Anxiety still managing to make its way into your daily life, even though you have been crying out to Jesus? What else can we do, besides turn off the television and cry out to Jesus to help us manage the chaos we are experiencing? The writer to the Hebrews encourages us to go before God with confidence with the expectation that we will receive exactly what we need when we need it (specific grace). Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace , that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need - Heb 4:16 (KJV); Let us with (privilege ) approach the throne of grace (that is God's gracious favor) with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy (for our failures) and find (His amazing ) grace to help in time of need (an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment)-Heb 4:16 AMP. We are urged to go to the throne of grace to receive what Jesus has already ordered and prepared for us. We can go boldly before the throne of grace when we start to feel anxious and overwhelmed because we have a Great High Priest who ever lives to make intercession for us: but on the other hand, Jesus holds His priesthood permanently and without change, because He lives on forever. Therefore He is able also to save forever (completely, perfectly, for eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede and intervene on their behalf (with God) - Heb 7:24-25 AMP. Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an High Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens - Heb 8:1. . When life overwhelms us we are to look up to the throne of grace, knowing that Jesus has cried out and is crying out on our behalf, and is praying for us, and has already secured, and prepared the grace and mercy needed for our situation. His prayers for us are not general ones, like Father bless them, or like the ones we often pray for people when they ask us to pray for them. His prayers for us are not only specific but they are sympathetic. For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted (knowing exactly how it feels to be human) in every respect as we are, yet without (committing any) sin - Heb 4:15 AMP. In other words, Jesus knows exactly how to pray for us because He has been through and felt all the things we are going through and are feeling? Yes He too felt forsaken by the Father, as He cried out My God My God why hast thou forsaken me? So He knows how we feel and He knows how to pray for us. Jesus' earthly life and ministry prepared Him for His heavenly ministry of Great High Priest. He became flesh and experienced uncertainty, anxiety, stress so that when He returned to heaven He could pray for us because He knows how it feels to be anxious. So no matter what we are feeling, anxious, forsaken, angry, confused or whatever, we have to drag ourselves, if need be, to the throne of grace looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. He will pour out the mercy and grace needed to make it through another day. Honestly some days I am so empty, I have to crawl to the throne, but I always receive the mercy for my failures and grace that has been custom designed for my dilemmas. crawling to the throne, Diane p.s. practice going to throne with the expectation to receive, everything you need to make it. As we put our full trust and belief in the power, trustworthiness and reliability of the Lord Jesus Christ, we gain confidence for the journey. Not only are we are confident because He who hath begun a good work in us shall continue to perform until the day of Jesus Christ ( Phil 1:6), we can also have confidence when we pray: And this is the confidence that we have in Him,that if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: And we if we know that He heareth us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him (I John 5:14-15). We can pray with confidence because the Lord hears us, the Holy Spirit helps us, our High Priest intercedes for us, and our hearts our kept by His peace. Today let's begin praying with confidence knowing that the Lord hears us.. Have there been times when you prayed wondering if God is even listening? Ever been tempted to stop praying because you don't feel any better, or because nothing seems to change? It is easy to doubt and to become discouraged, but don't ever stop praying, keep talking to Him because He hears us. Every time we cry out to God we can cry out with confidence and assurance because He sees our affliction and hears our cries. In my distress (when seemingly closed in) I called upon the Lord and cried to my God; He heard my voice out of His temple (heavenly dwelling place), and my cry came before Him, into His (very) ears - Ps 18:6 AMP. I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry - Ps 40:1 AMP. I love the Lord, because He hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because He hath inclined His ear unto me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live - Ps 116:1-2. When we cry out to God He inclines (bends) His ear toward us. Picture God the Father in heaven pulling His ear forward so that He can give our cries His undivided attention. I am sure that is why David wrote: I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out out of all his troubles - Ps 34:4,6. We pray with confidence because the Lord hears us. Our cries go into His ears, so we must keep praying. praying with confidence, Diane p.s. this week when you pray envision the Lord leaning forward and bending His