Wonderful Jesus!

Category: Prayer

• Who is Like You, O Lord?

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 5, 2021

  Exodus 15:11 – “Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders? NKJV

  

  I was in New York at a conference when I heard Chris Tomlin’s song, “Our God”. I couldn’t get enough of that song! We sang it in every meeting, and when I came home, the first thing I wanted to know was, who wrote that song and how could I get it! Here are the words to the chorus:

  Our God is greater, our God is stronger
  God You are higher, than any other
  Our God is Healer, awesome in power
  Our God, Our God!

  The prayer of praise and worship is another prayer that focuses solely on God! Even greater than the prayer of thanksgiving is this time of pouring our love and affection on the Master.

  Some of the things that we can worship Him for are His holiness, His glory, His greatness, His majesty, His power, His creation and His faithfulness, to name a few!

  Our text is a verse that focuses on His greatness. After God delivered the children of Israel from Pharaoh, Moses sang this in a song:

  Exodus 15:11 – “Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? NKJV

  Is that the echo of your heart? Who is like our God? Who can do the wonders He does? Who is more glorious? There is no other! No, not one!

  Nehemiah uttered these words of worship to God:

  You alone are the Lord; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, The earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You. Nehemiah 9:6 – NKJV

  It’s appropriate that at some point in our life we worship Him for the angels spend time worshipping Him, and He hasn’t saved them! Sooner rather than later! More often, than not! He’s worthy!

  Jonah, while in the belly of the great fish spoke these words to the Father:

  “When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; And my prayer went up to You, into Your holy temple. “Those who regard worthless idols forsake their own Mercy. Jonah 2:7-8 – NKJV

  Jonah worshipped the merciful God when His soul was faint! Anytime, is a good time to stop and worship the Lord or give Him praise. When you do so, it’s praying, conversing with God, on another level! Here are some scriptures to get you started:

  Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God, in His holy mountain. Psalm 48:1 – NKJV

  He is so great! He is awesome! Worthy to be praised! Worthy of honor!

  Psalm 77:13- Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary; who is so great a God as our God?

  No one! Our God is the only true God! You’ll not find another! He’s greater! He’s stronger! He’s wiser! Our God!

  A personal favorite of my brother-in-law, Pastor Eric and one that comes to mind is:

  Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. Jude 1:24-25 – NKJV

  Can’t you hear yourself worshipping Him and saying: You, O Lord, are the only One who can keep me from stumbling, and only You can present me before the Father, faultless! I worship You God my Savior, who alone is wise… and then throw some of this in there:

  O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth, who have set Your glory above the heavens! Psalm 8:1 – NKJV

  Go ahead and worship Him for His excellent Name! The Name that is above every name!

  For the Lord is the great God, and the great King above all gods. In His hand are the deep places of the earth; the heights of the hills are His also. The sea is His, for He made it; and His hands formed the dry land. Psalm 95:3-5 -NKJV

  If I had to stop and worship Him right now, I couldn’t do it without telling Him how good He is. I couldn’t go far with my words without saying how great is His love towards me. I would have to mention His faithfulness throughout my life!

  Sometimes in thinking about prayer, we can over complicate the manner. We can accomplish so much in prayer when we spend time in worship, adoring Him, offering Him praise, throwing in some gratefulness, and basically focusing on Him. Is He insecure and needs words of affirmation to get through His day? Not hardly! But He is God, Creator of the Universe! The Living God, Who was, and Is, and Is to Come! He is worthy! He deserves to be worshipped and honored. And as I blog, I realize I haven’t done it enough! Who is like our God? No one, that’s who? No one is greater, no one is stronger, no one is higher. I am overwhelmed with His love! I am awed by His creation! I am touched by His heart towards us! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in God, praise, Prayer, worship | 0 Comments | Tagged adoration, Attitude, faithfulness, God, holiness, Honor, Jonah, love, Moses, praise, Prayer, the Exodus, worship, worthy

• Getting It Right!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 3, 2021

  Psalm 51:10-11 – Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. NKJV

  

  getting-it-right_.mp3

  Tonight I want to blog about the prayer of repentance. The Webster’s 1868 edition defines the word repentance, in the following manner:

  Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence. This is called evangelical repentance and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life.

  Since this definition fits my purpose, I will say that the prayer of repentance is used to express a sorrow over any sin we have committed that offends or dishonor God or His Word. This prayer can be, and probably is, prayed multiple times throughout our lives.

  Our key text, taken from Psalm 51, happens to be a part of a prayer of repentance that David prayed. David had an affair with Bathsheba. He tried to cover it up, but was unable to do so. First, Bathsheba got pregnant. Then he called her husband back from the battle and tried to get him to go home to her so that they could play the child off as Uriah’s. When that didn’t work, he had Uriah killed in battle. Not only that, God had to send Nathan, the prophet, to him because he hadn’t yet acknowledged his deed for the sin that it was. When David finally came to the place where he was willing to admit that he had sinned, his next step was to go to God and confess it and repent of it! David’s hesitancy to repent, actually paralyzed him in his relationship with God!

