Day 48: The Great I AM
What a blessing it is to speak to the Force of the Universe- the One who said “Let there be light” and from nothing came into existence the sun, a force so powerful that we can’t even look at with the naked eye.You know we live in a phy
sical world where we are limited as to what we see, what we know, and even what we understand as to how we exist. For example, the human body is made of billions of cells, each having their own characteristics and all working together, allowing the body to operate and function so that we may live. This magnificent body is put together between every cell by the great “I AM” and we will never know, in this world, how it could have happened.When I try to grasp in my mind who or what God is, or when I try to expand my mind to understand how big, powerful, and intelligent God is...well, words can’t even come close to describe how great He is!
With all that said, the message I am trying to send is that we can speak to the Eternal Existence, and He not only hears, but He sees us and connects with us through our minds.
It would excite me to have a personal conversation with a prominent figure such as a president or a leader of another country and know that they would listen to me. How much more exciting should it be to know we can speak with the Creator, and He cares about what we have to say and even responds!
Stay excited about prayer and know Who you are talking to!
Written by Derek McBroom, a deacon at Mt. Juliet
Day 47: Resolve to Pray
With the new year a
pproaching, it can only mean one thing- resolutions. To some people, it’s a beautiful word with the opportunity to start on a new goal, hobby, or life style. While to others, it means it’s time to face the facts and “commit” to changes we know will only last a few weeks. But what if as Christians we all took the resolution this year to pray that the Lord will make us productive workers in His Kingdom?In the closing verses of Matthew 9, we see Jesus moved with compassion. Then, in a very somber, yet poetic sense, relates the people to the coming harvest. He tells His disciples in Matthew 9:37-38, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Also in John 4:35 He states: “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest?’ Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white with harvest.”
What a beautiful scene of opportunity- knowing that they are souls in the world waiting for us to go and bring them in! What an even more beautiful picture- the sight when those people receive the Word of God, allow it to grow in and change their life, and then ultimately put on the Lord in baptism. Scripture is full of references for us to be the ones to go and plant, water, and care for the seed we plant in each other's lives. This year, let’s not wait a few months before we begin our spiritual resolutions. Rather, start on them today, praying for the Lord to be able to use us as faithful productive workers in His Vineyard.
Written by Matt Brown, a college student at Mt. Juliet
Day 46: When Prayer Works
Last
semester, many of us students started praying the prayer of Jabez in 1 Chronicles. It was our theme for the semester with our social club, and I really wanted to test this confident and aggressive way to pray to God. God started opening so many doors and giving so many opportunities to grow that I lost my faith in Him! I started controlling things on my own that I would have previously trusted God with because I had more things happening than ever before. My world was bigger than ever before because of God, and I forgot Him in the hugeness.Prayer of a seasoned Christian is a conscious realization that you can’t live without God. When my prayers mean little to me is the time that I am living life without God. These are the times when I am taking opportunities on my own shoulders and walking through doors in front of Christ, instead of taking His yoke (Matthew 11:29-30) and following his steps (John 21:19).
The thing about prayer is that it works. The hardest thing for me is when it works and I have to grow my world and my outreach from it.
A couple months ago I realized I had lost real faith in God from distrust, and I have been praying and studying ever since to regain our relationship.
Real prayer takes real faith, because real prayer is God in the process of controlling our life.
May God give faith to those that feel hopeless and trust to those in complete control.
Day 45: Retreat to Pray
Prayer is our direct line of communication with God. Jesus, our ultimate example, prayed very often. In the gospels, we see that He would retreat from everyone around Him for the express purpose of talking to the Father. When was the last time you withdrew from everything else going on in your life to pray?In Matthew 6, we read about people who pray to be seen. Jesus calls these people hypocrites (vs. 5). By no means is praying in public a bad thing, but it is important that we pray for the right reason and that we are sincere. Under the old covenant, they were doing the right thi
ngs, but they were focusing on the action instead of the meaning behind the action. The resounding theme of the New Testament is that the sound doctrine and sincerity of heart is what really matters.
In order to receive our reward, we must be sincere in our Christianity. These hypocrites had already received their reward (vs. 5). God does not reward selfishness or vanity. God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7), and He is looking for people to worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).
