Our Lives, God's Prayer!

Building Confidence and Self-Esteem, these sound like the prime ingredients for a self-help book, do they not??

I was talking with The Carpenter of Creation this morning and as I began to Pray and Ponder, He revealed to me how we really build confidence and self-esteem. He spoke to me on how I can have the heart of a lion, the confidence of David (David vs goliath), and the Courage of Christ!

The answer does not come from self-help, but rather God-Help. If you ever needed confidence or courage, focus on the following points and let them sink in and penetrate your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body to give you the boldness to face every day and every challenge with the same tenacity that Jesus went to The Cross with!

Our Life, Gods Prayer
Our life is The Prayer of God, or as the NLT puts it, we Pray to God who gives us life!

Then God promises to love me all day,
sing songs all through the night!
My life is God's prayer.
Psalm 42.8 (MSG)

But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,
and through each night I sing his songs,
praying to God who gives me life.
Psalm 42.8 (NLT)

Jesus Intercedes for us
Jesus speaks to The Carpenter of Creation for you! He embraces you!

Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
Romans 8.34 (NIV)

I like how The Message paraphrase puts it...

Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Romans 8.34 (MSG)

Jesus Gives us an Advocate who will never leave us
We are in the constant presence of God and He even lives with in us through The Holy Spirit!

And I will ask the Father,

and he will give you another Advocate,^[a]
who will never leave you.
John 14.16 (NLT)

Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit
who will help ^[a] you and always be with you.
John 14.16 (CEV)

And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another
Counselor to be with you forever
John 14.16 (NIV)

God always Hears Jesus
The Scriptures tell us that when Jesus does Pray on our behalf, God always hears Him!

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
John 11:41-42 (NIV)

What Is Your Center?

So take inventory. What are you centering your life on? Philippians 4.6-7 (MSG) tells us.....

It's wonderful what happens when Christ
displaces worry at the center of your life

There are 2 things you can center your self on and around.

1. Self centered. Being self-centered makes you believe you can get self-help. Being self-centered make you self-conscious and by being self-conscious you are always worried about what everyone else thinks and you will not have the confidence to live the live God created you to live.

2. God Centered. Being God-Centered allows you to seek God-Help. Being God-Centered makes you God-Conscious and you focus only on what God thinks and you could care less what the world thinks.

Allow me to illustrate. God has just blessed our family with a new sweet pea of a girl. My niece rocks my world and inspires my soul. Her initials are KG and when I play with KG I am totally KG-Centered which makes me KG-Conscious. I probably look like the biggest fool with some of the faces I make and some of the sounds I create, but I don't care because my focus is not on myself, it is on my niece. She is my world when I am with her. I have no worries because she, just as Christ does, displaces worry at the center of my life. You know you are no longer self-conscious when you can make a fool of yourself and live without worry.


Fools For Christ
Mark Batterson has written an amazing book called "In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day." In this book he talks about how we must be willing to look foolish if we are to unleash our God-Given Potential. The Scriptures confirm this....

We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! = 1 Cor 4.10 (NIV)

Now I want you to notice that there is a difference between foolishness and stupidity in this context. Notice how 1 Corinthians says, BUT you are so WISE in Christ. Let me give you some examples that Batterson points out in his book to illustrate this difference.

Zaccheus - The Bible calls him a short man but was eager to see Jesus. He risks looking foolish to all the people around as he climbs a tree in order to see The Savior. Foolish? Maybe. Wise? Certainly!

Noah - No rain in site, yet He listens to God when God tells him to build an Ark. He looked like the biggest Fool to everyone around. I think History can speak for itself in order to prove his Wisdom!

Peter - Jesus calls him to walk on water. Peter risks looking like a fool since in all reality the odds are the second he steps out of the boat he will sink. Yet when he is wise and keeps his eyes on Jesus, he indeed walks on water!

David - The most famous underdog story of all time! David looked like a fool taking on the most powerful and gigantic fighter of the philistine army. Yet David was so wise and knew he had "God-Help" as he attacked his giant with major confidence and authority!

Can Jesus use your life as He used Zaccheus, Noah, Peter, or David? Can He give you confidence and courage? The better question is this: "Are you willing to be a fool for Christ?" Or better yet, do you believe your life is God's Prayer? Do you believe Jesus is interceding for you? Do you believe God hears The Prayers of Jesus for you life? Are you allowing The Holy Spirit to penetrate your soul and live with in you?

Here's the thing, seek after God. He will reveal Himself to you. Go and "climb your tree." "Build your ark." "Walk on water." "Tackle your giant"

Stop fighting with God and with what He has given you, stop majoring in minors and start living the life He calls you to live. Live without fear or worry and instead with all courage and trust live your life as God's Prayer!

“In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?”- Psalm 56:4

Living Life On Offense: The Principles Of David

Ask your self, "Am I living life on offense or defense?" "Am I trying to hoard and just hold on to what I have got, or am I attacking life and living on offense?"

The famous Biblical story of David vs Goliath shows us how to "Live Life On Offense" and attack, to run forward and take down our challenges and giants head on! So listed below are what I call "The Principles Of David" and how he used them to destroy his opposition in The Name of God Almighty!

