Category Archives: How to Pray

We all need help how to connect with God in prayer.

Jerusalem, the Capital of Israel

Jerusalem, Israel, is very special place to God.

Jerusalem, Israel

Jerusalem, Israel

Jerusalem is mentioned almost 800 times in the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament Abraham offered Isaac on Mount Moriah, the site which today is known as the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, Israel

Jerusalem, Israel

David reigned from Jerusalem and spoke often of it. In the New Testament Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was in Jerusalem many times and spoke of it. The major writers of the New Testament including Peter, Paul, and John spoke of Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, Israel Walls

Jerusalem, Israel Walls

Psalms 83:1, O God, do not keep silence; do not hold your peace or be still, O God!

Psalms 132:13-14, For the Lord has chosen Zion;he has desired it for his dwelling place: This is my resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it.

Psalms 122:6-7, Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you!  Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!”

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

Jerusalem, Israel

Jerusalem, Israel

His Love

“The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”  Zephaniah 3:17

Canon Beach Haystack Rock 0024

Canon Beach Haystack Rock

Don’t think that God is not for you. He created you with a purpose. So you have purpose. That fact should get us going every day. But He loves us.  I am trying to think of any religion where God is a lover. I think only in Judaism and Christianity is the phrase used “God loves us”. So rejoice in the fact that God is a God of love. So receive His love by believing in Jesus.

Canon Beach Haystack Rock 1127

Canon Beach Haystack Rock

Joshua 1:5 …so I will be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Cannon Beach, Oregon

Cannon Beach, Oregon

What is Prayer

Prayer is joining forces with God. Prayer is fellowship with God in carrying our His will on the earth. Remember what Jesus taught us to pray “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. There is no issue with God’s will in heaven, just on the earth.

Cannon Beach, Oregon

Cannon Beach, Oregon

Prayer is one of the highest work a man or women can do on the earth.

Cannon Beach, Oregon from Ecola Park

Cannon Beach, Oregon from Ecola Park

Words to Listen To!

Hearing God’s Word:  Psalm 119

Flower Near Vineyard in Washington

Flower Near Vineyard in Washington

I look this photo with the standard lens, no special setup, standard sunlight.

I would like to take some time, now, to go through Psalm 119, the longest Psalm in the Old Testament. There is one thing that really stands out in this Psalm and that is the phrase, “The Word of the Lord”, referring to what God has written in the Bible, and also what God speaks to us. I want to go through Psalm 119.  I will bring a few things out and give you some brief commentary. The first place in that psalm where the word, “word” appears is in verse 9. It says, “How shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.”  How do we cleanse our way or how do we know the right way to go? We know the right way to go by the Word of the Lord.

Then we can go on to verse 11 which says, “Thy word I have hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.” In other words, how do we keep from sin? We do that by putting or hiding God’s Word in our heart. It’s much better for our minds and hearts to be filled with God’s Word than with other kinds of things, and this will keep us from sin.

God Speaks to Samuel

God Speaks to Samuel

Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, Oregon

Haystack Rock, Cannon Beach, Oregon

Let’s read from the third chapter of I Samuel 3:1, “Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD under Eli, and the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.” It is interesting that the writer would say that the Word of the LORD was rare. God was not speaking much in that day because the hearts of the people were far from Him.  I have heard people comment, “It doesn’t seem like the Lord is speaking, and when I read the Word it’s not living and real to me.” Number one, when our hearts are not open to God and the things of God, and we really don’t want to listen, then God doesn’t speak that much.  Secondly, when God knows we aren’t going to obey what He says, He is not obligated to speak to us.

God’s Word was rare in those days because the priesthood was polluted and the people were being led astray.  God began to speak to Samuel, but Samuel didn’t yet know the Lord in a real way. God called to Samuel, “Samuel, Samuel”.  Samuel said, “Here am I”, but he thought it was Eli who was speaking to him.  The Lord was speaking to Samuel, yet Samuel didn’t recognize it was the Lord speaking to him. The Lord continued to call out to Samuel, and Samuel kept going to Eli asking, “Didn’t you call me?”  Finally Eli got the picture that it was probably the Lord who was calling Samuel. He instructed Samuel, “Samuel,  if you hear that again, it must be the Lord speaking to you, so just say, ‘Speak Lord, Thy servant hears’.”  God called Samuel again and Samuel responded as Eli had instructed him, “Speak Lord, Thy servant hears.”

Samuel was telling the Lord that he was ready to listen to what He had to say.  He was saying, “Speak, Lord. I am Your servant. I am here to do whatever You want me to do.” I believe those are the two conditions for hearing God speak. Number one, you need an ear to hear, and number two, a heart to obey and to do what God wants done. Samuel did not know the Lord, but he was in the process of learning to recognize the voice of God. When Samuel said, “Speak, Lord, for Thy Servant hears”, this indicated he had an ear to hear, and a heart to obey what God was speaking to Him.

His Loving Kindness is Eternal

Sunset Over Water

Sunset Over Water

The best Bible verse on this subject is: 1 Chronicles 16:34 Give thanks unto Jehovah, for he is good; For his lovingkindness endures for ever.   Our kindness and love seems to have limits, but God does not have limits. He is God, the creator of the heavens and earth and is full of energy.

Prayer, Vine and Branches

Prayer, Vine and Branches – Jesus’ Instructions on Prayer in John 15

Grape Vines in Washington State

Grape Vines in Washington State

Look at vines, branches and prayer in in John 15, chapters 14, 15, 16, and 17.  In those four chapters, Jesus was trying to comfort His disciples.  Right in the middle of that, in chapter 15, Jesus was talking about abiding. He was talking about how we need to be like branches on a vine. He was the true vine. Some people say this describes kind of an organic, living and real relationship between Jesus and us, or between us and the Father.  Without getting into the rest of the context, there, John 15:7 says, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” That seems kind of like a blank check where you can expect God to do anything you ask of Him. Some people look at that verse and they wonder why God doesn’t answer when they pray for something. There is a condition in this verse, though. It says, “If you abide in Me and My words aide in you”.  The “asking”is prayer.

Grape Vines in Eastern Washington

Grape Vines in Eastern Washington

The first condition, there, is, “If you abide in Me… “ Without getting into the context,there, one way to abide is to stay in the Lord, to rest in the Lord, or to remain in the Lord.  I would even say it means to do the things God wants you to do, to obey the Lord.  He says, “If you abide in Me”.  Then He says, “And if My words abide in you”.  This passage in the book of John says, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you”, you can ask whatever you will and I will do it. What words is He talking about when Jesus says, “And My words abide in you”? I believe He is specifically talking about the word He is speaking. I believe it also has to include the words of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.

Grape Vines in Eastern Washington

Grape Vines in Eastern Washington

The video this text is taken from is on  Drew’s YouTube channel.  This portion is at YouTube.