#1 Read Scripture Daily

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge”(Hosea 4:6)

Too many Christians are living in defeat. They believe in Jesus and trust that His death and resurrection has secured a life in heaven when they die, yet their lives remain marked by overwork, addiction, anxiety, divorce, chronic health issues, financial hardship and broken relationships – just like the lives of unbelievers. They have accepted Christ and will go to heaven upon dying, but life on earth won’t look significantly different from their non- believing neighbors.

Many of these same Christians pray before meals, attend bible studies, read devotions every morning and go to church regularly, but leave the sanctuary without any real understanding of how to apply God’s Word for answered prayer. As a result, they raise children in the same powerless faith, repeating the same powerless prayers. Consequently, many of God’s promised blessings remain untapped one generation to the next. Even more concerning, the same struggles resurface again and again in each generation, repeating this cycle of a powerless prayer life. 

I can only imagine how heartbreaking this must be for God, watching His people stumble through life. He painstakingly gave His only Son, Jesus, to die for us- not simply so we can be saved for eternity one day, but so we can overcome all of our problems. Salvation is a process as well as an end result. Yes, we can be saved or rescued out of all our problems.

WHAT’S MISSING?

“Prayer doesn’t work,” many non-Christians say, “I see Christians praying all the time, and nothing happens” they complain. I understand why many people come to that conclusion.

As I look around my Christian community, I hear sincere Christians talk about the problems they are hoping to overcome through prayer. They believe Jesus died for their sins and know they will go to heaven, yet when they pray, the results often seem unpredictable. Why is that?

Consider this illustration.

Imagine you have a mother who has always loved you unconditionally. She protected you, guided you, encouraged you, and was always willing to help whenever you needed her, even before you asked. Every visit to her home was filled with joy, nourishing food, meaningful conversation, and wisdom that strengthened your life.

Now imagine there are no cars or phones, and you currently live five miles from her house. Because of the distance, you visit less often. As time passes, the closeness you once enjoyed begins to fade, not because your mother has changed, but because your time with her has become infrequent.

One day you decide to make the five-mile walk to see her. As you walk, uncertainty fills your mind. Will she be home? You no longer know her daily routine. Will your visit be as warm as it once was? Will you leave encouraged, nourished, and strengthened, or will there be an uncomfortable distance created by your long absence?

Over time, you have forgotten many of the wise things she had taught you. You even begin to question whether she will help you now. Your mother has never become less loving or less dependable, but because you have spent so little time with her, your faith in her has weakened.

Our Lack of Faith In God’s Faithfulness

Our faith or lack thereof, in God’s faithfulness follows our lack of consistent, daily time with Him as well. Not only that, our trust in Him/ Word.

God never changes. His faithfulness never diminishes and all His promises can be claimed by the follower of Christ. Yet when we neglect His Word, stop trusting it and forget to pray, our confidence in Him begins to fade because we have strayed from Him. This is why reading the Bible, praying and asking the Holy Spirit to help us understand what we read must be a part of every day. This maintains our relationship with Jesus and thus our confidence in Him for answered prayer.

The Fight of Faith

First and foremost, we are in a fight to believe Jesus’ words rather than what we see. Satan is real and Satan invented the human systems that have been created to overcome our problem. We can think about the health care system and it’s drugs that help and hurt us. This sounds familiar to me. The apple in the Garden of Eden contained both good and evil. And so it is with all things humans create. That’s why a relationship with Jesus is the answer. There are no side effects to Jesus’ Word that overcomes disease, relational difficulties, financial problems, fear, overwork or lack of peace.

Learning How To Pray

Learning how to pray is tied directly to how to acquire faith. We learn through our relationship with Jesus, deep study of His Word and meditation on it day and night

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,
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers [push forward] (Ps 1:1-3)

Once we get enough Scripture memorized and we think about it over and over again, the Holy Spirit will reveal it’s meaning. This then will cause us to trust it.

Scripture states:“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”(John 16:33 NIV)  A life in relationship with Jesus deeply studying His Word will give us the wisdom and trust to believe it. We will be able to stand praying to conquer our problems and know we will win.

The Bible Must Be First

Devotional books can be helpful, but they are no substitute for Scripture itself. It is God’s Word  that has the power to illuminate our understanding leading to our trust in it. The way we should think of Bible study is the exact same way we think of food- it’s nourishment for the day and has the power to affect our mind, will and emotions.“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” (John 1:14) God’s Word is Jesus as it states: “He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God.”(Rev 19:13)

We aren’t simply reading a book when we read the Bible, we are taking in the mind of Christ. And that is exactly what God calls us to do. .“Who can know the LORD’s thoughts?…but we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.”(1 Cor 2:16 NLT)

Pushing God’s Word/Will Away

It is a common theme for humanity to push God’s will which is found in the Bible, away from us as we reason it off as unlikely, old fashioned or plain wrong- especially if it conflicts with our idea of life. But Scripture states:

“What may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power… so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools” (Rom 1:19-22)

God is gracious, and when we get to a point in our lives where no human means can help us, all we need to do is ask for help and understanding. The Bible states:“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.”(Ja 1:5-7)

Reading the Bible and committing verses to memory has the potential to align our behavior and thus build up our faith- but it’s a choice. It is only when we agree with Scripture and do it, that our faith increases and we can believe for the miraculous. Studying the Bible daily and heeding its instruction is called “walking with the Lord” and it is much like walking those five miles to your mother’s house. 

It takes time.

Must be intentional.

Pulls us away from the distractions of the world.

Is solitary.

Requires sacrifice

Requires us to value our relationship with Jesus above other pursuits. 

