Sometimes it seems like our prayers get no further than the ceiling, we wonder if God hears. What can hinder our prayers? Well, we must pray in faith believing (James 1: 6-8) and we must pray according to his word and will (1 John 5: 14-15). However, the word says we must also ask for the right reasons, not purely selfish ones (James 4:2-3).

We are also told in the word that we need to mix patience with our faith (Heb 6:12). God`s timing is not the same as ours (Ps 90:4). It’s also important in all our asking to have thankful hearts and to praise God (Ps 100:4).

In all our asking we need to be sure that our hearts and lives are right before God. In Matthew 6:33 we are admonished to seek God first before we start asking. In this verse we are also told to to walk in obedience to him, in right standing with him, seeking his face, his heart and not his hand. As we walk in obedience to God all of our needs will be met by our heavenly father.

I suspect that if we focused on Matthew 6:33 we would need to do less asking.

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Psalm 73 and verses 23 through 26 have always been favorites for us. The idea of constant fellowship with God and his holding us by our right hand has to thrill any Christian (V23). But verse 24 gets even better: “thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory” (KJV).

God guides us with his word (Ps 119:105).  In Proverbs 3:5-6 we are told that he will direct our paths if we fully trust him and don’t allow our thought processes to get in the way. In those verses it also says that we need to acknowledge him; to me that mean’s people around us should know whom we serve.

Back in Psalm 73 and verse 25, the Psalmist tells us we need to have a tenacious and single-minded focus on God. In verse 26 he tells us why; because we will always reach the limits of our strength but God is our strength and he never fails! Isn’t it amazing to think that God and his power, dwells in us as Christians in the form of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17; Rom 8:11)?

This all sounds wonderful and it is but to allow God to do all he wants to on our behalf we must cooperate. Cooperation is a matter of spending time with him in his word and prayer. A simple expectation but do we long for these times with him and make them our priority (Joshua 1:8)? We should, the results are awesome!

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We serve an excellent God (Ps 8:1; Isa 12:5). God does all things in excellence. Just think of the splendor, detail and perfection of his creation that he prepared for us to enjoy (Gen 1:1-31). No detail was missed in his design for the Tabernacle in which he dwelt with his people (Ex 26:1-37).

As we read Leviticus we can see the excellence that God expected of his people in their festivals and sacrifices, their obedience; no animal with a blemish could be sacrificed before him (Lev 6:6).

How do we respond to a God of such excellence and love? We can only humble ourselves before him and give him our best; serve him in excellence and awesome fear and respect.

How can this be expressed in a practical way? We need to put him first in our lives and our time, not giving him our spare time at the end of the day. Serve him with excellence; whenever, wherever and however he prompts us. Our God is a jealous God and will not share us with others or other priorities (Ex 34:14).

Let his will be done in our lives as it is done in heaven (Matt 6:10) and remember, the most excellent way is love (1Cor 12:31); love for God and love for each other. God wants to show his fullness to the world through us; he wants to work: “exceedingly abundantly beyond all that we ask or imagine” (Eph 3:19-20; KJV). How can we; therefore, not love him and serve him with all we are?  

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