  Here’s another example of someone repenting in prayer:

  Now while Ezra was praying, and while he was confessing, weeping, and bowing down before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept very bitterly. Ezra 10:1 -NKJV

  In this verse, we see Ezra is before God, praying, confessing, and weeping. The prayer of repentance doesn’t always involve weeping, but most definitely can. I won’t say it is a criteria for sincerity because some people are really good at gut wrenching tears that produces nothing more than an emotional drain. However, it is a time of prayer where you can find yourself crying before the Lord.

  I know this is an Old Testament example, and we don’t live under the Old Testament, but it is applicable for tonight’s topic.

  What makes this such a relevant prayer is that we must use this type of prayer to become born again. I don’t know your experience, but I am pretty sure that when you accepted Jesus as Savior, prayer was involved. And I am fairly certain that repentance was involved.

  Here’s a New Testament example for us: the prodigal son. You have probably heard or read this account of the son on more than one occasion, but I will briefly retell it. The son asked his father for his inheritance, even though his father was still alive. The father gives it to him. Then the son leaves home and loses all of his money while partying hard. He finds himself in abject poverty, eating the same food as the pigs he was hired to feed. One day he realizes, if he is going to be a slave for someone it may as well be his father for his father treats his servants so much better. His attitude is one of repentance:

  I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”’ Luke 15:18-19 – NKJV

  It was the son’s acknowledgment that he had blown it big time, that places this son in a position to receive grace and mercy from his father. Yes, his father forgave him and restored him, but there’s no doubt in my mind that things would have ended differently had he not confessed his sins before his father. This is a beautiful picture of how we are to come to the Father when we blow it. No justification, no pointing fingers, no excuses, just simple acknowledging that we did wrong and sincere repentance of the wrong.

  John wrote this:

  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 – NKJV

  This brings us back to our key verse. David asked God to create in him a new heart. When we pray a prayer of repentance, our greatest desire should be that God give us a new heart. If we are sinners in need of salvation, it is what He wants to do! If we are believers who need to “get it right” He wants to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. In either case, forgiveness is waiting for us, we need only ask!

  David also asked that God would renew a steadfast spirit in him. What’s that? A spirit of stability, a spirit of being fixed on obedience to God, a yes to His will spirit! David had that type of spirit before, and he wanted it re-established in his life. So much so, it was more important to him than anything, because he didn’t want to lose the right to be in the presence of the Lord. He knew his sin had separated him from God, and he desperately wanted to see his relationship restored with God.

  David also asked God to not to remove His Holy Spirit from him. That’s deep for an Old Testament individual, and that makes it applicable to New Testament believers. When we sin, we need to get it right! Our heart should be as David’s heart was. God, whatever You do, don’t turn me away, and please don’t remove Your Spirit from my life! Why? Because more than anything, we should want to be right before God and to know that His Spirit is still present in our lives. And that’s why the prayer of repentance is so necessary to pray. Sin blocks our ability to connect with God, but confession of that sin and repentance of that sin gives us unlimited access to Him.

  As I stated in the beginning, we may need to pray this prayer on more than one occasion in our lives. But if we find that we are praying it daily, then we are in need of some different type of praying. I don’t believe necessarily in steps when dealing with God. You may need to pray for an hour about your situation, while someone else may need only a few minutes. Let His Spirit lead you during this time. However long you pray, pray until you know you’ve accomplished the task of truly repenting. And according to our definition, it must bring about a change in your behavior and your life! Wonderful Jesus!

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  Posted in God, Holy Spirit, Prayer, Repentance, Salvation | 2 Comments | Tagged Attitude, Believer, David, favor, God, Grace, Holy Spirit, obedience, parable, Prayer, Salvation, Sin, Sinner

• Lord, I Thank You!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 1, 2021

  Ephesians 6:18 – praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—NKJV

  

  lord_-i-thank-you_.mp3

  This week I am turning my focus to prayer. I’ve blogged before on the subject of praying always, but I don’t recall addressing the many types of ways we can pray. I look at the picture of the young girl and her posture, and I think, I know that posture. Do we have to have a certain type of posture? No! But sometimes a posture say more than our words ever could!

  Paul encourages us in this verse to pray with all prayer. That word “all” causes me to infer that there is more than one way to pray. Of course, I know it to be true, but for the sake of beginnings, I want to make that point. There are all kinds of prayers, and therefore there are all kinds of way to pray.

  One of my favorite ways to pray, is the prayer of thanksgiving! This time of conversing with the Lord can be short and to the point: Thank you Lord for not allowing that car to hit me! Or it can be longer, where we give Him thanks for any number of reasons!

  Something I see in the Old Testament, is that people were chosen to give thanks to God:

  And Hezekiah appointed the divisions of the priests and the Levites according to their divisions, each man according to his service, the priests and Levites for burnt offerings and peace offerings, to serve, to give thanks, and to praise in the gates of the camp of the Lord. 2 Chronicles 31:2 – NKJV

  Can you imagine living life without the privilege of thanking God for who He is in your life, and for all He has done? Can you imagine being in a time and place when someone else was designated to be in His presence thanking Him, and you weren’t that someone?

