03.91\00:13:06.15
But wait, there's
more, Colossians 1:3,
00:13:06.18\00:13:08.78
"We give thanks to God, the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
00:13:08.82\00:13:12.29
praying always for you."
00:13:12.32\00:13:15.99
2 Thessalonians 1:11, "Therefore
we also pray always for you."
00:13:16.02\00:13:22.06
Acts 12:5, "Peter
therefore was kept in prison,
00:13:22.10\00:13:25.53
but prayer was made by
the church without ceasing."
00:13:25.57\00:13:30.11
There you have it
again, praying without ceasing.
00:13:30.14\00:13:33.21
How do we do that?
00:13:33.24\00:13:35.44
You know, I think
that the key is found in--
00:13:35.48\00:13:40.35
go to John chapter 15.
00:13:40.38\00:13:43.18
We're taking a
little detour here.
00:13:43.22\00:13:45.22
John 15:1, "I am the true vine,
00:13:45.25\00:13:48.26
and My Father
is the vinedresser.
00:13:48.29\00:13:50.36
Every branch in Me
that does not bear fruit,
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He takes it away, and
every branch that bears fruit,
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He prunes it that it
might bear more fruit.
00:13:57.17\00:14:00.04
You are already
clean because of the word
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that I've spoken to you."
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There's a
cleansing effect in the Word.
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"Abide in Me, and I
in you, that the branch
00:14:05.71\00:14:08.71
cannot bear fruit of itself,
unless it abides in the vine,
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neither can you,
unless you abide in Me.
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I am the vine,
you are the branches.
00:14:17.12\00:14:19.15
He who abides in Me, and
I in him, bears much fruit.
00:14:19.19\00:14:23.06
Without Me, you can do nothing.
00:14:23.09\00:14:25.09
If anyone does not abide in
Me, he's cast out as a branch
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and withered, and they gather
them and throw them in the fire,
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and they are burned.
00:14:31.57\00:14:32.87
If you abide in Me,
and My words abide in you,
00:14:32.90\00:14:36.81
you will ask what you desire,
and it will be done for you.
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By this My Father is glorified,
that you bear much fruit,
00:14:40.84\00:14:43.61
so you will be My disciples.
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As the Father loved me,
and I've also loved you,
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abide in My love.
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If you keep my commandments,
you will abide in My love,
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just as I've kept My
Father's commandments
00:14:54.66\00:14:56.46
and I abide in His love."
00:14:56.49\00:14:58.73
Now, you notice I
read verses 1 through 10,
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and notice that number
10 because how many times
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do you think a
certain word appeared?
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What's the word?
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"Abide."
00:15:08.60\00:15:10.07
Why did Jesus have so
much to say about "abiding"
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in this passage?
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There's ten "abides" there.
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The word "abide"
is "meno" in Greek.
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Here's what it means:
"to remain in a place,
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to tarry, to stay in the house,
to dwell, to stay overnight,
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to stay alive, to remain
in a sphere, to hold out,
00:15:28.66\00:15:33.13
to stand fast, to
stand against opposition."
00:15:33.16\00:15:36.00
It means "to hang on, to
hang in, to be in something."
00:15:36.03\00:15:41.00
So, what does it mean
to pray without ceasing?
00:15:41.04\00:15:46.34
It means to abide in God.
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What does it mean to love
the Lord with all your heart
00:15:48.61\00:15:50.55
and mind?
00:15:50.58\00:15:51.91
It means to abide in God.
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It means to be
thinking God's thoughts.
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Start your day and say,
"Lord, help me today through
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the Holy Spirit to abide in You,
to keep You in my thoughts."
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Now, first of all, you know
much more peace it'll bring you?
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So many things you worry
about, and you just think,
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"Lord, take that away from me."
00:16:13.03\00:16:15.67
Sometimes you got
thoughts coming in your mind,
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and you think, "Nobody
should think those thoughts,
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let alone a Christian."
00:16:18.91\00:16:20.21
Say, "Lord, cleanse my mind."
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Or you'll see other people
that you sense have a need,
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and the Holy
Spirit will nudge you,
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and it's like you're
in communion with God,
00:16:27.72\00:16:29.75
the Spirit, with your mind.
