Prayer must be- pressed, pursued, and persistent

'The imperative necessity of importunate prayer is plainly set forth in the Word of God,
and needs to be stated and re-stated today. We are apt to overlook this vital truth. Love
of ease, spiritual indolence, religious slothfulness, all operate against this type of
petitioning. Our praying, however, needs to be pressed and pursued with an energy
that never tires, a persistency which will not be denied, and a courage which never fails.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 36)

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Eph 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints

Spiritual laziness.

We grow spiritually lazy don't we? We like it better the easier things are. We are taught that the easier things are the better. We are told to take shortcuts to get to the end goal as long as they are good shortcuts. If we have something to do the faster, the easier, the better it is. To tell someone that something was easy -is a good thing, they're happy to hear it was easy.  We don't want things to be hard, we despise the hard things. Yet some of the best things take a lot of long, hard work.  When we pray- we can't take the easy way of it! We can't look for the fastest route to prayer. We can't pick the shortest prayer and say it as fast as we possibly can and expect that to be true prayer!

Truly our praying does need to be "PRESSED and PURSUED with an energy that never tires."  with "a PERSISTENCY which will NOT be denied." As well as with "a COURAGE which NEVER fails."

Do you pray this way?! Should you pray this way?!  With passion? With depth? With heart?  Yes! We must, we must understand that our prayer is something amazing, not something to be taken for granted, not something to be taken lightly, not something we ignore.  Prayer is something so incredibly special, so incredibly important that we have to take it seriously, a lot more seriously that Satan ever wants us to.

Please, Heavenly Father, please bless us! Open our hearts to You, teach us to pray with a faith unwavering. Teach us to pray to You as You would have us pray. Please, all by YOUR grace! Help us be Yours as we need to be Yours. All in YOUR LOVE!

Persistent Faith- Prayer

'Faith has its province, in connection with prayer, and, of course, has its inseparable
association with importunity. But the latter quality drives the prayer to the believing
point. A persistent spirit brings a man to the place where faith takes hold, claims and
appropriates the blessing.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 35)

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Luk_21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

It takes patience to pray.

Eph_6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints

Faith takes hold...faith- believing. We should never pray unless we believe and if we lack belief we must pray for faith to believe. Truly, we must! It sounds contradictory, but it's the truth.  Sometimes you have to do the very thing you're unsure of doing, and in doing it you become sure.  Praying is necessary to a spiritual life. If you are God's you are spiritual. If you are spiritual your spirit feeds on prayer.  As babies first drink milk, not capable of chewing or swallowing solids, we have to drink the milk of prayer. That drink of prayer may be tentative and unsure, but if we continue to grow by continuing to drink we will move on to solid foods, we will move on to strength in our prayers. The faith we have to believe will come, we must never stop praying, always hoping, always believing.  Faith does have it's place in prayer, a place that makes prayer work.

Heb_11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Persistently praying, praying importunately from the heart, through sincerity of spirit is something we MUST do!

Believing, praying.  We must, we have to, we can't ever believe we have no need of prayer in our lives, not ever!  Not when our Savior placed such importance upon praying. It is clearly something we HAVE to practice, until it is a part of our life as much a part as breathing.

By HIS grace, HIS love!

Prayer- intensity, perseverance, patience and persistence

Importunate- (Dictionary Definition)

1  troublesomely urgent :  overly persistent in request or demand
2  troublesome

Importunity- acting importunate.

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'Importunity is made up of intensity, perseverance, patience and persistence. The seeming delay in answering prayer is the ground and the demand of importunity.

In the first recorded instance of a miracle being wrought upon one who was blind, as given by Matthew, we have an illustration of the way in which our Lord appeared not to hearken at once to those who sought Him. But the two blind men continue their crying, and follow Him with their continual petition, saying, "Thou Son of David, have mercy on us." But He answered them not, and passed into the house. Yet the needy ones followed Him, and, finally, gained their eyesight and their plea.

(((Mat 9:27  And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us.
Mat 9:28  And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.
Mat 9:29  Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.))))

The case of blind Bartimaeus is a notable one in many ways. Especially is it remarkable for the show of persistence which this blind man exhibited in appealing to our Lord. If it be -- as it seems -- that his first crying was done as Jesus entered into Jericho, and that he continued it until Jesus came out of the place, it is all the stronger an illustration of the necessity of importunate prayer and the success which comes to those who stake their all on Christ, and give Him no peace until He grants them their hearts' desire.

Mark puts the whole incident graphically before us. At first, Jesus seems not to hear. The crowd rebukes the noisy clamour of Bartimaeus. Despite the seeming unconcern of our Lord, however, and despite the rebuke of an impatient and quick-tempered crowd, the blind beggar still cries, and increases the loudness of his cry, until Jesus is impressed and moved. Finally, the crowd, as well as Jesus, hearken to the beggar's plea and
declare in favour of his cause. He gains his case. His importunity avails even in the face of apparent neglect on the part of Jesus, and despite opposition and rebuke from the surrounding populace. His persistence won where half-hearted indifference would surely have failed.'

(((Mar 10:46  And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.
Mar 10:47  And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
Mar 10:48  And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
Mar 10:49  And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
Mar 10:50  And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
Mar 10:51  And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
Mar 10:52  And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way. ))))

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 34)

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TRUTH-

'Importunity is made up of intensity, perseverance, patience and persistence. The seeming delay in answering prayer is the ground and the demand of importunity. '

INTENSITY.
PERSEVERANCE.
PATIENCE.
PERSISTENCE.

Do we have these? Or are our prayers void of any real desire?

We CANNOT live in this world and NOT have petitions for our Heavenly Father!

Jesus did NOT live in this world and NOT have petitions for His Heavenly Father!

We cannot expect to have a REAL relationship with our Heavenly Father is we are not praying REAL prayers.

You CAN have a false relationship with our Heavenly Father, and you can pray prayers that are empty, that are meaningless.   And in that false relationship with your false prayers you can be under the delusion that you are in a real relationship and really praying.  Satan LOVES to deceive us! Satan LIVES to deceive us! At every step He is there trying to trick us, to trip us up. Satan is NOT God however, and Satan does NOT know everything! Satan does not know the end from the beginning, to believe that he does would mean putting him on the same level as God and that's where he wants us to believe he exists. Satan wants us to give him the same powers as God, because if we do that then we believe him to be a god and not an angel at all, not a creation of God's, but a god in his own right which is what he wants to be- it was THAT pride which filled his heart that caused his downfall. He wants to be like the Most High.

'Isa_14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. '

So I ask you, is your praying REAL? Is your relationship with God, our Heavenly Father,  a real relationship?

When we settle down to say our prayers- is there any earnestness in those prayers? Is there any intensity at all?

Jesus set Himself apart to do a lot of His praying--

Mat_14:23  And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone

Luk_6:12  And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

Luk_11:1  And 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.