David vs Goliath = 1 Samuel 17 (CEV)

David lived on the offense, he took initiative, he was proactive, he was a warrior with a cause worth fighting for

* He took pride in Representing His God (vs 26)

* He put it upon himself to "Make The Tackle" (vs 32)
i.e. take initiative, be proactive

* He ignored the nay-sayers (vs 33)

* He remembers how God has worked powerfully in his past
and trusts Him to do so in the future (verses 35-37)

* He uses what he knows and what has worked for him,
he knows best how his "game" works (verses 38-39)

* He is all FAITH and no fear....ATTACK YOUR FEARS HEAD ON!!! (verses 40, 48)

* He is not intimidated by "Trash-Talking" (verses 41- 44)

* He knows who he plays for and How BIG his God is! (verses 45-47)

ATTACKING Phrases
* "straight toward" (vs 40)
* "ran toward him" (vs 48)

All-in-all, David exhibits Courage, Confidence, Faith, and Trust

A quote by Erwin McManus puts the life of David in perspective, "Living outside The Will Of God puts you in danger, living inside The Will Of God makes you DANGEROUS!"

Live "The Principles Of David" today and go be DANGEROUS for God!

Thought For The Day

What's Your Mission?

Have you ever wondered if you have a specific mission in life? A specific purpose?

In John 17, Jesus Prays for His Followers! If you are a Christ Follower, this Prayer should blow you away and ROCK your world! Christ Follower, Jesus Prays and gives YOU a mission...let that sink in!

From Verses 13-19
In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world,
I give them a mission in the world.
I'm consecrating myself for their sakes
So they'll be truth-consecrated in their mission.

Jesus goes on to Pray about His Mission....

From Verses 24-26
Righteous Father, the world has never known you,
But I have known you, and these disciples know
That you sent me on this mission.
I have made your very being known to them—
Who you are and what you do—
And continue to make it known,

Jesus had a Mission to make God known, The very being of God known to all...Who He is and What He does!

As a Christ Follower, your mission is the same. So how are you making the very being of God known today? Tomorrow? God has given you specific gifts and abilities...He has entrusted specific people and places and spaces for you to be in. Christ Follower, you will be a better family member, you will be better at your work, you will be a better student, you will be a better athlete, a better musician, etc, etc if your mission is to make God known.

I am not talking about having a bulletin board strapped around your neck that says "Repent" and shouting through a megaphone, "Sinners, you are all sinners, God loves you but hates your sin." No dude, I am talking about using your gifts and talents to Worship God, to take care of your family and to serve your community.

Live your Mission. When your mission is to make God known, everything else falls into place!

Look how Jesus closes out His Prayer for Christ Followers as He speaks to The Heavenly Father...

So that your love for me
Might be in them
Exactly as I am in them.

With The Love of God and The Spirit of Jesus in you, your mission will be fulfilled!

The Warrior's Prayer

We have always admired how The Samurai are such amazing Warriors. Their Honor, Courage, and Loyalty are seldom matched. Even though they were great Warriors, no body compares to Jesus: The Ultimate Warrior. The Prophet Isaiah tells us how Jesus looked death in the face yet never flinched (Isaiah 53.11-12 MSG).

With that being said, we were inspired to write, "The Warrior's Prayer." Pray through it today (Click on Picture to your left). It's time the nice boy Christian stuff is put aside. As ChristFollowers, we must be Warriors - Christians have been pushed around too much.

ChristFollowers are pushed around no more.

Proverbs 29.21 (MSG) says, If you let people treat you like a doormat, you'll be quite forgotten in the end.

Warriors are not doormats. Warriors live as Jesus lived (1 John 2.4-6 MSG). As Lifechurch.tv says, Warriors have "A Cause worth fighting for, a Victory worth claiming."

To listen to the series "The Warrior" that also inspired us to write this Prayer please click on http://www.lifechurch.tv/current-series/the-warrior/

A Life Jesus Will be Proud Of

Here is a cool Prayer from The Book of Philippians, Chapter 1 (The Message)

...it is my Prayer for my family and the community in which I live....It is my Prayer for you reading this blog....Pray it for your family, your community and your self today, that you all would live a life Jesus will be proud of!

9-11 So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover's life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God (Emphasis Added).

Frome 18-21 Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything he wants to do in and through me will be done. I can hardly wait to continue on my course.

From 27-30 Meanwhile, live in such a way that you are a credit to the Message of Christ.

Freedom vs Prosperity

Are you Prosperous? If so, are you free?

There is a lot of the "Prosperity Gospel" going around these days, but here's the important thing to know:

God's goal is not necessarily to make you prosperous, but rather to make you free!

You can have many things and acquire a lot of stuff, but that stuff and prosperity can actually make you a slave, keeping you in bondage and wanting to acquire more stuff.....

There is nothing wrong to being prosperous, God wants the best for you. Just make sure you are free.....

(inspired by Erwin McManus, Vital Signs, Restoring Your Health)