«

Praying Like Jesus

March 10, 2014

But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. One day He was teaching; and there were some Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting there, who had come from every village … and the power of the Lord was present for Him to perform healing. Luke 5:16-17

Result of Prayer. Jesus is the Master Teacher of what to do while we are here on earth, and He tells us to learn from Him (Matthew 11:29). He replenished himself in the presence of God, and then, in the next verse, reached religious leaders from every village in the region, and the power of God was present to heal. When Jesus would go away to pray results would follow: healing power (Mark 6:46-56), direction about next steps
(Mark 1:35-38), and the choosing of the twelve apostles (Luke 6:12-13).

Resist Distraction. Get away from your phone, the blaring TV, and the crowds long enough to not let distractions hijack your prayer time. You may feel like you are just surviving right now, but God wants you to be strengthened and ready because people need what you have.

Draw Near to God. Every day, take your stand—God has answers for you. Pray when you’re in the car, flipping channels, going to bed, loading the dishwasher, or at work when you need wisdom and direction. Don’t let guilt or regret keep you from drawing near to God. He won’t judge or condemn you—He’ll give you rest in His presence (Matthew 11:28-30).

Pray This Prayer:
God, as I draw near to You right now, I find rest for my soul. As I seek You with all my heart, I find You. I receive all the answers and direction I need from You. This is the day the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it. I reject fear and replace it with boldness and courage from the presence of God.

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; in the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. Psalm 5:3

God bless you!
Pastor Jeff

Copyright © 2014 St. Louis Family Church. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted or distributed in any form without prior written permission of St. Louis Family Church. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.