Strength lies in prayer

“He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” - Psalm 126:6.

We must go fresh from the mercy-seat to the field of service if we would gather plenteously. Our truest strength lies in prayer. I am persuaded, brethren, that we are losing much of blessing which might come upon the church through our negligence in private supplications. I cannot pry into your prayer-closets, but I believe that in the conscience of many of you, there will be an affirmative voice to the change I lay against some of you; ye have restrained prayer before God. Your restraining of prayer, if you seek to serve God, is binding your own hands and cutting the sinews of your strength. As you could not expect to be vigorous if you denied yourselves food, so neither can you hope to be strong if you deny yourselves prayer. Get close to God, for strength flows out of him. Keep at a distance from him, and you lose all power and become weak as water. “He that goeth forth,” must mean, then, that he has stood before the mercy-seat, that he has told out the story of his wants where the blood is sprinkled, and then has gone forth in the power which prayer alone can bring from heaven to scatter his precious seed among men.
(The Daily Spurgeon)

I am currently focusing a lot on studying prayer and asking the Lord to strengthen my prayer life and to teach me to pray. It began with a cry out to God to increase my faith. I have found that my faith has grown by reading and meditating upon the Word of God, but even more so that faith thrives in the atmosphere of prayer.
God wants us to pray to show our trust in Him and dependence upon Him. I have come to see just how much prayer is a means of increasing my trust greatly in the Lord as I lean on Him, wait for Him, and watch as He answers my prayers. Prayer also has brought me into deeper fellowship with Him that I have never before experienced. I see that I have a long journey of growth ahead of me, and it's quite an exciting adventure getting to know the Lord in a way that I never thought possible for myself.
Prayer for the Lord to increase your faith is a great way to start! Then it's time we do our part in seeking the Lord, studying Scripture, and devoting ourselves to prayer.
"Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving." Colossians 4:2
The Lord longs for us to seek Him, and will enable us to do so if we desire Him and ask Him to help us and to increase our faith.
I like how Spurgeon put it, "Get close to God, for strength flows out of Him." I have experienced this(only by His grace) and know how true it is. There is nothing better in life than knowing God!

"The man who would know God must spend time with Him." A.W. Tozer

All I Have Is Christ

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 73:25-26

We sang this song during our worship today in church. The lyrics are beautiful. Please take the time to listen to this video, and may the words be your prayer as well!

“All I Have Is Christ”
By Jordan Kauflin

I once was lost in darkest night
Yet thought I knew the way.
The sin that promised joy and life
Had led me to the grave.
I had no hope that You would own
A rebel to Your will.
And if You had not loved me first
I would refuse You still.

But as I ran my hell-bound race
Indifferent to the cost
You looked upon my helpless state
And led me to the cross.
And I beheld God’s love displayed
You suffered in my place
You bore the wrath reserved for me
Now all I know is grace.

Hallelujah! All I have is Christ
Hallelujah! Jesus is my life

Now, Lord, I would be Yours alone
And live so all might see
The strength to follow Your commands
Could never come from me.
Oh Father, use my ransomed life
In any way You choose.
And let my song forever be
My only boast is You.

Hallelujah! All I have is Christ
Hallelujah! Jesus is my life

Nearer than ever to home!

You have been nearly shipwrecked, but you are not wrecked. The storm has been very furious, but above all the billows Jehovah’s power has kept and preserved you. Your feet had almost gone, your steps had well nigh slipped, but the divine power interposed in everlasting grace, and to this day - a wonder unto many, but especially a wonder to yourself - you are still on the road towards the celestial city, and you are nearer to it than when you first believed.

(Charles Spurgeon- The Daily Spurgeon)

CLING to the Bible!

I got this from a sermon I listened to today. I was reminded again just how very important it is for us as believers to be in God's Word constantly and to be meditating on it day and night. I have learned the hard way how easy it is to stumble even over the smallest things when I neglect to spend time in the Scriptures. So brothers and sisters, cling to the Word of God and allow Him through it to renew, mold, and shape your every thought and decision in life rather than being conformed to the world that surrounds you.

We don’t live in a culture that is friendly to Christianity…
It’s demonic, earthly, & sensual and wants to rip to shreds everything that has to do with the bride of Jesus Christ.
If we don’t cling to the Bible- we’re gone.