Jesus is our example.  When we are told that He went to pray, when we are told He went alone to pray, when we are told He continued all night in prayer to God, what are we to get from this?  Our SAVIOR needed to PRAY! And our Savior needed to pray CONSTANTLY!  If our SAVIOR, if the Son of GOD needed to pray to the Heavenly Father, we do we imagine that we can get by on a short simple pretend prayer, a prayer that is prayed by memorization, by rote? Why do we think that suffices?  Do you imagine as Jesus spent an entire night in prayer that it was just a constant repetition, without any real feeling, without any real importunate behavior?  Or can you imagine Him praying deeply, earnestly, and revealing His heart to His Father in His prayers. We have this example…

Joh 17:1  These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
Joh 17:2  As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Joh 17:4  I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
Joh 17:5  And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
Joh 17:6  I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
Joh 17:7  Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
Joh 17:8  For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
Joh 17:9  I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
Joh 17:10  And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
Joh 17:11  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Joh 17:12  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Joh 17:13  And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
Joh 17:14  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
Joh 17:16  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Joh 17:18  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
Joh 17:19  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Joh 17:20  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
Joh 17:21  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
Joh 17:22  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
Joh 17:23  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
Joh 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.
Joh 17:25  O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
Joh 17:26  And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.
Joh 18:1  When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples.

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SUCH PRAYER!  A prayer we've been blessed to know, to read, to comprehend, to read over and over knowing that OUR SAVIOR prayed this to HIS FATHER, to OUR HEAVENLY FATHER. Jesus did NOT simple recite what has come to be known as 'The Lord's Prayer', Jesus spoke from HIS heart to His Father!  This too is our example! This too is something we must comprehend and realize as we too PRAY as our Savior prayed!  We need to glorify our God in our prayers and seek Him earnestly as Jesus sought Him as Jesus petitioned Him for us!

Please LORD, Bless us! Help us to PRAY as we ought to pray! Let the Holy Spirit intercede for us! Let us be One with You Heavenly Father and One with our Savior, Your Son who gave His life for us!

Please LORD, please! Bless us! We will NOT let You go lest You bless us!

All in YOUR LOVE, by YOUR GRACE and MERCY!

Asking, Seeking, Knocking- not always answered instantaneously

'Importunate praying is the earnest, inward movement of the heart toward God. It is the throwing of the entire force of the spiritual man into the exercise of prayer.'

'Importunate praying never faints nor grows weary; it is never discouraged; it never yields to cowardice, but is buoyed up and sustained by a hope that knows no despair, and a faith which will not let go. Importunate praying has patience to wait and strength to continue. It never prepares itself to quit praying, and declines to rise from its knees until an answer is received.'

'In the three words ask, seek, knock, in the order in which He places them, Jesus urges the necessity of importunity in prayer. Asking, seeking, knocking, are ascending rounds  in the ladder of successful prayer. No principle is more definitely enforced by Christ than that prevailing prayer must have in it the quality which waits and perseveres, the courage that never surrenders, the patience which never grows tired, the resolution that never wavers.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 33)

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Mat 7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you

We all too often read this verse in Matthew and choose to believe it is a recipe for instant answers. We imagine we ask and it is given instantly. We imagine seeking and finding instantly. We imagine knocking and the door opening right away without any delays at all whatsoever.  To ever imagine that we might have to ask over and over and over and over again before it is given- upsets us.  We asked now where is what we asked for?  We asked, as if our asking produced everything necessary for us to receive.  Think about it for a moment, how often in your life have you been asked for something only to have to wait sometimes many years before you are given what you asked for? How often have you been asked for something only to reply maybe, not giving anything immediately? As a parent a person can probably understand the example of a child asking for something and you telling them no, not now, not yet. You in your parental discretion have your reasons for that answer but more often than not a child won't understand the reason, not in their heart. They wouldn't have asked if they didn't think it were something possible, right? I'm not talking about the very young children who don't know better in their asking and want a spaceship for their birthday that could fly them to the moon. Instant gratification isn't something we can always give to anyone who asks anything of us.

Asking, seeking, finding.

Ask.

Seek- this denotes a process doesn't it? Seeking something can take time. Even when we search the internet for something we don't always come up with what we are looking for right away.

Knock-  we want the person to be home, but even if they are, they don't necessary answer their door right away.

We do have to pray consistently, insistently, importunately, believing our prayers are being answered. Having faith that even when we don't realize instant results of our prayers that our prayers have been heard. Because we don't get memos from God telling us that we have to wait a while, we do become the nagging child because we repeat our petitions over and over. Our Savior told us that such bothersome behavior can result in an answer as well. Our heavenly Father does not possess anything but patience with us, and won't out of spite from our nagging turn down our prayer request.  Our earnestness maybe even cause a favorable response.

We have to be willing to PRAY, truly PRAY sincerely, recognizing the incredible specialness of prayer!

By the GRACE of our LORD JESUS CHRIST!  All in HIS LOVE!

Vigorous Faith

'THE tenor of Christ's teachings, is to declare that men are to pray earnestly -- to pray with an earnestness that cannot be denied. Heaven has harkening ears only for the whole-hearted, and the deeply-earnest. Energy, courage, and persistent perseverance must back the prayers which heaven respects, and God hears. All these qualities of soul, so essential to effectual praying, are brought out in the parable of the man who went to his friend for bread, at midnight. This man entered on his errand with confidence.

Friendship promised him success. His plea was pressing: of a truth, he could not go back empty-handed. The flat refusal chagrined and surprised him. Here even friendship failed! But there was something to be tried yet -- stern resolution, set, fixed determination. He would stay and press his demand until the door was opened, and the request granted. This he proceeded to do, and by dint of importunity secured what
ordinary solicitation had failed to obtain.

The success of this man, achieved in the face of a flat denial, was used by the Saviour to illustrate the necessity for insistence in supplicating the throne of heavenly grace. When the answer is not immediately given, the praying Christian must gather courage at each delay, and advance in urgency till the answer comes which is assured, if he have but the faith to press his petition with vigorous faith.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 32)

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Luk 11:5  And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;
Luk 11:6  For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?
Luk 11:7  And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.
Luk 11:8  I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
Luk 11:9  And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Luk 11:10  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

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Do you have such a friend? Have you ever been in such a scenario? Maybe not these exact circumstances but similar?  Have you ever asked someone to do something for you only to be turned down by them?  And after being turned down have you ever bugged them endlessly until they give in? I have. And so I know that this is something that is very possible.  Our Savior gives us this parable to show to us that WE have to be persistent, we have to. Persistent in praying.

'Faith to press his petition with vigorous faith.'  

Vigorous faith- vigorous praying!

We must petition our God more than we'd ever petition anyone else.

Please, LORD, please save us from our sad, pathetic sort of praying that we try to pass off as being real.

Help us, please, LORD, help us! We would pray as YOU would have us pray! We would seek YOU, seek YOUR favor, YOUR blessing, YOUR will!

'Spiritual Self-Indulgence or Self-Discipline'

"Two-thirds of the praying we do, is for that which would give us the greatest possible pleasure to receive. It is a sort of spiritual self-indulgence in which we engage, and as a consequence is the exact opposite of self-discipline. God knows all this, and keeps His children asking. In process of time -- His time -- our petitions take on another aspect, and we, another spiritual approach. God keeps us praying until, in His wisdom, He deigns to answer. And no matter how long it may be before He speaks, it is, even then, far earlier than we have a right to expect or hope to deserve." -- ANON.

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 31)

'Spiritual self indulgence' - How incredibly true is this?    And equally true- it's 'the exact opposite of self- discipline.'

