MEM

The past two issues looked at Prayer in the first covenant and then in the covenant with Yeshua (Jesus). Now let us look at some model examples of prayer from the Scriptures.

Never underestimate the power of prayer - we all have access to the power given Elijah to call fire from heaven to reignite faith in the hearts of mankind. Our words spoken on behalf of those in need can bring a spirit of light to their path. Do not hesitate to call on the Highest power in the spiritual realm to help in the time of need, not only for ourselves but also for those around us.

2Chr 7:13 If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, 14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Lu 18:13 But the tax-gatherer, standing some distance away…'God, be merciful to me, the sinner!'

Yeshua (Jesus)

Mt 5:44 (NAS unless indicated) "But I say to you… pray for those who persecute you,

Mt 6: 9 "Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen .'

Matt 7:7 "Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.

Yeshua’s Prayer for us [read in its entirety in Chapter 17]

John 17:1 These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee, 2 even as Thou gavest Him authority over all mankind, that to all whom Thou hast given Him, He may give eternal life. 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.

John 17:9 "I ask on their behalf…

John 17:11 "… Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, the name which Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, even as We are.

John 17:15 "I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. 6 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth.

John 17:20 "I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

John 17:26 and I have made Thy name known to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith Thou didst love Me may be in them, and I in them."

Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed… they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

Ac 8:15 …and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.

Ac 12:5 So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God.

2Co 13:7 Now we pray to God that you do no wrong; …

2Co 13:9 … we also pray for, that you be made complete.

Ac 16:25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them;

Ro 8:26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groaning’s too deep for words;

1Co 14:15 What is the outcome then? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also…

Eph 1:18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

Php 1:9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment,

Col 1:9 … to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

Jas 5:13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray…

Exod 32:11 Then Moses entreated the LORD his God, and said, "O LORD, why doth Thine anger burn against Thy people whom Thou hast brought out from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, 'With evil intent He brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth'? Turn from Thy burning anger and change Thy mind about doing harm to Thy people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Thy servants to whom Thou didst swear by Thyself, and didst say to them, 'I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heavens, and all this land of which I have spoken I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.'"

Exod 32:14 So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people.

Jas 5:17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Amos 7:2 … I said, "Lord God, please pardon! How can Jacob stand, For he is small?" 3 The LORD changed His mind about this. "It shall not be," said the LORD. 4 Thus the Lord God showed me, and behold, the Lord God was calling to contend with them by fire, and it consumed the great deep and began to consume the farm land. 5 Then I said, "Lord God, please stop! How can Jacob stand, for he is small?" 6 The LORD changed His mind about this. "This too shall not be," said the Lord God.

1Ti 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

Lu 21:36 "… praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."

Lu 18:1 …that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart,

Php 4:6 … let your requests be made known to God.

1Pe 3:12 "…AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER…"

Matt 26:41 "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."

Mark 13: 33 Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.

Phil 1:9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment,

2Thess 1:11 Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power,

1Tim 2:8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;

Yeshua prayed and told us to pray - the Apostles prayed and told us to pray and to pray for one another.

Proverbs 2:1 My son, if you will receive my sayings, And treasure my commandments within you, 2 Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; 3 For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; 4 If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; 5 Then you will discern the fear of the LORD, And discover the knowledge of God.

"My child, I am the Lord Who gives strength in the day of trouble. Come to Me when all is not well with you. Your tardiness in turning to prayer is the greatest obstacle to heavenly consolation, for before you pray earnestly to Me you first seek many comforts and take pleasure in outward things. Thus, all things are of little profit to you until you realize that I am the one Who saves those who trust in Me, and that outside of Me there is no worth-while help, or any useful counsel or lasting remedy." ― Thomas ΰ Kempis, The Imitation of Christ

Matthew 26:40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping… 41 Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."

"May you never sacrifice the many blessings God has for you for temporary pleasure. I pray you have divine wisdom, always able to discern the forces of darkness that wage war against your soul. May you live with strong conviction by the power of God, knowing you are set apart for His divine purpose. I pray you will rest in His everlasting love and see all His promises come to pass in your life because of your obedience. Amen

Matt 25:21 NLT The master was full of praise. 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together!'