00:16:29.78\00:16:31.62
Now, I think
that, when you do pray,
00:16:31.65\00:16:33.69
there should be a
reverence in our praying.
00:16:33.72\00:16:36.56
I want you to
notice something here.
00:16:36.59\00:16:37.89
Look at a few verses
real quick, I put together.
00:16:37.93\00:16:41.70
Psalm 95:6, "Oh come,
let us worship and bow down.
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Let us kneel before
the Lord our Maker."
00:16:47.87\00:16:50.61
Most of the time in
the Bible, informal prayer,
00:16:50.64\00:16:53.78
it is appropriate, if
you're able, to kneel,
00:16:53.81\00:16:57.38
and the very
fact of bowing down,
00:16:57.41\00:16:59.91
it is universally
understood that that is an act
00:16:59.95\00:17:03.18
of submission and worship.
00:17:03.22\00:17:06.09
Why would Shadrach, Meshach,
and Abednego not bow down
00:17:06.12\00:17:10.96
to the graven image?
00:17:10.99\00:17:12.96
They were not going to
show worship by their posture.
00:17:12.99\00:17:16.16
They could've said,
"Well, we'll bow down,
00:17:16.20\00:17:17.67
but we're not going to
pray to him in our hearts."
00:17:17.70\00:17:19.10
They would not even physically
show worship by their posture
00:17:19.13\00:17:21.17
to this pagan god.
00:17:21.20\00:17:23.87
So if we're
worshipping the real God,
00:17:23.91\00:17:26.54
if the pagans are
bowing down, are Christians so,
00:17:26.57\00:17:31.18
fair to say, call them
"pompous" that we stand
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and pray thus with ourselves?
00:17:34.05\00:17:36.65
Or is it appropriate for
us to bow before the Lord?
00:17:36.69\00:17:39.49
Now, it's not
necessary to always do that,
00:17:39.52\00:17:41.32
but let me give
you a few verses here.
00:17:41.36\00:17:44.06
Daniel 6:10, "In his upper
room, he knelt on his knees
00:17:44.09\00:17:47.03
three times."
00:17:47.10\00:17:48.36
He was 80 years old, by
the way, when he did this.
00:17:48.40\00:17:50.70
1 Kings 18:42, "Elijah
went up on the top of Carmel.
00:17:50.73\00:17:54.44
He bowed down to the ground,
put his face between his knees."
00:17:54.47\00:17:57.04
That's not always necessary.
Some of us can't do that.
00:17:57.07\00:17:58.74
Acts 9:40,
"Peter put them all out.
00:17:58.77\00:18:02.64
He knelt down, and he prayed."
00:18:02.68\00:18:04.71
And then there
was a resurrection.
00:18:04.75\00:18:06.55
Ephesians 3:14, "For this cause
I bow my knee under the God
00:18:06.58\00:18:10.45
and the Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ."
00:18:10.49\00:18:13.29
Solomon the king, Jesus said,
"No one was arrayed like Solomon
00:18:13.32\00:18:18.39
in all of his glory."
00:18:18.43\00:18:20.40
When he was
dedicating the temple,
00:18:20.43\00:18:22.26
build a platform
for everyone to see,
00:18:22.30\00:18:24.17
got up on the platform.
00:18:24.20\00:18:25.83
Says, "This
king, he knelt before
00:18:25.87\00:18:28.77
the King of the universe."
00:18:28.80\00:18:31.14
And most of us are
not greater than Solomon.
00:18:31.17\00:18:34.01
"He knelt down upon his
knees and all the congregation
00:18:34.04\00:18:36.44
of Israel."
00:18:36.48\00:18:37.95
He wanted everyone to see
that he was worshiping Jehovah,
00:18:37.98\00:18:39.71
and he was not the
one to be worshiped.
00:18:39.75\00:18:42.12
But having said that, you
don't always need to kneel
00:18:42.15\00:18:46.35
when you pray.
00:18:46.39\00:18:48.09
There are times when it's
appropriate to stand and pray.