Our self indulgence, pleasing self, seeking self fulfillment, seeking self adoration, self contentment, self, self, self and how close that is to selfishness. Seriously, self focus is just a sliver away from selfishness.  Satan would have us NOT see our own selfishness. Satan would have us indulge in our selfishness at every turn and will present us with millions and millions of opportunities to do so.

Selfishness in prayer…   perhaps this is why our Savior taught us to pray in a certain form if not exact wording-

OUR FATHER WHICH ART IN HEAVEN-  (Heaven Focused)
HALLOWED BE THY NAME- (Heaven Focused)
THY KINGDOM COME- (Heaven Focused)
THY WILL BE DONE IN EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN -(Heaven Focused)
GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD - (Self/Other Focused)
AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS - (Self/Other Focused)
AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION BUT DELIEVER US FROM EVIL- (Self/Other Focused)
FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM AND THE POWER AND THE GLORY FOR  EVER - (Heaven Focused)
AMEN

Give us-Forgive us- Lead us-Deliver us.

Give, forgive, lead, deliver- us.

First we pray recognizing our FATHER in HEAVEN. We recognize HIS kingdom, HIS will.
Then we pray for our sustenance - spiritual and physical.
After that we pray for our SINS to be forgiven AS we forgive others their sins.
Next we pray for our Father in Heaven to lead us NOT into temptation and to DELIVER us from evil.
Last we recognize HIS kingdom, HIS power, HIS glory forever!

When we pray for things outside of this form of prayer we have to remember to not ask for anything amiss- anything selfishly, anything against God. All things must be prayed in HIS WILL, not ours.

May God help us remember to pray this way, HIS way, not OUR way, allowing the HOLY SPIRIT to speaking for us with groanings we cannot comprehend.

Your will LORD, Your will, always!

Hang on in prayer, don't stop praying.

'In these parables of importunate praying, our Lord sets forth, for our information and
encouragement, the serious difficulties which stand in the way of prayer. At the same
time He teaches that importunity conquers all untoward circumstances and gets to itself
a victory over a whole host of hindrances. He teaches, moreover, that an answer to
prayer is conditional upon the amount of faith that goes to the petition. To test this, He
delays the answer. The superficial pray-er subsides into silence, when the answer is
delayed. But the man of prayer hangs on, and on. The Lord recognizes and honours his
faith, and gives him a rich and abundant answer to his faith-evidencing, importunate
prayer.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 30)

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'The man of prayer- HANGS ON, and ON.'

We do NOT ever stop praying!  When we stop praying, we shun our Creator, our Redeemer. When we stop praying we cut ourselves off from the very source of all true love, true compassion.  Our Father in Heaven wants to help us, He wants to answer our petitions. He knows the end from the beginning while we only know the past and the present.

Constant praying, continuous praying.

It is true the superficial pray-er STOPS praying.
The superficial pray-er does not have faith.
Faith continues on indefinitely, trusting when to all appearances there is NOTHING to trust!  Satan will put up every barrier that he can to get us to stop believing, to stop praying, to kill our faith!

Our prayer must be heartfelt, it must be REAL to our REAL GOD!

We MUST WORSHIP OUR GOD in prayer!

So many would have us live a faith void of true worship of God. They would have us erect ourselves as paramount putting God second, third, fourth, and on down the ladder of importance. How many of us have sacrificed ANYTHING real in order to serve our GOD?

Why do we leave real worship to those we label lunatics and fanatics? They commit vile acts in the name of God so they rightly deserve the label, but their devotion is something tangible.  We are afraid to truly worship God, to give Him all of ourselves, to place Him above all in our lives, to PRAY to HIM as we should.

The consistence, insistent, importunate pray-er is one who knows GOD as a reality, not as a wispy fairy godfather just there to grant petitions. God as a reality is God who knows best and allows the worst for the best and we abide by His decisions even as we continue to pray, pray, pray!

We must hang on in our praying. We must never give up or give in to a superficial relationship with our God. We must hold fast enduring everything while not letting go of our God.

Please, LORD, help us to never let go of YOU.

Insistence

Insistence.

Luk 18:1  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
Luk 18:2  Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
Luk 18:3  And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
Luk 18:4  And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
Luk 18:5  Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

'This parable stresses the central truth of importunate prayer. The widow presses her
case till the unjust judge yields. If this parable does not teach the necessity for
importunity, it has neither point nor instruction in it. Take this one thought away, and
you have nothing left worth recording. Beyond all cavil, Christ intended it to stand as
an evidence of the need that exists, for insistent prayer.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 29)

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INSISTENT PRAYER!

Some would have us believe that we shouldn't pray over and over and over for the same thing or else it shows we do not believe God hears us and will grant us our prayer.  Yet here we have the this parable of a widow coming to a judge over and over until the judge finally grants her petition.  She was pleading her case, she was desperately desiring to be avenged against wrong doing. Don't we plead our case? Don't we plead to be avenged of this very world we were born into? Not asking to be born, but gifted with life, gifted with the chance to choose to serve a loving, merciful, forgiving, God.  We plead before our God to be saved from this world, saved from the penalty of the sin we commit, saved from our choices to disobey Him.  We plead for our God to give us new life, a life as His with Him! And this MUST be our constant prayer! This MUST be our insistent prayer! This must be our plea to our Creator, our Redeemer to save us from Satan and his evil, to save us from OUR adversary the DEVIL!

Not only are we to pray insistently for this, we are to pray this way for all things, because this is the prayer of the heart.  A prayer from the heart isn't lightly spoken, or thought silently, without any spirit conviction.  How desperately we need to cultivate true prayer!  And yes, how NECESSARY prayer is for us who live in Christ!

Please, LORD, please help us to be insistent in our praying! Help us to desire You above ALL things, knowing it is YOU who gives us all we need to be YOURS, knowing YOU give us a promise of eternity in YOU, in LOVE.

All by YOUR GRACE!

Praying Without Pretense, Praying Long

'The REPEATED intercessions of Abraham for the salvation of Sodom and Gomorrah present an early example of the necessity for, and benefit deriving from importunate praying. Jacob, wrestling ALL NIGHT with the angel, gives significant emphasis to the power of a dogged perseverance in praying, and shows how, in things spiritual, importunity succeeds, just as effectively as it does in matters relating to time and sense.

As we have noted, elsewhere, Moses prayed FORTY DAYS AND FORTY NIGHTS, seeking to stay the wrath of God against Israel, and his example and success are a stimulus to present day faith in its darkest hour. Eljah repeated and urged his prayer SEVEN TIMES ere the raincloud appeared above the horizon, heralding the success of his prayer and the victory of his faith. On one occasion Daniel though faint and weak, pressed his case THREE WEEKS, ere the answer and the blessing came.

Many nights during His earthly life did the blessed Saviour spend in prayer. In Gethsemane He presented the same petition, THREE TIMES, with unabated, urgent, yet submissive importunity, which involved every element of His soul, and issued in tears and bloody sweat. His life crises were distinctly marked, his life victories all won, in hours of importunate prayer. And the servant is not greater than his Lord.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 28)

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Praying- all night, praying for 40 days and 40 nights, praying 7 times, praying for 3 weeks, praying 3 times.

