Prayer

"Ask and it shall be given, seek and ye shall find, knock and the door shall be open" (Matthew 7:7).

We have to ask God for His guidance while we seek our purpose. The words ask, seek, and knock are imperative verbs; they command. In addition, they are in the present tense. This means God commands us to constantly ask, seek and knock. Notice that with each verb there is an intensified aggressive action.

1. If you want to receive, you have to ask. When you look, you are looking with the intention of finding something and not it being handed to you.

2. You have to actively wait which means do something! Seeking is asking and acting. You have to take an active role in the process. You have to seek to find.

3. Lastly, Knock. When you knock on a door, you knock with the expectation to enter or a response. Knocking is asking, acting, and attitude.

Let us not get "weary in well doing for in due season we shall reap if we faint not" (Galatians 6:9).

Every prayer is heard. If the request is wrong God says no, if the timing is wrong God says slow, if you are wrong God says grow. If the request, timing, and you are time then God says go. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1:20 that God's answers are "yes" and "amen."

God is not a genie. Do not approach God like one. You cannot have a wish list or three special wishes. You cannot use your faith to make God do what you want. Prayer is not a way to present our demands to God.

Pastor Byrd said it best; " Prayer is the prelude to peace, prolong to power, previllous to power, the pathway to perfection."

Prayer release all your eternal resources. Prayer is not about getting about what we want, but what we need. God may not come when you want Him, but He is always on time.

But after you have solicited prayers to God, do not forget to say THANK YOU! Thank you Jesus for saving my life, thank you Jesus for dyeing for me, thank you Jesus for healing my body, thank you Jesus for giving me the Sabbath off, thank you Jesus for giving me a job, thank you Jesus for protecting my children, thank you Jesus for helping me pass that class. Do not forget to say thank you! My father likes to tell the story of the ten lepers' who were healed by Jesus. Once they healed they all ran back to go "show" what Jesus had done for them, but one of lepers' turn around and bowed done at Jesus' feet and said thank you.

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