The Discipline of Prayer

tonight as it turns out anybody remember last week's lesson what was it all these lessons are just anybody the discipline of charts with a W what is it worship Lauren jumped in there tonight we're gonna talk about this one of worship again because evidently give it last week I'm joking tonight we're gonna go with the discipline of prayer prayer prayer we are of course smack dab in the middle of our 21 days of commitment each morning you you have the capacity if you want you can log on you can review the prayer focus I don't know about you but when I sit down at my iPad in the morning and I bring up the prayer time I know that somebody at CAC is probably sitting at their table or their office desk or in their car driving that now hopefully you're not anyway and you're in prayer as well that's encouraging to me it may not be to you but it encourages me to know that there are times during the day that's you guys are praying for me just like I'm praying for you amen and that is where strength comes when church members gather together in the word and in prayer God is there I will let you know right now I need your prayers I need you praying for me is that okay I'll be the first to say I need your prayers I believe that it is going to help the church I believe that it is already helping the church because corporately we are binding ourselves together and going before the Lord in word and in prayer something about coming together you don't have to physically walk through these doors to be together with your brothers and sisters in the Lord but in the spirit of God that's working in your living room in your prayer closet in your car at your job at your desk wherever it happens to be the fact that you're praying and talking to God should encourage you yourself now I realize that all of us have different schedules how many are early morning prayers I mean you're late at night prayers how many are don't know what I'm talking about I dare you raise your hand all right different schedules right different times it's just the nature of humanity it used to be that we all went off the Sun Sun comes up get up beat the chickens make sure you there you know and then you something goes down and go to bed anymore 24 hours a day now 100 miles an hour go to Walmart at 3 a.m. it's the most amazing thing the folk that are out at 3:00 a.m. at Walmart sorry you know those are pajamas anyway ok yeah what about it you know I got out of bed to come here anyway 24 hours a day things are happening it doesn't matter the schedule the fact is is that you're binding together with God's people life has no longer put in place if you will a pause button okay stop it's six o'clock in the afternoon we all need to stop and pray all right or wait a minute it's 5:30 a.m. everybody up and pray now in the old days it was that way do you go to Bible School who I knew that's why I asked did you have prayer time in Bible School what that cool when we taught the Bible school in Uruguay and then the dr i made sure that whoever's over the dorm got everybody up to go to prayer they're like what time i said i don't know what's a good time for all of you and all the students are going I don't want to say you don't wanna open this big mouth 5 a.m. and the rest go what is wrong with you you know at a prayer time it's so later in the day when I come in they've already had all of that so I was prayer time this morning and you got in baraboo at one of the guys going after what he fell asleep today so well what about it while we knew he was asleep so we all got up and went out left him sitting there but have whenever he woke up an hour later he goes and everybody's going it's like rapture you know we're all gone you know anyway we all have busy schedules we all have to find the time to spend with God in a Bible School setting it's probably easier maybe but in real-life situation how many he knows you have to make the effort all right stay with me trying to get everything done try and accomplish everything everything in it contributes to a busy lifestyle is there anyone here not busy no see all of us have something that we can use our time for right stay with me we have to discipline ourselves then to pray we have to it is something that you have to decide to do okay now crisis-driven prayer life is not a healthy and vibrant walk with God if you're simply going to wait for a crisis to settle in before you start talking to God you've not made some wise choices how many know you can pray hard when there's a crisis so why would you want to pray that way every day listen to him if a crisis hits you don't pray the same way as if it's just a normal day how do you pray when a crisis hits desperation wailing and gnashing of teeth what if you had to do that all the time in prayer huh you want to bless our food you don't want they listen to me you don't like I'm telling you our world is full of crisis driven prayer warriors huh life falls apart here they go finally praying I'm gonna get phone calls from people that are so far from God but yeah they say man I got a situation will you help me pray then why ain't you been praying stay with me you have to discipline yourself to do that and it doesn't matter if it's one minute or one hour or 20 hours you've got to make the decision to do it when we are for an example again in this 21 days what we are doing is we are finding a place of sweet communion with God to where you actually enjoy the presence of the Lord I mean you know the presence of the Lord is a really really cool place it's quiet it's peaceful it's not chaos it's not confusion it's not drama it's you and the Creator let's look at something Luke chapter 