  And with them Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were chosen, who were designated by name, to give thanks to the Lord, because His mercy endures forever; 1 Chronicles 16:41 -NKJV

  Or maybe it wasn’t like that all! Maybe, they were chosen to set the atmosphere of worship in the house of the Lord! For that is exactly, what the prayer of thanksgiving leads to. Worship!

  What are some of the things we should find ourselves giving Him thanks for?

  • We should thank Him because He is good! 1 Corinthians 16:34
  • We should thank Him for His great name! Psalm 35:18
  • We should give Him thanks because we are His people Psalm 79:13
  • We should thank Him because it’s the right thing to do! Psalm 92:1
  • We should thank Him for His wonderful works to other people! Psalm 107:8
  • We should thank Him for His word! Psalm 119:62
  • We should thank Him for His mercy that endures forever! Psalm 136:26
  • We should give thanks for His Blood that was shed for us! Mark 14:23
  • We should give thanks for His Body that was given for us! Luke 22:19
  • We should give thanks for what He does for us! Luke 17:16
  • We should give thanks for Him giving us the victory through our Lord! 1 Corinthians 15:57
  • We should thank Him for those who are a part of the Body of Christ! Ephesians 1:16
  • We should thank Him for grace! 2 Corinthians 9:15

  And if that is not enough to take you to the place of worship, thanks should be given for Jesus! And thanks for this beautiful land that we live in, and for life, and for health, and for strength! And for family, and jobs, and friends, and vehicles, and homes…and I think you get the picture!

  This is my favorite type of prayer, as I said, because it leads to worship. It leads to us remembering who God is and all He has done and can do for us! It has a way of refreshing me and causing me to get my mind off of the negative issues in life, or the stress of the day. As a matter of fact, it gets me in the right frame of mind to blog.

  Anyone can be become an expert at talking to God with the prayer of thanksgiving! The leper who was cleansed, immediately knew exactly what words to say and what posture to take after he was healed. You don’t need an example, or further explanation. No need for the Greek or the Hebrew words to break it down! Just know that it’s an excellent way to talk to the Everlasting God and that you will most certainly get His attention!! Then when you finish giving Him thanks, you can just bask in His presence! Wonderful Jesus!

  prayer-for-salvation.mp3

  Posted in Prayer, God, Thanksgiving | 2 Comments | Tagged Christian, David, giving of thanks, God, leper, miraculous, Paul, Prayer, psalm, Thanksgiving, victory, worship

• Pray Without Ceasing!

  Posted at 10:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on September 10, 2020

  1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” NKJV

  

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  Praying without ceasing! I was a member of a Baptist Church when I first learned this scripture. Over the years, I have tried to be this person who pray without ceasing. I’m pretty sure that I haven’t arrived yet, but I believe sincerely in the discipline of praying without ceasing.

  There used to be a time in my life when I would get some really bad news and I would say, “All I can do is pray” as if every possible avenue had been tried and I was now left with trying prayer. I truly believe this attitude of, I guess I now have to pray, is the root behind many unanswered prayer.

  I spend a lot of time reading and studying about prayer, people who pray, and the impact of a life of prayer. I want to pray more effectively, I want to see my prayers answered instantly, I want to see God move in people lives and situations, and sometimes, I just want to deepen my communion with the Father!

  The phrase, “praying without ceasing” causes me to infer some things about prayer that will break through our traditions on how to pray: our posture, our voice, our place.

  If I am truly to pray without ceasing, then the posture of prayer doesn’t matter to God. Some people think that prayers must be prayed on bended knees, because it demonstrates humility, and it does. Some people think standing is the position of prayer, because Jesus said “when you stand praying”! These are certainly postures of prayer. However, you can also pray sitting in a chair, riding in your car, walking down the street (I love to prayer walk), or laying out before the Lord, just to name a few! And whichever posture you happen to be in when you pray, God will hear you!

  Lightfoot, a well-known commentator to many theologians, wrote that it’s not possible for us to spend all of our time with words of prayer on our lips; but, we can remain in the spirit of prayer, recognizing that we are dependent on God for everything! This leads to my second point. Some believe you are not praying, if you are not opening your mouth, for when Jesus taught the disciples to pray He said, “And when you pray, say…” While using your words are an important part of praying, your heart’s cry or desire, can get the job done! After all, if you go about praying out loud all day, you’ll look like a crazy person! I have prayed many prayers in my heart that I have seen God answer! Do I pray out loud? Most definitely! But, there have been times that words could not express what was in my heart, or I wasn’t where I could pray them, and yet God heard, understood, and responded!

  Praying without ceasing keeps us from being locked down to a location. My sister-in-law, Pastor Caren, teaches on “The Secret Place”. Whenever she does, it causes me to want to pray even more. Even still, you don’t have to be confined to praying in one place. Jesus’ instructions to us to pray in the secret place is vital in developing a personal prayer life. However, if that was the only place we could pray, we could not pray always. The car, the church, the bank, the restaurant, the shower, the garden, the beach, are all great locations for prayer. Any place, is a great place, to talk with God. Enjoy the secret place, but if you find yourself in the bathroom and someone is crying their heart out, it’s okay to stop and pray. God is in the bathroom!