In teaching the believers how to pray, Jesus references how the Gentiles “heap up empty phrases.” (Matthew 6:7) Do we use empty words today? It would be hard to argue that we don’t at least repeat phrases on a regular basis. Sometimes it seems like we hear the same prayers every week. We have grown accustomed to certain structures of prayer. It’s like we have Betty Crocker recipes for different prayers (i.e. opening, communion, offering, closing, mealtime, etc.) There are also usually common threads that pop up in prayers. Phrases like, “nourish our body”, “guide, guard, and direct us”, “give back as we have been prospered”, etc. While these are all great things to petition God about, we have to ask ourselves if we have fallen into monotony.
Our prayers to God must be reverent, but they must also be personal. We are approaching the One who loves us most and knows exactly what we need. He should be our closest friend, and we should talk to Him and pour out our heart to Him just like we would our best friend on earth.
Consider Luke 6:12-16. The passage describes a time where Jesus had a very important decision to make. He was about to choose the twelve men that would be His apostles and closest friends for the rest of His time on earth. He knew they would have to be righteous, trustworthy men that would be steadfast in following His teachings after He left this earth. Before He made this important decision, He did something that we can all learn from. He withdrew from everyone and went to a mountain to pray. Not only did He pray, He continued in prayer all night. This says a lot about His fervor and dedication. Jesus made it a point to separate Himself from all distractions to pray.
Make it a point this week to set aside 10 minutes to separate yourself from all distractions. Go somewhere alone where it will be quiet and you won’t be disturbed or distracted by people, technology and other noise, and just talk to God. He already knows, but talk to Him about the things going on in your life. Ask Him to help you with your struggles and to ease your worries. Thank Him for the things that are going good in your life. Prayer is a powerful tool for Christians, but it cannot serve its purpose if we leave it at the church building between services.
Written by Timothy Thompson II, a college student at Mt. Juliet
Day 44: An Unselfish Prayer
“O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today…” (Nehemiah 1:11).After receiving word about how the walls of Jerusalem had been destroyed, Nehemiah mourned for days and continued fasting and praying. He prays to God, confessing the sins of Israel and of his own sins. He admits that he knows better than to live the way he has been living against the commands that God first gave to Moses. He acknowledges his mistakes and begs for God’s attention to hear his prayer.
What is so encouraging about the story of Nehemiah is that he has a plan for his people back home. He really had the choice of not doing anything about this problem, but decided to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem under God’s guidance in hopes to not only restore the land, but also the spiritual lives of people that desperately needed it.
What an example! An
example of a man who realized what he was capable of doing to fix a seemingly impossible problem. And what an honest commitment we see out of Nehemiah to do something like this. We see that he really felt the pain and distress of these people and decided to do something about it. I love how the scriptures do not lack to show his first method of action- prayer.
So don’t take my word for it- try it yourself! Bring your plans and intentions before God. Let him provide the opportunity if it is not already there. But we cannot do that under his guidance without first being engaged in communication with Him through prayer. Lets take time for a prayer today so we can help someone tomorrow.
Written by Michael Conatser, a college student at Mt. Juliet
Day 43: A 32 Second Prayer
N.B. Hard
eman began a Gospel meeting preaching on the topic of prayer. He stated because of the essentiality of prayer it would be an appropriate way to begin a meeting. It would be just as possible "to live physical life without breathing as it is to live spiritual life without prayer," Hardeman observed. Then he quoted the model prayer of our Lord deliberately slower as if he were praying. This brief prayer lasted 32 seconds, and he quipped, "If I were asked to lead a prayer and prayed only 32 seconds you would say, 'Hardeman ran out of soup!'" The content of prayer is much more important than the length of a prayer.Let us learn from this great preacher as he taught about our Master's prayer in Luke 11:2-4:
Reverence: "Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name."
Loyalty: "Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
Dependency: "Give us day by day our daily bread."
Forgiveness: "And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us."
Trust: "And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
Prayer is communing with God from our heart. Does your heart meditate on God's grandeur? Does your life prove loyal to God? Do you humbly recognize all good gifts are from God? Have you forgiven yourself and others? Do you follow Christ's will even when temptation allures you? If not, are you penitently seeking God's forgiveness? If we can answer "yes" to these we ought to be able to pray the model prayer. If we can't, maybe we need to repent and pray. It's impossible to live wrong and pray right! But it is essential to pray right to have spiritual life!
