Saturday Review- Pray It Again
It’s Saturday and the day we review all of our prayer points from the week.
Here’s a recipe for God’s favor and protection: decide that we will faithfully pray for our sons and daughters, commit to do it each day, repeat often for best results.
Pray that our sons and daughters would:
Fear God - respect and be in awe and yes, truly fear Him- He is God, there is no rival or equal.
Walk in obedience to Him- not in rebellion, but to submit and walk in the ways that He ordained for them and obey by studying His Word.
Love the Lord- have true affection for Him
Serve Him with all their heart and soul- not half-hearted and not in name only.
Pray that our sons and daughters would not walk with the ungodly but would be intentional each and every day to seek the Lord and His direction in their life.
Pray for God’s protection over and around them today.
Pray that the spiritual eyes of our sons and daughters are opened to the light of Christ and that they truly discern those around them who are ‘fake’ Christians.
Also, pray that they can identify and run from false religions and false teachers trying to imitate light and vie for their affections.
Pray that the Holy Spirit stirs in their heart a desire to walk in true relationship with Christ.
Pray that our sons and daughters would be genuine brothers and sisters in Christ, part of the Body and welcome to celebrate the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
Pray that they walk in integrity.
Finally, pray that if our sons and daughters are taking ‘crooked paths’ that they would be found out. Let them be caught in their compromise and called out on their dishonesty and deceit. Whether they’re deceiving others or themselves, they need to face it, and change it.
Pray without ceasing.
Walk in the Light
John 8:12 “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””
Have you ever visited a new place but your first encounter was at night, in the dark? You gain a distorted perception of how things look-if you can see at all, and it’s so difficult to really understand the landscape because you just cannot see. And if you try to walk? Well, it’s hard because you can’t really see where you’re going.
Then, the next morning, everything looks so different in the light! You see your surroundings and can view longer distances. You gain a perspective of how things relate to one another in the geography and you can navigate with confidence because you can make sense of things so much better. You can see where you’re walking and you see clearly because in the light of day, things make so much more sense!
Before we knew Christ, our view of life was distorted and our understanding of our place in this world was difficult to discern. Our ability to comprehend the bigger picture was skewed and darkened. We were walking in spiritual darkness. But, when we accepted Christ as our personal Savior and trusted in His death and resurrection as the full and complete payment for our sin, the fog lifted, the light filtered through and we gained an eternal perspective that was shadowed in darkness before.
Then there is the difference between natural light and artificial light. “Natural light is full spectrum and dynamic. Full spectrum means that light contains all the colors of the rainbow. Dynamic means that the intensity and mix of colors changes with the time of day.(1)” Artificial light mimics natural light, but will never be able to fully replicate it.
We’ve all seen people who go to church and play the part. And sometimes, they can fool us...for a while. They know the lingo and are ‘good people’. But they lack the light of Christ in their life. They can’t replicate it on their own. Their ‘religion’ is an imitation of Christianity, but without the light of Christ, they will never radiate a true reflection of the Savior.
Do our sons and daughters truly, honestly and authentically walk with Christ, or are they following an artificial imitation? Do they see with healthy spiritual eyes, or are they straining in an artificial light that dims their sin and deceives their perception of God’s expectations?
Oh, we WANT them to walk in the light of Christ, don’t we? Eternity hangs in the balance and nothing artificial will stand.
Today, let’s pray:
That their spiritual eyes are opened to the light of Christ and in that light they truly discern the imposters and poor imitations that surround them. Pray that they see clearly those false religions and false teachers trying to imitate light and vye for their affections.
Pray that the Holy Spirit stirs in their heart a desire to turn away from “religion” and, instead, walk in true relationship with Christ, desiring to live in His lightm truth, and genuine communion with Him.
Pray without ceasing.
1. Natural light versus artificial light. Sunlight Inside. (2017, June 4). https://www.sunlightinside.com/light-and-health/natural-light-versus-artificial-light/.
