Some years back I was taught how to pray scripture. We always want to be sure that we are praying in God's will and when we pray scripture we can be sure that we are doing that (providing that you do not take it out of context).
As I've taught Bible study the last couple of years, and in just conversation with other believers, I've realized that there are many people who do NOT know how to do this. They have never been exposed to it, just as I had not for many years. So in thinking about that today, I'd like to share a few verses that are favorites of mine and show you HOW to do that.
Let's start with some really easy ones that you can pray for yourself:
Psalm 27:11 "Teach me your way O Lord and lead me in a plain path". David phrased this one so perfectly you do not even have to change the wording! There are many verses like this that you can take and just quote David or the author verbatim and make it YOUR personal prayer.
Here is another one like that....Psalm 30: 10 "Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me...be my helper!"
Here are some you can pray for your children (be sure to insert YOUR child's name in the blank):
REGARDING THEIR SPEECH: "Lord, would you keep ____ 's tongue from evil and his lips from speaking perversely? Help him to depart evil and do good." Psalm 34: 13, 14
REGARDING BAD COMPANY: "Lord, would you protect _________ and keep her from those who are seeking to draw her away from you? Would you 'let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after her soul; let them be turned back and brought to confusion that seek her hurt....may the angel of the Lord chase them away!" Psalm 35: 4, 5b
GOING THROUGH A ROUGH TIME: "O God...in the multitude of thy mercy would you hear me? Deliver ________ out of the mire... do not allow her to sink; cause her to be delivered from [this situation]. Please do not allow her to be overcome by this. Hear her prayers O Lord, for your lovingkindness is good; turn to her according to the multitude of your tender mercies and do not hide your face from her for she is in trouble and she needs you to hear her quickly!" Psalm 69: 13-17 You will notice that I did change a few words in this verse, but I did not change the meaning. Instead of saying "do not let the deep swallow her up and let not the pit shut her mouth upon her", I said 'do not allow her to be overcome by this'. Same difference, just more appropriate to what you are praying. Most of you are not going to be praying about a child in the deep or a pit (hopefully), but it is referencing a situation in which one is about to drown.
DIRECTION: "Help ____ to refrain his feet from every evil way that he might be able to keep your word." Psalm 119: 101
SPIRITUAL GROWTH: "Father would you grant ________ according to the riches of your glory to be strengthened with might by your Spirit in the inner man; may Christ dwell in her heart by faith; [and may she] be rooted and grounded in love and be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth and to know the love of Christ which passes all knowledge and be filled with all the fulness of God." Now can you imagine praying THAT prayer for your child or grandchild every day? Is there anything in that God would not want you to pray? I think not. You are praying HIS word directly back to Him. It is a powerful tool.
I hope this has given you a glimpse of how praying scripture can enhance your prayer life. And, I hope it will motivate you to want to give it a try. Psalms is the easiest place to start. Won't you try a few verses today as you kneel before the Lord. I promise, you will be blessed!
Showing posts with label help. Show all posts
Showing posts with label help. Show all posts
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Monday, February 25, 2008
PREPARING FOR BATTLE
In an earlier post I spoke of going to Camp David and promised to share more verses from Psalms. Got a little off track, so today I'd like to share a few more of those treasures from the Psalms.
R. A. Torrey wrote " The reason why many fail in battle is because they wait until the hour of battle. The reason why others succeed is because they have gained their victory on their knees long before the battle came...Anticipate your battles; fight them on your knees before temptation comes, and you will always have victory."
Are you facing any battles this week? If so, I urge you to go to your knees and spend time with the Lord. Then go to Camp David and seek out encouragement and "ammunition" to help you fight your battles. God has given us much in the book of Psalms to help us. Here are a few of my favorites:
"Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." Psalm 16: 11
"Keep me as the apple of thy eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings". Psalm 17: 8
"I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler and the horn of my salvation and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, so shall I be saved from my enemies." Psalm 18: 1-3
"He sent from above, he took me and drew me out of many waters, He delivered me from my strong enemy and from them which hated me for they were too strong for me. They [hindered] me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay." Psalm 18: 16-18
"For thou will light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." Psalm 18: 28
"Thou art he that took me out of the womb; thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. I was cast upon thee from the womb, thou art MY God from my mother's belly. Be not far from me for trouble is near, for there is none to help." Psalm 22: 9-11
"Turn thee unto me and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged. O bring thou me out of my distresses." Psalm 25: 16-17
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Hear, O Lord when I cry with my voice; have mercy also upon me and answer me. I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait I say on the Lord!"Psalm 27 (selected verses)
"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth and with my song will I praise Him" Psalm 28:7
"Weeping endures for a night, but JOY cometh in the morning!" Psalm 30: 5b
(All verses are King James Version)
When a verse in Psalms or anywhere in scripture for that matter, especially speaks to you or when God gives you a verse that helps you through a time of adversity, write the date out beside it and maybe a note. Each time you read through your Bible, you will be reminded of how God used that verse to bring encouragement, hope and comfort; how He spoke to you or helped you. It will reinforce your faith and remind you once again how faithful our God ALWAYS is!
R. A. Torrey wrote " The reason why many fail in battle is because they wait until the hour of battle. The reason why others succeed is because they have gained their victory on their knees long before the battle came...Anticipate your battles; fight them on your knees before temptation comes, and you will always have victory."