We can think of reading Scripture as the best education we could ever receive. However, if we ignore it, we will suffer long term consequences much like a student who doesn’t pay attention in high school. Taking school lightly, endangers graduation. If a student doesn’t graduate their life will be so much more difficult. They will suffer the negative consequences of their actions, instead of enjoying the result of taking school and thus life, seriously.

We all come up against the consequences of our actions, no one is immune to this. But when problems or tragedies hit our life, the Christian should immediately go to Scripture with an open mind, seeking the Lord’s guidance. We must constantly ask ourselves “Am I out of God’s will?” “Did I ask God to bless my plans instead of waiting for Him to guide my choice?”

God is our provider, protector, healer and guide and yet if we aren’t experiencing these wonderful benefits of being a child of God, we have walked off the straight and narrow path. We have bought into the lies of Satan. We have limited our knowledge of God’s Word- and haven’t aligned our lives with the conditions necessary to receive the promised blessings. Some people hit a brick wall in their health, finances, relationships and never understand why, when all the direction needed for overcoming can be found with the Bible, an open heart, a humble spirit willing to change and willing to ask for forgiveness. “And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”(Jer 29:13 NASB)

Picking up the Bible to engage in personal study is key. Bible class is wonderful, but we make more progress on our own, bringing our own concerns to our quiet time as we dig into God’s Word. There won’t be the distraction of looking to answer the Bible study curriculum. Our lives, as Christians should be marked by understanding the Word, doing the Word and seeing miracles in response to our prayers. But it takes full surrender, and full surrender is hard to find in most Christians. Full surrender to Jesus’ teachings is the beginning of a faith strong enough to stand on the promised blessings without wavering and witness a powerful prayer life. “He must increase, but I must decrease.”(John 3:30)

We Must Decrease

Jesus used an unshrunk cloth being patched to an old garment as an illustration to one of His parables but it fits nicely to understand this point. Unless we become less, meaning less focused on our wants, needs, entertainment and desires and instead choose to go through the process of “washing” our ideas with the Word of God, we will pull away from God under the strain of competing desires.

An unshrunk or unrestrained soul rebels against anything that encroaches on their idea of life. But those who acquiesce their choices to God and walk along His straight and narrow path, will gain confidence that Christ does indeed live in us and God cannot deny our prayer requests based on His will. But it takes time, testing and faith to stand on this. I learned this powerful truth in the operating room. 

The Lord Gives Us Practical Examples of His Truths

I work as a Nurse Anesthetist giving anesthetics and then managing vital signs of patients undergoing surgery. On one particular occasion, my patient’s heart rate dropped swiftly. I gave the first drug in my arsenal, but to no avail. I gave the second drug, and again no improvement was made, now the blood pressure was being affected. I gave another dose of the second drug and waited for what seemed like eternity and I prayed. As I stood there waiting, I suddenly felt an invisible fist firmly placed on my heart- then this sentence landed in my head: “I cannot deny myself.” Immediately, all the vital signs normalized. They didn’t gradually go up or overcorrect, they were immediately perfect and stayed that way until the end of the case.

 I was stunned at that statement and the perfectly answered prayer. I wondered about that statement, He cannot deny Himself?  I later remembered what the Apostle Paul had written: “…Christ in you, the hope of His glory.” (Col 1:27)  The profound meaning of this verse is that Christ lives inside everyone who believes in Jesus’ death and resurrection. Because of this fact, our faith in His power can give us the opportunity to see God’s visible glory manifest in our lives. 

Remember the wedding at Cana when Jesus turned water into wine? This was the first manifestation of Jesus’ glory.  This is the hope we have, the hope of seeing His glorious power manifested in our lives. It is a remarkable privilege to watch Him work! “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.” (John 2:11)

We Are Never In Checkmate With Our God

Checkmate is a situation in the game of chess, when a person’s king is in check with no possible way of escape. But followers of Jesus Christ can never be in checkmate- God always has a way of escape no matter what mess we may find ourselves in. We can make one final move to solve our issues. We can accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and submit FULLY to His teachings for protection, healings and miracles. He is the only King above all kings and can “work all things out for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.”(Rom 8:28)

Our King is unlimited and He can direct us to change our life trajectory. Instead of using our intellect to plan our way out of a difficult situation, we must surrender to the Lord. This then allows God to guide us, helping us steer our life back on solid ground. This doesn’t mean we won’t suffer from our past choices- we all have to deal with our past mistakes. But from the moment we choose to fully surrender to Christ, life can be protected by the Lord.

If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

“Because he[b] loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”(Ps 91:9-16)

God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and therefore His Word is the deep indisputable root of life. Every life not rooted in God’s Word is a person living according to their own truth, which will eventually cause setbacks, pain and problems not only for the individual but for those closest to them.

Taking Jesus as our Savior means we believe He came to this earth as the sacrificial lamb, killed for our sins so that we can spend eternity with Him. But we also must take Jesus as our Lord. A Lord directs a person’s life and this direction can only end in well being, health and joy. This then is our power position. Being in the center of God’s will allows us to pray confidently.

Confident Prayers Begin With Salvation

The prayer of salvation begins our journey towards a close relationship with Jesus and a powerful prayer life.  If you have never accepted Jesus as your personal Savior- it would be the best move of your life. It starts with this simple prayer:

“Lord Jesus, I acknowledge I am a sinner and I desire to turn from this way of life. Holy Spirit come into my heart and empower me to change my life to one that is pleasing you- I want you to be my Lord and Savior.”

The discipline of reading the Bible begins the most profound relationship you will ever experience. It illuminates our mind so that we can weed out the lies we have believed. As we sincerely desire to live for the Lord, we will begin to see heaven’s power  invade the earth.  

Discipline #1: Read the Bible daily

Food For Thought,

Lisa