We are vulnerable to defeat and injury if we do not arm ourselves with the Gospel from head to toe- DAILY!

Ephesians 6:11 "Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil."

2 Timothy 2:15 "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth."

Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

Joshua 1:8 ""This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success."

Oh, To Have A Grateful Heart!

Recently the Lord has really been reminding me again of all that He has blessed me with. I read Leslie Ludy's book, "The Lost Art of True Beauty" over my vacation last week and found it to be really good and very Christ-centered (as are all of the Ludy books). It was helpful for me at this time to be reminded of what really matters in this life and how important it is to be beautiful in God's eyes and to be completely consumed with only Him above all else- caught up in Him alone- living a life fully surrendered to Jesus Christ.
I really wanted to share this small section of the book that really spoke to my heart about having a heart of gratitude.
As you read this, I pray the Lord speaks to your heart as well about all that He has blessed you with. The most precious gift that He has given is the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ- and that alone should stop us in our tracks the moment we feel the temptation to grumble and complain about some earthly struggle or inconvenience.
Thank You Heavenly Father for the cross and for Your many blessings promised to us because of Jesus Christ. Every day is an opportunity to discover more of You!

Cultivating Gratitude from "The Lost Art of True Beauty" by Leslie Ludy:

"Do all things without grumbling or disputing; so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world." (Philippians 2:14,15)

And yet, how many of us think nothing of griping and complaining when things don't turn out exactly as we want? As Americans, we've been trained to "demand our rights." The message, "Get what you deserve! Fight for what you want! Have it your way!" is all around us. And all too often, we fall for it.
We believe we are entitled to comforts, security, money, popularity, and happiness, all the while forgetting we are utterly undeserving of even the very least of God's amazing blessings. Instead of being flooded with gratitude for everything He's done for us, we become sullen, depressed, or demanding when any of our "rights" are threatened. We are all too much like the nine healed lepers who never returned to give thanks to God:

When He saw them, He said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they were going, they were cleansed. Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine- where are they?"Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?" (Luke 17:14-18)

Like the nine ungrateful lepers, we take the benefits and blessings of Christ and then go our way, entirely forgetting that everything we have comes from Him, that we deserve nothing but death, yet He has given us life.
We must live each day in light of the cross. When we remember the unfathomable sacrifice our heroic Lord has made for us, we are far less apt to gripe, complain, whine, and demand. Rather, we live in humble awe of the incredible gift of what He has done. We shine with gratitude and thanks. We radiate with the beauty and jubilance of someone who's been given a second chance at life. Petty gripes and complaints no longer seem important in light of His immeasurable gift to us.

How Beautiful

How beautiful are the arms which have embraced Christ,
the hands which have touched Christ,
the eyes which have gazed upon Christ,
the lips which have spoken with Christ,
the feet which have followed Christ.
How beautiful are the hands which have worked the works of Christ,
the feet which treading in His footsteps have gone about doing good,
the lips which have spread abroad His name,
the lives which have been counted lost for Him.

-Christina Rosetti

PeAcE

In Acceptance Lieth Peace

by Amy Carmichael

He said, “I will forget the dying faces;
The empty places,
They shall be filled again.
O voices moaning deep within me, cease.”
But vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in forgetting lieth peace.

He said, “I will crowd action upon action,
The strife of faction
Shall stir me and sustain;
O tears that drown the fire of manhood, cease.”
But vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in endeavor lieth peace.

He said, “I will withdraw me and be quiet,
Why meddle in life’s riot?
Shut be my door to pain.
Desire, thou dost befool me, thou shalt cease.”
But vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in aloofness lieth peace.

He said, “I will submit; I am defeated.
God hath depleated
My life of its rich gain.
O futile murmurings, why will ye not cease?”
But vain the word; vain, vain:
Not in submission lieth peace.

He said, “I will accept the breaking sorrow
Which God tomorrow
Will to His son explain.”
Then did the turmoil deep within him cease.
Not vain the word, not vain;
For in acceptance lieth peace.

"Whatever your circumstances, and however difficult they may be, the truth is that they are ordained by God for you as part of His overall plan for your life. God does nothing, or allows nothing, without a purpose. And His purposes, however mysterious and inscrutable they may be to us, are always for His glory and our ultimate good." -Jerry Bridges

Lord, I am willing to-
Receive what You give,
Lack what You withold,
Relinquish what You take.