00:18:48.12\00:18:51.09
After Solomon had
the kneeling prayer,
00:18:51.13\00:18:53.33
then when he
gave the benediction--
00:18:53.36\00:18:54.93
let me read it to
you, 1 Kings 8:54,
00:18:54.96\00:18:57.10
"And it was so, when Solomon had
finished praying on his knees
00:18:57.13\00:19:01.07
all this prayer and
supplication to the Lord,
00:19:01.10\00:19:03.41
that he arose
from before the altar,
00:19:03.44\00:19:05.74
from kneeling on his knees,
with his hands spread to heaven,
00:19:05.77\00:19:09.44
and he stood and he
bless the assembly."
00:19:09.48\00:19:11.51
That's what we
call the benediction.
00:19:11.55\00:19:13.05
At the end of the
sermon after the song,
00:19:13.08\00:19:14.55
we do something
called the benediction.
00:19:14.58\00:19:15.92
In the beginning,
you'll see an invocation.
00:19:15.95\00:19:17.45
It's not always
necessary to kneel,
00:19:17.49\00:19:19.12
but before you enter into
the actual worship service,
00:19:19.15\00:19:23.19
to the opening of the Word,
asking God to speak to you,
00:19:23.22\00:19:25.69
it's appropriate
to kneel if you can.
00:19:25.73\00:19:28.33
I always think it's
funny that, you know,
00:19:28.36\00:19:30.77
we know there's some people--
00:19:30.80\00:19:32.10
and it's getting
harder for me to get up.
00:19:32.13\00:19:34.34
Well, when I was
young, I got done praying,
00:19:34.37\00:19:36.27
I could get up on one toe.
00:19:36.30\00:19:37.61
That's all it took me to get up.
00:19:37.64\00:19:39.11
But you get a little older,
it's like I'm reaching around,
00:19:39.14\00:19:41.61
you know?
00:19:41.64\00:19:42.94
Person next to me,
lift-- get back up again.
00:19:42.98\00:19:46.15
So, Bible says that we should
pray diligently when we pray.
00:19:46.18\00:19:51.42
Diligent praying.
00:19:51.45\00:19:52.99
Hebrews 11:6, "But without faith
it is impossible to please Him,
00:19:53.02\00:19:57.63
for he who comes to God
must believe that He is,
00:19:57.66\00:20:00.46
and He is a rewarder."
00:20:00.50\00:20:03.67
How many want God
to reward your prayers?
00:20:03.70\00:20:06.57
"He's a rewarder of
those who diligently seek Him."
00:20:06.60\00:20:10.64
I remember reading in the Bible
that when the king of Israel
00:20:10.67\00:20:12.97
came to see Elisha, when
Elisha the prophet was dying,
00:20:13.01\00:20:15.54
he came to make
his hospital visit,
00:20:15.58\00:20:17.38
and Elisha was more
worried about the king,
00:20:17.41\00:20:20.25
than the king about Elisha,
and Elisha said to the king,
00:20:20.28\00:20:23.49
"Open the window."
00:20:23.52\00:20:24.89
Syria has been attacking.
00:20:24.92\00:20:26.22
He said, "Open the window."
00:20:26.25\00:20:27.76
He said, "Put an
arrow in your bow."
00:20:27.79\00:20:29.89
He put an arrow in his bow.
00:20:29.92\00:20:31.23
Elisha put his
hand on the king's hand,
00:20:31.26\00:20:32.56
and he said,
"Pull back the arrow.
00:20:32.59\00:20:33.90
Fire." He fired the arrow.
00:20:33.93\00:20:35.66
He said, "This is the arrow of
God's deliverance from Syria."
00:20:35.70\00:20:37.40
He said, "Now, take
a handful of arrows."
00:20:37.43\00:20:39.70
He did.
00:20:39.73\00:20:41.04
And then Elisha said to
the king, "Beat the ground."
00:20:41.07\00:20:44.41
And he hit the
ground three times.
00:20:44.44\00:20:46.07
And the man of God
was wroth, and he said,
00:20:46.11\00:20:48.81
"You only hit the
ground three times.
00:20:48.84\00:20:50.28
You should've smote the
ground five or six times,
00:20:50.31\00:20:51.95
and you would've had five
or six victories over Syria.
