KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Monday, October 30, 2017
Chapters: Luke 18
Message: Serious Direct Conversation With God
Hello My Friend,
Prayer; a serious, direct conversation with Almighty God, consisting of adoration, confession of sins, expression of gratitude for his mercies and benefits, supplication for mercy and forgiveness, intercession for blessings on others, and thanksgiving. As much as we would like to admit that we have great communication with God, the truth is, we lack it. Oh, when things get rough we do pray a little more, but from day to day we can become stagnant because life just likes to throw those curve balls at us and our bodies are weak from trying to hit them. Prayer is not just asking God for something, it is our greatest asset and only access to God. “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” – Matthew 21:22.
I admit that my prayer life is stagnant, oh, I pray every day, thank God for my day, confess my sins, ask Him to help me through the day, when people ask me to pray for them I do so right away, but my communication with God only consists of a few minutes in the morning and when I go to bed. It has been a while since I have done this, and I need to start, but this was always the beginning of my prayer to God, “Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.” – Psalm 5:2-3. I am ashamed to admit how long it has been since I has a serious direct conversation with God. Jesus stresses the importance of constant prayer.
“And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” – Luke 18:1-8.
“lest by her continual coming she weary me.” We get this idea in our heads (and the devil is culprit) that God tires of hearing the same requests over and over again, but the truth is, it gives Him great joy to hear our pleas. He wants to hear that we love and adore Him, that we need Him, that we confess our sins, that we know He will give us exactly what we need, and that we care about the well being of others too. Constant, continual prayer is not vain repetitious words over and over again, it is trusting God with all of our needs. Yes, we ask for some things constantly, but it is not ritual chant, it is serious, direct conversation with God with all our heart. “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” – Matthew 6:7-8.
“for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” Of course, God knows what we need before we ask Him, He just wants to have a direct conversation with us. By our going to Him with our needs we are telling God that He is important to us, that we are trusting Him to provide it for us, and that we are humble. Remember, repetition nor ritual does not get God’s attention, but humility does. If we think that God grants us things because we think we are good enough to get it, think again, that is not how it works. To further help us understand humility, Jesus speaks another parable.
“And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” – Luke 18:9-14.
“that I am not as other men are,” Remember, we are all the same, sinners saved by the grace of God, through Jesus Christ. God does not grant us things for doing what we ought to be doing to begin with, I have gotten things from God and cry because I know I did nothing to deserve it. I cried cutting into an avocado the other day because I realized He always provides, even when I do not pray like I should, even when I mess up every single day. We have to understand that God responds to our heart, the only time we are truly humble is when it comes straight from the heart, and that is what gets God’s attention, which is often why fasting with prayer gets more of God’s attention. “Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” – James 4:2-3,7-10.
I told you I was quitting my job, but since having made that decision I am freaking out inside, “Am I crazy, this is steady income, you know what you make each week?” that is what keeps going through my head, right after I told my boss I was leaving in the first place because he treats his faithful like garbage. Oh, what the devil does to us when we make the decision to trust God. The most important thing of all that we need when having a direct conversation with God is faith, without faith, we never get God’s attention. As Jesus was walking through Jericho a blind beggar sitting on the side of the road hearing all the commotion asked what was going on, when he heard that it was Jesus, he cried out to Him, the people kept telling him to quite down, only he got louder.
“And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.” – Luke 18:38-43.
“thy faith hath saved thee.” Without faith we cannot get God to do anything for us. You see, God does miraculous things all the time to bring the faith out in people, there are billions of people who get healed, who defeat death, who receive blessings, all from God, but they never acknowledge that it is God. We need faith for God to go further, and that includes Christians too, there are so many saved, born again Christians, living sad lives because they lack faith in God. Have a little faith, trust God, enjoy having a direct conversation with Him, and we will have the greatest results. “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” – Hebrews 11:6.
Jesus Christ Magnified: “And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.” – Luke 18:33.
Today’s Prayer: God, I know personally that You speak when we have a serious conversation with You, it may not always be right at that second, but You let it be known that You heard us in so many unusual ways. I know I get busy and prayer seems to be some ritual at times, but that is why You bring me to tears at some of the craziest things, You remind me that You hear from my heart, when I cry out to You with my heart, by faith, that is when You listen. Lord, Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. Forgive me for my doubts, my fears, and not trusting You at all times, fill me with Your mercy and grace, let me glorify You at all times, and never stop praising You, because those little, by the heart, by faith prayers mean more to You than the longest prayer without any of that. I pray in You name Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
Are You 100% Sure You Are Going To Heaven?: http://readytofollow.com/
Receive The KJB Daily Devotions In Your Email: http://eepurl.com/2WMzT
Missed A Message: http://imfollowingjesus.com/Biblestudy/
Visit I’m Following Jesus: http://imfollowingjesus.com/index.html
Like I’m Following Jesus On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/byhisstrength
Copyright © 2017 I’m Following Jesus, All rights reserved.