Matthew 7: 7-12:"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
I don't know why it still surprises me when the Word of God rings true in my life, but it does. You would think that I would have caught on to the fact that the truth contained in Scripture is actually applicable to everyday life. However, God continues to amaze me with the power and grace contained in Scripture.
I have been praying for the past few weeks that God would bring a dramatic change to the college and career class that I teach on Sunday mornings. I wanted so badly for this Bible study to go so far beyond my knowledge and my teaching to a place that could only be explained by the power of God. However, week after week, the boring drudgery of me doing all the talking continued.
James 4: 2-3 comes to mind. I was asking for God's power in Sunday school, but I was not acknowledging his power in my own life.
Then, God showed up. Now, do I mean that God had been on vacation for the first half of the semester? To quote Paul, "by no means!" God had been here. God had not changed. What had changed was the way I was living and thinking about the Lord and his work in and through me. God got my attention, and I began to acknowledge his Lordship over my life.
He changed my perspective, ignited my passion, and provided a very direct and practical answer to my prayer.
Prayer works. I promise. More importantly, God promises.
I don't know why it still surprises me when the Word of God rings true in my life, but it does. You would think that I would have caught on to the fact that the truth contained in Scripture is actually applicable to everyday life. However, God continues to amaze me with the power and grace contained in Scripture.
I have been praying for the past few weeks that God would bring a dramatic change to the college and career class that I teach on Sunday mornings. I wanted so badly for this Bible study to go so far beyond my knowledge and my teaching to a place that could only be explained by the power of God. However, week after week, the boring drudgery of me doing all the talking continued.
James 4: 2-3 comes to mind. I was asking for God's power in Sunday school, but I was not acknowledging his power in my own life.
Then, God showed up. Now, do I mean that God had been on vacation for the first half of the semester? To quote Paul, "by no means!" God had been here. God had not changed. What had changed was the way I was living and thinking about the Lord and his work in and through me. God got my attention, and I began to acknowledge his Lordship over my life.
He changed my perspective, ignited my passion, and provided a very direct and practical answer to my prayer.
Prayer works. I promise. More importantly, God promises.
