August 19, 2012

Affirming Your Answered Prayer
This is how you build stronger faith: by confessing what God's Word says and hearing with your own ears those words.

I am a little frustrated as I write this. in my word processor. My brother said the internet is not working. He said can I reset the internet. I said sure not thinking that he would turn off the power to the power strip. I thought he would turn off the switch to the box and nothing that I am typing would be effected. I was so wrong. He flipped off the switch to the power strip that include my clock radio and desktop computer and printer. I lost everything I just wrote for today. Just then the phone was buzzing. My mom was like what is that noise. Then my brother was like that is the phone, you did not hang it up. Then my brother is like, so that was the problem. So, had my mom hung up the phone properly, my brother would not have turn off my power strip, and everything that I wrote was not lost. My brother gave me no warning that he would completely turn off everything that is using power. He should have said that I need to save my documents. I lost everything. What is more, my mom did not admit that she did not hang up the phone properly even though she was the last one to use it. She said she didn't do it. There is no use in blaming people right now, the fact still is that everything I wrote is gone. Nothing can bring it back. I sometimes wrestle with whether or not living alone would solve a lot of problems. It is moments like these when what other people do cause frustration that I begin this road of thinking. What is more is that I was right about to save my work. I totally did not know he would flip off the switch to all power in my room. I didn't get angry like yelling and hitting things, but I am quite upset that all this happened. One thing this health condition is teaching me is to think beyond today. In the big picture getting really angry wouldn't solve anything. It would not bring my document back. It would probably damage my relationship with my brother who I've been praying for. Today's lesson is really trying to understanding love. The pastor's wife in her sharing said too many Asian people emphasize God's wrath and the law. We need that, but we also need to understand God's love. Today I woke up really early and could not go back to sleep. I really did not feel like going to church today nor needing to go one hour early to pick up one of the children. Nor did I want to sit in my dad's Sunday school for an hour to listen to a language I don't fully understand. I've learned a few things today. The old women really enjoy my dad's study in Genesis. They say he explains the Bible better than anyone they know and it really helps. I see 80-something year old women excited to come to my dad's Sunday school. I hear that had we not picked up the child this morning, the coordinator would have to say to her that we cannot provide a ride for you to come to church. That would have been quite sad. She was happy to come to church today. We got to take four children home and they had quite a bit of energy. I felt happy that we could serve in this capacity and realize I like being around kids. They have so much joy and simplicity, two things I really lack right now. I am growing, little by little to be less selfish. I was so happy to see two children in church today because they had been gone for over a month after their grandfather had died. We had been concerned that the tragedy had made them stop believing in God. Healing works not just from some physical cure. It involves so much more.. The pastor talked today about God having a plan for us but before He can bring us into that plan, He is working on our maturity. The person needs to fit the plan. One thing I really like about this pastor is his repeating of the simple phrases like we are special to God, and trust God, and He has a plan for us. He spoke also about timing and God's timing and how God's timing is the right timing. This third step touches on this fact.
Step 3: Affirm What You Have Asked For
"I lnce you have prayed, believing you have received it, you are ready for ingredient number three—let every thought and desire affirm that you have what you have asked God for.
Don't doubt your own prayer. Begin to see yourself as having that prayer already fulfilled, even if you do not see it in the natural. You need to thank God daily for answering that prayer. It's important to understand that this is not a confession of the physical fact, because you cannot lie. In the natural you do nor see it yet. But 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." Another way of putting that is, "For we walk by faith in what God has already provided, not by the senses that tell us otherwise." Remember that the spirit world coexists with this natural world, and something can be completely real in the spirit world, yet we are oblivious to it."
These past couple of days, I have really been spiritually attacked. My feelings have been very sad and tired. Certainly not enough sleep plays into this, but I have been really sad. I want to believe in my mind that God did in fact hear my prayer and He will soon heal me, but every feeling goes against it. It is past the half way mark of August and I so wanted this month to be the breakthrough month. I don't want to say there is no hope because that would nullify believing that God answered my prayer. However, both me and dad were pretty discouraged about a lot of things ranging from finances to my health situation. We even wrestled with whether or not we were going to church after today. Dad and I wrestle with so much negative thoughts but thank God for worship music on the radio.