These examples are for our LEARNING.  So why do we imagine we can say a single simple prayer and that is that? Why do we lament our God doesn't hear us, doesn't answer our prayers when we scarcely pray one importune prayer? What makes us believe that those closest to God the Father should have to spend agonizing long moments, some times days, some times weeks, some times months in fervent prayer and we should not have to do the same? Why do we spend so LITTLE time in prayer? Why to even imagine a full day of praying is something beyond our comprehension? Maybe we can commit to an hour, but truly more than that we falter, don't we? DON'T WE?! Perhaps a prayer prayed in less than a full minute is all we can muster, is this what we call fervent effectual praying? If your life were on the line and you had to beg for it, how long would you beg? Seriously? If another that you loved had their life on the line would you beg for it long, or only for a moment? I'm not saying our lives are dependent upon the length of our prayers because we can recall Jesus saying the following--

'Mar 12:38  And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,
Mar 12:39  And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:
Mar 12:40  Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation. '

'For a PRETENSE make long prayers'   No, praying long is NO good if done for pretense.

Remember this--

'Luk 18:10  Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
Luk 18:11  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
Luk 18:12  I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
Luk 18:13  And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
Luk 18:14  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.'

The man praying simply 'God be merciful to me a sinner' was justified, not the Pharisee praying long and with a false heart.

We know that the men of God who prayed long- for hours, days, weeks, and months prayed with sincerity and without any pretense, these men had NO GUILE in them!

Rev 14:3 ...the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.
Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.
Rev 14:5  And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.

Those who are God's will have NO GUILE in them, there will be no pretense in their prayers and they will pray as they must pray- truthfully, fervently, effectually, all through the Holy Spirit.

Please, LORD, we would be YOURS in our praying, teach us to truly pray as we ought to pray. We would be YOURS!

By YOUR LOVE, YOUR GRACE, YOUR MERCY, YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS!

The Soul's Paternity- Sonship with God!

'Nothing distinguishes the children of God so clearly and strongly as prayer. It is the one infallible mark and test of being a Christian. Christian people are prayerful, the worldly minded, prayerless. Christians call on God; worldlings ignore God, and call not on His Name. But even the Christian had need to cultivate continual prayer. Prayer must be habitual, but much more than a habit. It is duty, yet one which rises far above, and goes beyond the ordinary implications of the term. It is the EXPRESSION OF A RELATION TO GOD, A YEARNING FOR DIVINE COMMUNION. It is the outward and upward flow of the inward life toward its original fountain. It is an assertion of the soul's paternity, a claiming of the sonship, which links man to the Eternal. Prayer has everything to do with moulding the soul into the image of God, and has everything to do with enhancing and enlarging the measure of Divine grace. It has everything to do with bringing the soul into complete communion with God. It has everything to do with enriching, broadening and maturing the soul's experience of God. That man cannot possibly be called a Christian, who does not pray. By no possible pretext can he claim any right to the term, nor its implied significance. If he does not pray, he is a sinner, pure and simple, for prayer is the only way in which the soul of man can enter into fellowship and communion with the Source of all Christlike spirit and energy. Hence, if he pray not, he is not of the household of faith. '

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 27)

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Is this truth, what E.M. Bounds writes? Is it?  Can we be Christ's without communication with Him?

 I can believe people exist without ever communicating with them. I may communicate once a year with someone and that's it, I know they exist and are available for communication if I choose to initiate it, or they choose to do so. However, are they truly an ACTIVE part of my life if I'm not communicating with them? Yes, we may always be related to some of those people we only talk to once every five years and nothing dissolves that blood relation, nothing dissolves the idea of the friendship that was maybe more profound at another juncture in our lives, but lack of communication hinders a GROWING closer, a deepening of the relationship. In fact isn't it true some friendships are mere ghosts of the past? While you have the past to bring back to life through the memories you can stop knowing someone really knowing them as the years pass and you no longer communicate with them. People change, they are no longer the same drinking buddy, or giggly goof-ball, the teasing playful childish behavior may have altered into a mature amusement, but our memories retain what someone once was. We can laugh about someone being the same as ever, and truthfully this is possible, some people never mature but retain a lot of the visages of their childhood, their teenage years, refusing to give them up for a more serious maturity, enjoying their own immaturity and labeling it 'just who they are'.  Still, time that passes when you are not communicating with someone from the past causes a lot of empty slots where life events occur they know nothing about and therefore no longer truly KNOW you. They know the past you, not the present you.  And if we want a living, breathing relationship with Christ as our active, daily Savior, we MUST remain in communication with Him, constant communication.  To think we don't need daily forgiveness, is to believe falsely! The sins remain upon us if we are not in daily communication with God!

What did E.M. Bounds write-- ' It is the EXPRESSION OF A RELATION TO GOD, A YEARNING FOR DIVINE COMMUNION'

A yearning for DIVINE communion!  The expression of a RELATION to GOD!  If God is our everything can we truly believe we have no need of constant prayer with Him, no need of constant communication?  

'It is an assertion of the soul's paternity, a claiming of the sonship, which links man to the Eternal'

The soul's PATERNITY!  He is OUR HEAVENLY FATHER!  And this is something we need to acknowledge daily! He isn't our physical father who in a lot of cases and for many reasons can not be a part of our lives, but He is our HEAVENLY FATHER who is available to us all, and always through every step of our lives! Through the good and the bad, through all the ups and all the downs, our HEAVENLY FATHER is there for us to communicate with!   We are the SONS and DAUGHTERS of GOD! We are truly LINKED to the ETERNAL! If we believe this then we live this! We live our lives knowing our Heavenly Father is our ALL in ALL!

To choose to pray only once a week, or once a year, or once in a lifetime is to choose to fail to recognize God as truly Your Heavenly Father who you need daily, hourly, minutely, always and forever! To choose and fail to recognize your need is to rely upon self. Is it any wonder we are to pray always? This is the recognition of God in all, and ourselves submitted to Him.

PLEASE LORD, help us to pray always, knowing YOU are ALL things and we are but Your creations, Your sons, Your daughters in need of YOU always, constantly. Help us to pray always in YOU!

By YOUR love, grace, mercy!

Truly to be a Christian we must pray always!  If we aren't praying always we are not Christ's, how can we be?

Little lower than the angels-- for a little while

Heb 2:6  But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?

Heb 2:7  Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands

(ERV)  For a short time you made him lower than the angels. You crowned him with glory and honor.

(ESV)  You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor

(GNB)  You made them for a little while lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor

'The judgment must begin where and over what sin began. Sin began at the Throne of God and over the creation of man.

The creation plan intended man to be only "a little while inferior to the angels." (Heb. 2:7 margin) But in sin man fell even LOWER than the "inferior" position.

Now can God bring an end to sin, and carry out His original plan and none of the angelic host become jealous as did Lucifer?

The judgment is set in the presence of that assembled host. (Dan. 7:10) Jesus coming with His sacrifice asks not only pardon full and complete for His covenant people, but a seat upon His throne. Was His sacrifice sufficient to grant this request?'