Written by David Shannon, preacher at Mt. Juliet
Day 42: Kneel
I remember going to church with school friends and seeing padded boards hinged at the bottom of pews. I was told that they were for prayer. It was new to me. Later in high school, I was visiting an older small congregation in the country, and I would see several of the men take a knee when the prayer was starting. In my youth, I thought “that’s kind of neat”. For many years they were just experiences of youth that you file away. Now I find that my prayers are better when I kneel. It started at a time when things in life were a burden I was unable to carry. I was overcome with worry and fatigue. I was beat down enough that I went to my knees.
As I study, I come to find those feelings reflected in scripture. In 1 Peter 4:7, we are to watch unto prayer that the coming end of all things should make us serious and prayerful. In 2 Chronicles 6:13, Solomon kneeled down before the whole assembly of Israel to pray. Daniel, in Daniel 6:10, continued to go into his house and kneel and pray after Darius signed the interdict. In Acts 7:60, Stephen while being stoned kneeled down and asked for forgiveness for those stoning him. In Acts 9:40, Peter kneeled down while healing Tabitha. Jesus, in the garden, kneeled in prayer preparing for His death (Luke 22:41). It appears that kneeling in prayer was a common practice. I know it has become part of my life in worship to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
“O come let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD our maker.” (Psalms 95:6)
Written by James Whiteaker, an elder at Mt. Juliet
Day 41: Faith Like a Child
“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ And he called a child to himself and set him before them, And said, ‘Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:1-4)What did Jesus mean by this passage?
Have
you ever watched a child pray? Or listened while a child prayed to God?The past couple weeks have been a blessing in my life. I have spent many nights at Casa de Hogar, a Children’s Home in Panama. I have gotten to know the children and have been reminded how quickly children can grow to love someone and accept someone. It didn’t take more than a day or two before they were hugging me, sitting in my lap, or inviting me to sit with them in worship or at meals.
One thing that jumped out at me quickly about these children was watching them pray. Many nights I eat supper with them, usually a bowl of rice and some chicken or meat. After that, we have a devotional. But watching the children over the past couple weeks, I have noticed something. Whenever any of them sit down to eat, each one will bow their head and pray. Without fail, they will give thanks to God before taking a bite.
This may not seem like a big deal to you. But it speaks volumes to me.
These are children who have come from severe poverty. In many cases they have been malnourished, neglected, or abused. I have no idea what each child’s spiritual or emotional background was when they moved into the Children’s Home.
But I do know this- besides getting three meals a day, plenty of water, plenty of love, their own bed, a roof over their head, and clothes on their backs at the Children’s Home, each child is taught about the love of God.
They are taught about the love of Jesus. They are taught to give thanks for every blessing they receive.
Proverbs 22:6- “Train up a child the way he should go, and in the end he will not depart from it.”
One can put a price on food, on shelter, and on clothes.
But one cannot put a price on love…on compassion….or on kindness.
And one certainly cannot put a price on changing someone’s eternal future. We can all say Amen to that.
Written by Phil Waggoner, Mt. Juliet Missionary in Latin America
Day 40: Requirements for Prayer
First, our prayers must be prayed in faith. James says we are to ask in prayer, and God will give liberally (James 1:5). Then he says “let him ask in faith, with no doubting…” (James 1:6). Jesus says in Matthew 21:22- “And whatsoever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” Without faith, our prayers will not be answered.A second requirement is that our life must be lived in humble obedience to God. John 15:7- “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire and it shall be done for you.” Christ wants us to continually abide in Him and His teachings to abide in us, and then He promises to answer prayers.
A third requirement for prayers is that it be offered according to God’s will. “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14. A great example of prayer according to God’s will is the prayer of Jesus when facing the cross. He prayed that the cup of suffering might pass from Him; “...nevertheless not as I will, but as You will” (Mark 14:36). We ask for what we feel is right, but we ought always to desire that God’s will be done.