Don’t Be Directionally Challenged
“Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,” Psalm 1:1
We’ve all heard stories of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. We’ve also heard stories of those who narrowly avoided disaster because they changed locations just a few minutes before the event. Responses like “What a blessing I was not there….” “I feel so fortunate that I left just before…”
When we choose to walk uprightly, the blessings are not random and the protection isn’t circumstantial. Our intentionality to walk with God protects us from being in the wrong place at the wrong time. “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked.” God promises us blessings when we choose to walk with Him.
Are our sons and daughters being intentional in their walk with the Lord, or are they just ‘assuming’ they’ll end up in the right place. Are they mindful of their steps and who they ‘walk’ alongside? It matters, oh friends, it matters so much!! We can’t ‘hope’ that we’ll end up in the right place, we need to continually be checking our direction.
Today, let’s pray that our sons and daughters would not walk with the ungodly but would be intentional each and every day to seek the Lord and His direction in their life. Pray God’s protection over and around them today.
“Father, You see (name) this morning. You know where they are headed, even if they have yet to step out the door. I pray that You would impress Your word on their heart. Help them to walk in Your truth. Keep their feet from stumbling and make their steps firm- following after You in everything. Guard and guide them, Lord, and keep (name) always mindful of You. Give them an undivided heart, so they follow you willfully, joyfully and faithfully. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Pray without ceasing.
Keep in Step with the Spirit
Have you ever watched a marching band? They keep in step with one another, following the lead of the drum major. They all move in sync with each another and to the rhythm of the music. Those who choose to be part of the band understand that it’s not a solo performance, but the success of the band depends on everyone keeping in step and following the director.
As believers, when we “live by the Spirit” it is a similar calling. God gifts each of us differently, but we are all called to follow Him and use our gifts to bring Him glory and honor as a family of believers. Living by the Spirit is a descriptor of our motivation and our goal. When we live by and for something, it is our focus and our purpose. If we are believers in Christ and trust in His death and resurrection as payment for our sin, we are dead to sin and alive in Christ. God calls us, He draws us and He stirs in us a desire to follow after Him. We’re not living ‘solo’ but for God.
Romans 6:8-11 “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”
When we cast the ‘old’ aside and live for Christ, the Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us a calling, a purpose, and helps us bear fruit. We no longer live for ourselves. We’re no longer bound by sin and death- they don’t rule over us any more. Are we still impacted by them? Yes, as long as we live in this fallen world, we’ll battle sin and we’ll face death...physical death. But we no longer face spiritual eternal death and sin doesn’t rule over us! We are alive in Christ!! The Holy Spirit indwells us and we are made more like Christ each day because of the Spirit’s work in our heart and mind.
Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
When we become believers in Christ, we live by the Spirit who indwells us. He transforms us. We begin bearing fruit that reflects Christ in us. Galatians 5:22-24 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
Oh, that our sons and daughters would live for Christ and keep in step with the Spirit!
Today, let’s pray these things:
Pray that our sons and daughters, first and foremost, would commit their lives to Jesus Christ and trust Him as their Lord and Savior
Pray that they live for Jesus and not for themselves. Pray that they would bear fruit that reflects His preeminence in their lives
Pray that they keep in step with the Spirit- walking in the Way that He shows them, obeying what He calls them to do and honoring Him with their choices.
Guard Their Steps, Lord.
Psalm 37:23-24 “The Lord makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”
We cheered when our sons and daughters took their first steps, but now we pray as they walk on their own. We can’t hold their hands to ensure they take careful steps. We’re not there to catch them if they fall. We need to entrust them to the Lord. He can guide their steps so much better than we ever could. Today, let’s pray that He does just that.
“Lord, today I pray that (name) would trust in You and find their delight in You. Make (name)’s steps firm. Ensure that they move alongside You and in the direction of Your will for their life. I pray that in every moment of every day, You would hold (name) close and would surround them with Your protection. Be a lamp to their feet and a light to their path. Keep (name from stumbling) but if that happens, Lord, I pray that they would cling tightly to Your hand and trust that You will hold them up and keep them secure. Grow them, strengthen them and mature them in You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”