Category: Faith

The Magic of an Honest Prayer

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Several months back, the walls were closing in on me. I had been laid off from Texas Farm Bureau, I was two months without employment, and things in my personal life had gone from bad to worse.

At that moment, a former church member texted me, “People who have no secrets from each other never want for subjects of conversation.”

He went on to explain that his quote was from a 16th-century Bible teacher who used the quote to teach open and honest prayers to God.

He went on to say, “Tell God all that is in your heart, as one unloads one’s heart, its pleasures and pains to a dear friend. Tell Him your troubles that He may comfort you, your joys that He may sober them. Tell Him your longings that He may purify them.

“People who have no secrets from each other never want for subjects of conversation. They do not weigh their words, for there is nothing to be held back. They talk out of the abundance of the heart, without consideration, they say what they think.

“Blessed are they who attain such familiar, unreserved intercourse with God.” (Francois Feneion, 1651-1715)

After receiving that text, I drove out to a local picnic area and lifted my heart up to God, sharing every anxiety of my financial and family situation, my anxieties and fears, my needs and requests.

I had been praying, but I had “Spiritualized” my prayers, couching the words in sanitized language so as to demonstrate acceptance and faith.

But with this prayer, I laid it all out on the table.

“God, you have given me the responsibility to provide for my family, but to do that, I NEED A JOB!”

“God, you have called me to preach your Gospel, but I need you to provide for and enable this ministry!”

“God, I need direction!”

Isn’t it interesting? By the end of the day, I had an interview with a company that would go on to hire me, and transfer me to Austin. After a few months in Austin, I learned that financial services was not God’s calling on my life, and the pursuit of career accomplishments and wealth would never feed my soul.

Again, I prayed, “Lord, please rescue me.”

And now, I sit here in the study at First Baptist Church of Hermleigh, TX, sharing this testimony with you.

Open and honest prayers not only work, and are not only recommended by 16th-century teachers, but they are also Biblical.

Take David’s prayer in Psalm 6, for example. David opens the prayer by begging for God’s mercy, asking God how much longer this season of grief and suffering will continue, and asking to be delivered.

He goes on to discuss how long and how intense his grief is, saying that he makes his bed to swim and waters his couch with his tears.

In Psalm 6, David lays it all out there, before ultimately expressing faith that the LORD will receive his prayer.

David’s prayer is not unlike Hannah’s prayer in 1 Samuel 1, when she prayed out of the bitterness of her heart, asking God not to forget her, and that if she were blessed with a son, she would give him to the Lord and dedicate him to God’s service.

Scripture records multiple times when God heard and answered David’s prayer, and 1 Samuel records how God heard and answered Hannah’s prayer.

When Jesus taught us how to pray during the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6, He told us, “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.”

This concept is what separates David and Hannah’s prayers from the ineffectual prayers of many others. People have been taught to use certain phrases and words when praying, and thus they lose the actual substance of the prayers they lift up to God.

What God wants, however, is for us to be open and honest with Him. He wants us to “Let our requests be made known unto Him.” (Philippians 4:6).

He wants us to be real, to truly explore our hearts and give them over to Him, to allow Him to refine our hearts, answer our requests, and transform us through the process.

When this level of prayer becomes our method of operation, we will truly see the Lord move, and our anxieties will be abated as well.

And if you need help, if you have a special prayer request, feel free to send it to me below. I will be glad to lift your request up in prayer.

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Thank you for your response. ✨

The Difference

What separates believers from the rest of the world? What is the difference between us, and those who remain condemned in their sin?

In Psalm 5, King David discusses how God hates sin and evil. He discusses how God takes no pleasure in wickedness and cannot let evil dwell with Him. Ultimately, David references how the wicked and evil will be destroyed.

Yet, David himself admitted in Psalm 51 that “I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me.”

How does a man, who readily admits his own sin, expect to be spared the destruction that God will pour out on sinners?

He discusses it in Psalm 5. He opens by saying “Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation. ²Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. ³My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.”

David expresses faith that the Lord hears his prayers because David lifts those prayers up daily, beginning with his morning prayers. Despite the fact that David dwells in a dark and sinful land, he will look up to the Lord and pray to him.

David goes on to say in verses 7-8, “But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. ⁸Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face.”

The reason David expects to be spared from the judgment and wrath of God is because he is placing himself at the mercy of God, and worshipping God for His goodness and righteousness. He then begs the Lord to lead him in righteousness.

What separated David from the rest of the sinful world is that he recognized his sinfulness, confessed it to God, then placed himself at God’s mercy. God responds to that, and David knew he could trust in the Lord’s mercy.

What separates the saints from the sinners has nothing to do with societal standing, wealth, intelligence, or heritage. The saints are merely the sinners who realized their sinfulness, confessed it to God, then stepped out of that darkness and into the light by placing themselves at the Lord’s mercy.

The saints are the sinners who trusted the Lord’s mercy and grace, and believe in His righteousness and holiness. The saints are the sinners who trust the Lord has forgiven their sin, and will transform them into the people that He intended on them being.

The saints are the sinners who looked to Jesus on the cross and saw salvation and redemption. They are the ones who look forward to the Lord’s return, and who look forward to exiting this life in favor of the next.

We’re not spared God’s wrath and judgment because we’re “just better people.” And we’re not looking forward to the mansions in heaven because “we’ve earned it.” We are merely sinners who placed ourselves at God’s mercy, knowing and trusting that God rewards those who do.

That is the difference.

The Answer Was Right There All Along

At the end of “The Wizard of Oz,” Dorothy asks Glinda for help getting back to Kansas, to which Glinda says, “You’ve always had the power to go back to Kansas.”