11 get your Bible say man if you got your Bible say man if you're gonna wait on Josh say hurry up Josh yeah that's what I thought Luke chapter 11 let's look at verse number one somebody read that out loud please okay thus - thank you the students notice the the followers of Jesus the Bible says he was praying in a place doesn't say where but he had a prayer place okay he had finished his prayer all right and then one of the followers one of the disciples one of the learners of him said Lord teach us to pray the only thing that this follower this disciple this learner could attribute to communicating with God was John taught his followers now would you teach us like John taught his it's an interesting concept how did his disciples know that the John that everybody knew about taught his disciples how to pray shouldn't you actually just know how to pray it is something that just ought to come to you it doesn't does it say with me the students noticed they did not ask Jesus ever Lord would you please teach us how to do miracles they didn't say hey look Jesus if you don't mind can you instruct us on how to multiply food good nobody said to him master if you would in the next session could you teach us how to walk on top of water did they one of the questions that poses between the followers and their leader is teach us to pray if you could ask Jesus anything would you not as a human would you not be selfish and say Jesus show me how to make a million dollars or Lord can he help me understand how this or how that because we're selfish sometimes we pray for selfish things what these guys said we are finding out here that we don't have any reference to what Jesus is doing what he says how he interacts when he's in his prayer closet but imagine if we will for just a moment how does God pray because that's what Jesus I mean what is he asking for what is he asking for I need you to raise it now well got that we need a feed enough oh the leper no to know what to pray about I tell you what Jesus was doing stay with me he was in his flesh doing what he did it in the garden at his last time that we have reference to it nevertheless not me not mine but yours Jesus in his prayer time no doubt was simply getting his flesh in a position of submission submitting to the will and the power of what God is doing that's what we're doing when we pray shame on us if we don't ask God's will in our lives evidently our will is much stronger and evidently a better will than God's that's why desperate prayers are prayed what when do most of your problems happen when you what when you what when you don't pray what what else stop praying what else I mean honestly when does the majority of your issues begin with people on your job with finances win is that true when you're focused more on you than others or then the plan and the will of God interesting isn't it that multiple times people will come to you come to me as a pastor say pastor I want you to pray the will of God in my life all right well you what are you looking for I just want to know that I'm in a perfect will of God okay where are you well here at the church there you go love God do His commandments that's the wheel huh no no I want to know if I need to be a missionary or if I need to be this or if anybody that's not what you're asking for I promise if God's will is not for you to be a missionary you don't want to be a missionary I promise if it's not God's will for you to do this or do that and then you do it anyway you don't want to do that and that's what the disciples were saying to him teach us to pray John evidently had extended himself in lessons teaching his followers listen guys I appreciate you gathering in today going to get your paper and pad pencil out your iPad your laptop whatever it is your phone whatever and I want you to I want you to write this down what did he go off of what did John go off of when he was teaching his followers are you with me this is from him we're talking first generation Church and the followers of Jesus the master say to him would you teach us to pray like John taught his disciples to pray in other words friend you've got to learn to discipline yourself to pray how many's ever prayed a prayer that lasted for hours did you get every day why not huh why not I mean you work 8 hours in a day you actually work longer than that if you have an eight-hour workday how long do you actually spend getting ready going in the road in route there lunch in route home how long 12 hours long day right 10 hours so if you can do that I mean you got 24 for crying out loud if you can work eight hours at a job surely you can pray eight hours there's sixteen how many's left mathematicians yeah I was just asking there's eight more hours you can sleep three of those you just broke down didn't all life just ended I don't know what to say now that all gets three hours sleep well I don't know my point is this if you are expected to be on the job how many work a job how many go to the job work the job leave the job and you never think of it again my wife and that's not true try to write that means ever been woken Miller tonight with something you forgot to do at the office or on the job huh so here your mind goes you're thinking about it at one point is this if you would get yourself in a position in a condition to continuously walk in the presence and power of God then it does not matter where you are physically your spirit in your body can be connected with him through communication but you got to discipline yourself for that teach us to do that teach us to do that so here's the here we go we're going to look at Matthew chapter 6 let's say watch something here Matthew chapter 