"He demands that we come to Him in faith, not on the basis of evidence that leaves you without a choice.
Theoretically, you might say, "I don't believe in gravity," but you will conduct your life 100 percent in alignment with the theory of gravity as if you did believe it. So that really is not a choice. God will not force you to do anything or to believe anything. He will give you plenty of evidence, but there will always be a little something unproven so that you have to take it on faith.
Another example of how you take things on faith all the time without realizing it is this: Do you have a brain? How do you know? You've never seen it! You accept it as fact because medical science has told us that you need a brain for many functions— including reading this book. It underscores, however, the fact that we do not know everything through the five senses, just as the philosopher John Locke claimed in his famous book An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. We are not a "blank slate" or a tabula raza as he claimed, only learning things through touch, taste, hearing, smelling, and sight. Otherwise, how would you ever learn the word learn? Or love? You can't taste democracy or smell before or hear until. All these ideas come to your brain— which you can't see—through learning processes that you can't see, taste, hear, smell, or touch."
Sometimes I would really like it if God shows up in a powerful way so that we would know beyond a doubt He is real. Sometimes He seems so absent. Yet, God doesn't operate like that. I don't feel God sometimes. We cannot touch God. We cannot see Him. We cannot smell Him. We cannot taste or hear Him.. But, much like the illustration about the brain, we cannot see our own brain or hear it or smell it, but we know it is real.. Faith sometimes seems really complicated.
"Every time Jesus came to the disciples supernaturally, the first thing He said was, "Fear not!" Before you can get into faith, you have to get rid of fear, or, put another way, you can get rid of fear by confessing your faith."
Fear is a major tool the enemy uses to paralyze our faith. Much of my fear really comes from a good amount of unbelief that God is who He says He is. Can God really help me? Is God really sovereign? Fear really hinders us from experiencing God's power and provision.
"Satan also uses friends—some of them sincere, well-meaning Christians—to attack your confession. If your friends don't understand what you are doing or how faith works, they will say things like, "Aunt Doris had that kind of cancer, and she died!" Or, "My cousin Louis lost his job, and they ended up taking away his house!" You absolutely cannot allow even good-hearted friends to deflect your confession of affirmation. Even spouses (and this is where the prayer of agreement is relevant) have to be on the same page with your confession, or they can say things that will torpedo your prayer requests by getting you into negative confessions. "Well, maybe I wasn't meant to have that car." "God just didn't want me moving to Nevada at this time." God didn't have anything to say about your car or your move. Your friends put those ideas into your head. It's very hard, especially for people who really don't understand the so-called "Faith Movement," for people to be supportive in your confession when in the natural they don't see anything. Sometimes, to get what you want, you have to isolate yourself from some of your well-meaning friends and relatives. Jesus frequently went off by Himself. I'm convinced that after a while, even He had to get away from Thomas and the other doubters.
Friends will often come to you under the subterfuge of being concerned about your situation. Some of them may be concerned about your situation, but far more are concerned that you are going to achieve success where rhey have failed, and in essence they are trying to talk you out of success. If they say something to you that is not in line with your prayer confession, just reply, "Well, praise God, I know that I am promised [fill in the promise here], and I still believe I have received it. But thank you for your concern." Then change the subject!"
This is really true. My parents, and certain people in church have really fed my unbelief. Medical newsletters also have been really discouraging. My mom in particular, as someone who does not know God really discourages me. She asked me when am I going to be healed in a moment when I was really discouraged last night and I very discouragingly said I don't know. That was a moment to confess faith, but I felt really defeated. I also rationalize also. I found out yesterday my letter that Ineeded to apply for the Reno job got mailed to the wrong address. I could have applied but since it came late, the deadline passed. I guess I was not suppose to go to Reno. I run into discouragement so much from friends, family, and my own thoughts.