00:20:51.98\00:20:54.85
Because you only hit
the ground three times,
00:20:54.88\00:20:56.85
you're only going to
have three victories."
00:20:56.89\00:20:59.39
I wonder how many
prayers that we've left behind
00:20:59.42\00:21:02.29
because we quit too soon?
00:21:02.32\00:21:05.63
We did not pray diligently.
00:21:05.66\00:21:08.30
You know what
"diligently" means?
00:21:08.33\00:21:10.73
It's talking
about industriously,
00:21:10.77\00:21:13.50
meticulously, "with energy
to the point of perspiration"
00:21:13.54\00:21:18.74
is one definition.
00:21:18.77\00:21:20.74
Jeremiah 29:13, "And you
will seek Me and find Me,
00:21:20.78\00:21:24.38
when you search for
Me--" what's the rest of that?
00:21:24.41\00:21:27.45
"With all of your heart."
00:21:27.48\00:21:28.78
That's diligent praying,
praying with your heart.
00:21:28.82\00:21:30.85
What does God
want from us anyway?
00:21:30.89\00:21:32.99
He wants our hearts.
00:21:33.02\00:21:35.09
Deuteronomy 4:29, "But if from
there," if you're carried away
00:21:35.12\00:21:38.33
to some pagan land, "if from
there you will seek the Lord
00:21:38.36\00:21:41.60
your God, you will
find Him if you seek Him
00:21:41.63\00:21:44.73
with all of your
heart and all of your soul."
00:21:44.77\00:21:47.44
Diligent praying.
00:21:47.47\00:21:49.50
Hudson Taylor
said, "The prayer power
00:21:49.54\00:21:52.81
has never been tried
to its full capacity.
00:21:52.84\00:21:56.11
If we want to see mighty wonders
of divine power and grace
00:21:56.14\00:21:59.08
wrought in the place of weakness
and failure and disappointment,
00:21:59.11\00:22:02.75
let us answer
God's standing challenge.
00:22:02.78\00:22:05.45
He says, 'Call unto me,
and I will show you great
00:22:05.49\00:22:08.46
and mighty things
that you have not known,'"
00:22:08.49\00:22:10.89
if you do what?
00:22:10.93\00:22:12.23
"If you call unto Me.
00:22:12.26\00:22:13.56
If My people, which
are called by My name,
00:22:13.60\00:22:15.46
will humble themselves and
pray and seek My face and turn
00:22:15.50\00:22:18.43
from their wicked ways,
then I will hear from heaven.
00:22:18.47\00:22:22.57
I will forgive their sin,
and I will heal their land."
00:22:22.60\00:22:25.74
God promises that
He'll do these things.
00:22:25.77\00:22:28.58
I'd like to give you something
practical in conclusion,
00:22:28.61\00:22:31.01
and this is talking
about the acts of prayer.
00:22:31.05\00:22:37.22
Now, a simple formula
when you come to God to pray,
00:22:37.25\00:22:41.49
the Lord's Prayer is a
very good model for prayer.
00:22:41.52\00:22:44.59
Jesus said, "When you pray--"
00:22:44.63\00:22:46.19
He never said,
"Repeat this prayer."
00:22:46.23\00:22:48.43
He said, "In this manner, pray,"
and that's why the prayer is
00:22:48.46\00:22:51.83
a little different in
Luke than it is in Matthew.
00:22:51.87\00:22:53.97
Jesus didn't say it
the same way all the time.
00:22:54.00\00:22:55.97
Jesus said, "Do not
pray in vain repetition,"
00:22:56.00\00:22:59.27
and that's
including the Lord's Prayer.
00:22:59.31\00:23:01.41
We're not saved by
just repeating a prayer
00:23:01.44\00:23:03.24
over and over again.
00:23:03.28\00:23:05.11
But many
Christians have used something
00:23:05.15\00:23:07.42
as a formula for prayer.
00:23:07.45\00:23:08.78
It's called ACTS,
A-C-T-S, that, when you pray,
00:23:08.82\00:23:12.32
try to start out--and
don't have to pray an hour.
00:23:12.35\00:23:14.92
If you're not praying at
all, five minutes will be
00:23:14.96\00:23:16.76
an improvement.