6 verse number 5 notice the reference here Matthew 6 and 5 and when thou prayest everybody say preyas preyas when thou prayest thou shalt not be as the what's the word hypocrites are when you pray don't be like a hypocrite stay with me they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets that they may be seen of men hypocrites barely I say unto you they had their reward hypocrites but thou when thou prayest enter into thy closet when thou hast shut thy door pray to thy father which is in secret which is in secret and thy father would see if in secret shall reward thee openly yea how many pray out loud church home car how many pray out loud you didn't raise your hand out loud that was a quiet hand race how do you raise your hand out loud there you go mamie knows that one right here's what he saw the hypocrites hypocrites hypocrites hypocrites it's a word that nobody here likes to ever be called you're just the hypocrites what you are how many likes that how many never called samay that you know what they are they hypocrite you know what that means from whom they hypocrite they being hypocritical stay with me prayer cannot simply be a public display pastor I want you to know I was at the church Friday and I stood there for an hour and pray just so you know I'm really spiritual huh it has to be a stay with me what does Jesus say in Matthew 6 he says a secret place question what is a secret place hmm well what is that yes sir I can't hear you is that a secret how do they know don't say that because they know how to get daddy's attention right they were a secret they'd be while I'm not worried guys I don't know where he is either I love where dad he's in there that ain't no secret where's mama she's over there I thought you was it a secret but stay with me hang on to me for just a second okay what is the secret place yes is it okay so your heart so does that mean that you simply go I spend silly but honestly sorry Katie but is that what that means because some of you think that all right it's all worship God lift your hand worship I'll see it every Sunday I must they're in their sacred place nobody knows were that so I did a little research secret place translation I went to the original is a designated inner chamber of safety and protection it's an inner chamber that has no place for outsiders the only reason to go into a closet inner chamber was for protection and safety here me me well I believe I can pray in the middle of a windstorm a hurricane I can pray on an airplane I can pray in the middle of a thousand whatever seat auditory I can pray whatever but if my mindset is simply focused on what everybody is seeing me do and my response and my ability to check off the list that I just spent time with God I have missed it why because I have revealed myself to everyone around me but if I go into my safety place of protection that could be any place but I have to discipline myself to go there this is the worst thing to take into your secret place why it's a what it's a distraction Josh thank you for confession we're on a media fast this week is anybody fasting media and entertainment anybody Thank You Josh for confessors I don't how many times I went to Facebook just start oh I can't do that what's happened you develop habits that distract you so this past Sunday I said for Monday Sun up to Friday sundown our church we're having a media and entertainment fast do away with that stuff spend some time with God reason is is because if you can ever figure out that God is not in the distraction God does not want to simply catch you off-guard God wants you to know you just saw him you just had a contact with him on purpose you looked for him so what Jesus says don't be as the hypocrite that simply wants to be seen and noticed he even mentions pray in the synagogue standing there pray in the corners of the streets Wow imagine that imagine Chattanooga downtown my own marmite a Market Street or me you know what you would hear about that time as the blue truck comes up that's not what you do listen to me you don't even come into this service and walk up to this altar area just to be waving your hands to be seen and identified that you're all that in a box of Cracker Jacks the fact of the matter listen to me if you are living in a condition of Prayer connection and commitment to God you could simply lift your hands and begin to worship and everything about your aura everything about your personality everything about who you are begins to shine and looks like him and not you he begins to increase you begin to decrease a place of protection Jesus told his followers go to the room that set aside for protection and quiet distractions done away with when you go into that place and you start talking to God you know there is nothing to pull your attention away from him and you begin to feel the protecting hand of God on your life in the secret place when you decide to go into a place of separation and protectiveness and you communicate with God listen to what happens what did Jesus say when you go into that closet you shut the door you decide purposefully I am with God when you do that the Father which is in heaven watching you in your secret place what does he do he sees what you have done in secret and opeing openly he presents you with reward that's why you're blessed on your job that's why God is providing for you when it makes no sense that's why when everybody else has lost their mind for whatever reason you're still okay because in the secret place God's handed protections on your life and publicly in front of everyone you're not even gonna have to say look what I did with God and now God know people are gonna know that