"Peter told us that we had to add patience to our list of virtues. (See 2 Peter 1:5-7.) We had to add it—God wasn't going to add it for us. Our modern one-click world leaves us somewhat unrealistic in our beliefs about what real patience is. Some prayer requests require years of confession.
Let me give you an example of how consistent you have to be with your confirmation that affirms your prayer. I know an author in the Midwest who, years ago, began writing a history book. It was a large undertaking, covering all two hundred plus years of American history and then some, and it took more than a decade to research and write. All the time he was writing that book, he told me that he was confessing, "Thank You, Lord, for giving me a publisher for this book." Before he had it halfway written, he was already focusing on receiving a publisher. His book was somewhat controversial, so in the natural it was questionable if he would ever get it published. So he had to focus on his confession that God would provide a publisher.
Sure enough, when ir was completed, he had not one, but two offers from publishers, each with a nice advance. As soon as he had a publisher, he began confessing the success of the book in rhe marketplace, even though ir was an eighr-hund red-page nonfiction, hardcover book. Still, he began confessing it would be a best seller. This was more than a year before the book actually appeared in print. But he was consistent, and when it finally came out, it received accolades from the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, and it was indeed a best seller. He told me that he had essentially been praying and confessing that result for upwards of ten years, but it worked.
Not only did that episode result in answered prayer, but it gave him faith evidence for his next prayer request. The next time he prays about something of the same nature, it shouldn't take ten years at all, but a fraction of that time to get what he has asked for."
Patience is something really hard for young people these days. We are all about instant gratification, instant messages, instant noodles. Imagine taking on this huge book to write and publish and the doubts that came up along the way. I love this illustration because we see how his faith and confession and prayers became successful. A really huge impossible thing is praying for my sight. I was first born with my eye condition. Then, it is nerve damange of the optic nerve. I pray for my sight from time to time but never with full faith. I have given up so many times on this. God wants to grow us but many times I give up far before significant change takes place.
"ingredient four, I say, "Thoughts are governed by observation, association, and teaching," and that you should "guard against every evil thought that comes into your mind," let me clarify something. You have no control over what thoughts will come to you. Indeed, as soon as I say, "Don't think pink!" you immediately think "pink."
This fourth step is also known in the psychology community as mental filtering. Watch what thoughts are entering into our mind and filter it through and challenge each of these thoughts. This can be really done through the next step.

"Keep your eyes on God's promises, for those He will not break. If He has promised it to you, then you are entitled to it.
Matthew 8:17 says, referring to Jesus, "He Himself took our infirmities and bore [literally, "carried"] our sicknesses." It's obvious to me that if Jesus took them and bore them, then He must not have wanted me to have them. Yet the Word will be healing salve—a medicine to you—only if you know this verse and apply it to your health situation. Look at 1 Peter 2:24: ".. .who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed." This is almost exactly what Matthew wrote. So if your prayer is for healing, ingredient five says see yourself healed. Focus only on the promise of God that Jesus carried (past tense again) your sickness and healed you with His stripes. Make plans as though your disease did nor affect you."
I love this particular passage because it refers to healing and right now my biggest prayer is for healing. God promises healing and says that healing is His will and we find in His word promises of healing. We need to challenge thoughts of discouragement with the promises of healing and God's intention toward us.
"Ingredient six in the formula for answered prayer is this: in your waking moments, think on the love, mercy, goodness, and blessings of God, and it will boost your faith. God has shown me so much goodness and mercy that at times I think I must be His favorite child, but in reality I know that we are all "favorite children" of the most high God. Earlier in this teaching I referred to Philippians A:6: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." Verse 7 continues by saying, "... and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Anxious here means "to be careful for." This is saying, "Don't be worried about anything." The word nothing includes everything you could possibly need—house, job, car, husband, wife, health, protection for your family, and so forth. In other words, Paul was writing that you should not have a single care, because you can make your request known to God."