“And whatever we ask we receive from Him because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.” (1 John 3:22)
Written by Albert England, an elder at Mt. Juliet
Day 39: Praying the Right Kind of Prayer
It is common thought that asking for “stuff” is the wrong kind of prayer. We don’t teach our kids to pray for new bicycles, game systems, or new cars. Instead, we teach them to say "thank you" for just about everything, to “pray for” specific people, and to ask for physical protection. Sometimes our prayers are very similar to those of our children, but what about Jesus? How did he pray? Let’s go to the garden on the Mount of Olives on that dark, late night before his arrest to listen and watch our Lord pray.The Bible says that Jesus was sorrowful, troubled, and greatly distressed (Matthew 26:38, Mark 14:33). His pain is emanating from his soul, meaning that it came from deep within; literally the life inside of him was hurting. In this kind of spirit, Jesus walks a stone’s throw away from His closest friends, falls on His
knees, and prays. He asks His father to “let this cup pass from me.” He uses the term “Abba, Father”, implying that this is a very personal conversation between the Son of God and His Father. He recognizes that it is in the power of God to grant His request (Mark 14:36), yet He ends His prayer saying that His true desire is to do the will of the Father. After this first prayer, He is still troubled. He lashes out at His friends for falling asleep and not praying, before returning a second time to pray. During this second period of prayer, an angel visits Jesus, giving him strength (Luke 22:43), but His agony is just as great causing Him to literally sweat blood. Notice, though, that His prayer changes: “Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42). After checking on His friends again, He prays for a third time the same words He prayed the second time, and after this prayer we can notice a major difference in His demeanor. This time He is ready. His mind is set. He wakes His friends and immediately faces His captors and betrayer. What happened when He was praying? It seems that the fervent, agonizing prayer helped Jesus align Himself, His desires, His wishes, His own will, with the will of the Father. At the beginning, He did not want to face the unfolding events, but by the end of His time in prayer He was ready and in full alignment with the will of God. It seems that the right kind of prayer helps us to give ourselves to God. It refines and works us until we are useful tools for Him to use in His ultimate, heavenly, and earthly wills. The right kind of prayer doesn’t blindly say “if it be your will.” Jesus knew what the Father’s will was that night, and most of the time we know what God wants from us, too. It just might take some agonizing prayer to bring us to that submissive point of obedience and sacrifice.
Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, Luke 22:39-46
Written by Nick Fowler, Mt. Juliet Missionary to Belem, Brazil
Day 38: Prayers Doing Work
“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16) This is probably the most quoted scripture about prayer in the entire Bible. If we are not careful, commonly quoted verses like this one may seem to lose their power. I urge you to consider the claim made here as if you were reading it for the first time. Do you really believe that when you live rightly before God, your prayers can do great things? Making a statement about prayer is one thing, but this claim is immediately followed by an awesome example.“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 land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit." (James 5:17-18)
Wow! We may sometimes feel discouraged from praying for hard things from God because we think our requests are too ambitious. Rest assured that the God who created the universe can do whatever you ask, and he WILL do what is best for you when you ask (Matthew 7:8-
11).I have heard this verse from the time I was young, and always thought that the way it was translated- “effective” prayer “availing much”- was a bit redundant. I looked up the original Greek word that is rendered “effective” in this passage. It comes from the same root word for “energy”, or “the ability to do work.” We can and should understand that prayers can do work.
Notice the words “effective” (full of energy), “fervent”, and “earnestly” used in these passages to describe this kind of prayer. There is a time and a place to truly pour your heart out to God. “A man with a nature like ours”, if he prays in this manner, and in righteousness, will avail much.
Written by Alan Cantrell, a senior at Mt. Juliet High School
Day 37: Pray Big
As individuals, we can be timid when it comes to prayer. Maybe we don’t want to ask too much of God, so we play it safe and ask for only a few things. Maybe we don’t want to sound greedy, so we knock out a quick ten second prayer and get to bed. Maybe we are scared of prayer. Do we believe it works? Does God really hear us? We don’t want to overburden God, so we choose to pray small, pray quick, or just not pray at all. After all, it is easier that way and nobody has to know. But what would happen if we challenged ourselves and our God? What if we stopped praying small? What if we started praying big? What would change in our lives?1 Chronicles 4:10—“And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.”