person has something about them there's a joy there's a I don't know what's going on why are they that way but evidently they you know I don't know why I don't feel like cursing around them or I don't want to tell bad - he jokes around I don't know what's going on all I know is when I get around them things are different you know why because in public God's rewarding you there's some things that you can't unhear nor unsee but God knows that and because you spend time with him God will keep you from going into those positions he will reward you why hmm God has nothing to hide with you if you've been with him in secret there are some things that hear me now there are some things that the world wants to say wow they're really religious a really spiritual person and you know they're not but they keep pulling attention to themselves and confusing if you will all around them and God saying that's okay don't worry about that if they would get with me in secret I will openly reward them in public and they won't even have to know that my hands on their lives I am doing that because in what they do I'm being seen they don't have to show themselves to be all that God just simply works God doesn't have to be here me ashamed of you but in the secret place there's no way to wonder that the hand of God is on your life if you've been with him on this in the secret place openly answers come from God in that place of protection there's no question as to the origin of the answers because you've prayed and God has heard and God has moved it's not a roll of the dice it's not a happenstance it's not a red pot rock-paper-scissors no it's you talk to God and God began to move you don't have to wonder where it came from his choice is to openly bless you you know how listen to it Joshua prayed the Sun Stood Still everybody in the world's going what just happened Oh woo huh Joshua prayed son Jonah prayed and a well spit him out and everybody said who in the world just smelly guy Cornelius prayed and God spoke to a preacher miles away and said go over there and begin to share with him what I'm telling you Peter was delivered from prison when the church was praying in a house hmm praying in secret makes the difference don't be like the hypocrites a hypocrite by definition listen to me hypocrite is this a person who pretends to have virtues morals or religious beliefs and principles but he or she does not actually possess them especially a person whose actions go contrary to their beliefs someone who says one thing and does something else hypocrite and Jesus said don't be like them wait a minute they're standing on the street praying they're standing in the synagogue praying what's the difference the secret place the protected place follow me for just a moment Matthew 6 and 9 again we can take Matthew 6 and 9 after this manner therefore pray ye somebody help me here would you oh I tell you what let's all read it together you probably memorized it anyway from a childhood ready our Father which art in heaven hallowed be thy name you read with me thy kingdom come thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven give us this day and and lead us not let it be there's a prayer that Jesus taught his followers pray like this discipline yourself to talk to God in this manner set this as a pattern for the way that you talk to God our Father in Heaven identify once you've identified our Father in Heaven then what your name is holy Hollywood is your name then what you know he's God you know he's in heaven he know he's holy your kingdom come and the will that you have done in heaven let it be your will also here on earth today whatever we need give us today our bread that we mean whatever we need for right now so Jesus help him forgive us of what we owe and we're going to forgive those who owe us lead us away from temptation if we get near evil deliver us from it you got a kingdom and it's yours you've got power it's yours you've got glory it is yours forever so let it be done when Jesus instructed them how to pray he gave them a pattern that evidently he was using I mean they had heard John teach they or they had heard stories of John teaching his disciples how to pray and so when they come to him and ask him Jesus says well this is how you do it first of all you individually establish who God is what he's doing and his plan for your life your name's holy we want your will to be done you know what we need and help us to forgive others and lead us away from the temptations if we get into bad spot deliver us from the evil because yours is the kingdom power and glory forever when you set your time to spend with God with purpose you're not simply again simply checking the box I pray today you're not simply saying you know what I was able to accomplish this today several months ago my daughter moved out of out of our apartment I'm sorry did that come out you didn't see that and she needs a couch Ross so I said okay you can have this couch it's a good couch it's a comfy couch just a good napping couch right Lorne how do you know anyway it's good couch so I helped her move it over to her apartment and we get it in there with 17 other couches whatever reason and a few days later went to visit her because we had to see your apartment I don't mind Tony I walk in the door and there's that couch and I look at my daughter and I say you know that place you're sitting right there at the end of that couch she said yeah I said do you feel god why because every morning that's where I go when I was younger I could kneel down at that couch but now my knees hurt real bad and so I sit at that couch so one day I was gonna get up and go over there say o'clock good