Step five is a lot like step six and to think God thoughts. Not worry thoughts. I think the cross of Christ is a good place to think about His love and mercy. Worship has really helped me to think about God's love. After worship I am so much better spiritually. It is when it is night and I lie awake when I struggle to think positive God thoughts.. I find these steps helpful but it is putting them into practice which is hard.

The seventh and final step is to turn unbelief statements into faith statements which goes along with the last three steps about positive thoughts. One last passage I really like is one on when God answers:
"Remember just because you don't have it now doesn't mean you won't get it very soon. One of the most important words for a faith believer is yet: "Lord, I haven't seen this yet, but I believe I have already received it, and it will be made manifest any minute." Talk God's words. Repeat His promises. Personalize His blessings to yourself. And once again, this requires that you know God's Word so you can say God's words. How can you think God's thoughts when you don't know what they are?
What do you believe? Well, that's up to you, but if you want results, you better believe the Word.
Note that the verse says that we should not think more highly of ourselves than we "ought to think." That tells me I ought to think highly of myself. What is the proper balance, then? I submit to you that the proper thinking about yourself is to say what God says about you and to think what God thinks about you. If God cared enough to send His own Son to die for you, then you must be worth something.
Jesus told Peter in a vision about food, "What God has cleansed you must not call common." Other Bible translations interpret that phrase as, "What God has called clean, do not call unclean." This is about more than food, though—it is about you. Once you have been created a "new creature" in Christ Jesus, you are not an "old sinner saved by grace." Not anymore! You were, but that's not you now. You are a new creature in Jesus, a brother of the Messiah, and a son of the most high God. Exactly how highly should'you think of yourself, then?"
Prayer:
Father, You place a high value on us because You sent Your one and only Son to die for us. We are precious in Your sight. Sometimes I don't feel that. I live by feelings and then get discouraged. I believe by faith that You have healed me. Any minute now, You will remove this health condition from my body. Please teach me to cultivate faith and trust in You. Far too often as from this chapter fear and friends say things to discourage the very prayer we are praying. Help me to filter out and challenge these negative thoughts and to grow in my belief in Your power, goodness, and love.

August 18, 2012
The Prayer of Faith
Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the
sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
I had prayed a couple of days ago regarding the four impossible issues I now face. Faith is a key part of prayer. Yet, today, I faced some challenges. I felt pretty discouraged throughout this day. We found out about a possible job that fell through today and our concerns about finances continues on. God showed us this opportunity was not the way to go but it still was very discouraging. My mood had gone up a little with lunch at Hometown Buffet and spending lunch with mom and my brother. Then we went to Ranch 99 for shopping. Being outside and having lunch out helps improve my mood which in turns help my physical and spiritual health. In the morning I had a dream of three close sisters I did not see in several years pray over me while I was on the ground in deep prayer and anguish. These three church sisters have been in my life some of the most encouraging people but even with this dream, much of the morning was very discouraging. It wasn't until dinner with three close friends at Happy Corner and the laughs and stories we shared that helped quite a bit. Food, fellowship, and fun are key pieces in overall and improved well-being.
 


"Your Faith Is Your Evidence
"Next, your actions must be consistent with those words. Exactly what do you do? Well, if you prayed for God to provide you with a new car, you do not know how it will come to you. But you had faith when you prayed that God would supply your car. Now, how do you act? One thing you might do is to clean your junk out of your garage. If you believe you will have a car to put in there, you will need some room. If you prayed for new clothes, you can clean out your closet in anticipation of those new clothes arriving. That's what you do when you're expecting a baby, right? You decorate the baby's room, buy the baby clothes, and get a crib or playpen. A prayer request is just like that baby, in that you must believe it is as real as that child growing inside a woman, yet which you cannot see (without a sonogram).
In the natural we understand the process of carrying a child for nine months, so we have an easier time expecting a child than we do a prayer request, which could come at any time—but sometimes later rather than sooner. However, the principle is the same:"
This is really a key piece of faith. Our actions need to match our faith. I like the cleaning out our garage illustration. If I truely believe God will heal me, I will not be looking at wheelchair prices online. I would be doing things that prove I believe God can and will and has healed me. What those things are exactly, I am not sure. One thing would to invest in an eliptical machine. I do already have a simplified one, but it doesn't work right. I must have my actions match my prayer request. If I truly believe my girlfriend is my wife, I would stop searching for other potential possibilities. There are things we can do now that help our faith and further us on the road of answered prayer.

