October 1, 2016 WWJWMTD by Steve the son of John

If My People Would Pray…

1st of the Month Building Character Series

The Apostle Paul said, “I pray more than all of you as a whole.” How often do you pray? I sure can pray more than I do. I do not think that I am failing God, but I am sure not giving God my best effort or my full attention at times. I am sure God wants me to choose Him more by praying more.

Jesus gave us a pattern to pray with the ‘Lord’s Prayer’. I do not always pray that particular prayer but parts of the prayer at different times. I might include any number of Psalms when I pray. Such as, Psalm 121 when praying for protection or deliverance from evil, or Isaiah 53 when praying for forgiveness and brokenness, or praying parts of The Book of Daniel when I want insight and what the will of God is.

It is not praying just the right words but praying from my heart. My mind can get in the way so I try to pray what is important to me at a particular time. I believe God cares about what I care about. But He wants to hear from me—from all of us.

God is looking for friends. Friends talk with each other, share their feelings and seek help. I need God even though I try to do many things on my own. Once you pass into that relationship in being a friend of God, God begins to share what He is about to do with you. Many times He is testing you—He is looking to see how much of a friend you will be.

Can you change the mind of God when He shares with you? Yes you can. Here are some examples: Moses when God wanted to kill off the people in the wilderness but Moses said no; the King of Israel when He was told by the prophet that he was about to die and the king petitioned God for 7 more years; or how about Abraham who sought the Lord to not destroy Sodom. God wanted to know what His friends thought about His decisions.

Today, I hear too much about God’s judgment and not about intercession. Yes, judgment will come and God does destroy life. Nevertheless, it is forgiveness and ‘standing in the gap’ is what God is hoping for from His friends.

Take for instance the coming Presidential election. I can tell you for sure that God is planning judgment for America but He is asking His friends to intercede for this election. God wants people in power that can be moved by the Spirit of God. Leaders who are willing to hire sincere Christians and listen to sound Christian wisdom—just as Daniel and Esther did and impacted Persia—“for such a time as this.”

If you do not pray, if you do not intercede, if you do not seek God’s will—not your own, then God will not count you as a friend. I wrote this in my August 8th article:

Pray that God’s will be done no matter what you think is right or what you want. Pray that evil will be resisted and crushed by the name of Jesus Christ during this political process. Pray that whomever God wants in the Presidency will come to pass no matter who is promoted by political parties. Pray that it is not up to the voters but the power of Christ—it is God who should decide. Pray that the person’s heart that becomes President will be in the hands of God (this person need not be a Christian according to Scripture). Pray that peace will come to the church because God finally has whom He wants in power. Pray without ceasing, in humility, and without wavering. In 2016 it should be up to God, not the voter, who becomes President. Set your vote aside for the will of God to be done. The fate of America is in the balance in this election.

Who is a person of character? It is one who prays and becomes a friend of God. A friend that God confines in and shares what He is about to do. God wants us to change history—do you have enough character to be that friend?

WWJWMTD

What would Jesus want me to do?

Dr. Steven J. Wentland www.wwjwmtd.com

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