(John 15:5)…..”I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
April 22nd, 2020 – Morning Devotion With Pastor Dan
Now that is a verse that has been on my mind for quite some time, a few years anyway. I have come to realize how true it is. Yet the human response still remains the same in most, if not all, the people we run into on a daily basis, who believe they can do everything without the Lord’s help and power. Think for a moment of how dependent we really are on the Lord. What can you and I possibly do of any worth without Him? We must be branches that are fastened to the vine (Christ), not only to bear fruit but so that we won’t dry up. So what is one way we can abide in our Savior? How about prayer? That is a deep, quality time of prayer each day that is spent purposely with the Lord. There are three reasons to pray: God wants to hear from you, you need to hear from God, and others need you to pray for them.
1. God wants to hear from you – The Heavenly Father enjoys hearing from you.
2. You need to hear from God – Your prayer is communication with God. You and I need to hear from Him. This prayer life includes – listening to Him – talking with Him – giving Him thanks — not just asking for things. A relationship requires communication. Your relationship with the Lord will never grow without communication. Time spent in prayer helps you stay tuned-in spiritually — remaining sensitive to God. Prayer keeps you “connected” with God. It helps keep your focus on God and how great He is. It is a way of humbling yourself and is the opposite of doing things by yourself. Receiving direction from God is the greatest help you can get. If you fail to seek God’s help, you are headed for trouble, because the devil sets traps to destroy you. Finally, talking with God forces you to honestly face your situation — for you know you cannot fool God.
3. Others need you to pray for them – All around us, people are in great need. Through prayer, we can appropriate heavenly help on their behalf.
Instead of prayer being a last resort, it should be one of the first things we do! The Lord answers prayer, and He wants us to come to Him continually with all of our needs (1 Thessalonians 5:17). The Bible tells us to “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer …. let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). Let’s never wait until prayer becomes a last resort — let’s make prayer one of the first priorities of our day — the Lord did! Read (Luke 6:11-12), note specifically (vs.11-12). Also read (Ephesians 6:18) (James 5:13) (1 Peter 3:7).