"So far we have discussed two ingredients for answered prayer:
 1. Determine what you want, then find scriptures that promise that to you.
 2. Ask the Father for what you want in the name of Jesus, and believe you have received it.
Along the way, you must constantly evaluate your level of faith to make sure it is equal to that which you have requested. At the same time, eliminate any short-circuits that might arise from wrong living. Be persistent. Stay patient. I know a fellow who loves football. He sometimes watches the Monday night football game. At times he will start watching that game, turn it off after one quarter or at halftime, and say, "That's a blowout. This other team has no chance." Then he will pick up the paper the next morning and find that the team made a fourth-quarter comeback and won the game. You may be denying yourself some great faith victories by quitting in the third quarter."
I can think of many times this happens in basketball. Like the playoff game with the Clippers and Memphis, they looked like they were done but they mounted a huge comeback. Likewise, I give up very easily when things don't appear to be getting better. The author says sometimes God is about to answer just when we give up faith. A previous book also had this thought. Having our level of faith match the level of the request is hard especially if the request is huge.


"When it comes to prayer, your faith itself is your evidence, and Paul says in Hebrews that faith has "substance." That is to say, faith has a certain real, tangible quality. Perhaps you cannot taste it, see it, or touch it, but Paul says it has "substance." Where do you think it has substance? In heaven! Heaven has substance. It may not be the same molecular structure that we have in this physical world, but there are abundant scriptures to indicate that there is substance to heaven.
In John 20:24-25, John wrote:
Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord." So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."
Believing is an act of will. Thomas said, "I will not believe." This passage continues with these words:
And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands, and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving for, the traditional King James says, "faithless"] but believing."
Prayer:
Father, faith is so hard. Like Thomas I doubt. Yet Your will for us is faith and not doubt. I think of the text in Kings when the servant of Elisha was overwhelmed because of the approaching armies but he could not see the forces of the unseen spirit world outnumbered those of the physical. My faith is so shallow and yet this is the substance of what makes prayer effective. I have so little faith. I need to practice now those actions and behaviors that demonstrate my faith in who You are and the power You have to answer our prayers. Too often I give up too easily. The things I am asking for are quite impossible right now. Yet, I am confident that as I have already prayed for these things, soon, perhaps tomorrow, You will answer. Help me to grow my faith and to minimize my moments of doubt.

What to Pray For
This chapter is essentialy pretty straight forward. It is the step one of praying for something. It comes down to figuring out what it is we are praying for and then finding out where in the Bible it promises what we ask for. The chapter goes into the different things we can ask for with particular examples. Emphasis on knowing the Bible is placed. For some reason the previous chapter felt more encouraging than this one even though he continues to mention that healing is promised in the Bible. Healing is something I continue to long and desire for. Today was not a difficult day, but it did have many moments of discouragement from physical symptoms. Yet, we are encouraged by the author not to talk about symptoms but rather give thanks to God for the fact God has healed us already in the spiritual dimension but it has not happened in the physical realm.
"Here is your assignment: go through the New Testament (we'll limit it to the New Testament for now) and underline every time you find the phrase "You have" or "we have" when it relates to the phrase "in Christ." What do we have, or what do you have, in Christ? You will be shocked to see how much we are promised. Psalm 84:11 said of God, "No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." James said, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights" (James 1:17).
In the Epistles of John we have a clear example of prayer that lists some of the blessings to which we are entitled. In 3 John 2, in a letter addressed to a fellow Christian and elder named Gaius, John said:
Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.
