Quote from Forum Archives on July 25, 2001, 4:22 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

I'd like to send this as a two part message. The first contains
a message from Neil Anderson, describing the life of prayer, and
three different "levels" of prayer that he has observed. The
second part contains a devotional from Quiet Walk. Both are
services of Crosswalk.com.

I tend to agree with Neil in his observations, but I certainly
know of some other situations. I think his message is a good
challenge, both to men and women. As for us men, I think as ones
who are called to be leaders, if we accept that challenge, we
must first recognize and cherish the importance of our
relationship with God in prayer.

It is my prayer that this message may help us to think about the
power and importance of prayer once again today.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian

Reply-to: Neil Anderson <neilanderson@lists.crosswalk.com>
Subject: Neil Anderson Devotional for Wednesday, July 25, 2001

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N E I L A N D E R S O N D A I L Y D E V O T I O N A L
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

July 25

THREE LEVELS OF PRAYER

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks;
for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians
5:16-18).

I have observed three approaches to prayer which progress from
level to level. The first level is petition. We are encouraged to
let our requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6). If it
helps us to keep a list of daily prayer reminders, we should do
so. However, most people weary of this, and their devotional life
disappears over time. Often they don't see immediate results from
their prayers, so they conclude that more can be accomplished if
they just get busy for the Lord.

We've progressed to the second level when prayer becomes
personal. We have discovered a new dimension when we are
comfortable in His presence and don't feel obligated to talk.
It's much like a marriage relationship. A mature couple can ride
together in the car for hours, enjoying each other's company,
without having to say a word. I can just be with God and I'm
learning to listen.

Realizing that I need not feel obligated to keep the conversation
going when I'm with God has changed my prayer life dramatically.
This kind of prayer makes my relationship with God a
24-hour-a-day experience. Setting aside special times for prayer
is still important. But when we leave our quiet time, the sense
of God's presence should remain with us throughout the day.

I call the third dimension of prayer true intercession. True
intercessors hear from God. They know how to pray and what to
pray for. In my observation, there are very few true intercessory
prayer warriors. The ones I know of are usually older than 50 and
most are women. They pray privately in their homes and often at
night. Every church has at least one or two of them. Share your
family needs with them. When these people pray, things happen
because they don't just talk to God, they listen to Him.

Father, I want to grow in all dimensions of prayer to the point
that I sense Your presence and hear Your voice.

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Neil Anderson at
< www.ficm.org >.

You can purchase "Daily in Christ" and other titles by Neil
Anderson at
christianbook.com (Christian Book Distributors - CBD).
< shopping.crosswalk.com/bye/devo_na >

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
< devotionals.crosswalk.com >.
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____________________________________________________________

Q U I E T W A L K D E V O T I O N A L
by Walk Thru the Bible

BIBLE READING

Acts 22

OVERVIEW
Paul is accused of bringing a Gentile into the temple.

INSIGHT
Submitting to the will of God does not necessarily mean
submitting to the whims of man. Paul's example teaches us
that we are free to defend ourselves within the confines
of appropriate Christian behavior and attitudes.

Paul was imprisoned illegally, for a Roman citizen was
not to be flogged without having been tried fairly and
convicted. When Paul called the commander to account for
his unlawful action, he was exercising a right that a
Christian has to use civil law for his benefit, assuming
that it is within the guidelines of the law of God.

We should serve the Lord with wisdom and controlled
strength.

PRAYER

* Praise God for giving us guidance day by day:

Hear my cry, O God;
Attend to my prayer.
From the end of the earth I will cry to You, When my
heart is overwhelmed;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You
have been a shelter for me,
And a strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in Your tabernacle forever;
I will trust in the shelter of Your wings. Selah
(Psalm 61:1-4).

* Now pray this confession to the Lord:

Through the Lord's mercies we are not
consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness
(Lamentations 3:22-23).

* Confess any sins that God brings to your attention.
Now voice your affirmation of His Word:

Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek
Him with the whole heart!
I will praise You with uprightness of heart, When I
learn Your righteous judgments (Psalm 119:2,7).

* As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray
for:

courage to share Christ's love with
your co-workers,
compassion for others,
the church in Russia.

* Close by meditating on this thought:

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall
also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been
raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer
has dominion over Him (Romans 6:8-9).

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Walk Thru the
Bible. Copyright 2001 Walk Thru the Bible. All
rights reserved. See www.walkthru.org/ for more
information about Quiet Walk and other devotionals from
Walk Thru the Bible.

You can purchase the NKJV MacArthur Study Bible Hardcover and
other
titles at christianbook.com (Christian Book Distributors - CBD).
< shopping.crosswalk.com/bye/bible_nkj >

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
< devotionals.crosswalk.com >
-----------
To read the Current Feature Story from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentFeatureStory/

For today's complete News Summary from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentNewsSummary/

-----------
For Copyright Terms go to www.crosswalk.com/info/copyright

=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/
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