  Smith Wigglesworth, an evangelist in the early part of the 20th century, walked in supernatural miracles which included the raising of the dead, and creative miracles of body parts being restored. Once he was asked how long did he pray? Here’s the discourse from a book written about him:

  “Tell us, how long do you pray every day?  “Well, the apostle replied, “I don’t ever pray any longer than twenty minutes.” What?” his questioners exclaimed. After pausing for effect, Smith Wigglesworth continued, “Yes, but I never go twenty minutes without praying”.

  I think we can all agree that Wigglesworth was a man who prayed without ceasing! It is even said, about his prayer life, that people couldn’t take being in the room with him when he prayed, because of the presence of God! That’s powerful!

  We should get to a place where we are talking to God about everything that is happening in our day. He wants to be involved in every part of our lives. Some say, it would be ridiculous to ask God what to wear! I have heard more than one testimony of someone asking, of Him answering, and of it being a benefit in more ways than one. But it’s not necessary to ask Him what to wear, He gives us free choice. However, throughout the day, there will be many times when talking softly to the Lord will make things go so much better!

  Is there a reason to pray continuously?

  • Luke 18:1-Jesus Himself said that if we are always praying, we won’t faint! That means constant communication with God, through prayer, gives us the strength to make it through the tough times in life!
  • Luke 21:36- Jesus says that we should not allow our hearts to be weighed down with the cares of this life to the point that we will miss His return! However, if we are praying continuously, we will not be drinking and carousing, but watching for His return and will not be caught unaware!
  • Ephesians 6:18 -Paul talked about the armor of God, then he said that we are to pray with all kinds of prayer! It is a strategic weapon against our enemy and his attacks, and praying always enables us to be watchful for all the saints! Have you ever been praying about one thing, when God interrupts your prayer, bring someone to your heart or mind, and you begin to pray? Then you find out that it was at a crucial moment that had a major impact on their life? Wow!

  I know some prayer warriors. They can be in the middle of a celebration, hear of a need, and go into serious combative prayer. My mother-in-law wouldn’t let you out of her sight without her praying for you. It’s a beautiful thing to have so many people in your life who can pray at the drop of a hat, because they live a life of prayer. I thank God for them! The word of God tells us to pray without ceasing, for this is the will of God concerning us! Let’s get started today! Wonderful Jesus!!

  Posted in Bitterness, Prayer, will of God | 4 Comments | Tagged Attitude, encouragement, God, Jesus, miraculous, pray without ceasing, Prayer, Smith Wigglesworth, Spiritual warfare, supernatural, testimony, the devil

• Plead Your Case!

  Posted at 9:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on May 16, 2020

  Isaiah 38:3-5 – “O Lord, don’t you remember how true I’ve been to you and how I’ve always tried to obey you in everything you said?” Then he broke down with great sobs. So the Lord sent another message to Isaiah: “Go and tell Hezekiah that the Lord God of your forefather David hears you praying and sees your tears and will let you live fifteen more years.” TLB

  

  I was reading in the book of Isaiah, when I read the account of Hezekiah’s reign again. As I was reading it, I was reminded of his prayer that caused his life to be extended. God had sent the prophet Isaiah to Hezekiah to tell him to get his house in order, he was going to die. When Hezekiah heard this word, he turned his face to the wall and cried to God and prayed. What he was actually doing in this prayer was pleading to God for mercy based on his obedience to the word of God. Isaiah had already left the king’s presence, so God had to send him back to Hezekiah to let him know that He had heard his prayers and had extended his life by fifteen years. That’s pretty impressive results.

  In Acts 9, we can read about Dorcas. She was known for her charitable deeds and good works. But one day she became sick and died. They sent for Peter and when he showed up they showed him some of the things she had made. In other words, they pleaded her case to Peter. Peter put them all out, prayed to God on behalf of the people for Dorcas, and God raised her from the dead. Glory!

  The question is, can we go to God, plead our case, and get help? I would say absolutely. Any principle in the word of God is established by two or three witnesses. I just gave you two. And there are a few times in the gospels where people pleaded with Jesus on behalf of another. One of my favorite is the woman who pleaded with Jesus for her daughter. Remember Jesus told her that it wasn’t right to give the children’s bread to the dogs. She pleaded with Him by saying, even the dogs get the crumbs from under the table. She was pleading for her baby to be delivered, and she got her request! So there is biblical proof that we can plead our case to God.

  I remember reading a testimony of a situation similar to what Dorcas’ friends experienced. The person who shared the testimony was called to the place where the individual was extremely ill. And as he was being told of the situation the people kept talking to him about the life of this individual and how dedicated the person was to the Lord. He got the inspiration to do as Peter did. He prayed and pleaded the case of that person before God and the person was raised from the bed of affliction.