The apostle of the Lord was telling Gaius, a fellow believer, that his prayer for him was that he "prosper in all things? And to make sure we didn't miss his meaning, John wrote, "just as your soul prospers," indicating that he was praying for "things" apart from the spirit world. Some people try to claim that by "things," John meant spiritual things, but it is abundantly clear by this verse that this isn't the case. Note that John also prayed for Gaius's health. So if it was all right for John to pray for Gaius's prosperity, for Gaius's health, and for Gaius's soul to prosper, don't you think Gaius could also legitimately pray for those things for himself I do, and I'm sure Gaius did."
Conservative Christians and preachers are very hesitant to believe that God still heals and that we can pray for healing. Because of the name it and claim it movement, praying for prosperity seems wrong. But, here in this passage we find that we can pray not just for spiritual things. God is a God who cares for the totality of our being not just the spiritual. I grew up with the notion God only cares about spiritual things. It is a revelation to me that God cares for our health and financial state. Because of my health condition and financial difficulties, it is hard to imagine that God will come through. The major step of this chapter is to first find out if our prayer request is Biblical..
 "Decide what you want from God, then find out if Scripture promises you that. Let me be absolutely clear on this: if you have identified something that, without a doubt, is promised to you by Scripture—such as healing or prosperity—then no is not an answer from God. In 2 Corinthians 1:20, Paul wrote: "For all the promises of God in Him [Jesus] are Yes, and in Him Amen." How many promises are left out of "all?" None, right?
Do not be fooled by teachers who tell you, "Sometimes God says yes; sometimes God says no; and sometimes God says wait." The verse you just read in 2 Corinthians proves that if the question is godly, the answer can never, ever be no. Since God is only in the eternal present and does not have a past or future, neither can He say wait. There is only now for God. But there are reasons why what you possess immediately in the spirit world has not immediately been manifested in the physical world. Those reasons include your level of faith, the nature of the thing believed for, and the level of demonic opposition."
I was a little curious in the introduction when the author had mentioned about how it is wrong for people to say that God sometimes says yes and sometimes says no. God says yes so long as the prayer request is promised in Scripture. We must have confidence in His promises and in who He is. This faith issue is perhaps my weakest because I don't really see God come through recently. I can point to instances from years past but not recent. Right now, that is all I can hold on to. But, God does not say "no" if the request is Biblical. Healing is a Biblical request and according to this author and according to the word, we can pray for healing. I must believe that God can still heal. Today, I got a little tested. All day I had not fell well and was very slow. My dad had gone to San Francisco to take care of the house and he called in the afternoon. He asked if I can walk now, and I told him not only can I walk, I can run and jump. I said this not to be disrespectful to him, but I really needed to make a statement of faith to believe that God can heal me. In the past when my dad talked about my physical condition I would get very discouraged at my symptoms or frustrated that I am not getting better. I had been fairly calm all day and the perspective from this book is helping. I believe that God answered my prayer in the spiritual realm but it is not yet manifested in the physical realm. I must pray with thanks now that He has healed me and call the things that are not as though they are. Yet, my faith is incredibly weak.
 "There is another aspect to your prayer. You have to be definite. Gloria Copeland has a great line regarding this. She says, "If you want the dog, don't call the cat." You must be specific about what is promised to you in the Bible. If the promise is there, you are completely within your rights to ask for it in faith. How it is actually delivered, however, is usually through the hands of man. In Joshua 1:8, God tells Joshua: "For then you will make your
way prosperous " God did not say He would—even though
the verses we read in Deuteronomy show that He indeed will. He said, "You will."
Aside from the manna falling from heaven, God has never just dropped blessings on people. His blessings have always come through the hands of man. The blessings that He reveals in Deuteronomy are, for the most part, blessings that require your involvement, such as farming or working or "kneading." Jesus could have just taken thin air and fed all the hungry people on the mountainside, but He asked for the loaves and the fishes and multiplied them. How does money come into your storehouses!
It comes through money, salaries, and checks that people write to you.
We are not just leaves blown in the wind. We have something to do with our destinies. That is the whole point of the Law— "Thou shalt/Thou shalt not." It acknowledges that we have a role to play in the natural in getting our prayers answered. Contrary to what some people think, the phrase "God helps those who help themselves" is not in the Bible. But it does express a principle: in the natural, and in faith, you must do those things that reflect that you believe you have received your prayer request."

