A Prayer Idea

/ danny777 / 2 Comments

Here is something we can all try.  In E.M. Bounds book The Complete Book of Prayer, he quotes a gentleman that has a great “tactic” of prayer.  I think it would do our community and world good if we employed something similar.

Sir Thomas Browne wrote, “I purpose to take occasion of praying upon the sight of any church which I may pass, that God may be worshipped there in spirit, and that souls may be saved there; to pray daily for my sick patients and the patients of other physicians; at my entrance into any home to say, “May the peace of God dwell here;” after hearing a sermon, to pray for a blessing on God’s truth…upon the sight of a deformed person, to pray God to give them wholeness of soul, and by an by to give them the beauty of the resurrection.”

We should put these things into practice.  It reminds me of what the Apostle Paul said, “Pray without ceasing”.

Is God Enough?

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The Levites labored for the Lord nearly night and day.  They were in charge of the tabernacle and its service.  To be a Levite was not an easy labor job.  It was often a hard task considering they sacrificed animals daily.  It was not for the weak stomached. 

In the book of Joshua, Joshua is dividing the land for the Israelites inheritance.  One tribe would get one place, another would get another piece of choice land.  What did the Levites inherit?  Nothing physical!

Here these great men, served the Lord daily and administered the rites of worship, yet they inherited nothing…well, nothing but GOD!

Joshua 13:33 records, “But to the tribe of Levi Moses had given no inheritance; the LORD God of Israel was their inheritance, as He had said to them.”

The Levites had no inheritance but God Himself!  I believe God is enough for them and for us!  So often, we think in terms of a temporal blessing or inheritance.  I would rather have God Himself than a piece of land!  God is more than enough.

So, what do you long for?
Are you in a pursuit for more?

Chasing dreams and buying possessions
Even climbing the ladder of your profession

What is it you live for?
Is it this constant pursuit of more?

Not more of God, but more things
Filling our treasures for that is our dream

Why do we do this? Why do we pursue?
The wrong things daily, that won’t satisfy you.

A little of this, a little of that
So people will envy the place you are at

Is it stuff we are after or the position we can have?
Is it prestige we long for and the recognition we can grab?

In light of eternity, does this really matter?
When life is over, can we take it to the hereafter?

Is it the temporal things that we truly love?
Or would you say, “that God Himself is enough?”

-Danny Cheney-

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

Are you in control?

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Who is in control of your life?

Some may be thinking about their boss on the job, their spouse at home, or even, in some families, it might be the kids.  The question, however, is directed to the spiritual aspects of your life.  Are you in control or is God in control?

As human beings, we like to be in charge…in control of our own lives.  We don’t like to live our life for someone else.  We may think, “It is my life I can do as I please.”  That statement is true.  You can do whatever you please, but we should be doing what pleases God not us.

The fall of man came because man did what was pleasing to himself.  In fact, Satan fell from Heaven because he wanted to live his own life.  We were born into sin because of what Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden.  We now have to endure the tempting of the pride of life.  We have to suppress our desire to live a life of our own will.

John the Baptist said, “That I may decrease so He can increase.”

What a powerful statement!  This sums up the whole definition of surrender.  As a child of God, we know longer seek to live for our own wills but God’s will.  We should seek to die to ourselves, our plans, our own agendas, our pleasures and take up God’s life and plans.

Man’s problems today can all be traced to the fact that people do not want to give up any part of themselves to God.  Christians have a hard time laying down their pride, to submit to the leadership of God.  We can say that we love God.  We can work for His kingdom.  We can pray and read our Bible and still not be submitted to Him.

How can you tell when someone has surrendered to God?  Humility and servant hood.  They humble themselves and care nothing about who gets credit for their service.  They lay down the pleasures of this life so that they can walk in God’s life.  Evidence of a surrendered Christian is seen in the reflection of Christ in the believer.  They don’t tout spirituality they just walk in Christ’s love.

Surrender your life to Christ.  Give up everything to Him.  Quit worrying about what God can do for you and think of what you can do for Him.  Lay down your pleasures, your will and all that is in you and walk in humility.  God blesses those who are surrendered to Him. 

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

Simple Prayer

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In my devotional reading, I stumbled upon a great verse in Psalms.  It is a simple prayer that David prayed in the midst of his declaration.  Psalm 68 is a psalm of praise to God.  It declares God’s provision of deliverance and victory.  It is an offering of worship for an all-powerful God who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or even imagine. 

As David recounts God’s power and justice, he prays, “Summon your might, O God. Display your power, O God, as you have in the past..”  (Psalm 68:28 NLT)

I like that wording, “summons your might”.  A summons is a calling by an authority to show something.  The Psalmist prays, “God You have the authority to summons, show us your power.”  As I read that portion of Psalm 68 I couldn’t help but think about how powerful a simple prayer can be.  “Summons your power, the power by which you have worked for us.”  David was praying, “Lord, show us your power, the power, you have worked so many times before.”