  When I was single, I pleaded my case to the Lord. I was ready to settle down and for me that meant marriage. I went to the Lord in prayer and while I was praying I heard myself say something like this: “Lord, you said that if I would bring all the tithe into your storehouse that You would pour me out a blessing that I would not have room enough to receive. Lord, I have been faithful in the area of tithing. Where is my blessing?” Would you believe that God told me to call the man who is my current husband? Rather you do or not, it happened. I pleaded with God on the basis of my faithfulness in the area of my giving.

  Then there’s an even better way to plead your cause, when you plead the Blood! There are so many promises wrapped up in our covenant with God through the Blood. Promises of health, prosperity, soundness of mind, righteousness, peace…it’s covered in the Blood. I don’t know what you are experiencing right now, but whatever you stand in need of, plead your case to the Lord! Ask Him for a favorable answer on the basis of your faithfulness to Him and His kingdom; or skip over all of that and ask on the basis of the Blood!

  Our pastor says something like this, when you go into the court room of heaven, it’s fixed. Your attorney Jesus, your brother, goes to the judge, your Father, on your behalf! When you know that the One you are appealing to is already on your side, it doesn’t take convincing, it just takes faith in the truth that He’s willing to do that which you have asked.

  You may say, I’ve heard that before, I’ve tried that, and it didn’t work. Guess what? Stop siding with the devil, work out your unbelief issues, and try it again in faith! He’s for you! And it is His good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Faith, God’s faithfulness, Prayer | 0 Comments | Tagged Dorcas, Faith, Hezekiah, Jesus, Peter, Prayer, testimony, trust in God, victory, witness

• God is Awake!

  Posted at 9:00 am by wonderfuljesus8, on April 28, 2020

  Philippians 4:6-7 – “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” NKJV

  

  “Worrying is carrying tomorrow’s load with today’s strength- carrying two days at once. It is moving into tomorrow ahead of time. Worrying doesn’t empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.” Corrie Ten Boom

  Two very powerful quotes against worrying! We know that we shouldn’t! We know it’s not good for us, yet we often find ourselves worrying.

  Recently I had a conversation with someone who told me that she was a Christian. She expressed that she knew that she shouldn’t worry or be fearful, but she was afraid of getting the coronavirus. When you look at the growing number of people who contract the virus, and the ones who pass away, you can easily see that her “concerns” aren’t far fetched. However, worrying about whether or not something is going to happen to you or is not going to happen to you, isn’t going to stop the thing from happening. So worrying is unproductive.

  Corrie Ten Boom was a survivor of the Holocaust. I read her autobiography as a teenager. If ever there was an individual who had things to worry about, it was Corrie. She encouraged her family to “build” a refuge for hiding Jews and Dutch resistant fighters in their home, in her bedroom. She was later reported for saving the lives of 800 Jews and numerous Dutch resistants. In undertaking this task, she knew that she was putting her life and lives of her family members in danger; but she also knew that she couldn’t worry about that. One day, someone came to her for assistance, but that person really came to set her up. When her home was raided and her family was arrested, (and most of them died), she had people hidden in her room, but they were later freed by others in the network. I would say that she had much to worry over. But she understood that worrying about what could happen would only zap her strength from doing what needed to be done in that moment.

  The apostle Paul wrote that we are to be anxious for nothing, but to pray about everything. I am sure that Corrie, a Christian who apparently lived out her faith, knew this verse. Paul said prayer would bring about a peace that would guard our hearts and cause people to not understand it.

  I may have shared this in another post, I’m not sure. But when our middle daughter was born we had to live in this verse. We had prayed that she would be born naturally, she was not. We had prayed that she would be born healthy. She was not. We had prayed that the expenses would be minimal, they were off the charts. Nothing seemed to be as we asked. My husband said that he was reminding God about all of these prayers that hadn’t been answered when God spoke this verse into his heart. He shared that with me while I was still in the hospital and I was encouraged.

  I won’t go into all of those details, but I will bring up another point. The thing that was wrong was her larynx was damaged in the womb. My contractions were so severe for so long that she was injured. They said she might die. We took her home and she did have difficulty breathing, but we just continued to pray. One night, while listening to her breathe, I was on the point of tears when God spoke to me. He said, “Why are you awake?” And I responded that she could die while I was asleep. He said, “Your being awake can’t stop her from dying and neither can you being asleep cause it. I’m awake and there’s no point in the both of us being awake.” I went to sleep. And she was made whole!

  There was nothing to be done about the prayers about having a natural birth, or about her being born healthy. But God healed her and took care of all those bills! He’s just good like that! My point is this, worrying truly doesn’t change a thing, but it does rob us of our strength and joy for today. In the gospels, Jesus said that we are to let tomorrow take care of itself. It was my mother’s favorite saying! A reminder that is as needed today as it was when Jesus said it!