"In Matthew 4:7, Jesus said, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God." If you do not do in the natural what you should be doing, merely asking God to answer your need, in essence, you are tempting God. For example, if you pray to be delivered from debt, then quit your job that same day, you are tempting God. Nor would it be an act of faith to say, "Lord, please deliver me from debt," and then refuse to accept your employer's offer of six months' worth of overtime.
In other words, unless you have specific instructions from God otherwise, you need to do in the natural the things that are consistent with achieving your prayer request. Here is another example: you cannot pray for healing of cancer, then go home and say, "Well, God has that under control, so I'm going to start smoking and using drugs." Sorry, that's not faith; that's presumption, and it is tempting God."
Prayer:
Father, I thank You that You hear and answer prayer. I believe that You have healed me already in the spiritual realm. Today was hard for me physically. I felt pain throughout the day when I stood up. I want to believe in Your goodness and lovingkindness but it becomes hard sometimes like today. I know in Your word You heal and promise healing. I want to trust You for that. I believe one day soon I can get up and walk up the stairs, and be able to run and jump again. Thank You for the promises in Your word that remind us of Your provision and strength. Father, help me in my weak faith to trust You more.

Ground Rules for Effective Prayer
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, your requests be made known to God. —Philippians 4:6
So far, day four in this book, I would say this has been the most encouraging chapter. Today also has probably been the best day so far this week. It all started with the fact I woke up one hour later than my mom. I sleep downstairs next to the kitchen and did not even hear her come downstairs and prepare for breakfast. I slept soundly for another hour after my normal time of waking. This is so amazing because I struggle with insomnia for a long time. Nothing major happened today and perhaps that is a praise too. My certification had been received and approved today by the state when one week ago it had been lost in the mail. It happened that the address was off by a number. If I just waited out I would find that they still did not receive it. Because I checked I found out it had not been received so I had to send a new one. What is more is that yesterday late night I received an e-mail regarding an Eczema treatment I had asked about two weeks ago. The person took two weeks to get back to me. I mention these two things to show how God is teaching me a couple of things. Timing and patience is important. I am learning nothing is instant, not even instant noodles. My healing and recovery is not going to happen at the snap of a finger. I am not going to find a job tomorrow and get hired in the afternoon. Most of life involves waiting much longer than we want. We get upset at God frustrated at ourselves, and this does not solve anything. Later on the author will talk about timing. Another thing is faith which is another thing the author will talk about. Eventually the woman would reply and eventually my certification will be approved. Eventually God answers our prayer. I don't know if I will actually get a job from the process and how the exams will turn out, but today I see a glimpse of hope for employment and I give God thanks today for my certification now being in the system. These few things really made me quite happy today. Also after three plus weeks, I am on my final day of the colon cleanse. I physically do not feel any differently but internally I don't know yet. I am so glad to be done, the powder didn't taste aweful, but I really didn't want to drink it for any longer. I feel fine. Not good, not great, not bad, but fine. God has shown me that He cares about the details of my life. O, yes, one more thing. I received a possible e-mail about a disability ministry which is something really on my heart. Yesterday I shared about hopes and dreams and this is part of my hopes and dreams. The only thing God did not speak to today was concerning marriage and family.
A key part of the Philippians 4 text is being anxious about nothing and praying about everything. The author emphasizes this in the start. Pray about everything. Don't be worried about anything. My problem is not praying about everything. My problem is that I also worry about everything. I worry about finances, health, singleness, joblessness, and so on. My faith sometimes is so minimal. The other thing here is to come boldly but also with humility from Hebrews 4. We approach God with boldness. We can approach boldly but not with a sense of pride. Now going back to Phillipians one key is giving thanks.
