As Christians, we have a great responsibility with what we ask for when we pray.
When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, He only asked for one material thing in the example He gave them.
Give us each day our daily bread.
What an awesome request, each day we live in danger and sometimes never know how close we come to death.
But I think that this request for each day goes much deeper.
Our universe and world we live in are violent places, there are natural disasters in place all around us that are just waiting to occur, and I believe that this one request alone protects many of us.
I believe that prayer has very little to do about asking for things, however when we do make a request we should think about the possible answers very carefully.
God answers the prayers of Christians.
I have no doubt about that.
We just may be surprised in how He answers our requests.
I recently asked for God to show me how a rat got into our house, He showed me by letting the rat get in again!Well I certainly did not want that rat back in the house and it took a long time to get him out again.
However, my prayer was answered the very next day.
We are very safe in asking for protection, forgiveness and provisions for each day, it is when we start getting into the details that we take on this great responsibility.
Just think about sorting out all the prayer request and answering each one in a way that would not cause problems, but satisfy the request.
If we prayed for a mountain to be moved, where would it land, who would it land on? If you go to prayer knowing that whatever you ask is going to be attended to, then be sure you're comfortable with what you ask for God to do.
Jesus said, Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
I believe that a position that I held in a large company for more than 20 years, was due to a prayer.
It was not, however my prayer, but someone that I did not even know at the time.
A co- worker that I became very close friends with and was not a Christian, had a very strong Christian wife, who prayed almost daily that her husband would come into contact with and have to work with Christians.
Over the years he shared with me that he truly knew that I lived what I confessed to be.
He met and made friends with many other Christians over the years and one very close friend that he loved to golf with was a preacher.
Ed would not let you discuss the subject at any length, but he did promise the preacher that if he ever did accept Jesus, that he would let him be the one to lead him.
I remember at work one day, Ed remarked, do you know what Tom in South Carlina said to me while we were working?He asked me if I knew Jesus Christ.
Ed had more contact with Christians than any one unsaved person I knew.
His wife's prayer was being answered almost daily.
However, she did not reap the pleasure of having Ed as a Christian husband.
Ed became involved with another woman, divorced and married again.
Many years later after finding out that he had terminal cancer, he went to that preacher, accepted Christ and then called me to bring him a Bible and talk with him.
He shared things from his life that I never knew and the reasons that he had turned against Christians.
In the remaining last year of his life, He expressed how hard it was for him to accept the fact that God had forgiven him when he had done nothing to deserve it.
My wife and I were present when he went to be with the Lord and during the last few days he talked about seeing lights around the room.
When Kathy and his daughter would talk to him about heaven and where he was going he would be out of pain.
So the next time you pray for a specified thing, know that there will be far reaching results, more than you will ever know, God does not take our prayers lightly, but works them into the lives of others so that we will all benefit.
When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, He only asked for one material thing in the example He gave them.
Give us each day our daily bread.
What an awesome request, each day we live in danger and sometimes never know how close we come to death.
But I think that this request for each day goes much deeper.
Our universe and world we live in are violent places, there are natural disasters in place all around us that are just waiting to occur, and I believe that this one request alone protects many of us.
I believe that prayer has very little to do about asking for things, however when we do make a request we should think about the possible answers very carefully.
God answers the prayers of Christians.
I have no doubt about that.
We just may be surprised in how He answers our requests.
I recently asked for God to show me how a rat got into our house, He showed me by letting the rat get in again!Well I certainly did not want that rat back in the house and it took a long time to get him out again.
However, my prayer was answered the very next day.
We are very safe in asking for protection, forgiveness and provisions for each day, it is when we start getting into the details that we take on this great responsibility.
Just think about sorting out all the prayer request and answering each one in a way that would not cause problems, but satisfy the request.
If we prayed for a mountain to be moved, where would it land, who would it land on? If you go to prayer knowing that whatever you ask is going to be attended to, then be sure you're comfortable with what you ask for God to do.
Jesus said, Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
I believe that a position that I held in a large company for more than 20 years, was due to a prayer.
It was not, however my prayer, but someone that I did not even know at the time.
A co- worker that I became very close friends with and was not a Christian, had a very strong Christian wife, who prayed almost daily that her husband would come into contact with and have to work with Christians.
Over the years he shared with me that he truly knew that I lived what I confessed to be.
He met and made friends with many other Christians over the years and one very close friend that he loved to golf with was a preacher.
Ed would not let you discuss the subject at any length, but he did promise the preacher that if he ever did accept Jesus, that he would let him be the one to lead him.
I remember at work one day, Ed remarked, do you know what Tom in South Carlina said to me while we were working?He asked me if I knew Jesus Christ.
Ed had more contact with Christians than any one unsaved person I knew.
His wife's prayer was being answered almost daily.
However, she did not reap the pleasure of having Ed as a Christian husband.
Ed became involved with another woman, divorced and married again.
Many years later after finding out that he had terminal cancer, he went to that preacher, accepted Christ and then called me to bring him a Bible and talk with him.
He shared things from his life that I never knew and the reasons that he had turned against Christians.
In the remaining last year of his life, He expressed how hard it was for him to accept the fact that God had forgiven him when he had done nothing to deserve it.
My wife and I were present when he went to be with the Lord and during the last few days he talked about seeing lights around the room.
When Kathy and his daughter would talk to him about heaven and where he was going he would be out of pain.
So the next time you pray for a specified thing, know that there will be far reaching results, more than you will ever know, God does not take our prayers lightly, but works them into the lives of others so that we will all benefit.