Wwn 1989 Special 3

'The redemption that is in Christ Jesus reveals further the objective of God for man. Jesus, too, was "made a little while lower than the angels for the suffering of death" (Heb. 2:9). In His victory, He was "crowned with glory and honor," and "highly exalted" being given "a name which is above every name" (Phil. 2:9). That which God did "when He raised Him from the dead" (Eph. 1:20) not only reveals God's INTENT for man in creation, but also His objective in redemption (Eph. 2:6-7)

Let us, first, observe what the Bible states in regard to God's original placement of man whom He created in His own "likeness." David sang:     What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou hast visited him? For thou madest him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet. (Ps. 8:4-6)

The "sanctuary" book of the New Testament, in its preface to the consideration of Jesus Christ as High Priest of our profession, gives a unique interpretation to these verses from Psalms 8. It reads - "Thou madest him a little while inferior to the angels" (Heb. 2:7 margin). The Greek bracu ti - when used of time signifies, "A SHORT TIME, OR FOR A LITTLE WHILE" (Thayer; see also, Arndt & Gingrich.) Then, in comment on "dominion," Paul wrote - "For that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see NOT yet all things put under him. But we see Jesus who was made a little while inferior ( bracu ti ) to the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour (vs. 8-9; emphasis supplied).

As Jesus was for ONLY A LITTLE WHILE inferior to angels, so likewise "the many sons" whom He, the captain of their salvation, will bring to glory shall be for only a little while lower than the angels. IN CHRIST, THE "DIVINE LIKENESS" WAS ONCE MORE REVEALED IN HUMANITY, and through Him as High Priest, the "divine likeness" is to be RESTORED TO MAN. The "first dominion," lost by the first Adam, is regained by the second Adam as He stands at the head of the human race. (Micah 4:8).'

2003 Jul XXXVI 7(03)

When we talk of being made 'new' in Christ, we have to realize that this newness extends far beyond the here and now. Right now we must stay in this world and follow the example of Christ, live in the sinfilled existence totally reliant upon our Father God for all things. Yes, now we suffer, now we must endure, now we live in darkness striving to see through to the light clearly, now we WALK by FAITH. We become NEW creatures in Christ and our expectations of our future life WITH HIM is our hope, this is the goal we strive for in life right now! If we are striving for riches now, we strive in vain. If we are striving for some semblance of peace in our lives now, we strive in vain! If strive for an existence free from pain, from tiredness, from aging, from fear, from all manner of evil- we strive in vain! We are NOT to be taken OUT of this world and this world is controlled by the Prince of darkness, Satan himself! And if we aren't to be taken out of this world, then why do we imagine we can live in this world as if in a bubble that magically shields us from all things evil? Those evil things will remain until the end, we are to be KEPT from evil, not the evil kept from us. There is no barrier erected that eliminates evil surrounding us, at best we are given ARMOR, we are given a SWORD, we are given a SHIELD and this protective gear is worn in the midst of the battle. No one who isn't in battle would choose to be in full dress armor, bearing sword and shield, living that way in their idyllic world without evil. We are outfitted in armor and given weapons BECAUSE we are in BATTLE, a constant BATTLE as long as we are in this world!

For a little while we will remain lower, very inferior to our intended purpose, our intended creation. Just a little while in the realm of ETERNITY where we are made into the beings we were intended to be. Where now we are sinners, then we are sinners made NEW in CHRIST JESUS.

By the GRACE of our LORD SAVIOR we will wear the armor offered, we will seek to fall under the grace of our LORD and the prayer He prayed for us to be kept from evil, not taken out of the evil ruled world, but kept from the evil that rules it while living in the world.

All through our SAVIOR'S RIGHTEOUSNESS!  HIS GRACE and MERCY! HIS LOVE!

Sheer Necessity

'OUR Lord Jesus declared that "men ought always to pray and not to faint," and the parable in which His words occur, was taught with the intention of saving men from faint-heartedness and weakness in prayer. Our Lord was seeking to teach that laxity must be guarded against, and persistence fostered and encouraged. There can be no two opinions regarding the importance of the exercise of this indispensable quality in our praying.

Importunate prayer is a mighty movement of the soul toward God. It is a stirring of the deepest forces of the soul, toward the throne of heavenly grace. It is the ability to hold on, press on, and wait. Restless desire, restful patience, and strength of grasp are all embraced in it. It is not an incident, or a performance, but a passion of soul. It is not a want, half-needed, but a sheer necessity.

The wrestling quality in importunate prayers does not spring from physical vehemence or fleshly energy. It is not an impulse of energy, not a mere earnestness of soul; it is an inwrought force, a faculty implanted and aroused by the Holy Spirit. Virtually, it is the intercession of the Spirit of God, in us; it is, moreover, "the effectual, fervent prayer, which availeth much." The Divine Spirit informing every element within us, with the energy of His own striving, is the essence of the importunity which urges our praying at the mercy-seat, to continue until the fire falls and the blessing descends. This wrestling in prayer may not be boisterous nor vehement, but quiet, tenacious and urgent. Silent, it may be, when there are no visible outlets for its mighty forces.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 26)

******* By the grace of God- more tomorrow!

Believing... ye shall receive

'These recorded instances of the exercise and reward of faith, give us easily to see that, in almost every instance, faith was blended with trust until it is not too much to say that the former was swallowed up in the latter. It is hard to properly distinguish the specific activities of these two qualities, faith and trust. But there is a point, beyond all peradventure, at which faith is relieved of its burden, so to speak; where trust comes

along and says: "You have done your part, the rest is mine!"

In the incident of the barren fig tree, our Lord transfers the marvelous power of faith to His disciples. To their exclamation, "How soon is the fig tree withered alway!" He said:

"If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."

When a Christian believer attains to faith of such magnificent proportions as these, he steps into the realm of implicit trust. He stands without a tremor on the apex of his spiritual outreaching. He has attained faith's veritable top stone which is unswerving, unalterable, unalienable trust in the power of the living God.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 25)

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If we have faith… in prayer.

Faith in our GOD to do ALL that must be done so HIS will can be done in our lives!

This--

'But there is a point, beyond all peradventure, at which faith is relieved of its burden, so to speak; where trust comes along and says: "You have done your part, the rest is mine!'

This is truth! 

Faith-trust.

Belief.

Knowing.

Realizing.

Unquestioning God's will.  Asking for intercession believing that HE will hear and all that follows is a result of His hearing and answering according to HIS will- not ours!

If we ask and the result is NOT immediate  even if it's needed immediately, the answer is GOD'S and we MUST believe  NO matter how AWFUL our situation, that somehow it is for the good, somehow BEYOND our comprehension but NOT beyond our God's comprehension!

We have to BELIEVE- we do NOT have to comprehend all the things of God.

Deu_29:29 The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

God doesn't have to give us explanations! When we demand explanations from each other, we want people to explain their reasonings to us, we want to UNDERSTAND, we don't want to be left in the dark. So we want God to explain as well. We want to UNDERSTAND and when something defies our comprehension we do not like it at all. 

Faith.

We pray and believe.

We must believe .

Please, Lord, help our UNBELIEF! Rid us of our unbelief!

Help us as we pray, without You our prayers are empty, meaningless.

By YOUR GRACE!

Laboring Fervently in Prayer

'In Romans 15:30, we have the word, "strive," occurring, in the request which Paul made
for prayerful cooperation.

Rom 15:30  Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me

In Colossians 4:12, we have the same word, but translated differently: "Epaphras always
labouring fervently for you in prayer."