I pray you will be faithful in all you do. No matter how small a task, may you do it in excellence, because your heavenly Father is watching. He wants you to be faithful with the little things so you can be prepared for the big ones. I pray you will be blessed for your faithfulness with what little you have and be given much more as a reward. May you truly be called a good and faithful servant of the Lord.

Gen 18:17 And the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18 since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? 19 For I have chosen him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice; in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him."

Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, "The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. 21 I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know."

Gen 18:22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the LORD. 23 And Abraham came near and said, "Wilt Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 Far be it from Thee to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from Thee! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?"

Gen 18:26 So the LORD said, "If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account."

Gen 18:27 And Abraham answered and said, "Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes. 28 Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five, wilt Thou destroy the whole city because of five?" And He said, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." 29 And he spoke to Him yet again and said, "Suppose forty are found there?" And He said, "I will not do it on account of the forty." 30 Then he said, "Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak; suppose thirty are found there?" And He said, "I will not do it if I find thirty there." 31 And he said, "Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord; suppose twenty are found there?" And He said, "I will not destroy it on account of the twenty." 32 Then he said, "Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?" And He said, "I will not destroy it on account of the ten."

Can we pray as Abraham? What faith, what trusting, what willingness to go the extra mile for others.

Most all the Psalms are some sort of prayer / praise. They are a trusting vocalization of heart felt communing with YHVH (The LORD). Reading thru the Psalms gives one a sense of a loving relation we can have with our Creator - a way of casting our burdens, woes and concerns upon the One that will hear and respond.

Examples from some of the Psalms:

Ps 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; 24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.

Ps 10:17 O LORD, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble; Thou wilt strengthen their heart, Thou wilt incline Thine ear 18 To vindicate the orphan and the oppressed…

Ps 143:1 Hear my prayer, O LORD, Give ear to my supplications! Answer me in Thy faithfulness, in Thy righteousness!

Ps 143:2 And do not enter into judgment with Thy servant, For in Thy sight no man living is righteous.

Ps 143:6 I stretch out my hands to Thee; My soul longs for Thee, as a parched land. Selah.

Ps 143:7 Answer me quickly, O LORD, my spirit fails; Do not hide Thy face from me, Lest I become like those who go down to the pit.

Ps 143:8 Let me hear Thy lovingkindness in the morning; For I trust in Thee; Teach me the way in which I should walk; For to Thee I lift up my soul.

Ps 143:9 Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies; I take refuge in Thee.

Ps 143:10 Teach me to do Thy will, For Thou art my God; Let Thy good Spirit lead me on level ground.

Ps 143:11 For the sake of Thy name, O LORD, revive me. In Thy righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.

Ps 145:8 The LORD is gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness. 9 The LORD is good to all, And His mercies are over all His works. 10 All Thy works shall give thanks to Thee, O LORD, And Thy godly ones shall bless Thee. 11 They shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom, And talk of Thy power; 12 To make known to the sons of men Thy mighty acts, And the glory of the majesty of Thy kingdom.

A study conducted by Swansea University for the British group Faith Matters has found that UK citizens are increasingly interested in Islam, with the number of converts to Islam nearly doubling in 10 years. An estimated total of 100,000 have converted to Islam, 5,200 of them in 2010.

In 2001, it was estimated that 60,000 British citizens had converted to Islam.

Of the most recent converts, two-thirds are women. Most are white and native to Britain. The average age of new converts is 27.

One in four believe there is a "natural conflict" between being devoutly Muslim and being a British citizen. More than half said they had met with a negative response from family regarding their conversion.

When asked what they believe to be the negative aspects of British society, the converts cited alcohol consumption, "sexual permissiveness," and "unrestrained consumerism."

Similar studies in France and Germany found that approximately 4,000 people convert to Islam each year in both countries...

How much of yourself do you engage when you pray? For God’s Word tells you to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. For it is possible to pray without being fully engaged. Do you want your prayers to be effective? His Word says that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Fervent prayers are not offered while you are distracted. They occur when you are intently focused and involve your mind, will, and emotions, even the position of your body. This is a demanding task, but you have His promise that if you are fully engaged in prayer, your prayers will be effective.

(Adopted from a blog post by Dale Cresap)

Ps 55:16 As for me, I will call upon God, And the LORD shall save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, And He shall hear my voice. 18 He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, For there were many against me.

Blessed be YHVH (Genesis 14:20 And blessed be God Most High…)