How does the prayer o
f Jabez differ from the prayers we pray? Jabez holds nothing back, he prays and prays big. It's okay to ask God for big things. Ask God to bless your life so you can have the means to bless others. Ask God to give you opportunities to serve him in ways that you can’t imagine. Ask God to be with you and keep evil from you. It's okay to ask for these things! If it weren't, God would not have granted Jabez what he requested. When we pray, we pray to a God who has the ability to answer our prayer, no matter how great or small. Our God is a big God. After all, He made us, He is the one that gives us the ability to pray. Don’t be scared or timid to ask God for things. He wants that contact with us, He desires our prayers. Pray Big.Written by Matt Collins, a college student at Mt. Juliet
Day 36: When God Says, "No"...
No one likes to be told, "No." It's just part of who we are. From the time we are small children, we grow very accustomed to having what we want when we want it. Our society spoon-feeds us the idea that we deserve instant gratification with everything. We see something we want, decide we need it, and do whatever it takes to obtain it.This mindset sometimes bleeds over to our spiritual life. We can be guilty of treating God like a magic genie. We pray like we're at a spiritual ATM. We see an opportunity or a "thing" that we think will make our lives better, and we pray to God and ask Him to drop it on our front doorstep. Sometimes, if it's in His will, He grants our requests. Other times, however, He says, "No." Those two little letters can sometimes crush our spirits.
So what is the secret of dealing with an answer that is different than what we thought we wanted/needed/deserved? It all boils down to one word, and we see that word lived out in the lives of three individuals who all were given "No" answers.
- David: Because of sin with Bathsheba, God informs Him via the prophet Nathan that their child would die. David pleads for the life of his son, but God denies His request.
- Paul: Given a thorn in the flesh to keep his pride in check, he asks God three times to take it away. Instead, God gives Him something else.
- Jesus: pleads with His Father in the Garden of Gethsemane to let the "cup" of suffering He was about to endure pass from Him. God's masterful plan, however, still leads to Golgotha and the tomb.
Trust.
David, Paul, and Jesus all responded in trust to the answers they received. David committed the rest of his life to God, Paul used his answer to magnify Jesus to others, and Jesus demonstrated ultimate obedience.
We may not always understand or agree with the answer that we're given in prayer, but we can always trust- that God loves us, that God has a plan for our lives, that God is in control, and that God can make good come out of any and every situation we face.
May we continue to pray sincerely, boldly, and with faith. But may we also simply choose to trust in the answer we're given, even when the answer is "No."
Written by Jonathan Pettus, Involvement Minister at Mt. Juliet
Day 35: Instant Access
“...And put your trust in the Lord.”
David writes in Psalm 4:5 to put our trust in the Lord. He goes on to tell us in Psalm 4:8 that this causes him to “both lay me down in peace and sleep.” How many of us long to lay our heads down at night and get a peaceful night’s sleep?
Yes, but David didn’t have to deal with a miserable work environment or with children who are rambunctious. He didn't have to take care of a sick family member or get his house in order for visitors. Really? Read 1 & 2 Samuel! The point is that we face the same pressures today that people in other eras faced
. The good news is that we have the same God they had. We can go to the same God in prayer– the God that parted the Red Sea, that delivered David from the hand of the Philistines, that conquered the land of Canaan, and that sent his Son to this earth and raised Him from the dead. We have the same access to God that Noah, Joseph, Elijah, Peter and all other Bible heroes had: prayer. Are we using this access? Are we doing what Jesus suggested we do in Matthew 11:28-30? Do we believe that we serve the same God that our faithful brethren of old did (Hebrews 13:8)?
Our problems are not too big for God. If he could solve David’s problems, He can solve ours. Don’t put limits on God. Communicate with Him. Let’s continue to be people of prayer and put our trust in the Lord.