morning excuse me my couch sorry to bother you but you know what I had to do I had to pick another couch so I got this real uncomfortable couch now and I've sit there all straight up and down Lord I'm sorry I'm complaining but just couch is terrible listening you may think it is simply a place but I'm convinced the voice of God is there I'm convinced it smells like angels because although it's early morning and I'm sitting there and I'm just praying and I'm saying names out and I'm praying about situations and stuff and and things and I'm trying to keep me you know and I'm have figured a lot of things out in that place God would come and speak and just gently let me know that he's still there and when I helped her move that couch into her apartment i sat there when they we finished it on I said give me a minute I gotta gather up all my friends here take them with me so now my wife comes out honey what you doing I'm just sitting here talking to my friends listen to me carefully please if you will discipline yourself to spend time with God without distractions God will move in your life he will the psalmist said it like this Psalm 61 verse number one hear my cry O God attend unto my prayer from the end of the earth will I cry unto thee and when my heart is overwhelmed look lead me to the rock that is higher than I for thou hast been a shelter for me in a strong tower from the enemy I will abide in thy Tabernacle forever I will trust in the covert of thy wings pause think about that reflect upon that Selah for Thou O God has heard my vows that has given me the heritage of those that fear thy name that would prolong the Kings life and his years as many generations he shall abide before God forever Oh prepare mercy and truth which may preserve him verse 8 so will I praise thee so will I praise unto thy name forever that I'm a daily perform my vows what is a vow it's a promise it's a what commitment it's a what it's a declaration it's a what it's a pledge when I make a pledge to you and I make a vow to you and I make a commitment to you and I make a promise to you where do you generally make those things to God in your secret place and when I do that I love and worship you and I show everyone around that you're working in my life last week we talked about the discipline of worship tonight we're talking about the discipline of Prayer deciding to purposefully spend time with God listen carefully you do not talk the whole time you do not list your list the whole time do you realize God was there while you were writing your list she already knows your list what would it be like to simply spend time with him asking for his will to be done Lord I want you to work in my life because my plans for my life are walked far too short hear my prayers what the psalmist said attend to my petitions when you pray you make a melody before God with your prayers I'm not saying you sit there and sing in the key of G or the key of F or the key of our I'm saying you are communicating with him in ways that he wants to hear from you be one thing if you if you simply just screamed at him all the time he probably get tired of that would be but what about if you just simply build rapport relationship communion connection commitment with him by daily spending time in the protected place huh when you do that he sees that as a way that you want to be with him you're you're hungry to get near him you don't simply run to him hoping his arms are open so that he can take care of a boogeyman that's chasing you no you remain in the place to where God is so that you don't worry where the boogeyman is because you abide in his presence verse eight says again I will sing praises to your name every day I will bless you I will praise you I will sing I will bless I will magnify why so that every day I can say to you I am working on the commitments that I made to you I didn't simply make an a statement of Lord I surrender to you only to take it all back complete surrenders not that way what is complete surrender huh complete surrender pastor does that mean that I have to yield and and and it doesn't matter what I say or think yeah the fact is this is this is if God lets you do what you wanted to do with your life with your family with your friends with your situations with your finances with your health with whatever you've got if you could do everything you wanted to do with them guess how messed up you would be you know why because today you might pray this way god I love you and I just need a dollar in my pocket Lord dollar Wow take your dollar and go whatever you have but tomorrow because you knew that God did that what would you pray God today I need a $10 bill poof woo and then how would you pray your prayers would be ever ever growing more selfish and self-centred in every way what about this prayer Lord I don't know how I'm gonna make it but I'm gonna trust you for it and I'm gonna believe you for it and you reach in your pocket and there's no dollar but faith and Trust says I'm still gonna step out and for whatever reason it's taken care of I don't know maybe none of you have been in the place where you didn't know what was gonna happen but for whatever reason it was okay my wife and I can tell you man Wow whoo checkbook did not match at all what my hopes were well I'm so tired of red ink or you see this red ink right here you know what I know I'm gonna do it but god oh god oh god you know how to read ink works oh yeah we don't do check Ledger's right anymore you know the negativeness Lord of this account here and you're not a god of negativity uh-huh but yet first we gave tithe and first we gave offering and first we put God and for whatever reason God would