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Do
You Know What It Really Means To Pray Without Ceasing?
1
Thessalonians 5:16-18
16Rejoice evermore.
17Pray without
ceasing. 18In every
thing give thanks: for this is the will of God
in Christ Jesus concerning you.
When you are with
a wife or husband, a friend and constant companion you
have fellowship. You converse on a constant basis. Why?
Because this is a relationship. A union between you and
them on many levels. What happens when this
communication or union gets displaced and the
communication levels that should be there and is
expected fails. The relationship begins to suffer. There
is major trouble coming on the horizon. It can get so
bad that not only does the relationship begin to
deteriorate but so does the spiritual connection. The
spiritual connection begins to spiral downward and not
be fulfilled. You begin to fill empty, alone and of no
use. The flesh will step in and begin to rule and our
wants become number one. The big I or me takes a stance
to be in number one position and blame begins to fly.
Our will and flesh is looking to be satisfied. Now begin
this relationship thought with our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
To walk in
fellowship with The Lord Jesus
and to Pray Without Ceasing is synonymous in our
relationship in the physical realm as well as the
spiritual realm. This is the desire of the heart of God
to have this relationship with you. He never intended
for us to be separated in mind, body, soul or spirit
with Him. Praying Without Ceasing is to be ever mindful
of every fact of Him because He is jealous and
acquainted (as Our Creator) with us. His relationship
and our relationship with Him goes into eternity. This
relationship is like no other. When we are truly born
again and have surrendered our lives to Him, He bought
us with the price with His blood at Calvary. Therefore,
we are His and He is ours. Every part of us. When the
Holy Spirit, our Comforter, comes to reside within us,
it should be ever mindful that we are not ever without
Him. He knows every secret word, every idle word, work
and deed we have in the flesh and in the spirit.
Therefore, it is extremely important to not grieve the
Holy Spirit Ephesians 4:30 "And
grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed
unto the day of redemption." We need to realize
He is ever present and in our confusion,
disappointments, our longings, our needs, our sins, our
repentance, our standing up and our sitting downs. He
lives within us. No other relationship we could ever
have or will be as close as this.
Even though we are
born of The Holy Spirit,
when we surrendered to Him, does He know we are going to
blow it? Yes, because in compassion
Jesus knows we are flesh
but that doesn't stop Him and should not deter us from
pressing toward the mark and kill the flesh daily. Pray
and ask. We are most certainly too fleshly to know the
right way to pray. He was asked by the disciples to
teach them to pray and pray correctly.
Often times we are
so enthralled with our own wants, needs and desires we
have never bothered to find out the real way to pray.
You must remember in God's embrace there is pure order
in everything. If this order jumps track and you feel as
you are sinking, all you need to do is ask The Father to
illuminate to you where the problem stems and you will
find the ole' enemy, satan, is not to far off our bow or
our own flesh and our own wants have begun to come
first. We have three enemies. The world, the flesh and
the devil himself. To survive the wale's of the devil
how can we neglect the position of our Savior in our
lives. We are no match for this adversary alone. We
can't keep the flesh under control and we certainly can
avoid the world to some degree but we live here. Even if
you had the ability to buy a small island, isolated from
the entire world, we would still have our sinful nature
to contend with. Remember, satan will be bound up for a
thousand years and yet man will sin against God and we
will not have the devil to blame. So what are the
instructions for true prayer and fellowship with our
Lord and Savior Jesus? What
is it to Pray Without Ceasing?
-
Keep your
mind, body, soul and spirit in a perpetual
relationship with complete Knowledge that He is with
you always, even unto the ends of the world. Begin
to practice knowing He is in you, beside you, in
front of you and behind you at all times. I have
heard many say that God has my back. Well sister or
brother God better have your front because He is the
only one that can direct your path and is a light
unto this world and can fight your battles for you.
If He is on your back side you are in His way! You
think too highly of your own flesh, power and
ability.
-
Begin to talk
to Him as you would a physical relationship you
cherish. This relationship holds a far greater
responsibility and you need Him. He wants fellowship
with you. You breath because He says breathe. Do you
know that Scientists have no clue what truly holds
our world or any molecules together. By all reason
and purposes we should blow apart. The whole works.