ear as your cries go into His ears. ,Have you been properly caring for your soul this week? Peeking into it so you are aware of what's in it, and pouring it out to the Lord so that He can heal what ails it? Trust in Him at all times ye people, pout out your heart before Him: God is a refuge - Ps 62:8. The Lord is my shepherd...He restoreth my soul - Ps23:1a,3a. When we pour out our souls, crying out to God in faith, not only does He hear us, but He also provides the needed nurture and healing for our souls: This pour man cried and the Lord heard him and save him out of all his troubles - Ps 34:6; Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you - IPeter 5:7. It is so important to make it a daily habit to pour out before the Lord all of the negative emotions, reactions and energy that we have stored in our souls so that one, we don't lash out at someone else. Remember pour out so that you don't lash out: ...For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh - Matt 12:34b. Secondly, we need to pour out so that daily the Lord can pour into us. As we honestly and by faith (believing He hears us and will care for us) cry out to God, pouring out the anger, bitterness, shame and irritation, He begins to pour in His joy and peace. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. Imagine God with a pitcher of joy in one hand and a pitcher filled with peace in the other, pouring each into our souls. The Holy Ghost takes the belief we have and stirs it up with that joy and peace and it turns into hope. God's joy and peace when mixed with our belief makes hope through the power of the Holy Ghost. Hope begins to bubble up in our soul in abundance, so now we are overflowing and sharing hope with others: out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. pouring out so He can pour in, Diane p.s. keep talking to Jesus, pouring out without pretense, realizing we don't have to pretend we are something we are not. Believe that He hears your cries and will make you whole. How are you today? Sometimes we hit a rough stretch on this journey. We look up and wonder how in the world did we get here, and before we know it discouragement has set in. Discouragement left unchecked can lead to despair. Despair is a state of hopelessness. ( We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair: Persecuted but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed -II Cor 4:8-9). No matter how bad things may seem we are never without hope. We serve the God of all hope, yet at times we grow faint and find that we have to fight through discouragement . When discouragement begins to track us down on this journey, the first thing we need to do is run to the Lord to pour out our hearts before Him (Trust in Him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us - Ps 62:8). The Lord is our safe place where we can cry out in honesty to let Him know how we feel. We don't have to pretend. We can share exactly what is on our hearts, trusting Him with our disappointments, hurts, failures and the things that depress us. As we cast our cares upon Him, He demonstrates His lovingkindness and cares for us. After we have run to the Lord and poured out our hearts, the second thing that helps us fight through discouragement is to remember His past faithfulness to us (This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul: therefore will I hope in Him - Lam 3:21-24). Remembering how the Lord has kept and delivered us in the past helps us to have hope in the midst of our current circumstances. Once we have run to the Lord and poured our hearts, and we have remembered His past faithfulness, it's time rejoice in praise (Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance - Ps 42:5) and ( But I will hope continually, and yet praise thee more - Ps 71:14). Praise has the ability to change our very countenance (Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous: for praise is comely to the upright - Ps 33:1). In other words, praise looks good on us! We have to learn to rejoice in praise even if when we start out we don't feel like it. When we lift Him up, He has a way of lifting us up. When discouragement comes alongside of us we: run to the Lord to pour our hearts, remember His past faithfulness, and rejoice in praise; then we find hope and not despair. Our hope is not normal hope. Normal hope is associated with a degree of uncertainty, almost like the one using the word is saying: wow I would like to believe its going turn out that way but I'm not sure. Hope has become synonymous with the word wish. Our hope, however, is not a "I'm not sure but " kind of hope. It is not a "that's what I'm wishing for " kind of hope. Our hope is a confident expectation that God is going to come through for us. We don't put our hope in things but our hope (confidence) is in a Person - Jesus, the God of hope (Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost - Rom 15:13) . Biblical hope looks forward in the midst of a not so good situation with expectation, confidence, excitement, joy and peace because it knows the Lord is going to change things. (It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord - Lam 3:26). Discouraged? Let's run to the Lord, remember His faithfulness and rejoice in praise! Not in despair, Diane p.s. this week the moment you sense any type of discouragement practice running to the Lord and pouring out your heart before Him |
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