Earnest Prayer and Opened Prison Doors, Part 2

Katie Greer what do you know to be God's will because the Holy Spirit has put in your heart that you every single morning say God I do not care how many obstacles there are. This is what you put in my heart and this is the mission that you have given to me and I am not a let you go you answer this is one of my convictions. The reason that a lot of us are having prayers answered is a lot of us pray to God rather than with God.

I'm your host Molly benefits for every strategy, every opportunity should be used to your advantage because the goal is to what to win the war right. It's no different for Christians in the battle to further God's mission hereunder.

Today we are learning about the importance of prayer to secure daily victory. Pastor Jenny is outlining God's battle plan prepare part of our series titled sent so if you miss any of the previous messages in this study can catch up@katiegreer.com yesterday's teaching from acts chapter 12. What is your personal prayer life. What God was going a lot more for us community more for our schools more for our families but we never got it simple because we did not ask all this to say I think the Holy Spirit is a lot for us and acceptor 12, which is to give you a snapshot into how prayer works with the prayer life of church like this ridiculous situation. You see what I did with it. But if you have your Bible, don't turn there yet to start this teaching the next 12 I met you will start this teaching back in the Gospel of Luke is the doctrine that Jesus is about the church applied in the book of acts chapter 11 verse one. The disciples asked Jesus a question the Lord teach us to pray in response to their request. The first thing Jesus does. He teaches him what we now call the Lord's prayer and then Jesus tells versus verse five and and down this little story that Jesus tells that is so bizarre. If you think about it in relation to prayer the most will rewrite over and never really think about what it say it tells a story about a guy who is in bed asleep at midnight when a friend of his columns and asked him at midnight to borrow three loaves of bread have some unexcited visitors show up if even an annoying neighbor to get an excessive request at an inopportune time through persistent asking. Don't you think that you were like precious children to God, not an annoying neighbor. Go to think you could obtain that one thing that you absolutely need to do God's will and that is the power the Holy Spirit, Jesus goes on. So I tell you, ask, it will be given to you seek and you will find knock and it will be open to you. For everyone who asks receives one who seeks finds the one who knocks it will be open three verbs by the way Ashley could not all in what I call the imperfect verb tense which means it implies continuous action, which just reinforces this idea.

Persistence is not that you asked once and leave it to the sovereignty of God asked once and you keep on asking, but he teaches the exact same thing in Luke 18, only this time through a more extreme even more bizarre pair you want to turn outward on this report. Luke 18 Jesus tells this parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart is in a certain city. There was a judge meter fear God more respected man is the bad guy was a widow in that city who kept coming to him say give me just as a gift by adversary, but rather just like for a while he refused, but eventually he said to himself all though I meter fear God nor respect man because this widow keeps bothering me.

I will give her justice so she will not be me down to her continual coming. Do you have anybody in your life like this, you have four of them there for 11 men younger then Jesus says quite unbelievably, if you ask me. This is what prayer to God is like most of us feel like we are at our most selfless and most virtuous were doing with our children really act selflessly. My children. Jesus says in your very best moment with your kids compared to how the heavenly father treat his kids. Your evil and not even you would do that, your kid, you look like a heavenly father's best brothers, Everyman would not give to his children what they need everything they need in the hour they need to do it. You see were like precious kids to God and my kids are the one group of people that I would get up in the middle the night every single time to help write that the only people I would do that for and what Jesus is saying is some of you don't get answers to prayers you never learn approach God like a kid you never learn to come to God with a shameless bull was persistence that a child has with her.

When you call me absolutely confident of their goodness absolutely confident that God will not withhold from you. Whatever it is that you need and you don't get those things could you asked with reluctance. You asked with doubts right that your doctor now was looking in them apply three important things I want you to see about prayer. There is number one, whatever they were afraid of. They talk to God about whatever they were afraid of a talk to God about they were afraid for their future so they talk to God about their future. So here's my very simple question. What you do when you are afraid.

What you do when you at night or worried about things. I encourage you to start the actual practice of evening prayer was in some way Zebra might be a metaphor. But I mean literally for you to take 10 to 15 minutes a night and for you to take this practice of just going through what you worry about what you're mad about which disappointed with where you're sad and leaving it at Jesus feet and then just resting in him. I read about this week will be on the four hour workweek because I wanted to cut my hours here in half and I'm skipping is a leadership book so you probably read it, but in their what we talked about the author talks about you because of just the way you can outsource things you like you actually hire they call a virtual assistant who lives in another country who you can give a much attached to. I like India is a big country where they have a lot of these and you give all these tasks of them and then he says when you come out the next morning they done them all and then you're ready to come take him to start the day says is also because while you're sleeping there working the next morning they got this work for you sisters. This is fantastic. It allows me that you get so much done so. He said I was trying to test limits with my virtual assistant like what do you know that you will help me says and I was one of things that was really bothering me is I worry a lot about my business at night so I wrote her a note.*If I can assign the word to her and says, could I could, you worry about these things at night for me so that I don't have to and empty setting of this nice note back from this girl in India who said yes sir, Mr. so-and-so will be happy to worry about these things from the hours of 6 PM your time to 6 AM your time to the user do not have to be since it's been awesome because I give Mel that I like.