They can explain one element of reason here and
there but the whole, they do not know how everything
truly holds together.
-
Ask Him
questions. Lord what would you do? Father, would you
listen to this? Father, would watch this? Should I
treat this person this way? Don't answer the
question yourself...listen! What would you have me
do Lord? You have a plan? You knew me before the
foundation of the earth and before I was born. I
have doubts because I don't see, hear or feel. Learn
to listen, He will teach you!
-
Put yourself
last on your prayer list except for first repenting
earnestly and sincerely to clean our slate to pray.
Think about this. You have a child that has
disobeyed you and has torn your heart. And then that
child comes running to you and says "Hey, mom or
dad, can I have..." hummm? If this were not so vital
for us to repent Jesus would not have said it the
way He did when asked to teach them to pray in
Luke 11
1And it came to
pass, that, as he was praying in a certain
place, when He ceased, one of his disciples
said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as
John also taught his disciples.
2And
He said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our
Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy
name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as
in heaven, so in earth.
3Give
us day by day our daily bread.
4And
forgive us our sins; for we also forgive
every one that is indebted to us. And lead
us not into temptation; but deliver us from
evil.
" We need
forgiveness first. This keeps us in a place where we
don't get self righteous and think too much of
ourselves before a Mighty God.
-
When we think
we have all the answers because we aren't so fleshly
sitting in Church constantly and doing everything we
can for the Lord, ask the Lord to reveal to you
where you need a bath. Are you guilty of gossip? Are
you guilty of causing conflict among the brethren?
Are you guilty of gluttony? Are you guilty of pride?
Are you guilty of indulging in the world? Do you
treat everyone with a pure heart? Are you guilty of
envy? Are you guilty of jealousy? Are you guilty of
doing things in secret you think no one will ever
find out? God knows. One day all will be revealed.
How do you pray about these things? Ask the Lord to
give you the wisdom and the strength to overcome
them all. God is not a psychiatrist. He doesn't need
time analyzing you. Why? When God, the Creator, The
Savior, the author and finisher of all things, The
Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End moves,
expect a clean up.
Your part...Romans 12:1. Your sealed in Him but your
mind can sure take you places out of His Will.
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Ask and it
shall be given. He also will not explain it away as
the world does. You aren't getting the answers in
your time frame. Do you believe God has your best
interest in His Hands? You do your own children
don't you? Would you hold any good thing from your
own child? The Bible asks that question so why would
our Heavenly Father? Are you praying according to
His Will or your own? Again, to have fellowship with
God Almighty you need to learn to listen as well as
you pray.
-
A Soldier or
Warriors do not go into battle untrained. Neither do
they not have constant communication with their
Commanding Officer to know the Battle Plan. Sunday
School teachers don't go to their classes
unprepared. They had to be taught in order to teach
properly. If not, better get a different teacher for
your children. Preachers don't get up in their
pulpits without pray and preparation. If any do they
are depending on their own flesh to get them through
it and in the world we live in today that is more
prevalent then ever before in History.
God says in Proverbs 3:5
"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean
not unto thine own understanding." People are
being taught wrong. Why? Because man has elevated
himself to be mini-gods. Just like the Church of
Corinth. The power of the Holy Spirit is not raining
in the pulpits anymore. We need to learn to pray and
stay in prayer. Pray without ceasing because
Jesus said when He
returned He would find little faith, or truth and
that is among believers as well as non believers.
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Do you care
about your brothers and sisters as Christians in the
body of Christ? I know people that get a real gleam
in their eye when someone falls. Oh, you think God
missed it? Don't think so. Do you hurt when you see
others suffer especially if they are still walking
in the world? Do you have a genuine heart of
compassion for the lost. If we. as God's children,
truly realized the importance of Praying Without
Ceasing would any of these situations be so
prevalent in the body of our
Lord and Savior. I have heard people say that
the Body of Christ is sick today. Do you believe
that our Lord Jesus is
going to except a sick body? He loves so deeply. He
took a beating that left Him so marred. His head was
three times it's normal size and His face marred
beyond recognition and the beating stripes that
ripped the skin away from the spinal cord and ribs
exposed muscle, nerves and blood and they just kept
scourging Him more and more. He was then forced to
carry the burdens of sin on His back as He carried
the Cross to Calvary and hung naked, humiliated in
front of all mankind, paid the price for every soul
born of flesh and yet to be born in human flesh
Himself, having full Knowledge, because He is God.