Are you facing any battles this week? If so, I urge you to go to your knees and spend time with the Lord. Then go to Camp David and seek out encouragement and "ammunition" to help you fight your battles. God has given us much in the book of Psalms to help us. Here are a few of my favorites:
"Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." Psalm 16: 11
"Keep me as the apple of thy eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings". Psalm 17: 8
"I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler and the horn of my salvation and my high tower. I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, so shall I be saved from my enemies." Psalm 18: 1-3
"He sent from above, he took me and drew me out of many waters, He delivered me from my strong enemy and from them which hated me for they were too strong for me. They [hindered] me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay." Psalm 18: 16-18
"For thou will light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." Psalm 18: 28
"Thou art he that took me out of the womb; thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. I was cast upon thee from the womb, thou art MY God from my mother's belly. Be not far from me for trouble is near, for there is none to help." Psalm 22: 9-11
"Turn thee unto me and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged. O bring thou me out of my distresses." Psalm 25: 16-17
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Hear, O Lord when I cry with my voice; have mercy also upon me and answer me. I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait I say on the Lord!"Psalm 27 (selected verses)
"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth and with my song will I praise Him" Psalm 28:7
"Weeping endures for a night, but JOY cometh in the morning!" Psalm 30: 5b
(All verses are King James Version)
When a verse in Psalms or anywhere in scripture for that matter, especially speaks to you or when God gives you a verse that helps you through a time of adversity, write the date out beside it and maybe a note. Each time you read through your Bible, you will be reminded of how God used that verse to bring encouragement, hope and comfort; how He spoke to you or helped you. It will reinforce your faith and remind you once again how faithful our God ALWAYS is!
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
CAMP DAVID
Camp David is my favorite "camping ground". No, I don't mean the presidential retreat. Nor do I mean the kind of camping you do in a tent. (My idea of that kind of camping is a Hampton Inn). No, I am referring to camping out in terms of taking up temporary residence, parking, hanging out....so to speak. Now that I have your attention and you are TOTALLY confused, I will give you the REAL meaning. I LOVE the book of Psalms!!!!!!!
When I am discouraged, lonely, afraid, anxious, worried, or don't know which way to turn, I turn to the book of Psalms. It is my FAVORITE book of the Bible!! Beth Moore has recently written a Bible study on Psalms which our women's ministry will begin the end of this month. I can't tell you how EXCITED I am!!!!!!!!!!!
Several times lately I've referred my friends to "Camp David". I don' t think there is anywhere in the Bible that you can "park" and be comforted and encouraged and uplifted, quite like Camp David.
I'd like to share some of my favorite passages with you.
Psalm 1 - In this Psalm David contrasts a godly person with an ungodly person. There is a progression of sin as defined in verse 1....walking, standing and sitting (I wrote about this on September 16, 2007) Then there is the one who plants his life in the Lord, putting down deep roots, producing much fruit and being successful. Such simple directions for LIFE!
Psalm 3:3 God is the "lifter up of my head". I just picture Him with his finger beneath my chin, tilting my face up to look into His eyes of love, saying gently to me "Child....it is ok. I'm here."
Psalm 6: 2 "Have mercy on me O Lord, for I am weak". How often I've cried out to Him in those very words. That is why I love David so much. He expresses my feelings perfectly. It is almost as if he has written exactly what I am feeling. So personal!
Psalm 7:9, 16 I have a note that I wrote out beside this verse in March of 2003. It reads "Saddam". Enough said.
Psalm 13: 6 "I will sing unto the Lord because he has dealt bountifully with me!" BOUNTIFULLY!!!! God does not skimp on His goodness to us.
These are just a few of the verses that God has used to comfort and encourage me. If you have never spent time at Camp David, I urge you to pay it a visit. God will meet you there and will deal BOUNTIFULLY with you !!!!!!!! More tomorrow.....
When I am discouraged, lonely, afraid, anxious, worried, or don't know which way to turn, I turn to the book of Psalms. It is my FAVORITE book of the Bible!! Beth Moore has recently written a Bible study on Psalms which our women's ministry will begin the end of this month. I can't tell you how EXCITED I am!!!!!!!!!!!
Several times lately I've referred my friends to "Camp David". I don' t think there is anywhere in the Bible that you can "park" and be comforted and encouraged and uplifted, quite like Camp David.
I'd like to share some of my favorite passages with you.
Psalm 1 - In this Psalm David contrasts a godly person with an ungodly person. There is a progression of sin as defined in verse 1....walking, standing and sitting (I wrote about this on September 16, 2007) Then there is the one who plants his life in the Lord, putting down deep roots, producing much fruit and being successful. Such simple directions for LIFE!
Psalm 3:3 God is the "lifter up of my head". I just picture Him with his finger beneath my chin, tilting my face up to look into His eyes of love, saying gently to me "Child....it is ok. I'm here."
Psalm 6: 2 "Have mercy on me O Lord, for I am weak". How often I've cried out to Him in those very words. That is why I love David so much. He expresses my feelings perfectly. It is almost as if he has written exactly what I am feeling. So personal!
Psalm 7:9, 16 I have a note that I wrote out beside this verse in March of 2003. It reads "Saddam". Enough said.
Psalm 13: 6 "I will sing unto the Lord because he has dealt bountifully with me!" BOUNTIFULLY!!!! God does not skimp on His goodness to us.
These are just a few of the verses that God has used to comfort and encourage me. If you have never spent time at Camp David, I urge you to pay it a visit. God will meet you there and will deal BOUNTIFULLY with you !!!!!!!! More tomorrow.....
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