Face To Face

Christmas gift why not the one with the chicken leaving applicable waves as Christmas gifts chicken maybe it's not the get for your family, but it gives the perfect gift for poor family ninja chicken can break the cycle of poverty for poor family yes chicken chickens and provide food and nourishment for family and they can sell those eggs at the market for income when you donate a chicken or any other gospel for Asia. 1% of what you give goes to the field and get the ball went gospel fundraiser to support family of Jesus family this Christmas and give them a six explanation see chickens and camping got off to talk with him anytime about anything urgent prayer.

Dr. James sewing and many other books on prayer provides weekly insights help you learn to mom and now they have encouraging prayer were going to about a way to private make a real difference in the way you spend time with God. James, let's jump in one Christmas day I was talking with a friend who prays for me every day. What a gift you told me about what he asked the Lord to do for me and as he described it. It was as if I could just see him talking to Jesus as if they were just standing there having a conversation together so clear in my mind that maybe think about how difficult prayer can be sometimes because were talking to someone that we can't see and you know the Lord doesn't want to be that way he wants it to be real for us and that that makes me think of something I heard some years ago about an illustration of an empty chair, going a lot of direction for that illustration I have so but tell me more about it. I first heard from Peter Marshall who was the chaplain of the US that years ago and it has to do with a man whose who is dying and his pastor comes to talk with him and the man is unsettled because he's having trouble talking with the Lord. Even though it's been a faithful believer for years and his pastor tells them when I have trouble talking with the Lord. I remember that he is right here with me in this very room because he is Manuel God with us, and what I like to do is is put an empty chair in front of me pastor goes on light like the one I'm I'm sitting in here by your bed and and imagine that the Lord is is sitting in it and just talk to him as it is right there thinking like that one bit in it and it helps my prayers be more real. So that I can take my time and and really be honest with him about everything that the pastor leaves and and several days later the man dies, the pastor goes to call of the family. The man's daughter says to him after your visit. My father was so much more at peace.

And sometimes when I looked in on a my team, talking softly to the chair beside his bed as if someone were sitting in it the evening that he died. I was out of the room for just a few minutes, but when I came back in I found that his hand was resting on the chair right beside while so he took the Lord's hand in the Lord, let him home is an and here's how that applies to prayer our prayer needs to be as personal and real as possible and we can we can't play games with prayer we have to pray. Honestly, just just as we are and that also helps us be obedient, think about what Jesus said in Matthew seven. Not everyone says the Lord Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of the father who's in heaven. And then he describes people coming before him and telling them they get all these things and he says I will tell them plainly. I never knew you that the point about teaching is that we need to obey and we also need to live in a relationship with him. We need to know him and to do that we have to take time rift take time to pray to just be with him in his presence to to seek his face. Let's talk about that phrase seek his face we hear in Scripture. But what does it mean the Hebrew word for face is also sometimes translated as as present in modern translations and in the idea is again just be with him in our hearts and minds and that's the very reason Jesus came so that we could have access to the father and because Jesus is the way to the father.

I think it helps if we take this idea of an empty chair a little further and imagine that were talking to him face-to-face.

When we pray you imagine the beast standing right in front of you were sitting right beside you can imagine his face in the expressions on which we don't have to know what he looks like to do that just just imagine, let him help you let me take a little time at first, but I think doing this can really help you when you pray in there's there's nothing wrong with it you using our imaginations look loving the Lord with all our minds if you will just just say okay he's here to talk with James. I appreciate this tests with talk about prayer before a minor practice of imagining that I'm sitting in the father's lap. Sometimes I pray I it's it's literally like I'm crawling up into his lap and having a conversation and you know it's interesting to me that actually one of the first people to talk me on prayer taught me that very idea is picture Jesus sitting beside you, and begin just not only talk but listen. So what you know iced is wonderful another thing about praying like this with your matching his face were climbing up into the father's lap. You don't talking with Jesus face-to-face while you are praying. There's just something about it that makes you long to be with him that much more. That's really true and that's really my heart's cry, people, and honestly I remember you talked about as you lay your head on the pillow at night that you climb up next to a mentor that's always been a real encouragement for me. I do the same thing that you told me about sometimes. Let me ask you when you imagine that you're talking to Jesus. How do you imagine I see them with the eyes of my heart, if you will II imagine him as a man so he can fully identify with me. I'm just talking with another person you know and he's also fully God.

So he's worthy of my worship.

He is the Lord but II don't necessarily see the specific characteristics of his face. You know what his eyes or nose or mouth may look like.

Although sometimes I try to imagine what they could be but but the important thing is that as I do this again. It just reminds me that he's real and one day I will see him face-to-face, and there will be no doubt about it now and I need to love him and walk with him and obey him and and seek his face. Now seeking his face.

If you will. I think this really be helpful for knowing the Lord for the very reasons that you mentioned, because it really does make you long for him and want to be ready to see him face-to-face and if you know him, I mean that's a beautiful thing to wrap up things today with a prayer that we will seek his face. Let's do that. Lord we need you. We need you and Lord please help us to do this to long for you to seek your face to know because you are Emmanuel, God with us you right here, didn't know that you're there to talk to you and just just cling to you all.

Lord we worship you and ask that you would help us live in your presence every day. Jesus hear more from Pastor James by visiting the website James Banks.org or by visiting these church in Durham, North Carolina. May God bless you and encourage you to pray