Carl and Scott Shifting Perspectives 6 Spiritual Maturity - Prayer

welcome to shifting perspectives

biblical conversations about topics that

matter let's get to

[Music]

it well hey everybody welcome back and

you know last week we had a little bit

of fun with singing and I probably ribed

you a little bit on that that's that's

quite all right I I've I've taken a lot

of that over my singing over the years

so it's okay yeah that's what we talked

about last week and this week we get to

talk about prayer and I know I know that

that's a subject that I think for both

of us is very dear to our heart yes um

the one of I think probably the most

understated tool that we have in our

tool belt as Christians is the power of

prayer that we really don't understand

what that does absolutely and so as it's

related to the conversation that we're

having we're talking about spiritual

growth and so you know spiritual growth

implies that there is an increase to

something and I know I know often times

um you know people will say well you

know I don't know how to pray or it just

feels awkward it's just you know it's

it's it's it's difficult for me and so

so prayer becomes a topic that

oftentimes if you ask people they just

don't do and they're missing out they're

missing out and I mean the Bible and

we're going to talk about a little bit

but the Bible gives us so many examples

of prayer the power of prayer how to

pray um but even though those examples

are there it's it's the just like a

child trying to learn to have a

conversation with their f with its

father you take a three or four year old

I mean that is our relationship to God

is he is so much greater than we are our

communication doesn't have to be perfect

with God we don't have to say all the

flamboyant

Perfect by man standard prayer sometimes

I think the most effective prayers I had

were one whenever I was either so

heartbroken or or impacted in some way

that I could barely utter words and God

just knows I mean you feel that presence

U so what I'm trying to say is we can't

put restrictions on it God's not judging

us okay well I'll answer you because you

prayed better it's all about condition

of the heart and relationship to the

father that's right you know and there's

there's several stories in the Bible

that that equate that um you know one of

those that that we that we often talk

about is is found in um I want to say

it's Luke chapter 18 but it just popped

Luke 18 · chapter mention

into my head so I might be wrong but um

in that particular story it's either

Luke 18 or it's Luke 11 I don't remember

which but but in one of those um there's

a story of the the the Pharisee that

stands up in front of everybody and he's

praying this eloquent prayer and he says

I thank God that I'm more spiritual than

than this sinner this tax collector

that's over here and the tax collector

sitting over there and that's all he's

got that's all he's got all he's got is

a Lord have mercy on me a

sinner and that's where God begins to

meet us yes in those simple

places of I don't really have great

words but I know you're the only answer

that I have and that is and that is

where faith and prayer meet whenever we

can get that understanding of being

humble recognizing the god that we're

praying to and his role and then where

we are at in that role and then lifting

up our deepest most heartbreaking

desires to him or on the flip side of it

because prayer is not just about

heartbreak prayer is also about the

thankfulness that's right you know

praying before a meal um you know do we

say the prayer because it's what we've

always done or do we say the prayer

really thanking God knowing you know

what I've got something that some people

don't have and that's a meal to eat in

front of me yeah and we and especially

in America we take that for granted we

really do we we really do and you know

that that kind of ties into um you know

this passage of scripture that's in uh 1

1 Thessalonians 5 · chapter mention

Thessalonians chapter 5 most most of us

you know we kind of know it um but in 1

1 Thessalonians 5 · chapter mention

Thessalonians chapter 5 uh vers verse 16

17 and 18 essentially says this it says

Rejoice

always well you know that's hard that's

hard and that's hard and he there's no

preface it's a it's literally a two-word

verse yes Rejoice

always and then the verse 17 says pray

without without ceasing yes it's just

pray without what does pray without

ceasing even look like you know and

that's one of the things again going

back to what we we we identify the rules

okay I have to go someplace I have to

close my eyes I have to get on my knees

I have to bow my head I have to fold my

hands and that's not what you see in in

scripture I mean yes there are times

whenever that takes place but there are

so many times that they're you know on

their knees on their bellies or or hands

lifted in the air eyes wide open I know

for me sometimes if I'm heartbroke in my

car down the road and just God you know

what's going on today tonight or however

it is I need your help you know I don't

close my eyes when I was to say I really

would recommend that you not close your

eyes if you're praying and driving

that's that's probably not wisdom

occasionally I'll have a prayer two in

my in my deer stand you know and it's

hard to see a deer with your eyes closed

that's right so you know I can get

really close to God but I still want to

keep the eye out for the deer in case

that's whenever he answers that prayer

right well you know I mean I've shot a

lot of deer after I woke up and my wife

just swears that it was because I

snoring and they and they heard me

snoring and wanted to come see what that

was exact but but you know it and and

and right after that verse pray without

ceasing it says in all things give

thanks give thanks and so you start

