David's Prayer Psalm 86 The Message

^1-7 Bend an ear, God; answer me.
    I’m one miserable wretch!
Keep me safe—haven’t I lived a good life?
    Help your servant—I’m depending on you!
You’re my God; have mercy on me.
    I count on you from morning to night.
Give your servant a happy life;
    I put myself in your hands!
You’re well-known as good and forgiving,
    bighearted to all who ask for help.
Pay attention, God, to my prayer;
    bend down and listen to my cry for help.
Every time I’m in trouble I call on you,
    confident that you’ll answer.

^8-10 There’s no one quite like you among the gods, O Lord,
    and nothing to compare with your works.
All the nations you made are on their way,
    ready to give honor to you, O Lord,
Ready to put your beauty on display,
    parading your greatness,
And the great things you do—
    God, you’re the one, there’s no one but you!

^11-17 Train me, God, to walk straight;
    then I’ll follow your true path.
Put me together, one heart and mind;
    then, undivided, I’ll worship in joyful fear.
From the bottom of my heart I thank you, dear Lord;
    I’ve never kept secret what you’re up to.
You’ve always been great toward me—what love!
    You snatched me from the brink of disaster!
God, these bullies have reared their heads!
    A gang of thugs is after me—
    and they don’t care a thing about you.
But you, O God, are both tender and kind,
    not easily angered, immense in love,
    and you never, never quit.
So look me in the eye and show kindness,
    give your servant the strength to go on,
    save your dear, dear child!
Make a show of how much you love me
    so the bullies who hate me will stand there slack-jawed,
As you, God, gently and powerfully
    put me back on my feet.

As I read this I thought just how it should be; no NEEDS to be our prayer.  

More Thoughts From the Old Man

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people.   Ask G*d to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.   1 Timothy 2:1

There is something this old man has learned over his years; that is it is hard to hate, dislike or do harm in any way some one for whom I am praying.  I would suggest that this is true for anyone who begins to pray for those around them. Then add to that the fact that the next instruction is "ASK G*D TO HELP THEM" we are going to G*d asking G*d to help people; does it matter what activities they are involved?      Whether they are in our opinion sinning or not WE are asking for our Daddy to help them. 

We are also to intercede for them.  This means we have to have deeper knowledge of them than just a two ships passing in the night; WE must get to know a person to intercede for them.   According to Merriam-Webster intercede means  "to try to help settle an argument or disagreement between two or more people or groups : to speak to someone in order to defend or help another person".  Does this sound like a passive thing?

Now "Give thanks for ALL PEOPLE"  I do not know about you but there are some people for whom I am not all that thankful!  Yet G*d tells me I have to give thanks for them.   I wonder if that is as I give thanks for them as instructed, I WILL TRULY BECOME THANKFUL?

Just a few thoughts for you to ponder as you wander!

Jesus on giving and prayer

Matthew 6:1-18 “Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don’t make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won’t be applauding.  ^2-4 “When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to yourself. You’ve seen them in action, I’m sure—‘playactors’ I call them—treating prayer meeting and street corner alike as a stage, acting compassionate as long as someone is watching, playing to the crowds. They get applause, true, but that’s all they get. When you help someone out, don’t think about how it looks. Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out. ⁵ “And when you come before God, don’t turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God sits in a box seat?  ⁶ “Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.   ^7-13 “The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what’s best—
as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You’re in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You’re ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.

 ^14-15 “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can’t get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God’s part. 
^16-18 “When you practice some appetite-denying discipline to better concentrate on God, don’t make a production out of it. It might turn you into a small-time celebrity but it won’t make you a saint. If you ‘go into training’ inwardly, act normal outwardly. Shampoo and comb your hair, brush your teeth, wash your face. God doesn’t require attention-getting devices. He won’t overlook what you are doing; he’ll reward you well.
(The Message)

Just got to love how this Bible puts this passage!  I wonder if Jesus did not say it in a like way?  I wonder; and in this case wandering not required.

Just a Thought (and/or reminder)

I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.  ~ Psalm 120:1 NLT

Then when you call, the Lord will answer. 'Yes, I am here,' he will quickly reply.   Isaiah 58:9 NLT



 Thank you KLOVE and Air1 for these verses of the day.

 

Do you want to know God's Will?

1 Thessalonians 5:16 - 18 (NLT) ¹⁶Always be joyful.  ¹⁷Never stop praying.  ¹⁸Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 
Here is God's will for those who belong to Jesus the Christ.  We are to be always Joyful; always Prayerful and always Thankful.

Always joyful; this is a hard one for me.  I do not like mornings!  I work the opening in Fast Food business (we open at 6a.m.!).  Some people say "Good Morning" at they come to the Drive Through window; about half the time my responce is "Well it is morning!"  I sometimes say "Morning" as I reach out to take their payment.  Some folks look t me weird, some of it is me I am a bit weird but I think some hear the word "good" without me saying it and wonder, like I do, "just how good is it!"  I usually respond to the look with say something like "I did not place a value judgement on it!"  God has shown me and is still working on me that I need to be joyful always!!

Always Prayerful, sometimes we think of prayer as when we "talk" to God.  You know "Here's Bread, Here's Meat!  Good Lord let's eat!  Amen!"  Prayer really is a conversation we have with God.  If one is having a conversation both people in said conversation take turns speaking.  Therefore being Always Prayerful, involves our speaking to God but it also involves our listening to God speak to us.  That may be as we drive the car to work; as we sit listening to others speak in a meeting or gathering; it may be sitting in the  deer woods,  like a friend of mine taught me;(miss those times with that friend!!) or taking a walking to shed unwant pounds.  The thing is we must listen as well as talk.  I once heard some one say we needed to listen twice as much as we spoke because we have ONE MOUTH and TWO EARS.  While as a person drawn to public speaking (or in this case public writting) I am not sure I buy that idea; I do know that we, the followers of Jesus, need to do more listening at times than we actually do!!  Again, remember that a preacher speaks as much to the preacher (sometimes more) than the preacher does to the congregation!

Always Thankful, I have written on this on Novemeber 23, so I will says that I like how  the Message says it "1 Thessalonians 5:18 (TMSG) ¹⁸thank God no matter what happens." Again easier said than done!!

Do you want God's Will?  BE Always joyful, Always Prayerful and  Always Thankful!