  This coronavirus is set up to be here for a while. We can’t afford to spend our time in worry. But we can spend our time in prayer and gain an assurance that God is awake and there’s no reason for us to be up worrying about anything. Even COVID-19! And as we pray, we are causing things to change in this natural world that they think is just a result of social distancing. I’m all into social distancing, but I’m placing my confidence in Jesus!Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Prayer, trust in God, Worry | 6 Comments | Tagged anxious, coronavirus, encouragement, hard times, Healing, Jesus, miraculous, Prayer, trust in God, victory, Worry

• Healing of the Nations

  Posted at 2:58 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 10, 2020

  2 Chronicles 7:14 -If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. KJV

  I am finding it hard to conceptualize the far reaching arm of the coronavirus. It almost doesn’t seem real! But God’s word is as relevant today as it was when these words were spoken to Solomon! I am sure many are already praying, but I wanted my followers and readers to know that I am also praying:

  Father God, You are as awesome as You have ever been and for that I say thanks! I give You honor as I lift up the nations in regards to this virus that is spreading worldwide.

  You said that if Your people would humble themselves and pray…So I humble myself tonight Father and I pray against this terrible attack against mankind. It could be that we as a world have sinned terribly and have opened ourselves up for this onslaught against the people. It could be that the enemy is trying to stop the spread of the gospel. It could be a lot of things and unless you tell me, I don’t know.

  But I do know that I can pray. I pray right now, in the Name that is above “coronavirus”, the Name of Jesus that You will bring this to end. I pray that as You give wisdom to those who are working non-stop to deal with this in the natural realm that You will also give us wisdom as we pray to deal with it in the supernatural realm.

  I lift up the nations that have already seen so many become infected, even those nations where people are dying, and I pray that You will step in and bring relief, comfort and healing. I pray that You will protect those who have no way of knowing if they have been exposed to the virus and those who have no way of getting medical help. I ask that You, the Great Physician will step in with Your divine healing and protection.

  I ask Father, that as we pray, that a spirit of peace will replace a spirit of chaos; that a spirit of faith will take the place of the spirit of fear; that You will do a worldwide miracle; and that as we, Your ambassadors are moving in our sphere of influences that we will be that light in the midst of this darkness, assuring others of Your Great Love, praying for the sick, assisting where needed!

  I pray for those in quarantine that this will be a productive time for them of getting to know their families and even You better; that they will allow what is meant to bring them discouragement to bring them great joy and peace in Your Presence. I pray for quick recoveries of those who are ill and protection for those who are not! Let resources begin to pour into cities, villages, towns, and even nations!

  I pray that as You reveal to us, what is going on, that we will hear, repent if need be, and embrace Your grace. And if we don’t get clarity that we will trust that You are working things out for our good! Then I ask that You bring healing not only to the people, but to our lands. Let not the enemy have his way in this situation, I pray, but arise and scatter him and his cohorts.

  And Father, I want You to know that I believe that Your goodness is in full operation, even in the midst of this and if we dare to believe that and trust it, we shall see Your deliverance. In Jesus’ Name I pray! Amen! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in coronavirus, Healing, Prayer, protection | 0 Comments | Tagged 2 Chronicles 7:14, Believer, Christian, Faith, Healing, Jesus, Prayer

• A Matter of the Heart!

  Posted at 1:20 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 8, 2020

  Key Text: Psalm 119:10-With my whole heart I have sought You…

  When was the last time that you were able to say like David that you sought the Lord with your whole heart? I don’t know about you but I can say with a certainty that every prayer that I pray is not prayed with my whole heart. As I am studying, how to pray effectively, I am taking this time to be honest before the Lord about my prayer life. I am allowing the Holy Spirit to shed light on those prayers that have been answered and those prayers that have not been answered so that I have more answered prayers than not. I have decided that the fault of unanswered prayer lie at my door and not at His. It is with that in mind that I write this blog.

  William Penn was an English Quaker best known for founding the colony of Pennsylvania as a place for religious freedom in America. He was a minister, missionary, lawyer, and a journalist. Charles Finney, in his autobiography quoted this saying from William Penn:

  For nothing reaches the heart but what is from the heart or pierces the conscience but what comes from a living conscience.—William Penn

  This quote resonated with me reminding me of the truth of God’s word regarding prayer. If it doesn’t touch my heart, it probably doesn’t touch the heart of God. David’s statement, in the above scripture, is an echo of a truth regarding prayer that is often overlooked: we are to pray with our whole heart! Not our physical organ of a heart, but with our spiritual heart.

  The word “heart” comes from the Hebrew word “lebab ” and is used to depict the inner man. It is also used to refer to the seat of desire, inclination, or will of an individual. When thinking of the heart as the seat of my desires it causes me to think of praying being all in, or fully engaged. When I think of engagement in prayer, I am thinking of things like, is my mind fully engaged in this prayer or am I thinking about other things? Do I care if this prayer is answered or not; how important to me is the answer? Do I truly believe that I am communing with the Father, or am I just going through an exercise? These questions and some others you may think of are important in dealing with praying with our whole heart.

  The psalms are songs, but many of them are also prayers. As I was looking at the subject of heartfelt prayers I came upon this verse written by David:

  Psalm 35:13-14- But I, when they were ill, wore sackcloth; I put myself out and fasted; I can pray that what I prayed for them might also happen to me. I behaved as I would for my friend or my brother; I bent down in sorrow as if mourning my mother. CJB

  David is reminiscing about his times of prayer for others. He recalls how when they were sick, he fasted on their behalf and cried out to the Lord. David said that he prayed for them basically as if he was praying for himself. He wanted God to intervene on their situation as he would have wanted God to do it for him. This is praying with one’s whole heart. Most of us can probably go there when we have a serious situation going on in our lives, but how many of us can do that when something is going on in someone else’s life?