putting those things together Rejoice

always pray without ceasing in all

things give thanks and then it goes on

to say for this is the will of God for

you in Christ Jesus and so as we talk

about spiritual growth we begin to see

that there's there there's a real

Dynamic to that because our Thanksgiving

is expressed most often through prayer

yes um we we are either expressing

Thanksgiving through prayer or we're

expressing Thanksgiving through

testimony where we're actually sharing

with somebody else what God has done in

our lives exactly and I think you're

absolutely right in America specifically

we take so much for granted that

everything is um it's coincidence or

it's happen stance or it's I earned that

or it's you know I you know and not

really recognizing God's hand on our

country God's hand on our lives God's

hand on our family um and just how

quickly it could be the other way yeah

you know I know growing up I mean I had

a grandmother had great faith and I know

she prayed for every one of her kids and

her grandkids and our great- grandkids

every night I mean that's right and

probably every morning and every noon I

mean to to be in in for reality I know

my mom did too and I know I do for my

kids and my grandkids and our church and

our country and you know God wants to

hear that and just like I enjoy

communication from my kids and my grand

and my grandson I enjoy communication

and I enjoy identifying their needs and

you know the question is does God know

our needs without us praying and if so

why should we pray oh that's a great

question I've actually had someone ask

me that one time well what was what's

the point why why do we keep doing this

if if if God already knows our needs

before we ask it which by the way is

found in Matthew chapter 6 in m Matthew

Matthew 6 · chapter mention Matthew 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6 it it says that God knows your

need before you ask it but yet it's in

the context of praying exactly so in the

middle of that he's saying

pray but the difference

is the need becomes the

focus instead of the

relationship and so the idea behind that

Matthew 6 passage is not that you're

just expressing a need it's that the

need gets lifted out of the way because

you understand that already knows your

need even if you're expressing it and

the relationship becomes the focus of

prayer and I and I often say it like

this I've been married I'm going to be

going into 32 years this coming March

and I know you are right at the

threshold of 30 31 yeah 30 years I can

promise you Scott if you didn't talk to

your wife and if you never learn to

listen and to to recognize her voice

your relationship wouldn't have lasted

30 years what it not not even one I

don't think yeah you know and and that's

you know and that's exactly the point of

of that relationship so let's you know

let's grab one more example here while

we've got time and let's talk about what

did Jesus teach us about prayer yeah

because there's the passage of the

Lord's Prayer sure what we call the

Lord's Prayer right which I I think you

know in my understanding I've kind of

flipped on that a little bit is what we

normally think of the Lord Lord prayer

Our Father who are in heaven Hallowed be

thy name is really the model prayer it

teaches us how to pray the subject

matter starting with the recognition

like you said the relationship between

between us and the father but when you

really want to get down to what I call

the Lord's Prayer you have to go to the

Garden of Gethsemane right before the

crucifixion so talk to us about that

that instance where Christ is praying to

the father in his time of need and

distress yeah so so there's a couple of

different places that's talked about

that Lord's prayer that you're talking

about is Matthew 6 and Luke 11 but then

the what we call the Priestly prayer of

Jesus which is the the real meat and

potatoes of what he was praying in the

garden is found in John chapter 17 and

John 17 · chapter mention

in the midst of that he begins to lay

forward um a number of different things

that that he has fulfilled the purpose

of God he's ready for God to be

glorified he's ready for his glory to

come back and then he begins to pray

for the apostles who are going to carry

the church forward and then he goes on

and he begins to pray for you and for me

um when you put yourself in that text in

John chapter 17 and begin to realize

John 17 · chapter mention

that Jesus in that moment 2,000 years

ago as he was getting ready to go to the

Cross was praying for you and was

praying for me that we would be

one as he and the father are one praying

for us to be as Believers as the body of

Christ

not just unified in that but unified in

our relationship unified in our faith

unified in this walk on this Earth where

we're able to walk through trials and

tribulations together and hold one

another up that is a powerful expression

of what Jesus's heart was for us to do

as he was doing and so there's a great

picture in that that's part of the

reason why we pray corporately exactly

is because we're unifying ourselves to

come before the Lord in prayer and offer

up not just

this need the the the wants the desires

which I I I tend to call crisis praying

right it's the it's the the only time

that we really think about praying the

rest of the time we're just kind of

coasting through life but man when you

hit up against a brick wall you have

Christ's prayer and and

oftentimes you in that moment you make a

vow right essentially say Lord if you'll

if you'll get me out of this M if you if

you'll take care of this then I'll serve

you the rest of my life or I'll I'll

pray every day and and you know when God

does because he's faithful often times

we forget about that very

quickly I think about and we've talked

about at 911 right yes what what