I don't worry about this other world is ruled worried about it. So I'm just let myself of the night off and I read some thinking. This is also because I actually have someone outside of the world who care so much for me that I can commit these things to him and say you worry about it when I get up tomorrow morning you could tell me what it is you want me to do about these particular things, but at night, lie down in safety because I've committed these things to you. John probably like some of you is that I have a real problem with worrying out of the wife at night, that I worry but it's bad at night. I wake up at 3 AM. I have that for years just really worried about stuff and angry about things. This practice of evening prayer has brought so much peace to my life could delegate with 3M and up, supporting most of the God about that last night and he never slumbers asleep that he's worried about it. That's his impossibility.

Get back to me in the morning if you want, but it's with him right now when I lie down and sleep number two, number two. Use prayer but a wartime walkie-talkie, not a domestic intercom use prayer at a wartime walkie-talkie, not a domestic intercom.

What is on the church praying about and ask the advancing of the mission. That's what they're talking about.

I get the wording of that point from John Piper who wrote this prayer is primarily a wartime walkie-talkie for the mission of the church as it advances against the powers of darkness and unbelief. It's not surprising that prayer malfunctions when we try to make it a domestic intercom call upstairs for more comforts in the den. You see, until you know that life is war you cannot know what prayer is for prayers for the accomplishment of a wartime mission that's morning prayer by the way, morning prayer is this active petitionary prayer marked by boldly pray for things in the world that are not right. It is rebellion against the status quo.

They knew that it was God's will for the church to get the gospel to the ends of the earth, regardless of what Herod wanted. They're not sure how it happened. They're not sure Peter to make it out alive or not. You know that because they think they see his ghostly thinking sorted either piece of that.

But they know that it's God's will for his church flourish in the get the gospel of the ends of the earth. So when it looks like they are being shut down. They get on their face and they say God promised this God you have to make this happen. Here's my question for you. What do you know to be God's will. What do you know to be God's will because the Holy Spirit has put it in your heart that you every single morning say God I do not care how many obstacles there are.

This is what you put in my heart and this is the mission that you have given to me and I am not a let you go into you answer this is one of my convictions. A lot of the reason that a lot of us are having prayers answered his. A lot of us pray to God rather than with God.

Prayer is designed to be something you do with God before you receive from the Holy Spirit direction about what he wants and then you pray those things into existence through your persistence. Are you walking with the Holy Spirit in a way where you are hearing from the Holy Spirit about what he wants and then boldly saying God.

This is the mission you have to make it happen. Well, I believe the sovereignty of God goblet the sovereignty of God to somehow God sovereignly said that there certain things only happen when we pray and pray God is hardwired the universe so that there are certain things that he does only in response to prayer.

I realize that God is sovereign over the whole process but there are things that will not happen unless you pray, and there are things that are not happening because you're not praying because the way the God execute his will on earth is by the faithful prevailing prayers of his people. The history of the missions is simply the history of answered prayer. John Wesley would say this way. I'm convinced that God does nothing except an answer to prayer evening prayers for you brought your heart of worry to God the father morning prayers for you boldly advance God's kingdom for your prayers like we talked about the fact that most of us. Many of us don't have a Perl I really speak out when you pray, what your prayers like I've lamented before, how dumb to be bold. This is a place was make it safe to home. Our prayers are. I mean first of all, like me, just listen to the average Christian pray for. So we got a little annoying habits like sing God's name over and over again like like you and also talking to him. God is not. Thank you God for the things God is doing God being your God, he like to meet you talk to me that way. Jenny will think of the sermon, JD will be your net forgetting to bring rigid microscopic right, I know you're talking to me on my name over every other word resort just what is that word and prayer. Got job. We just want to thank you will be just one of them was like if you just want thank God you should stop after the word. Thank you God.

We just want to thank you I will be at right they fight in your small group every time some of these were just in prayer middle buzzer therapy is to build that, but here's why I think we do that because most of us have never learned to talk to God like a daddy father and so instead working to make an obese spiritual speeches that sound good and that's when we have all these annoying little habits that come into our prayers are not talking to God like a father were talking to him like a speech or trying to make and then we do get around our request again. I've lamented this with you before but our requester just are not evening or morning what they are the home, you wind up asking God for things like I got. Here's one of those about him.