 Paul charged the Romans to "strive together with him in prayer," that is, to help him in his struggle of prayer. The word means to enter into a contest, to fight against adversaries. It means, moreover, to engage with fervent zeal to endeavour to obtain.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 26)

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Do we realize that prayer is not easy?  Contrary to all that we want to believe, if prayer has the Holy Spirit interceding for us with GROANINGS which can't even be heard, how can we believe prayer is simple and easy?  

Rom_8:26  Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

We are told how to pray by our Savior, when the apostles asked Him He told them …

Luk 11:1  And 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.
Luk 11:2  And 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.
Luk 11:3  Give us day by day our daily bread.
Luk 11:4  And 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.

Mat 6:9  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Mat 6:10  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Mat 6:11  Give us this day our daily bread.
Mat 6:12  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Mat 6:13  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

And even after TEACHING the disciples to pray we read that 'we know NOT what we SHOULD pray for as we ought' .  We are told what to pray but still we don't pray as we should because our prayers are corrupted by our flesh, by our sinfulness, our selfishness.  We are instructed and we may follow the instructions but truthfully we  ask so much more in prayer- we tend to ask for our own desires, our own wills to be done, we get in the way of our own true needs but the Holy Spirit intercedes for us by the GRACE of our LORD and SAVIOR.

The fervency needed in prayer is also given to us by the Holy Spirit, because we cannot manufacture it on our own.

Laboring fervently, striving in prayer- prayer is NOT something meaningless, but something so overwhelmingly filled with meaning that we can't comprehend the full truth of it, we can only PRAISE and THANK our God for allowing us to Pray to HIM.

All through HIS GRACE!

How Do We Pray? Holy Spirit Make Intercession For Us!

'Many of the great Bible characters were notable examples of fervency of spirit when
seeking God.

The Psalmist declares with great earnestness:

"My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto Thy judgments at all times."

What strong desires of heart are here! What earnest soul longings for the Word of the
living God!

An even greater fervency is expressed by him in another place:

"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God.
My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before
God?"

That is the word of a man who lived in a state of grace, which had been deeply and
supernaturally wrought in his soul.

Fervency before God counts in the hour of prayer, and finds a speedy and rich reward
at His hands. The Psalmist gives us this statement of what God had done for the king, as
his heart turned toward his Lord:

"Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of
his lips."

At another time, he thus expresses himself directly to God in preferring his request:

"Lord, all my desire is before Thee; and my groaning is not hid from Thee."

What a cheering thought! Our inward groanings, our secret desires, our heart-longings,
are not hidden from the eyes of Him with whom we have to deal in prayer.

The incentive to fervency of spirit before God, is precisely the same as it is for continued
and earnest prayer. While fervency is not prayer, yet it derives from an earnest soul,
and is precious in the sight of God. Fervency in prayer is the precursor of what God will
do by way of answer. God stands pledged to give us the desire of our hearts in
proportion to the fervency of spirit we exhibit, when seeking His face in prayer.

Fervency has its seat in the heart, not in the brain, nor in the intellectual faculties of the
mind. Fervency therefore, is not an expression of the intellect. Fervency of spirit is
something far transcending poetical fancy or sentimental imagery. It is something else
besides mere preference, the contrasting of like with dislike. Fervency is the throb and
gesture of the emotional nature.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 25)


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Fervency in prayer-

Mat_27:46  And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Crying out in a loud voice- FERVENCY.

Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

FERVENCY.

Joh 17:1  These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
Joh 17:2  As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Joh 17:4  I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
Joh 17:5  And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
Joh 17:6  I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
Joh 17:7  Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
Joh 17:8  For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
Joh 17:9  I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
Joh 17:10  And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
Joh 17:11  And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Joh 17:12  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Joh 17:13  And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
Joh 17:14  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
Joh 17:16  They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Joh 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Joh 17:18  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
Joh 17:19  And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Joh 17:20  Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
Joh 17:21  That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
Joh 17:22  And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
Joh 17:23  I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
Joh 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.
Joh 17:25  O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
Joh 17:26  And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

FERVENCY.

How do we pray?

Father! Father!

Rom_8:26  Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

By YOUR GRACE!

Heaven Connected

'Our Lord warns us against feeble praying. "Men ought always to pray," He declares, "and not to faint." That means, that we are to possess sufficient fervency to carry us through the severe and long periods of pleading prayer. Fire makes one alert and vigilant, and brings him off, more than conqueror. The atmosphere about us is too heavily charged with resisting forces for limp or languid prayers to make headway. It takes heat, and fervency and meteoric fire, to push through, to the upper heavens, where God dwells with His saints, in light.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 24)

Luk_18:1  ... that men ought always to pray, and not to faint

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It is true- 'The atmosphere about us is too heavily charged with resisting forces for limp or languid prayers…'

All around us we are surrounded by things that would keep us as far from our God as possible.  At every turn we are confronted by spiritual wickedness striving to get us to focus on life around us, and not on life to come. If we 'pray always' then we are in a constant state of comprehension that we are in touch with the HEAVENLY, not the earthly. We truly need to be in touch with the HEAVENLY, don't we?

When we are in love don't we have a constant thought about the one we love?  Aren't there things all through our day that remind us of our loved one? The back of our mind is filled with the knowledge of our loved one, and all we do has us bringing our thoughts back around again to them.  Our constant state of prayer is a constant connection with our loving Heavenly Father. Every failing we find ourselves sadly immersed in is a call for us to remember our connection with heaven, in fact it's a cry for us to not only remember but to renew that connection- that constant connection.

Surely we cannot always be in prayer upon our knees, eyes closed, head bowed- but we need to always be in a constant mental state of prayer- in the awareness of heaven as our home, not here, not now. The things of this world WILL overwhelm us without this constant connection.

Fainting is so easy without our heavenly Father.  Fainting spiritually, letting down our spiritual guard, when this happens we leave ourselves incredibly vulnerable.

Our Savior did NOT admonish us to pray always  so we don't faint, without a good reason!

We have to be HEAVEN CONNECTED!

By the grace of God!

Is Your Name In the Book of Life?

Is Your Name Written in Heaven's Book of Remembrance? Is Your Name in the Book of Life?

Moses spoke of a book that God has written, asking to be blotted out of that book if God did not forgive the erring Israelites.

Exo_32:32  Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.

Moses wanted the people forgiven. Imagine you were Moses- you grow up pampered and spoiled and then realize that your family isn't your family at all. You then realize that your true family, your birth family are slaves to the family that raised you. Deciding that you'd rather be among your birth family than among those who are cruel masters to them, you leave your pampered, spoiled lifestyle and become one of the slaves.

As a slave you are confronted with wrongdoing and react to it, then flee for fear of being killed. You then fall in with desert wanderers and choose to live with them, even taking a wife and having children. One day you are confronted by your Creator who tells you that you must go and deliver those people you left, your birth family, who are in bondage.

Taking on the task you leave your current family, wife and children, and you journey back to your birth family and go through very, very trying and hard times as you work as God's messenger to free your people. Finally after extreme hardship your people are freed and you are called to lead them out of their land of bondage and into a new land.

