Daily Bread_August 22, 2013

Title: The Provisions and Power for Effective Prayer

Text:

Psalm 55:1-5 (ESV)
¹ Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!
² Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan,
³ because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me.
⁴ My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
⁵ Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me.

Observation:

I love reading the Psalms each day because they are such an encouragement to help me in my daily walk with the Lord.

This morning was an example of how the Psalms help me. I had just prayed a prayer for a friend who asked his friends to pray for a pressing need in his life. Shortly after praying that prayer of intercession, I opened my Bible to read the Psalm for today.

However, this Psalm got my attention, and quickened my heart concerning the prayer of faith I had prayed earlier for my friend. There is great value in having your Bible nearby when you pray. I love this promise found in this verse; it empowers my prayer life.

Matthew 7:7 (ESV)
⁷ "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

Here is another way in which the Word of God, and the Spirit of God come together to help God's children to pray effectively; the Holy Spirit is our helper.

Romans 8:26 (HCSB)
²⁶ In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with unspoken groanings.

Your problems may be different from the Psalmist, but whatever you are going through God has the answer, and He is waiting to hear from you. The Bible in your hand and the Holy Spirit in your heart provide all that you need to be effective in prayer; so ask the Lord to help you.

Jeremiah 33:3 (HCSB)
³ Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and incomprehensible things you do not know.

Prayer:

Father God, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for the Word of God, and the office work of the Holy Spirit of God in the prayer life of Your children. Father, I am so thankful that when I pray that You listen, and that You answer the prayers of Your children. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Psalm 55:16-17 (HCSB)
¹⁶ But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.
¹⁷ I complain and groan morning, noon, and night, and He hears my voice.

--

Acts 6:4 (KJV)
⁴ But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.

 

My blog: Sharing the Word of God Daily:

 http://herbcotton.blogspot.com/