  Through the years I have had the privilege of praying for many who were sick. When I pray for the sick at home, I am all in, asking God for greater anointing to get them healed, for a time when there is no sick amongst us, for miracles to break out amongst His people in a greater way. I recall one of my earlier times when I prayed for someone who was sick. I was in the grocery store when I came upon a woman having a seizure. She looked at me and was able to get that out to me. I caught her as she was falling, knelt beside her and began to pray with an urgency! I took authority over that demonic seizure spirit, bound his activity and commanded him to leave. The crowd was gathering and I heard someone say call 911; but I just kept my focus on her deliverance and kept praying. I remembered when my baby had been diagnosed with abnormal seizure activity and I got mad at the devil! So I prayed. A few minutes later her body calmed, she got up and thanked me and we both continued to shop for our groceries. Glory to God!

  Another time I was at a conference when I passed a group of women praying for a lady who was in great pain; and I heard her say she was considering leaving the conference. I had to go to restroom and since I was just an attendee, I continued on my way. But I said to the Lord that I would go over there and pray if she was still there when I returned, because it looked like they needed help. I began to join my faith with them as I went to the restroom, praying in the Spirit. When I returned, they were still praying so I walked over, asked if I could pray, and they said yes. She was made free because of His faithfulness to His Word! He is the God that Heals! I believe those women were praying with all of their heart for their friend, I just know that sometimes we can all use a little help!

  This isn’t always the results that I get. This is why I am studying prayer. Can I just be honest and say that I study it whenever I begin to feel frustration in my prayer life? I want to be more effective and get greater and more consistent results. Even now when I pray for people I see them get healed, especially of pain, but not all of them get healed. Some have died and gone on to be with the Lord. Some have had miraculous turn arounds! Thank God for that! But my heart is that not a single person live a single day longer in sickness than they have to, and they stop dying of sickness and disease. Just go to sleep and go home after a ripe old age and a fulfilled life! Glory be to God!!

  I get what William Penn said that if prayer doesn’t touch my heart that it won’t touch the Father’s heart. I want to pray every prayer with my whole heart. Most often than not, that will be in my private time or in corporate prayer so that when someone needs me to pray for them, I can boldly stand in faith and decree their victory as if it was my victory! It’s simply a matter of the heart! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Prayer, Psalm 119, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Christian, encouragement, Faith, Healing, heart, Jesus, miraculous, Prayer, Psalm 119, victory

• What Do You Want?

  Posted at 3:30 am by wonderfuljesus8, on March 6, 2020

  Matthew 20:32 – So Jesus stood still and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” NKJV

  Jesus was leaving Jericho on this particular day, and of course He was surrounded by people. As He walked along the street there were two blind men sitting on the roadside. When they heard that Jesus was passing they cried out to Him for mercy. Some in the crowd told them to be quiet, but they got louder and cried out again for mercy.

  How many times have you prayed for God’s mercy when what you needed was finances, or healing, or some other thing? God’s mercy is His compassion towards mankind. The Hebrew word for mercy is eleéō, and means “to compassionate (by word or deed, specially, by divine grace) (The Blue Bible). I personally believe that all of God’s responses to us is because of His compassion towards us. But His compassion or mercy is so endless that we need to refine our request for results that matter.

  All too often when we pray we are general and have a tendency of being repetitive and full of religious sayings. We go through life wondering how we can be so faithful in praying and yet we lack results in our prayers being answered. We can get loud and emotional, we clap and stomp and say “Father God! In the Name of Jesus, and other phrases to fill our prayer time, and leave tired from the activity with no assurance of our prayers being answered. Jesus said that when we pray, we are not to use vain repetitions. Matthew 6:7- “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” When I read this verse, it helped me to see that I really did need to listen to make some changes in the way that I was praying.

  In our scripture we have these two men, crying out for mercy. When Jesus stops and asks them what do they want Him to do for them they don’t ask for mercy! Isn’t that surprising that they have been yelling for mercy, but now that they have His attention, they are no longer asking for mercy? No! They ask for their eyes to be opened! And Jesus opened their eyes! He showed them mercy when He opened their eyes, but He could have shown them mercy without ever opening their eyes. They were specific in what they wanted and they got exactly what they wanted.

  Our verse for today, share an important ingredient in praying effectively. That simple truth is this, that we are to be specific in our prayers. In dealing with my children when they were small, I often had to try and figure out what they wanted. My second born was a fast talker when she was a toddler and some times she would talk so fast I couldn’t understand what she was saying. On one occasion she was going at it and I kept asking her what did she want. Finally, her big sister said to me that she wanted some water. I said that she was not asking for water. Then my oldest turned to her and asked, “Didn’t you say you wanted water?” She said yes with her head bobbing enthusiastically. To this day, I still think that she just agreed with her because it was her big sister, but the point is that I couldn’t help her until I knew what she wanted.

