Monday Devotion and Prayer. April 10, 2023.
                                                      “A New Life”

“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:” Romans 6:3-5

Because sin brings death, we need new life through oneness with Christ. In this chapter, Paul assures his readers a second time that God has broken sin’s power. We have joined Jesus Christ in baptism (6:3) and have been united with him in his death (6:5). Paul uses relational terms in describing how we grow closer to Christ as we transfer from the old life to the new. When we were united with Christ in his death, our evil desires and slavery to sin died with him. Now, united by faith with him in his resurrection life, we have unbroken fellowship with God and freedom from sin’s hold on us.

Prior to our life in Christ, we find our lives damaged by sin. It shows up in the attitudes of our hearts, behaviors we engage in, and a worldview without God. It’s like trying to survive a winter storm without proper gear. Frostbite nips our fingers and toes impacting their usability. The wind roars and we curl into a ball with survival as our only focus. And then someone introduces us to Jesus Christ, and he brings us out of the cold and into the warmth of his presence.

He brings peace to our lives, and we rejoice. We declare His praises for how He brought us out of darkness and into His glorious light. He filled the longing for something more in our hearts, and we know his rest. But like my frozen plant, we bear the consequences of a life lived for so long in the cold. As we revel in his warmth, the damaged bits show themselves. It could be a relationship broken by interactions with your pre-Jesus self. Maybe it’s financial repercussions or physical consequences of a life lived loose and wild. When we become Jesus’ followers and enter a relationship with him, we begin a journey of sanctification. Sanctification is an ongoing process of conforming of our hearts and lives to the will of God. It’s the path we take toward spiritual growth.

Each of us will have areas of our lives where we wonder where the evidence of our “new life in Christ” is at. It discourages us and tempts us to look only at the signs of damage. But what if we looked for signs of life?

God takes our hearts and makes us new, but he also causes growth in areas of our hearts that seemed hopeless. He takes a hard heart and makes it soft. He gives us the wisdom to navigate broken relationships. His grace makes us new and the scars we carry tell the story of our new life in Christ.

Heavenly Father,
Thank you for drawing me out of the cold and into the warmth of your presence. I’ve got some heart damage, but I know in your hands you can make all things new. I trust you to heal the places that need healing and I am grateful for the scars the stories tell. They tell of your faithfulness, love, grace, and mercy. Please continue to make me new. I rejoice in my new life with you. In Your son Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

 

                                 “Praying for the Power of the Holy Spirit”

“For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer,  and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:19

Prayer is powerful. We hear this a lot, but how often do we pray like we believe prayer has the power to affect our daily life? When a string of prayers goes unanswered, I can easily fall into a routine of listing off prayers without attaching my full confidence in God’s ability to answer them. It’s not natural for us to want what God wants for our lives. We want what we want and we tend to want it now.

Philippians 11:19 is part of Paul’s thanks to the Philippians for praying for him! They helped him in prayer, and with a need he had. The power of the Holy Spirit helps us to recognize the power of prayer. He translates our prayers to heaven, even when we lack the words to say them. He knows when we’re praying out of routine, and need to be reminded of the guaranteed listening ear of the Father, and assured answer.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “Ye also helping together by prayer for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons thanks may be given by many on our behalf” (2 Corinthians 1:11). Paul had confidence in the power of prayer, and we can too. Ask the Holy Spirit to come into our lives daily and show us!

Heavenly Father,
You are the life and length of our days. God, You are our Provider, Healer, and Defender. Every need we lift up to heaven, You are already aware of. The state of our hearts is always known by You, who knows us completely. You see our pain and confusion and know our frustration and struggle to love the other people in our lives. Father, You see it all. You know it all. Thank You, for being in all of it with us. Thank You for listening to our prayers, and thank You for answering them. You are faithful, compassionate, and caring about our concerns. We are thankful You are a personal God.

Today, we pray, Holy Spirit, for You to come into our lives and fill our hearts to the brim with everything we need to live this day to the fullest, as Jesus died for. Help us understand what we need, and let the rest go as we trust You, God, with our lives. Help us to heal from pain, even though answers to our prayers haven’t happened the way we want in the time we want them to. Increase our trust in who You are, and help us to trust in the power of prayer.

This day, we surrender afresh to You, Jesus. Our arms are open and our hearts are fully devoted to You. Help us to follow you each day, discerning what to do and where to go. Help us to live in the moment, praying continually and trusting Your lead on our lives. Jesus, we know we can always look to You when we feel isolated, hurt, betrayed, and sad. We know You know how we feel. Thank You for walking with us, for setting Your Holy Spirit in us, to guide and comfort us. As we trust in the power of prayer, perhaps comfort is what we need the most. Comfort and encourage us, God, as only You can.

Father, we want to know with the same confidence Paul had, a powerful effect of our prayers and of those who intercede for us. Help us to reach out in confidence when we need prayer, God. And help us to pay attention to the people in our lives who also need our prayers. We want to feel the power of prayer, and Holy Spirit rushing through our lives as we remain in constant conversation with You, Father.

Thank You for faithfully meeting us where we are in our lives before we even call on You. The most dependable, reliable, faithful, Father. We love You with our whole hearts. In Your son Jesus’ Name, I pray, Amen.

                                       “Prayer for Power and Strength”

“Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” Matthew 21:21-22

Prayer is powerful. God hears and answers our prayers. He is always in motion on our behalf. Oftentimes our answers to prayer come in unexpected ways. A continued conversation with our Father helps us recognize His movement in our lives. Prayer is akin to seeing from a different perspective. Sometimes answers to prayer are obvious, miraculous, and very direct. Other times, obtaining a Christ-like perspective takes spiritual, mental, and perhaps physical growing pains. No matter what way they come, answers to prayer move mountains in our lives. Today, let’s pray for God’s movement in our lives to be evident to and through us.

Heavenly Father,
Your mercies are new every day. Great is Your faithfulness. You are the Truth. You are Freedom! God Your thoughts are not our thoughts and Your ways are not our ways. For this reason, we can become frustrated when our prayers seem to go unnoticed and unanswered. We don’t always understand the delay and the different ways You answer according to what we ask. Let the power of prayer come to full strength in our lives as we remember Your faithfulness. You, alone, are perfect in mercy and justice, forgiveness and compassion. Father, help us to see things from Your perspective. You always know what we need, and what we are going through. Father Your heart breaks alongside us when we are going through a painful season. Increase our trust in who You are, as we wait patiently on You bravely and courageously.

God, we know You are good. Help us to be brave enough, not only to ask big things of You in prayer but to be brave enough to believe and trust big answers to prayer are an everyday reality! Jesus said, “You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it.” Father, this is our prayer today, for You to give us the faith we need to pray for anything, and for the answer to anything we are asking for today. If You are willing, please answer our mountain-sized prayers for miraculous healing, peace, restoration, forgiveness, reconciliation, contentment, hope, and joy.

Holy Spirit, we welcome You to move through our lives today through Christ Jesus. Be our Friend, Comfort, and Guide. Translate our prayers into heaven and help us to discern the Truth as it applies to our everyday circumstances. Help us to see. Give us the vision to share the direction of Your will for our lives, God. Give us the power to develop big faith, prayers, and praise to You. We can pray for anything. And if we have faith …we will receive it. Let us carry these words of hope written on our hearts as we walk through our daily lives. Remind us to pray constantly, and keep us in constant conversation with You, God. In Your son Jesus’ Name, I pray, Amen.