Tag Archives: Prayer

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How To Determine God’s Will For My Life

One question I hear frequently is “How do I know what God’s will is for my life?”

This is a pretty complex question. And the answer isn’t always a simple one. There are many things that factor into understanding what God wants you to do with your life, or even in any given situation.

Question Mark Cloud

But at the core of this answer lie two foundational elements: Prayer and the Word.

I know. It sounds trite and overly simplistic. But it’s true. These two elements are necessary to understanding what God want’s for your life.

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Becky Tirabassi On Prayer

Not too long ago, I posted a few quotes on prayer that I find encouraging and helpful. You can find links to those quotes at the bottom of this post.

Man Meditating Beside A River

In preparing for high school summer church camp last week, I stumbled across this quote from Becky Tirabassi, in Let Prayer Change Your Life.

Prayer draws us to the Word, and the two ignite to create a spark, even a flame, for the Lord. The Word and prayer, if applied to all circumstances of our lives, are intended to change, transform, motivate, and propel us to make certain decisions, take deliberate steps, and stretch to live and walk in the Spirit. But until Bible reading and prayer become our natural reaction when faced with a dilemma or a decision, we’ll not experience the warmth described by Theophan – the spark that allows God to confirm direction or grant peace amidst turmoil. If prayer is simply a last resort “call for help” and if one only haphazardly searches the Scriptures for guidance (when all other avenues have failed), one has missed God’s true intent of how prayer and the Word are able to integrate moment by moment into a believer’s life.

I find that very encouraging. And I’ve discovered it to be very true in my life. My time in the Word boosts my prayer life, and time spent praying creates a desire for more of the Word in my life.

The two go hand in hand.

I just happened to stumble across this paragraph, highlighted in my copy of the book, while I was looking for another quote the other day. With the busy pace of my life right now, this is a very welcome reminder.

If you missed the other quotes on prayer that I find inspiring, here’s a list:

 
How do prayer and the Word work together to inspire you? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links”. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.“

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Book Review: Couples Who Pray by Squire Rushnell & Louise DuArt

Couples Who PrayCouples Who Pray was an intriguing book.

While not a deeply thought provoking book, it did highlight some great points and was very encouraging.

Authors Rushnell and DuArt have developed a 40 Day Prayer Challenge.  The basic idea is that married couples spend at least five minutes a day praying together for 40 days, and see if that doesn’t change their marriage for the better.

Of course it will.

Drawing on the stories of several prominent public couples, such as Denzel and Pauletta Washington, Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford, Donna Summers and Bruce Sudano, and Gavin and Patti MacLeod, Couples Who Pray is a treasure of encouragement.

Although it is encouraging, it isn’t all that deep.  It has some great points, but lacks a solid biblical foundation.  They quote several passages from God’s Word throughout the pages, but they seem to be almost afterthoughts, and not basic premises.  And the chapter where they talk about generosity, giving and tithing is poorly defined.

While there were some great points made in this book, I feel as if there are several other books out there that do a far better job of establishing prayer as the basis for any marriage.

That said, I’m still glad I read it.

If you are interested in reading Couples Who Pray, you can purchase it at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze blogger review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links”. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.“

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E.M. Bounds On Prayer…. One More Time

I find a lot of stuff from E.M Bounds very uplifting. I’ve shared a couple of those quotes over the last couple of week. You can view them here and here. This week, I want to share with you one more quote from Bounds.

Man Praying

This quote comes from The Essentials Of Prayer. In this paragraph, he describes just what happens when we pray in times of trouble.

Prayer in the time of trouble brings comfort, help, hope, and blessings, which, while not removing the trouble, enable the saint to better bear it and to submit to the will of God. Prayer opens the eyes to see God’s hand in trouble. Prayer does not interpret God’s providences, but it does justify them and recognize God in them. Prayer enables us to see wise ends in trouble. Prayer in trouble drives us away from unbelief, saves us from doubt, and delivers from all vain and foolish questionings because of our painful experiences.

When you face times of trouble, do you despair? Or do you turn to prayer? How have you experienced God’s faithfulness in those situations?

If you are interested in reading more from E.M. Bounds on prayer, you can you can purchase his collected works at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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More E.M. Bounds On Prayer

Last week, I shared a passage from E.M Bounds, on prayer. Here’s another paragraph that has been inspirational in my life.

Woman In Prayer

This quote comes from The Possibilities Of Prayer, and Bounds seems to be asking if we, perhaps unintentionally, place constraints upon God’s willingness or ability to answer prayer.

The utmost possibilities of prayer have rarely been realized. The promises of God are so great to those who truly pray, when he puts himself so fully into the hands of the praying ones, that it almost staggers our faith and causes us to hesitate with astonishment. His promise to answer, and to do, and to give “all things,” “anything,” “whatsoever,” and “all things whatsoever,” is so large, so great, so exceedingly broad, that we stand back in amazement and give ourselves to questioning and doubt. We “stagger at the promise through unbelief.” Really the answers of God to prayer have been pared down by us to our little faith, and have been brought down to the low level of our narrow notions about God’s ability, liberality, and resources. Let us ever keep in mind and never for one moment allow ourselves to doubt the statement that God means what he says in all of his promises…. His promises are for plain people, and he means to do for all who pray just what he says he will do.

Do you take God at word? What do you do to help yourself grow in your faithfulness in prayer?

If you are interested in reading more from E.M. Bounds on prayer, you can you can purchase his collected works at Amazon.com.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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E.M. Bounds on Prayer

Hands Folded In Prayer

It’s Friday. My goal for Friday is to give you something that’s either an inspiration to me or a great resource that I’ve found helpful. This week, I’d like to share something that has impacted me pretty heavily.

A few years ago, I read several of E.M. Bounds’ books on prayer. These are powerful books, and I go back to them again and again.

In The Reality Of Prayer, Bounds describes what pray is, and what it isn’t. This is something that I’ve copied and stashed in several places, so that I come across it frequently and remind myself of the reality of prayer. I hope you find it as encouraging as I do.