come through for the rest I can't explain that can you huh I can't explain faith promise service when you feel in your heart that you want the will of God accomplished so therefore you make a foolish statement like God by faith I'm gonna commit to you who $150 a month and you're going home the first faith pump I served my wife and I are in you afterwards Rella honey how much did you say I sell my office 150 shoo so did I listen to what I say or not what'd you say you know and for whatever reason for whatever reason for whatever reason for whatever reason I still don't know we get a refund check in the mail I mean ever had done that gotten that get the refund check I got money you're speeding look at me I gotta go out to buy that car okay get that pistol I want my guy and all of a sudden guys like what have you said you just asked me if I bless you that you'd give it to me and we don't got it spent and then we get back in the secret closet and the Lord says oh yeah that's right you did say you did say okay god I yield it to you I'm close and staying with me would you what the psalmist was saying here is I make a vow I pray I make commitment to you and I know you hear my cry God and I know that that you you attend you you take notice of what I pray and wherever I'm at the farthest point from the end of the earth he says I cry well my heart's overwhelmed and I don't know what to do this is what the psalmist says lead me to the rock that is higher than I am Lord if I can get to the rock you're a shelter for me you're a strong tower from the enemy this is what I would like for us to do but as we close tonight I'm going to ask for music I just we're just going to spend a few minutes investigating our brains our motives and our hearts can you do that lift your hands to the Lord come on you know how fill your mouth with the praise and simply give it to God come on let thankfulness gratitude let it come out right now Lord I I love you and I thank you for your grace and your goodness and your love thank you for your power and your presence thank you lord I pray right now that you would help every single one of us here in this room tonight let us find that place of protection that secret place of the Most High that we can go in to Lord and we can make petitions to you we can hear from you your will can be accomplished in us I pray in the name of Jesus that your love and your power Lord your presence would be active in our hearts and in our lives dear God I'm trusting your Lord for all things I'm below even your Lord for everything I know God that your hand is in my life it's in my family it's in everything that I do throughout the day lord I thank you for them I pray right now God that you would help us Lord to discipline ourselves to talk to you to listen to you and to pursue you well we're not perfect we we fail sometimes we falter Lord we stumble but in all of that Lord in every situation we run to the rock that's higher than we are I love you Lord I trust you lord I believe in you lord I honor you Lord and I thank you thank you for the power of prayer I pray as a church Lord of cornerstone you'd help us to help us God to have a discipline of prayer talking to you daily Lord committing to you our lives our services Lord when we do come together corporately would be so different the name of Jesus I plead your blood right now lord over each one that's here every family every life that's represented here God let your will be accomplished in the name of Jesus not my will but your will be done in Jesus name I plead your blood over us we're gonna come back this weekend Lord worshiping loving you blessing you thank you Lord for the opportunity to be here I love you and I thank you in the name of Jesus I pray hallelujah somebody say man in your daily devotion if you're following the blog's that I'm sending out the I don't know if you noticed but when you begin three minutes it'll go to four minutes and then five down the road but Thanksgiving and gratefulness for His blessings now and in the future to me that is the vital starting point of Prayer thank you God thank you I thank you and then as you begin pleading the blood of Jesus over your day your family in your world you know what happens instead of just saying god bless Uncle Joe when you say Lord I plead your blood over Uncle Joe today there's something that happens pleading the blood of Jesus over your family and your loved ones when you go through praying for your pastor and leadership you don't realize what's happening is you are saying God I need you in our church cuz I don't want to just go and be a part of a family I want to go and know that you've already been doing a work in the leadership that's there and when you pray for specific needs come on spend time saying god you know what this one is but I'm asking you God to move and intervene in every aspect of what God's doing in your life as you spend time with him and corporately you know your brothers and sisters are praying the same way guess what's gonna happen God is going to move he ma'am so the rest of tonight tomorrow and Friday till sundown media and entertainment fast okay I promise you it's it's gonna be okay Facebook will be there right Josh delete it how's that just never go back there ever again all of a sudden next week will be a different kind of fast we're fasting anything and everything go get to eat or go or do anything next week at all you just have to sit there past everything about the chair I'm joking I love you all thank you so much for being here tonight shake hands and be friendly and I will see you this weekend come expecting God to move in great ways you're dismissed in the love of Jesus amen