Now stop for a moment and truly consider all you've endured to bring your people out of slavery. It was hard work, it was long and arduous. You suffered, they suffered, you suffered together to bring this all about. Now you take these people on a long journey and stop to camp at the foot of a mountain. You tell the people exactly what has transpired, how they were freed by God, their Creator, their Redeemer and if they will AGREE to abide by their God's covenant all will be well, He will protect them and they will flourish. The people KNOW their road to freedom was one of supernatural happenings, they weren't blinded to how the hand of God worked to set them free. They watched as the Egyptians suffered plague after plague while it didn't touch them, something that is truly inexplicable beyond the miracle of God working.They hoped, they doubted, they hoped again and they were finally told they no longer had to be slaves, they were free from the bondage of their captors. No longer did they have to feel the whip of a slave driver across their backs, no longer did they have to live with scarcely any possessions of their own, no longer did they have to worry their children would be murdered under orders of their slave master, no longer did they have to live in fear of their very lives being forfeited because they became too old to be of any use. These people were FREE!  Their freedom didn't come by the hand of a man, but by the hand of God in great workings before them. They KNEW that God had freed them, they knew the POWER of God before they were ever asked to AGREE to His covenant. They were NOT forced into an agreement with God. These people were told what God expected from them and asked to agree to the terms set forth. God did not bring them out of one bondage only to force them into another under His rule. God wanted WILLING followers, not FORCED captives. Asked to agree to the covenant the people did so, they agreed of their OWN FREE WILL, not a single one of them was forced to agree. Then AFTER they agree you are asked to go meet with your God to receive more information from Him so that life for you and the newly freed people, your people, people of your kindred, your blood, could begin under the love and guidance of One who is above all others. You leave them, and they know you will return, you tell them you will.

Much time passes, and the people who have agreed to live under a new covenant with God begin to doubt this agreement. They see no more evidence that God is acting on their behalf. The one who had delivered them disappeared and could be dead now for all they know and if the deliverer is dead there is no one to communicate between God and them and so that life is over, the agreement forfeit. With these thoughts growing day by day the people begin to imagine how they should continue without God and the new covenant agreement. They decide that perhaps the old gods, the old covenant rituals and such were really better for them. They grew up under masters who used those old gods and if the old gods helped those masters enslave them, maybe the old gods of their former masters would now help them prosper. The old gods liked to be worshiped in images so the people who had been freed by God, the people who had made a covenant agreement with God to be His, now decide to create an image of one of the old gods and break the agreement they made with their Deliverer God.

While you were up in communication with God receiving the laws in written form, you knew nothing of what the people you freed were doing. When you return and realize their grave error in turning from their Deliverer God back to the gods of their former masters, you are grieved at heart! How could they turn so quickly from their Deliverer God? How?!  Not only are YOU very upset, but GOD is very upset too. The people He performed miracle after miracle for turned on Him! If they turned on Him after such a short call for faith, for believing without seeing, without touching, without hearing, then how could they be His people? Without faith it would be impossible to follow Him, He is a God of faith.

Considering doing away with all of these people- descendants for hundreds and hundreds of years going back to Abraham- God imagines starting over and yet you realize the horror of that! These people need to be given another chance, they need to be forgiven, they need more than to be tossed aside at their first failing.  So you plead with God, you plead with the One who has guided you, who has brought you through so much to get where you are. You tell God that if He cannot forgive the sins of the people that you do not want to be His, You want your name taken out of the book, the book that contains the names of ALL who would be God's. You don't want to be a part of God's family any longer if all these people are to be destroyed and taken out of the book as well. God relents, God forgives and continues to claim the people as His, and you remain written in the book of God's.

Every person alive has the opportunity to be written in God's book- to be remembered by God, to be given eternal life by God. YOU really have this opportunity, and it is given to You through a DELIVERER, a SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.

YOU CAN BE WRITTEN IN GOD'S BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE, IN GOD'S BOOK OF LIFE- or YOU CAN BE BLOTTED OUT OF THAT BOOK.

Deu_29:20  The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.

Psa_69:28  Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.

Blotted out, or written in. Not delivered, or delivered.  Not saved, or saved.  To imagine all our names are there and never to be blotted out is to believe a lie of Satan's, a lie he made to Eve in the garden- that she would not die. We can't allow ourselves to be caught in deception. Our names are written there only by the GRACE of our SAVIOR, only by HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, we must BELIEVE this is our duty, to believe. We aren't to believe in our own righteousness, but in our SAVIOR'S. We agree to HIS sacrifice, we agree to the life HE lived. We agree to be GOD'S people, not people who choose other gods, not people who choose self above god. We agree we have a CREATOR and we have a REDEEMER and it is through them that we LIVE. We agree that this life here and now is a temporary life, and that life eternal is our true home. We do NOT live for riches and a life of ease here and now, but rather a life of extreme hardship and deprivation, a life of a slave knowing they've been delivered and will receive the reward of that deliverance in another life- a life where they are raised from the dead, or called alive and changed to meet their Deliverer in the air to go home with Him. This is the slave journey we are all on, the same journey, the same form of a slave our Savior took on.

Php 2:7  but emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, having become in the likeness of men (LITV)

We live in the form of a slave, our evil master is Satan, and our loving deliverer is our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.

We live in the hope of unseen but believed deliverance.

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Dan_12:1  And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book

Mal_3:16  Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.

Luk_10:20  Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

Rev 13:6  And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
Rev 13:7  And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
Rev 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Rev_17:8  The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Rev_20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Rev_20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

 Rev_21:27  And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

Rev_22:19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.




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http://sites.google.com/site/whostosaywereright2/Home

Do we cry out to our God?

Examples of fervency in prayer-

'Fervency before God counts in the hour of prayer, and finds a speedy and rich reward at His hands. The Psalmist gives us this statement of what God had done for the king, as his heart turned toward his Lord;

"Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips."

At another time, he thus expresses himself directly to God in preferring his request:

"Lord, all my desire is before Thee; and my groaning is not hid from Thee."

What a cheering thought! Our inward groanings, our secret desires, our heart-longings, are not hidden from the eyes of Him with whom we have to deal in prayer.'

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Do we lay our hearts open to before God?  Or are we trying to hide some part of us from Him? As we pray do we pray knowing we are heard by our Father in heaven who knows all that is in our hearts, from the very worst thought to the very worst intent of our heart, HE KNOWS. Is it any wonder we must cry out for a CLEAN HEART?

Psa_51:10  Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

 This must be our prayer! And it must be our prayer with great fervency! We must desire, we must long for desperately to be made clean, to have our God CREATE a CLEAN HEART inside of us! To RIGHT our SPIRIT within us!  Left to ourselves we are lost completely, left to God we are trusting in Him to hear our groanings, to hear our fervent prayer, to hear us when we cry out to Him.

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'The incentive to fervency of spirit before God, is precisely the same as it is for continued and earnest prayer. While fervency is not prayer, yet it derives from an earnest soul, and is precious in the sight of God. Fervency in prayer is the precursor of what God will do by way of answer. God stands pledged to give us the desire of our hearts in proportion to the fervency of spirit we exhibit, when seeking His face in prayer.


Fervency has its seat in the heart, not in the brain, nor in the intellectual faculties of the mind.


Fervency therefore, is not an expression of the intellect. Fervency of spirit is something far transcending poetical fancy or sentimental imagery. It is something else besides mere preference, the contrasting of like with dislike. Fervency is the throb and gesture of the emotional nature.'