This ought to be the cry of our heart.  A cry for God to reveal Himself in the power of the early church.  The power that is revealed in the words of the Holy Scriptures.  My prayer is as David’s, “O God, we need your power.  You have worked it before, work it again.”

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

What In The World?

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What in the world is going on?
Where is God? Is He still on His throne?

The world around us is in turmoil, in great despair
Has He forsaken us, doesn’t He even care?

Wars, famines, disasters are all around
If you listen closely, in the distance you hear a sound

What could it be that our ears seem to behold?
Could it be Jesus coming back for His fold?

Does God care about this world anymore?
The signs we see are God knocking on our heart’s door

The things that our eyes are gazing on
Reveal His mercy to us before this world is gone

The pages of the Word reveal the times in which we live
For this reason, His Son, God willingly did give

It is His mercy that has held Him back so very long
Through His blood, He will return for His ransomed throng

Look up, look up! For our redemption draweth nigh
How long? How long? Until He splits the eastern sky?

This may be the day, this may be the hour
His Son, Jesus, will be revealed with great power

We do not know the day or even the time
But we must repent of all the sins in our life

If it be today, tomorrow or even many years
If our heart is right, there is no need to fear

-Danny Cheney-

 

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

Life Begins

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Last week, I visited my parents in Houston. One afternoon, my mom showed me an old loose-leaf notebook with recipes in it. It was a small black notebook that held recipes from my grandparents. Seemingly out of place was a quote from the great poet, Tennyson and a hand-written page containing, what I am assuming was thought from my grandfather.

On this page, written in red ink, he expounded on where life begins. It resonated with me, because it was as if it was written just for me. He has been gone a long time and I am not sure when this was written, but it was certainly for me in 2022. (Maybe it is written for you as well)

Life Begins

Of all the stupid, silly, useless, inexcusable habits – Regret is the tops.

Check up on yourself sometime and you’ll be astonished how much time is wasted in trying or wishing to undo something that is all finished beyond recall.

Regret is an enemy, and a very persistent one, as well as, a great time consumer.

Regret is useless – you can’t make things unhappen.

The only thing that binds you to an unhappy or unfortunate past is your own regret. Nobody else is going to care much about it.

The past is a closed chapter. The future is full of opportunities and possibilities, no matter whether you are forty or eighty.

Life begins at the very moment you cease to live in the past.

This is a challenge to all of us. The choices we have made in the past, are in the past. You cannot undo bad choices, but you can make a decision to make good choices in the future.

Philippians 3:13-14, “13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, 14 I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” CSB

If you are always looking back, you will never see what is ahead. Press on. Move forward. Let go of regrets and live.

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

The Mask

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I have shared this before, but as I continue to watch the lives of hurting people, it is more relevant today than ever. Most of us have a mask we wear. Hiding what is really lying on the inside of our hearts. To be free, we must remove the mask and the only way we can be free is through Jesus Christ. He heals what is behind the masks we wear.

I read this poem on Sunday. I pray it ministers to you today and causes you to think. Let Jesus have all the pain you are carrying on the inside. Cast your cares on Him for He cares for you.

The Mask
Please don’t ask
What’s behind the veil
No one can really tell

What am I hiding?
Why am I crying?
What is it that I cannot tell?
The Mask
Please don’t ask

What I am covering up?
Why I have had enough
Enough of the pain
Why is it always the same?
My sin holds me down
In it I am going to drown

The Mask
Since you had to ask
Shows me all smile
When behind it all the while
Is my hurt, my toil, my shame
On the inside is nothing but pain

The Mask
Please don’t ask
I can’t take it off
It’s all my fault
I drowned my pain with sin
I can’t get free within
The Mask

The Mask
It only hides the void in my soul
I need someone else to take control
Is there a savior? is there a God?
Who on my soul will not trod?
But take my pain, take my hurt
Take my sin and give me some worth

The Mask
Jesus I ask
Take my life, take all of me
Heal my pain so I can finally see
This person behind the mask

-Danny Cheney-

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.

Hungry For God

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When I have a little free time in the office, I generally take a look back at some things that have impacted my life.  Years ago, my grandfather was in ministry and carried a loose-leaf Bible with sermon notes inside of it.  I enjoy reading through these notes to see if I can glean anything from his words of wisdom.

In his sermon on a passage in Ezekiel, he made an insightful statement that cut me to the heart.  “Remember, if you are hungry, you are healthy.  Hunger is a sign of health and if you have no hunger for God, you are sick.  May God create in us an appetite which only Jesus can satisfy. Down, Christian, down on your knees, if you want the blessing that God will give to you.”

Are you hungry for God?  If you are not hungry your spiritual life is sick.  The only remedy for hunger is to take the path to blessing.  On our knees is the place to find hunger.  On our knees is the place to have our hunger satisfied.

In this life we have so many things competing for our affections. It is hard to keep our hearts hungry for more of God.  If you find yourself in a place where you are not hungry for Him, you need healing from your spiritual sickness.  God will place in you a hunger if you will only ask Him.  May we hunger for the Bread of Life!

Grab a copy of my latest book, Worry Less. WORRY FREE.