Filled with the Knowledge

"Filled with the Knowledge of His Will."

“For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God. Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light” (Colossians 1:9-12).

Pray that We Might be Filled with the Knowledge of God's Will. 

It is God’s will for us to pray for God’s people that they would be filled with the knowledge of God’s will for all areas of our lives and in His kingdom; praying that we be filled with all wisdom and spiritual understanding. The Lord, as our teacher, desires to teach us all things. He loves it when His people want to have His mind, goals, and truth. Pray for our leaders on all levels that they may know and walk in the knowledge of God's will in all the areas in which they have authority. Pray that the children of God no longer walk in darkness but have clarity of wisdom and spiritual understanding. Pray that the children of God will no longer follow their own will, but will earnestly seek after the perfect will of God for their lives instead. 

Pray We Walk Worthy of the Lord unto All.

It is God's will that we are pleasing to Him, fruitful, and continually increasing our knowledge of Him. He desires for us to know Him so that we may please Him and become fruitful in our lives toward Him. Pray that we may walk worthy of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pray We are Strengthened with Might According to His Power. 

God wants us to walk in His glorious power, displaying the wonderous works He did on Calvary and in His resurrection. He wants to display His power in our lives as we are dead to sin and walk as new creatures in Christ. Jesus’ quickening power wants to reveal itself through the children of God. While this world is seeking for strength in many areas, God wants to show His strength through us. We must not fear weakness, for it is in our weakness that God's strength is revealed. Pray that the children of God’s light will shine so that they will draw all men out of the darkness and into the light of His strength, glory, and goodness, displaying to all what God can do in a life surrendered to Him. 

Give Thanks and Praise.

As a conduit for Christ all knowledge, strength, fruitfulness, and increase can flow from the 

heavenly places into and through our lives. He knows all, He has done all, and He can do all. We don't need to produce something miraculous. We just need to allow Him to flow through us. Prayer sets us in the proper alignment to do just that, giving praise and thanks that we are partakers of the glorious inheritance and illuminating light!

Deborah Smith
District Prayer Coordinator
South Texas District
(Info from: Prayer Connect Newsletter - World Network of Prayer - floshaw@wnop-upci.ccsend.com) 

To some the Bible is just a Book

" I Can Speak HIS Word " by Tara Dillon
    

To some, the Bible is just a book with a lot of words that some say they don’t understand. But to a desperate child of God, it is life and hope.

I am a mother to four very wonderful people. I have two beautiful girls who are married to wonderful ministers of the gospel and two handsome young men still at home. My husband and I have been very fortunate in the child-rearing area of teenagers and young adult stages of life. This year, however, the devil attacked our family in a new deceptive way that we never could have imagined.

In this crisis, I became desperate for God’s direction and leading in our family and home. We prayed more, fasted more, sought counsel, and began to re-evaluate some things in our lives.

We both work, myself part-time and my husband full-time, on top of Hyphen ministry, Bible quiz coaching, church leadership team, and jail ministry. If you asked us what we enjoyed, we would tell you all of it. However, did we love it more than family? Nothing matters more than our family and home.

We realized that while we were working for the Kingdom, but we were not ministering where it was the most important: our family. We began evaluating every area of our lives. As a result, we kept the same ministries, but we tweaked how they affected our daily lives. During this time, God quickened me to pray the Word over my children and home. This concept was not foreign to me. After all, I have years in Bible quiz ministry. I encourage young people to pray the Word, and I have prayed the Word many times.

I prayed constantly throughout the day and part of the night. Although things changed, it was still a battle. I woke up and anointed my boys’ clothes, prayed over their pillows, prayed over the house, and rebuked any hindering spirits in my home. But I needed something stronger.

When I felt the nudge of God to pray the Word, HIS Word, my thoughts first went to Proverbs for instruction. I placed my child’s name in the scripture. For example, in Proverbs 1:8 you can pray, “Let (child’s name) hear the instruction of their father and not forsake the law of their mother.” In Proverbs 4:13 you can pray, “Lord, help my children to ‘Take hold of instruction; let her not go; for she is their life.’” Make scripture personal when you pray over your kids!

In closing, after praying the Word over my children and my home every night, things began to fall into place. Sister Joy Haney’s, PRAY the Word, became my best strength. God began leading and guiding us step by step. He was moving before, but my words are not HIS Words!! For example, I had prayed Hebrews 4:12 many times before, but this time I prayed that verse with tears pouring down my face. During this time, I realized that HIS Words are exactly what I need.

 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

This scripture incorporates it all, for the Word is what I need spiritually, physically, and mentally all the time. When I don’t know what to pray, HIS Word is the answer.

(Information from: Ladies Prayer International Newsletter - UPCI Ladies Ministries - ladiesprayerinternational -aol.com@shared1.ccsend.com) 

Many still do not recognize Jesus

"Recognizing Jesus" by Mary Loudermilk

“And their eyes were opened, and they knew him . . . .” (Luke 24:31a). 

I’ve heard people say how exciting it would be to have lived at the time of Jesus—to see Him, follow Him, hear Him teach. What an incredible experience! Yet I wonder, would I have recognized Him? Would I have believed? Been indifferent? Scoffed? I hope I would have recognized and accepted Him as Messiah, but many did not.

“What about the prophecies?” we may ask. Jesus fulfilled all the Old Testament prophecies. Didn’t they see? Didn’t they understand? We are looking back, putting all the pieces of the puzzle together and seeing the whole picture. They, with their preconceived ideas of how those prophecies would be fulfilled, did not recognize what was taking place in their midst.

No doubt other infant boys were born in Bethlehem around that time. Unusual circumstances? Yes, but those were unusual times. Oh, there were stories about shepherds seeing angels and strangers arriving from the East who talked about a bright star, but things were so chaotic with the crowds and the taxation. Who knows? Then one day the family was just gone. No one knew where. People soon forgot the couple and their baby.

Nor was Jesus the only iterant rabbi (teacher) who walked the dusty roads of Israel, teaching any who followed Him. Others had claimed to be Messiah, and no doubt others would come later. As the folks of Nazareth said, “Isn’t that Jospeh’s son?” (Luke 4:22). And in their minds they may have added, “And wasn’t there a question about His mom and a rushed wedding?”

Consider the times when even Jesus’ own disciples did not recognize him.

    He walked on the water toward them, and they were afraid (Matthew 14:25-27).
    Mary Magdalene saw Him at the tomb and thought He was the gardener (John 20:14-16).
    Two disciples walked with Him on the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus, some seven miles, and did not realize it was Jesus (Luke 24:13-35).

We live in a world where many still do not recognize Jesus. They do not look with eyes of faith, much like those in Nazareth who thought He was “just Joseph’s boy.” But it’s not just the non-Christian who does not recognize Jesus. We too may be guilty of overlooking Him in our life’s situations.

Perhaps one reason we do not see Jesus in our circumstances is because we have fixed ideas of how He will work. This mindset—putting Him in a box—limits our vision of Him and His power in our lives.

Jesus is waiting for us to see Him for who He is. He wants to move outside the boundaries we have set that limit Him. We must open our eyes. God is at work.

(Information from: Pure Ministry - UPCI Ladies Ministries - ladiesconnections-upci.org@shared1.ccsend.com) 

Add to your faith virtue

The Bible says
Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall...

Scripture from: 2 Peter 1:1-10 KJV