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This is truth, isn't it? Fervency is truly our desperation revealed, it is emotional. We cannot divorce emotions from our prayers, if we even tried to do that they would become wooden, stilted, and lifeless. If we pray by rote, if we pray simply because someone says- bow your head and pray, if we pray because we appointed a time for prayer and that time comes around, yet we do so without any emotion, without any sense of urgency, of heart felt need, then we pray in vain.  We cannot do this--

Mar 12:38  And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,
Mar 12:39  And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:
Mar 12:40  Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

BEWARE of those who 'For a PRETENCE make LONG PRAYERS'.

We cannot use pretence in prayers whether it's in making them long, or using eloquent words, we should never pray for show, but pray from the heart each and every time we pray!
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'It is not in our power, perhaps, to create fervency of spirit at will, but we can pray God to implant it.
 
It is ours, then, to nourish and cherish it, to guard it against extinction, to prevent its abatement or decline.'

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We MUST pray for God to give us ALL we need, and that ALL includes the fervency we need to have for Him. Just as we know our hearts are not clean unless HE cleans them, we know our prayers are not true prayers without His blessing us. Without the Holy Spirit to bring our prayers before God so that the heart of them is revealed, the desire of them is know, we have little hope. We cannot pray perfect prayers, we can pray prayers desperate to be heard by our Father in Heaven, He and He alone along with His Son and the Holy Spirit, can hear the HEART of our prayers when our words fail to speak as we would have ourselves speak.
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'The process of personal salvation is not only to pray, to express our desires to God, but to acquire a fervent spirit and seek, by all proper means, to cultivate it. It is never out of place to pray God to beget within us, and to keep alive the spirit of fervent prayer.

Fervency has to do with God, just as prayer has to do with Him. Desire has always an objective. If we desire at all, we desire something. The degree of fervency with which we fashion our spiritual desires, will always serve to determine the earnestness of our praying. In this relation, Adoniram Judson says:
"A travailing spirit, the throes of a great burdened desire, belongs to prayer. A fervency strong enough to drive away sleep, which devotes and inflames the spirit, and which retires all earthly ties, all this belongs to wrestling, prevailing prayer. The Spirit, the power, the air, and food of prayer is in such a spirit."

Prayer must be clothed with fervency, strength and power. It is the force which, centered on God, determines the outlay of Himself for earthly good. Men who are fervent in spirit are bent on attaining to righteousness, truth, grace, and all other sublime and powerful graces which adorn the character of the authentic, unquestioned child of God.'
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Every prayer we pray with the comprehension we are crying out to our Creator, our Redeemer, our Sustainer for whom we are dependent upon for ALL things, must be a prayer that comprehends we are nothing and He is all things, and if we do become something at all it is at HIS command, it is at HIS will we exist. Truly HE is our GOD, the GOD of our LIVES, our WHOLE, ENTIRE LIVES!
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Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 23) Expounded *******

Fervency

'Fervency before God counts in the hour of prayer, and finds a speedy and rich reward at His hands. The Psalmist gives us this statement of what God had done for the king, as his heart turned toward his Lord:

"Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips."

At another time, he thus expresses himself directly to God in preferring his request:

"Lord, all my desire is before Thee; and my groaning is not hid from Thee."

What a cheering thought! Our inward groanings, our secret desires, our heart-longings, are not hidden from the eyes of Him with whom we have to deal in prayer.

The incentive to fervency of spirit before God, is precisely the same as it is for continued and earnest prayer. While fervency is not prayer, yet it derives from an earnest soul, and is precious in the sight of God. Fervency in prayer is the precursor of what God will do by way of answer. God stands pledged to give us the desire of our hearts in proportion to the fervency of spirit we exhibit, when seeking His face in prayer.

Fervency has its seat in the heart, not in the brain, nor in the intellectual faculties of the mind.

Fervency therefore, is not an expression of the intellect. Fervency of spirit is something far transcending poetical fancy or sentimental imagery. It is something else besides mere preference, the contrasting of like with dislike. Fervency is the throb and gesture of the emotional nature.

It is not in our power, perhaps, to create fervency of spirit at will, but we can pray God to implant it.

It is ours, then, to nourish and cherish it, to guard it against extinction, to prevent its abatement or decline.

The process of personal salvation is not only to pray, to express our desires to God, but to acquire a fervent spirit and seek, by all proper means, to cultivate it. It is never out of place to pray God to beget within us, and to keep alive the spirit of fervent prayer.

Fervency has to do with God, just as prayer has to do with Him. Desire has always an objective. If we desire at all, we desire something. The degree of fervency with which we fashion our spiritual desires, will always serve to determine the earnestness of our praying. In this relation, Adoniram Judson says:

"A travailing spirit, the throes of a great burdened desire, belongs to prayer. A fervency strong enough to drive away sleep, which devotes and inflames the spirit, and which retires all earthly ties, all this belongs to wrestling, prevailing prayer. The Spirit, the power, the air, and food of prayer is in such a spirit."

Prayer must be clothed with fervency, strength and power. It is the force which, centered on God, determines the outlay of Himself for earthly good. Men who are fervent in spirit are bent on attaining to righteousness, truth, grace, and all other sublime and powerful graces which adorn the character of the authentic, unquestioned child of God.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 23)

AMEN.

More tomorrow on this by the GRACE of GOD!

Holy Spirit and Fire

'God wants warm-hearted servants.

The Holy Spirit comes as a fire, to dwell in us; we are to be baptized, with the Holy Ghost and with fire.

Fervency is warmth of soul.

A phlegmatic temperament is abhorrent to vital experience. If our religion does not set us
on fire, it is because we have frozen hearts.

God dwells in a flame; the Holy Ghost descends in fire.

To be absorbed in God's will, to be so greatly in earnest about doing it that our whole being takes fire, is the qualifying condition of the man who would engage in effectual prayer.'

Quoted from- 'THE NECESSITY OF PRAYER  By E.M. BOUNDS' (Excerpt 23)

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Mar_1:8  I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

Luk_3:16  John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire

Baptized with the Holy Spirit and FIRE.

Act 2:2  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
Act 2:3  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
Act 2:4  And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Cloven tongues like as of FIRE sitting upon EACH of them-and they were FILLED with the Holy Spirit!

Imagine it?! It was REAL. This wasn't some fantasy fiction dreamed up by some over active imagination, this was real!  I've seen movies about the book of Acts and this particular happenstance and the special effects they used for the cloven tongues like fire were very strange because we attribute it to something unreal, something out of the ordinary, something supernatural.  In truth it was something very supernatural! It was a visible sign of the HOLY SPIRIT entering into men. They were FILLED with the Holy Spirit!  We want to be filled with the HOLY SPIRIT don't we?! We should! The fire, the flame of GOD resting upon us as the Holy Spirit fills us, we want this! We need this! We have to have this! Please, LORD, please bless us with the fire of the Holy Spirit! We need this we do and we are at a loss as to how to obtain what we need. Please give this to us undeservedly, because there is nothing we can do to deserve the gift of the Holy Spirit, by Your grace alone we must have the Holy Spirit fill us. All through YOUR righteousness may we have this fire in us as we pray, as we seek YOU with all our HEART, bless US LORD!

Save us!