Written by Randy Duke, a deacon at Mt. Juliet
Day 34: The Bold and the Powerful
Acts 4:23-31And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said:
'Why did the nations rage, and the people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, and the rulers were gathered together against the LORD and against His Christ.' “For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”
And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
The fourth chapter of Acts is very powerful as it sends the church of today a message on praying boldly. Peter and John had been going about teaching in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. Their preaching had been so successful that as many as five thousand had gathered and believed. When the leaders of the Jews figured out
what was happening, they decided to arrest Peter and John, more or less to get them off the streets. When the rulers, elders, and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem to question Peter and John, they began by asking, “By what power or what name do you do this?” It is at this point in the interrogation that the boldness of Peter and John is clearly seen. In Acts 4:13, the leaders of the Jews could sense the great courage of these two, that they were unschooled, ordinary men, and that they had been with Jesus. Nothing greater could be said of us than to have others see us and say that we have been with Jesus. Our actions, conduct, and attitudes tell others a lot about who we are and to whom we belong.Peter and John were able to return to their own people and report what had just happened to them. In Acts 4:24 and following, they raised their voices together in prayer to God, calling Him “Sovereign Lord” and asking Him to enable them to speak His Word with great boldness. In Acts 4:31, after they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God boldly.
As we prepare to enter a new year, what better time than now could there be to begin praying boldly? Our God is willing and able to bless us, but He wants us to ask and ask specifically.
One other thing, if we pray boldly, we need to expect powerful things to happen!
Written by DeWayne Griffin, an elder at Mt. Juliet
Day 33: The Patience of Prayer
Patience is something that I struggle with almost every day and sometimes multiple times per day. The Bible teaches us that we are to be patient and anxious for nothing. Philippians 4:6-7 states, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”We have several examples of patience in the Bible. One of the many examples is demonstrated in Exodus 32: 7–14 when Moses pleads with God to spare the Israelites. In verse 10, God clearly stated His plans, “Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them…” God’s patience and grace is later shown in verse 14- “So the LORD relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.” God demonstrated a level of patience with the Israelites because of the intercession that Moses made.
So why do I stru
ggle with being patient? Could it be that I’m not praying for the right things and turning them over to God? I often ask myself these questions, and then I’m reminded of God’s promise to me in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that He will not allow me to be tempted beyond what I can handle. Many people know the part of verse 13 where it states, “And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.” The second half of the verse, “...but when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure...” contains the solution that I believe is often overlooked. I believe that one of the ways that God provides to us is through prayer. Prayer gives us the ability to make God aware of our requests.We know we will be tempted, and we know that God listens to our prayers. Let’s make sure we continue to pray for things that we need strength in and be ready to hand them over to God. We know that God answers our prayers with ‘yes’, ‘no’, or sometimes ‘later’. I need to remind myself that when He doesn’t answer my prayers right away, maybe He is answering my prayers for increased patience.
Written by Daniel Kirby, a deacon at Mt. Juliet
Day 32: Not Enough Hours in the Day
Do you ever find yourself so busy with life that you can't even remember what you were supposed to be doing? From one minute to the next you get sidetracked because you have a million things on your list but no game plan to get them done. Do you ever find yourself too busy to pray? In a world that sometimes feels like it is spinning so fast around us, we are too busy not to pray. The devil will use any little distraction in this world to bring us a little farther away from God. Guard yourself from the ways of the world and stay in constant contact with your heavenly father.
And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. (Mark 1:35)
Jesus understood the importance of prayer and would always find time in his busy day to be in contact with the father. How do you get your day started? Do you wake a few minutes early for a workout, morning run, or to read the paper? Do you ever make it routine to get up early to pray? If you enjoy waking early in the morning you might know the peace that is sometimes found in the early hours of the day. If you are not a morning person, then find that time of day where there are the least amount of distractions present and pray.You might suddenly feel like you added a few hours to your day just by taking time to pray.
Written by Jason Tucker, a deacon at Mt. Juliet
Day 31: Parable of the Lost Turtle
When I was four I had a pet turtle that I enjoyed tending to each day. I enjoyed checking on him (he usually was doing about the same), playing with him (even though he didn’t do much), and feeding him (not much there either). He lived in a plastic container in my bedroom, making him a big part of my day. Then, that awful day came that I remember so well...even after almost 40 years. I looked in the container and saw my turtle was gone! I looked all around the room. I called for my family’s help. Each searched and each was interrogated to see who had seen him last. I cried, but the turtle was never found. My mother comforted me by teaching me a valuable lesson: “Don’t worry about it, pray about it.” And so each day and night we did. I suppose the verse she read to me would have been from Paul:Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)
My father taught the teenage boys' Bible class. He had asked one of the high school boys who fished a lot to keep his eyes open for a little turtle. One Sunday evening that young man asked me to meet him at his car. He gave me two turtles just like the one I had! I was so excited! I still get excited thinking about how God gives to us abundantly above all we ask or think (Ephesians 3:20)! I thanked God over and over.