  1 John 5:14-15 – Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

  It’s also important to ask. This word for petition is aiteo in the Greek. It means to be adamant in requesting and even demanding assistance in meeting tangible needs. This doesn’t mean being disrespectful to the Lord, but it does mean that you can respectfully ask God for what you want, and when you are specific in your request that is based on the word of God, you can boldly ask and expect that you will receive what you want from the Lord.

  This type of praying is known as petition praying and it’s all about being specific in our request. The Greek word aitema is a form of the word ask, and it means specific, exact, explicit, precise, and detailed request. This request is so thorough that there is no misunderstanding of what is being asked and expected. This picture of prayer is so detailed that it is a bona fide petition that has been submitted to the Father.

  Some in the Body teach that we should write down our prayers and be specific about what we want so that we can recognize when we get the answer. I am really bad at that and am working to get better, but the really important things are hard to forget.

  Over the years I have learned two very important things about praying. The first is to ask! Jesus won’t always ask you what do you want! But He is always available to hear our requests! The second is to be specific. If you want to be healed of something, be specific about that. If you want finances for something, tell Him what you need. You might ask, “Doesn’t He already know what you want or need! Yes, He does. But asking is part of the receiving. Until next time! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Believers, Christian, Matthew 20:32, Prayer | 0 Comments | Tagged Believer, Christian, God, Jesus, Matthew 20:32, petition, Prayer

• This Life I Now Live!

  Posted at 12:01 pm by wonderfuljesus8, on July 12, 2019

  Galatians 2:20 – I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

  Living a life in the flesh by the faith of Jesus is my daily aim. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it or even look like it, but it’s the life I choose. Everything Jesus did He did for our example and He did well. In the flesh without being fleshy. That’s the life I desire and there are a few things I can do to make it happen. Today my blog is to highlight a few things that demonstrate Him living in me and through me.

  First, I believe it’s a life of deep and intimate fellowship with the Father. Jesus was known to be a person of prayer. (Matthew 14:23). And when He prayed things happened because He didn’t just say a lot of religious words, for Him, it was a place of prayer. A time to commune with God. A place of prayer that ceases to be about needs, and fears, and desires, that centers on the majesty of the Father. A place where communion is so sweet that all you want is more of Him and to give Him more of you.

  Let me be perfectly honest! That isn’t the case always. I am a praying woman, but I don’t always lose myself in His Presence and have a time of worship where I know I have communed with the Father. I know my prayer life is good, but deep in my heart, I want it to be so much more. I have experienced that place of communion where I have known His presence to enter my room and surround me, but I have to admit, not nearly as frequently as I could. Notice I wrote could and not should, because this is not a place of obedience but a place of adoration! When I think of the faith of Jesus, I always start here. His life of faith that He lived was developed through a deep communion with the Father!

  Secondly, loving others! A prayer that I pray more than I care to admit is Lord, help me to love like You love. Living this life by His faith deeply centers around loving people like He loved. John 3:16 is such a challenge to the believer. To love like He loved, to give my life (not on the cross) but in prayer and service for the kingdom, making a difference, impacting others, showing them the Father because I love them, not because I want to be able to testify that I led someone to Christ or I blessed someone. Is it a testimony? Yes! But the testimony should not be the motivation, only love when reaching out to people. His motivation for the cross and everything He did was love!

  Lastly, (only because I don’t like long posts), a life free of sin. He said that the devil had nothing in Him. (John 14:30) That’s a powerful statement to know that the devil has never been able to infiltrate your life or your heart with sin. Yes He was born without sin, but when we are born again, we are free of sin. (Romans 6:18)

  Letting Jesus’ faith live through us is allowing Him to keep us from sin, having His heart and His attitude about sin. No sin can be ok in our lives. We can have no place for lying, no place for cheating, no place for sexual immorality, no place for worldly acceptance, and the list can go on. Jesus was born free of sin but He chose not to live in it and not to allow to give any place to the devil. And then He freed us and told us that we are no longer slaves to sin and to give no place to the devil. That’s His life! That’s to be my life!

  This life that I now live in the flesh, I still live in the flesh much too much. Work, pleasure, church, and the cares of this world are always vying for my time, but I press toward the mark of the high calling in Christ! (Philippians 3:14) Paul wrote, walk in the Spirit and we’ll not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16)

  Therefore, if this life I now live in the flesh, I’m to live by the faith of the Son of God I am going to have to be a person of communion with God. Jesus still wants to commune with the Father and since He is in me, it’s what I am to do. Since He is living in me, love should be my life’s motivation. Not just with the people I like and whom like me; but simply allowing Him to love through me. And lastly, a life free from the domination of sin and the devil. Jesus still has dominion over sin and has given it to me, to you! We can allow Him to live His life through us in such a way that we too can make the claim that Paul made. Father, help us to live by the faith of Your precious Son! Wonderful Jesus!

  Posted in Faith, freedom, Galatians 2:20, Jesus, love, Prayer, Victorious Living | 0 Comments | Tagged Faith, freedom, Galatians 2:20, Jesus, love, Prayer

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