Prayer and Community
As I look at our country today, i remember a time when God challenged me to watch the news and pray for everything that I saw. I was beyond drained by the end of a 30 minute cast. I look at the news today and we have legalized homosexuality, churches being burned down, KKK on the rise, blacks leaving the church because of the “white man’s” religion, parents harming their children, and so much more on the rise. These things have been happening over the years causing a rise of darkness where there should be a rise of light. We live in a world that claims to see truth, read John 9:35-41, but in reality there is a vain reality we have created. From this scripture think about what God is saying about vision and blindness?
I was on fb the other day and watched a clip involving controversy here in SC regarding the confederate flag. There was a small fight at our state house, I saw some of the young black men speaking out on the incident and low and behold my little brother is among them. I then see a post from him on my timeline saying, “The white people hit us first”. A few days later he posts a status about someone wanting to kill him and that he has people too. My guy friend has been trying to tell me to stop putting myself in my little brothers situation but to pray. In my mind I’m like, yea i’m praying but i need to say something. It irks me so, when people use race as a justification for anything and it irks me even more when people don’t take time out to really understand what is going on. Myself included.
Ephesians 6:12 (our war is not with man)
One big thing we need to understand is that sometimes God really wants us to shut up and pray. We don’t always realize how we allow our feelings and emotions to guide us instead of God. We start thinking about things based on our feelings instead of spirit (Holy Spirit).
Daniel 10:1-5, Daniel saw that there was something wrong with this nation so he prayed. Not only did he pray but he put himself in a position of faith that released the power of God. How many times do we see something that is wrong in our homes, communities, nations and complain about it instead of praying about it? Read vs12-14 This is where sincere prayer comes into play. This is where faith comes into play.
How many times have we prayed and doubted the result? I can personally say that I do it often. But I’m reminded of who my God is and that He knows my weakness. So i find myself saying the prayer from Mark 9: 23-24. Sometimes we get so caught up in our weakness that we forget what God said about even our weakness 2 Corinth 12:9 (God’s strength in my weakness)
Matthew 18:2-4 God reminded me of how when i was weak as a child I sought help. I didn’t try to figure it out on my own (Most of the time, I was kinda sneaky… lol, praise God for deliverance.) But, as we get older we tend to separate ourselves from other people in this walk. But the quote, “ it takes a village to raise a child” comes to mind. I know we are talking about communication but community is brought up as well. You cannot have a community without communication. And when you have communication you build a community.
One of my biggest fears about being a part of a community is how do I talk to these people? Luke 12:12 (Holy Spirit will give me the words)
The key to the Holy Spirit giving us the words to say is having a relationship with God.
What are other ways of communication?
- written Hab 2:2
- oral Phil 4: 6
- nonverbal communication (body language) 1 John 2:6
- face to face 1 Chronicles 16:11
Let’s use these methods of communication to talk to God and then let God lead us in how we communicate with our community to build and strengthen our community the right way.
Have you ever been in a relationship and no one knew you were in one? How would you feel if you were in a relationship with someone and they didn’t tell their family/friends about you? 1 Peter 2:9 This is when Luke 12: 12 comes into play. How can you communicate about a relationship that you don’t have? I’ve had people talk about me when they didn’t even know me. They made an assumption or straight out lied about who they thought i was,usually because they didn’t take time to know me. This is how a lot of false doctrines are born.. God is trying to bring his family home. The family that he can fellowship with. God is always inviting with open arms.
Matthew 6:33 God said to seek His KINGDOM… I’ve been to nice houses before but I’m trying to get to God’s Kingdom because I know it gets better. I desire to take as many people with me as possible. So i’m asking you guys, are you trying to build something with God and His people? Or are you stuck in your room/car/classroom/whatever and trying to figure this thing out yourself? I’m encouraging you guys to communicate with God on a daily basis about what is going on in your lives, but don’t just talk to him when things go wrong. I’ve always been a person that listens to people when they go through but i need someone to listen to me as well. You will never understand the heart your community if you are too busy complaining and criticizing instead of listening.
God is God yes!! He listens to our prayers, but are we listening to Him? We can easily go to God about our problems, but are we listening when God has a problem and desires us to fix it? Are we listening to His heart cry when people are being murdered, committing adultery, suffering from depression, etc? Or do we complain and judge? Are we saying quick 5 minute prayers and expecting God to move in a mighty way?
There is so much we can do when we use the community God has placed us in and the gifts He has given us to stay connected and to reach His kingdom.
Prayer points:
- Repentance
- Receiving Holy Spirit
- Restructure our broken areas
- Redeem us with grace and mercy
- Reveal the vision
The Channel to Beautiful Victories 