God be with us God's like 35 us and I'll never leave you or forsake you asked me for something else right always say on our Lord help me because you Lord help me with my test all that God like want to study right maybe transmogrified information. Your mom want you to study the use of mine I gave you, Lord, bless this food. What does that mean like let me your God will give you is like hearing a halftone hamburger with three bacon strips and uncontrolled I can bless that to get you some asparagus. There is a pre-building blessing in that you have asked for just the right or am the Lord. Him is traveling mercies like what it sounds spiritual traveling traveling Mercy. You buckle your seatbelt drive the speed limit don't actually drive that your traveling Mercy right there is nothing wrong I get with pray about everything in your life really but the point I'm trying to make is that the prayers that we pray are supposed to be where we are confessing to God the deepest things in our life that are hurting us and we are boldly advancing God's mission on earth were not just filling up God's ears with a bunch of words and trinkets and just stuff. What I want to hear when people pray that you not try to please me, but I will hear people pray in Scripture how I hear people take in the promises of God and holding them back up to God is a God you promise. This God.

This is what your word says God this is what you put in my heart. God you make this happen.

You gotta make this happen, and I'm not a let you go until you give that because you put in here to advance the kingdom until you know that life is war. You will not know what prayers for number three, there were persistent like a widow. There were persistent like a widow.

Don't you see how they illustrate what we learn in Luke they it was God's will for the church to get the gospel the ends of the earth like a problem whether main leaders has been taken out the others about to be killed.

Not sure again appear to make it or not near peaceably dies. But they know that it's not God's will to let Satan destroy the church or to impede the church's progress. So they get on their knees make a God, you gotta make something happen and we're not going to let you go until you open doors and bless our efforts and overcome our enemies and they kept at it and they would not give up until God had brought the fruit off of that branch and gotta give them what they asked for. Do you know do you know that it is not God's will for Satan to destroy your family. Do you know that Blair is not willing that any should perish but that also come to repentance. Do you know Mark 936 and he still looks at the crowd at UNC Chapel Hill or NC State or Duke University North, Central is new with compassion because they go as sheep without a shepherd.

You know that you understand that the power the Holy Spirit is there is something God wants to give but he is not going to give it to us until we prevail in prayer with him for that.

You know that you see Satan working your family. Do you know that that's not a heavenly father's will and you want to get on your face until God sends the one thing that you need, which is the power the Holy Spirit into your life and your family. You don't listen I know there are times when God directs us away from specific request of me says no less than gritty swellable like three times asked for this and got by Sunoco.

After that my kids right now. Last year when my kids left their favorite stuffed animal fluffy at a hotel and so when we got home like deck. We pray that God will help us get fluffy back on my list for about that's we prayed about it like three weeks I call the hotel every single day eventually got to back him fluffy golf you know and so and so to this day to this year. Later, when I asked my kids and I will pray for.

We pray to God bring fluffy back like God has taken fluffy onto a better place and would have to release fluffy to the sovereignty of God and just let God have fluffy I know there are times when the sovereignty of God tells you to move on but I'm a take some most of us give up way too early and note very carefully that specifically talk about prayer for the power the Holy Spirit here not trinkets or euro comforts for the damned member that analogy the best power that God has for your family for this church, the power the Holy Spirit, he promised is only to be obtained through persistent prayer.

Sometimes you'll have to visualize myself doing as I put myself in a spare one of my God, I know you can hear me. I know you're not asleep, and I am asking you for this thing that I need for our church for my family and got him to stay down here, you all night long. If that's what it takes because that's how God gives the power of the Holy Spirit. They prayed to pray like the meaty neighbor they prayed like a worrisome widow for God. The good father to give what you think happened what happened. Did he ever give this story ends with several twist of irony, Peter. As you recall his heritage prize prisoner. He cannot execute them publicly to be a big awesome day going to maximum-security so Holy Spirit sends an angel who takes up your right and repair his nose. The next morning when all that you can't pray for the "prison door and theater.

Embarrassed.

Many people reading the chapter what you find out is a few weeks after this heritage, making a speech to the people and the people to flatter him because they want something from him start yelling out with verse 22. The people were shouting. If the voice of God is not a man immediately an angel Lord struck him down because he did not give God the glory was eaten by worms, and breathed his last mail lived happily ever after :-) what is says but does this for 24 but the word of God increased and multiplied moral.

Do not mess. Do not mess with the church on its knees.

Every time the book of acts. The church prays things explode accept one of this for 10 days. They pray God sent the Holy Spirit for your Peter preaches for 10 minutes. 3000 people get saved accept for they pray God fills with such boldness that they turn the city of Jerusalem upside down by the end of acts five you had over 10,000 new Christians in Jerusalem and some of the harshest critics Jewish priest guy like Saul there becoming Christians.

Acts 12 a, pray gobbles up a prism and hairball down and says I got worms minutes average of 13 hashtag on the number match average number 13. They pray and God raises up all to be a missionary. The greatest missionary the world has ever known. Prayer moves the arm that moves the world. All these things happen through prayer. The one concern of the devil is to keep the state from prayer he fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion laughs at our toil mocks her wisdom trembles. When we pray.

Prayer turns ordinary mortals in the middle power prayer brings fire brings rain brings life brings God. There is no power like that of prevail. Tell me about your thinking scares the devil away more than becoming rare.

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