256-703-506-766 OPEN HEAVENS WEDNESDAY 29TH JULY 2020
THEME:THE MATHEMATICS OF PRAYER.
MEMORISE:
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. Mark 11:24
READ: Luke 11:1-13
1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.
2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
3 Give us day by day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
5 And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves;
6 For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him?
7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.
8 I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.
9 And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
10 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?
12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?
13 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
MESSAGE:
In my book the Mathematics of Answered Prayers, I explained my points using simultaneous equations, but here, we will be using simple algebra. For your prayers to be answered, you will need to apply the following algebraic equation.
F (P+ W + R + JN) = Answered Prayers
Faith (F) is the constant variable that must affect every other element of your equation before your prayers can be answered. Hebrews 11:6 says:
“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”
Without faith it is impossible to please God and of course if you displease Him, how would you expect Him to answer your prayers?
The next thing you need is to Praise Him (P). Psalm 100:4 shows that praises attract God’s attention and make Him willing to hear you. In fact, if you just praise God and don’t make any requests, He will ask you for what you want. This was the case with Solomon after he had given a thousand burnt offerings to God without making any request. God told him in a dream to ask for whatever he wanted (1 Kings 3).
Pray with reference to the word (W) of God. Before you bring a request to God, find out what His word says about it, then quote it back to Him; this is praying according to His will. James 4:3 says we ask and do not get our miracles because we ask amiss. When you ask according to the word of God, you cannot ask amiss. After this, present your Request (R). Lastly, make sure that you are presenting your request in Jesus name (JN). When you pray in the name of Jesus, you are placing the personality of Jesus behind your request and since God cannot deny Him anything, He will not deny you. He will attend to your request just as He attends to the request of Jesus.
KEY POINT:
Don’t just barge into God’s presence with your requests; make sure you have all that you need for your prayers to be answered.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Isaiah 54-58
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 24: PASS ME NOT, O GENTLE SAVIOR.
- Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.
o Refrain:
Savior, Savior,
Hear my humble cry,
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.
- Let me at Thy throne of mercy
Find a sweet relief;
Kneeling there in deep contrition,
Help my unbelief. - Trusting only in Thy merit,
Would I seek Thy face;
Heal my wounded, broken spirit,
Save me by Thy grace. - Thou the spring of all my comfort,
More than life to me,
Whom have I on earth beside Thee,
Whom in Heav’n but Thee.