Dorothy had been through a harrowing journey with the scarecrow, the lion, and the tin man on the yellow brick road to Oz, dodging the evil witch and flying monkeys, en route to a man behind the curtain blowing smoke and mirrors, all in hopes of solving their problems.

In the end, each character learned that the solution to his problems was right in front of him the whole time.

In life, we often face problems and seemingly insurmountable obstacles. We try to solve these problems with our own wit, and often self-medicate our own anxieties through TV, music, food and drink. At the end of the day, our problems still plague us.

However, when I read Psalm 4, I am confronted with the same truth that Dorothy faced at the end of The Wizard of Oz. My solution was always right in front of me.

In opening Psalm 4, King David writes, “HEAR me when I call, O God of my righteousness: Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.”

David’s first response was prayer, and in his prayer, he praised God for continually helping him in distress and hearing his cries.

David’s prayer life was so robust, and he often praised God even in the storms of life, because David had an intense faith in the Lord. You see this in his writings in the Psalms.

Often, David describes the calamity he faces, but then contrasts that calamity from God’s mercy, strength, love and grace. Psalm 4 is no different.

In Psalm 4:2, David asks his fellow man, “How long will ye turn my glory into shame? How long will ye love vanity and seek after leasing?” He then writes “Selah,” which is an instruction to stop and ponder.

Human nature gravitates toward the vain, the empty. When David asks “How long will you love vanity?” he is asking “How long will you love emptiness?”

What are some things that we love that, at the end of the day, are empty and worthless?

How often do we get caught up in the temporary things of the day-to-day life and fail to take a moment to consider the goodness of God and the eternal things of His Kingdom? And how often do we misplace our priorities on those temporary things of this world while neglecting the eternal things of the Kingdom?

We become like Dorothy, needlessly taking a frightful journey down a yellow brick road to meet a “wizard” that offers no real solutions.

In the second phase of Psalm 4, David expresses his faith.

“But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: The LORD will hear when I call unto Him. Stand in awe, and sin not, commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.”

David tells us that the Lord sets apart His people. As His people, we are different, and we are set apart for God’s higher purpose. We are special.

Special items are set apart from the rest. The classic 1964 1/2 Mustang may be kept in the garage, while the 2003 Honda Civic sits in the driveway. The Civic may be driven more, but the Mustang’s trips are special, and are for certain occasions.

Likewise, when we become God’s children at the point of faith, the Lord sets us apart. We may not see the same highway miles as the rest of the world, but our highway miles are ordered and have a special purpose.

Like a car collector takes special care of his classic, God takes special care of us. Thus, He hears and answers our prayers in the most perfect way possible.

On that note, David implores us to take time, to stand in awe of this, and to ponder this in our hearts as we rest upon our beds.

David then concludes the Psalm by calling the people to worship, while praising God for the joy that He has given, and the provision He makes.

Life is not a bed of roses. (Seriously, why would that even be a good thing? Roses have thorns.) Life comes with trials and tribulations.

When we focus on life’s problems, often problems are all we see. How can we overcome these problems and find ourselves back in a peaceful place?

Simple. Remember that God has set you apart. Pray to Him, and trust Him to bring you through the storm. You have the power to do that, and you don’t even have to be wearing the ruby-red slippers in order to find peace in the Lord.

The Lord: Protects, Rescues, and Comforts

Has the entire world ever collapsed on you? I mean, has everything that could go wrong in your life gone wrong, at the worst possible moment, and has it all gone wrong at the same time?

Have you ever had the time where you employer laid you off, your spouse walked out, the bills came due and the transmission on your car blew up, all at the same time?

The problems in life can pile up and become overwhelming. Scripture not only validates this experience, but shows us how we can find peace during those super-storms of life as well.

In Psalm 3, King David had been evicted from the palace, thanks to a coup led by his own son, Absalom. He was on the run and hiding in the wilderness.

To the casual observer, it seemed that David’s time as king may have been ending, with many believing that not even God would step in and help him.

King David wrote, “Lord, how are they increased that trouble me! many are they that rise up against me. ²Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.”

King David acknowledged his troubles and even came to terms with how they made him feel. Not only were troubles piling up against him, and enemies rising from every direction, but he also experienced the intense loneliness that often comes with life’s storms.

Despite the ongoing betrayals and problems against him, however, David never lost faith in the Lord.

In verse 3, David acknowledged that the world turned its back on him, “But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.”

David knew that even when no one else loved him, and when there was nothing but bad news on the horizon, God still loved him, and stood as his shield, and encourager. For David, that was enough to keep his head up, and to keep him moving forward.

Knowing God still had his love and favor upon David, he reached out to God, and then praised Him for his deliverance.

Psalm 3:4-5 says, “I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah. ⁵I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the Lord sustained me.”

David prayed, God listened, and the Lord sustained.

I will tell you that there is nothing this world can do that can truly hurt you, because beneath your family, possessions, wealth, and even your body, is your soul. And nothing can touch your soul if you belong to the Lord.

I have personally experienced times when I was attacked on all sides, with troubles arising from my family, my work, my church and my finances, all at the same time. I will tell you that the Lord was with me.

With the Lord’s presence and favor upon me, I was able to withstand the storms, pass through the fire, and I stand here today able to tell you about it. There are scars… but there is also hope, and the promise of a Spiritually abundant life ahead.

So, when you feel that this world is about to swallow you whole, don’t give up. When there’s trouble on all sides, don’t surrender. And when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, don’t despair.

God is still there, and He will answer you and pull you through, if you trust Him and call out to Him.