Dr. Wesley L. Duewel- 5. Schedule special prayer times for yourself. Minutes saved here and there and invested in prayer are of lasting value. Cry out to God again and again during the day. No sincere prayer is insignificant. Specially scheduled time for prayer, however, permits your payer to become deeper and more intense.
Pray both intensively and extensively. If possible, find some day each week when you can plan to spend special time with God, preparing His way. If necessary, tell your friends you have a special appointment—it will be truly special, because it is with your Lord. (Google image, The Surprising Benefits of Praying Alone.)
6. Pray publicly for revival and harvest. Make use of times of voluntary prayer in public services to pray for these needs. This can help increase and enlist the prayer concern of others.
7. Mention your concern and encouragements in your testimonies. When opportunity is given in prayer gatherings or in conversation for someone to give personal testimony, share how God is deepening your prayer and faith for revival and harvest. You may be able to share some special news of how God is blessing elsewhere. Trust God to guide you in encouraging others through your testimony.
8. Use Christian tracts and leaflets to motivate others. When you find available inexpensive literature, secure some and use it prayerfully—in your letters, in person as you meet your friends, for your prayer group, or as God may guide you. Circulate challenging books. Involve as many people as possible in the challenge to prepare the way of the Lord.
9. Encourage the selection of harvest or revival as a theme for special occasions. When you have opportunity to be a member of a program committee, or on other planning occasions, suggest revival or harvest as a topic for special emphasis.
10. Keep files on revival and harvest. When you find articles, poems, or reports on revival and harvest, cut them out and file them for possible later use.
11. Add fasting to your regular prayer. There may be times when the hunger of your heart, the urgency of a need, or the importance of a situation my motivate you to add fasting to your prayer. This may be even a partial fast for one or more meals. Remember, spiritual fasting strengthens your hunger for God. God sees and honors fasting, but we do not earn God's prayer answers by fasting (see chapter 13, #39 You Can Deepen Your Prayer by Fasting, Today's Popular post listed below).
The early church fasted on Wednesdays and Fridays. John Wesley urged his followers to adopt this plan, too. When you schedule regular fasting, you should, if at all possible, spend the mealtime in prayer. Avoid telling others that you are fasting.
(Chapter 22, pp. 166-168, italics added for emphasis)
Father, may we take the challenge to set aside a special time/day, to pray for our needs, as well as those of others. Our making a list of what we're concerned about, and texting or calling some folks on that day to ask for their special need for prayer support, will help keep us committed to pray.
As we take note of Dr. Duewel's suggestions for gaining the support of others to support prayer needs, may we also consider fasting to some degree. We understand that we will not earn Your answers by our fasting, but this will deepen our motivation to strengthen our hunger for You to be involved in the various needs.
Today's Bible verses-
Josh. 23:10 (NIV) “One of your men puts to flight a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, just as He promised you.”
Deut. 3:22 (NIV) “Do not fear them, [see image below], for the Lord your God is the one fighting for you.”
Rom. 8:31 (NIV) “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”
As we remember why Jesus was given to us this Christmas, may we realize the cost to the Father. He, being Spirit, needed some way to relate with His creation, so He begat His Son in the womb of a young virgin, named Mary. Because she was obedient to the calling on her life, the rest is history.
The baby she bore became the way for us to connect with the Father, the Almighty God. Jesus was His express image, so what He said and did was exactly what the Father wanted done: providing salvation and the path to eternal life with Him. Now, we, as born again believers, are called to believe and receive His directions for living like Him, doing whatever is our individual calling. Let’s be faithful to serve Jesus with the grace given to us.
Quote for today-
~ Do you find that there are surprises in each day? How the Lord directs us is really amazing when things come together for our good. We are often surprised at what takes place in a day. We are amused at the surprised happenings that comes from obedience to the Lord's leading. When we meet the various challenges, we see His hand in them to help build our faith.
Though fasting is clearly taught and practiced in both the old and New Testaments, I do not recall having ever heard any other person give a full message on this subject."
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| Do Not Fear |
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located in the St. Lawrence county of NY,
broadcast their Sunday services at 10 or 10:15.
Our pastors' recent recorded daily devotions are available too.
Check out the livestream with this link: https://www.cfconline.org/
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