00:23:16.79\00:23:18.63
If you're praying 5 minutes,
go to 15 and see what happens,
00:23:18.66\00:23:21.26
but start spending more
time with God in prayer.
00:23:21.30\00:23:24.40
You might use this
formula, A-C-T-S, ACTS.
00:23:24.43\00:23:26.87
It has--it stands
for-- I think we've got it up
00:23:26.90\00:23:29.57
on the screen--adoration,
confession, thanksgiving,
00:23:29.60\00:23:34.24
and supplication.
00:23:34.28\00:23:36.21
You start with your adoration,
"Hallowed be Thy name."
00:23:36.24\00:23:39.41
And then we talk about
"Forgive us our debts."
00:23:39.91\00:23:42.15
There's confession
that happens in your sin.
00:23:42.18\00:23:45.15
First, you're
coming to acknowledging,
00:23:45.19\00:23:46.86
"I have--I'm not
worthy to ask anything,
00:23:46.89\00:23:48.99
but I'm coming,
confessing, asking for mercy,
00:23:49.02\00:23:51.66
pleading the blood of Jesus."
00:23:51.69\00:23:53.83
Then there's thanksgiving.
00:23:53.86\00:23:55.13
Before you give God your list
of everything new that you want,
00:23:55.16\00:23:57.90
you know, when
you thank someone,
00:23:57.93\00:23:59.57
they are more inclined
to give you future benefits,
00:23:59.60\00:24:01.40
so start out by thanking
Him for all that He's done,
00:24:01.44\00:24:05.34
all that He's already given you.
00:24:05.37\00:24:07.31
You can surely find
something to be thankful for.
00:24:07.34\00:24:09.08
Then you conclude
with your supplications.
00:24:09.11\00:24:13.45
That's your list of
things you're asking God for,
00:24:13.48\00:24:16.69
and then, hopefully,
you're not just supplicating
00:24:16.72\00:24:19.12
for yourself but in
behalf of others or events.
00:24:19.15\00:24:22.32
And so you might just jot
that down because I just have it
00:24:22.36\00:24:25.66
on the screen there.
00:24:25.69\00:24:27.13
It makes a good
formula for prayer, ACTS.
00:24:27.13\00:24:31.90
And, finally, when
we pray, there's power
00:24:31.93\00:24:37.07
in the name of Jesus.
00:24:37.11\00:24:40.11
We are praying that
God will hear our prayers,
00:24:40.14\00:24:42.98
not because we are
worthy, but when He sees us,
00:24:43.01\00:24:45.75
we are covered with
the blood of His own Son,
00:24:45.78\00:24:48.65
so we come in the name of Jesus.
00:24:48.68\00:24:50.79
You read Ephesians 5:20, "Giving
thanks always for all things
00:24:50.82\00:24:55.66
to God the Father in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
00:24:55.69\00:25:00.40
Will He answer our
prayers when we come claiming
00:25:00.43\00:25:02.80
the blood of His Son,
when we pray reverently,
00:25:02.83\00:25:07.30
persistently, and
come in Jesus's name?
00:25:07.34\00:25:10.57
You know, I believe that the
Lord wants us to have a revival.
00:25:10.61\00:25:15.71
I think that a revival is going
to be preceded by a revival
00:25:15.74\00:25:19.15
in our lives in
walking with God in prayer.
00:25:19.18\00:25:22.38
If we're praying
like we should pray,
00:25:22.42\00:25:25.95
your giving, it'll change.
00:25:25.99\00:25:28.22
If we're praying
like we should pray,
00:25:28.26\00:25:29.86
your singing will
change, your living will change.
00:25:29.89\00:25:33.46
Everything will change if our
relationship with God changes.
00:25:33.50\00:25:36.53
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announcer: What if
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What would you do?
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What would you change?
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To see the future, you
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This intriguing documentary
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00:27:27.71\00:27:31.95
explores the most
striking Bible prophecies
00:27:31.98\00:27:34.72
that have been dramatically
fulfilled throughout history,
00:27:34.75\00:27:38.29
"Kingdoms in Time."
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For more information,
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We hope you'll join us
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