FFH - Found A Place - Devotional #8

Unleashing Heaven
by Michael Boggs

Read Matthew 21:21-22

When I was a little boy my mother would always wake me up on Sunday morning, at what seemed like the crack of dawn, to tell me that breakfast was ready and that I needed to hurry up and get dressed for church. After breakfast she would buckle my sister and me into our 1986 tan Buick Regal and off to church we went. As soon as we arrived at church I would run up the steps to my Sunday school class where I knew all my buddies were waiting, and we would play until it was time for class to start. My Sunday School teacher was one of the greatest men in the whole world, and to this day I believe he had a strong impact on my life. I can't honestly say that I remember everything he taught on those days, or that I remember exactly who was in my class, but there is one thing that will remain etched in my mind for life. At the beginning of class our teacher would always ask us if we had any prayer requests. Even as a child, I wasn't afraid to open my mouth. So every Sunday I would raise my hand and ask special prayer for my dad who didn't go to church. I was probably only about 9 or 10 years old then, but I can honestly remember bowing my head and praying that prayer for my Father in that old country classroom in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. About five years later my dad began to turn his life around and he started attending church regularly with our family. Shortly thereafter he got saved in our very own living room.

Application

The application here is simpleprayer changes things. It causes heaven to intercede here on earth in a special way and lives to be eternally altered. That's why so often we read about Jesus going away to lonely places to pray. He knew the power of prayer. That's why he teaches us in the Gospels exactly how to pray. (see Luke 11:2) James tells us later in the New Testament that the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. When we get on our knees God unleashes the power of heaven to work His will on earth. I have seen first hand the effects of prayer in my life and in the lives of the people closest to me. Even in the ministry of FFH, we consistently see the Lord answer our prayers.
Every night, before we take the stage, we ask the Lord to come in a special way to soften hearts and change lives, and He does - consistently! So why aren't there more stories like this? Because we don't ask for them. James 4:2-3 says, "You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." As you go about your routine this week be in an attitude of prayer. Remember the words of Paul to the Thessalonians "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1Thes 5:16-19)

Prayer

"Dear Lord Jesus, help me to communicate better with You. Help me to remember that prayer changes things and to go to you with all my needs and cares. Help me to understand how effective prayer is and how it changes my life and the lives of others."

For further thought and discussion

1. How much time a day am I spending in prayer? Is it enough?

2. What are some specific needs I that know the Lord wants me to pray for regularly?


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