I suppose an atheist would say, "Your earthly father provided those turtles, not God." But the Heavenly Father created the turtles, the stream they lived in, and the Bible that shaped that young
man's heart that caused him to care about a little boy. It was God who formed a woman who taught her young son how to pray, and it was God who helped a little boy not worry, but to pray. There are many ways God answers prayers! And many of the answers He starts working on before we even have the need to ask!
...for your Father what you need before you ask Him. (Matthew 6:8)
I am thankful for gift of prayer that relieves tons of worry.
By the way, I am also thankful for the gift of forgiveness. My sister and I are as close as can be, even though ten years later she confessed to the crime of freeing the lost turtle!
Written by David Shannon, preacher at Mt. Juliet
Day 30: Three Things
Three things: A song, a scripture and a prayer...Song:
Pray in the morning, Pray at the noon time, Pray in the evening, Pray any time. Pray when you’re happy, Pray when in sorrow, Pray when you’re tempted, Pray all the time.
Scripture:
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
Prayer:
“Lord, we thank you for the avenue of communication you’ve named prayer. We thank you for the ability to speak with you any time, any place, as often and as much as we please. Lord, thank you for Your Holy Book, the Bible. Thank you for all of the wonderful words you have written to us. Lord, as you say in the scripture above, ‘Be Joyful Always!’, we understand that nothing should make us unhappy because You control everything. But when those unhappy times come, you say to be thankful at those times, too. Lord, we know you are in control and we are in Your control. Praise to You because all blessings come from You! Thank you for being our Father. In Jesus name, Amen.”
Written by Trey Gay, Education Minister at Mt. Juliet
Day 29: Thanking God for Depression
There was a time in my life that I went through a very deep depression, and for that I have thanked God several times. Yes, you read that correctly- I THANKED God for that depression. You may be asking yourself, "Why?", but there are several different things that happened because of it.- I gained a larger understanding of the Bible and became much more familiar with its contents then I have ever had. The reason for this is that I searched for answers through His word from cover to cover which gave me a deeper understanding of the makeup of the Bible because I was constantly reading it every chance I could (2 Timothy 2:15).
- I had to learn to rely not on my own understanding of things but to reach out to others to help me through my burdens (Galatians 6:2). There are several people that I have thanked God for bringing into my life to help me that I will never forget and will always hold close to my heart. I can look back on my life now and see how those individuals have become pieces that help complete a puzzle that has brought me to where I am today.
- I now have this reminder in my life of where I was and where I am now. I am frequently reminded of the time of that depression but in a positive way. This reminder helps me to stay focused on the goal of Heaven and to hopefully share that experience with my children some day so that when they have their own struggles, they, too, can use that as the fuel that keeps their fires burning. We need to always remember that “power is perfected in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:7–10).
- I learned to really “talk” to God and to be persistent and not to give up. I cannot tell you how much I prayed during that time. My prayers were very emotional and very persistent, and I was not about to give up on my God (Luke 18:1–8). My belief in prayer during that time flourished. I am not saying that I did not have belief before, but God helped me to believe more (Mark 9:24) and to really talk to Him as my Father and not as some entity that is just looking down on us.
I will tell you- that evening, I thanked God for my depression and what He had allowed me to go through and what blessings it had brought me. My prayer today is that I can now use that experience to help someone else if it be God’s will.
I know that my struggles may not compare to the struggles that are going on right now in your life, but I would ask that if you can, please “talk” to God and see if you can thank Him for ALL things that are going on in your life. I know you will not regret it.
Written by Joe Brown, a deacon at Mt. Juliet
1940 N. Mt. Juliet Road
P.O.Box 248
Mt.Juliet, TN 37122-0248
(615)758-2274
Fax:615-754-2351
Worship Services:
Sunday Early Worship: 8AM
Sunday Bible Study: 9:15AM
Sunday Late Worship: 10:15AM
Night Worship: 6PM
Wednesday Bible Study: 7PM
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