How can we neglect so great a Salvation?
Hebrews 2:3
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great
salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by
the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that
heard him.
Mark 15: 15-22
15And so
Pilate, willing to content the people,
released Barabbas unto them, and delivered
Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be
crucified. 16And
the soldiers led him away into the hall,
called Praetorium; and they call together
the whole band. 17And
they clothed him with purple, and platted a
crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18And began to
salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19And they
smote him on the head with a reed, and did
spit upon him, and bowing their knees
worshipped him. 20And
when they had mocked him, they took off the
purple from him, and put his own clothes on
him, and led him out to crucify him.
21And they
compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by,
coming out of the country, the father of
Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
22And they
bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is,
being interpreted, The place of a skull.
Knowing full
well the disobedience and attitude we would have
toward Him, He fulfilled it all including the fall
that took place in Heaven and one third of the
angels. He said to The Father,
"Forgive them for they know not what they do."
He lived, died and rose again all for the love He
has for us. How important do you think we are? To
Him we are that important!
John 17: 24 "Father,
I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be
with me where I am; that they may behold my glory,
which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before
the foundation of the world." and Ephesians 1:4
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the
foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blame before him in love.
And yet I have heard
people say they command God. You are not big enough
to command God to do a thing. We live by grace and
His mercy and above all His love. You think you can
pick and chose from a menu of what you will and will
not do and when? The question was answered in the
Bible over and over, Old Testament and New Testament
of how important we were to Him. The question and
answer is still out. How important is He to you!?
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When you do
anything is He ever present in your mind? He should
be for all things we do we do give an account.
Romans 14:12 says "So then
every one of us shall give account of himself to
God." When you make a decision, when you
speak, I Corinthians 15:
33"Be not deceived:
evil communications corrupt good manners."
When you look and place your eyes on that which will
corrupt the body and destroy the soul,
Isaiah 1:16 "Wash you, make
you clean; put away the evil of your doings from
before mine eyes; cease to do evil", when you
determine what you think you want
Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is
deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked:
who can know it?"
When
you speak, when you pray for others. regardless of
your position in life, nothing we do gets passed
Him. Nothing in our mind and thoughts, our direction
and our attitude do we hide from Him.
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He should be
ever present in all our actions and thoughts. That
is Praying Without Ceasing. Living with Him, ever
present in our being in a Conscience all knowing
state of mind, heart, soul and spirit. Ever present
and we realize it openly. Talking and listening to
Him!
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It is not only
Pray without Ceasing but Pray and Live without
ceasing to always include Him. He desires that
relationship with you. He loves you. He listens and
knows. We need to learn to love and listen back!
I want to show you
something to bring a little realization to you visually.
I found this a long time ago and it still has a major
impact on me when I think of the size. We, at times,
contain God but He can't be contained. When you ponder
the magnitude of just these pictures think how truly
everlasting to everlasting, forever, eternity, and the
magnitude of the True and Living God.
The Eagle Nebula


ABOUT THIS IMAGE
A billowing tower of gas and dust
rises from the stellar nursery known as the
Eagle Nebula. This small piece of the Eagle
Nebula is 57 trillion miles long (91.7
trillion km).

ABOUT THIS IMAGE
When a massive star exploded, spewing
out its gaseous layers into a turbulent,
star-forming region of the Large Magellanic
Cloud, it left behind this chaotic cloud of
gas and dust. The star that produced this
supernova remnant was probably 50 times
the mass of our Sun.
To View More Of The God's
Spectacular Creation click here!
You can see Him in all things. His most loving
Creation.

Only 5 cm=about 2 inches. Do you see a baby? I do!
"The God who made the world and everything in it is
the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in
temples built by hands. And he is not served by human
hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself
gives all men life and breath and everything else."
Acts 17:24-25
He is so incredible and magnificent in His Creation He
considered us important enough to leave Heaven, come to
earth as a man, live in a fleshly body and die for our
sins. Now that is love beyond my comprehension. "How
Great Thou Art."
my God, My Savior Jesus Christ!
"Pray Without
Ceasing" Any questions? |