"We are also instructed to pray "with thanksgiving." If you lose sight of what God has given you, you will begin to take Him for granted. Some people pray, "My name is Jimmy; I'll take all you can gimme." Don't forget what He has already done for you. But this has another purpose, which is to keep God's fulfilled promises before your eyes. If you pray in thanksgiving, you constantly repeat—give thanks for—God's blessings in your life. This gives you confidence for what you are asking Him to do for you in the future. Often, Moses would inspire the Israelites by listing all the miraculous things God had already done for them. It's like a coach "firing up" a team before a football game. He might say, "We beat these guys two years ago. We beat them at their place earlier this year. And we've whipped them every time we have played them!"
The players say in their minds, "Yeah. We've beaten them before, and we'll do it again." Thanksgiving serves a twofold purpose: it reminds you of God's goodness, and it gives you confidence for your current (and future) praye
Two purposes. Don't take God for granted and also to gain confidence and faith in God for the future. So many times in the Bible it is about remembering God's faithfulness. We see this both in the history books and also in the many Psalms. Also, in my own life what has really helped me in praying has been remembering how God helped me in New York. God came through in some powerful ways in New York that could only be His sovereign grace. If He helped me then, He can help me now. Being thankful helps us protect against being ungreatful. It is God who answers prayer and not self-sufficiency. Some people think it is they who earn their money. Yet, the perspective is that God provided the job, God provided us the ability, and God who enables us to work. I must never lose sight of what God has done and is doing for me.

"I submit to you that you should get what you ask for—as long as it's in line with the Word—and if you don't, you didn't get an answered prayer. If you just pray for a car, then be prepared to get some piece of junk with one wheel falling off. God has indeed answered your prayer. But if you pray, "Lord, I need a new SUV that will carry all my equipment plus the kids' stuff for all of their athletic events," and you instead get a compact car, then God did not answer that prayer.
Don't wait until you get a diagnosis of cancer to "start believing" in healing. Begin believing for healing with maladies that are not life threatening,
like headaches or upset stomachs.
At this point, however, I need to add one important qualification. If you pray for a Rolls Royce, you better have Rolls Royce faith. It's important to understand that God's power to provide your prayer requests never changes, but your faith can. Remember that in Nazareth, we found that Jesus could do no mighty works because of the people's unbelief Jesus, the Son of God! The same Jesus who walked on water, raised the dead, and healed the lepers. But in Nazareth did He suddenly lose His power? No! What changed was that in other examples of Jesus' power at work, especially healing, Jesus' power was mixed with the individual's faith. Even at Lazarus's tomb, maybe Lazarus couldn't help much (because he was dead!), but the women could believe Lazarus would rise again—and they did."
This portion is really a faith-builder and is my most encouraging portion yet. He says to pray with a Rolls Royce faith if we want one. I think many Christians including myself feel guilty to ask for something like that. I really wonder if God will honor this prayer. The thing is that I don't see how God answers this kind of prayer in my own life. I don't have a Rolls Royce faith. The author also says that if God provides something less, we should not accept that as our answer. We should not settle. We should not settle with partial healing or a average marriage. We keep on believing and faith is crutial. One last point is to believe now for little things. Believe now that God is healer and can heal us of headaches. The thing is that I don't see God's healing and my faith is quite poor in many areas.
"Yet when it comes to the things of God, we have great difficulty accepting God's method of doing things—His instruction manual. Jesus said, "Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." The key, then, is that at the moment you pray, you must believe that you receive. Not after you pray, and not even before you pray. Present tense. That faith is the triggering device—it's the wing shape that gives your prayer lift; it's the pump priming that causes your prayer engine to start up. Again, I have to be clear here: what you believe is critical. It's not just that you believe God is God, or that Jesus is His Son. Those are prerequisites, but at the moment you pray for something, you must believe you receive it. Jesus said, "Believe that you receive them, and you will have them." Did you catch that? Your believing is present tense, but your receiving ("will have") is future tense.
"How soon will I receive what I prayed for?" you might ask. That will be dependent on several things. First, how rapidly something comes into physical reality depends on your faith, as I have written earlier. The greater your faith, the sooner you can receive answers to prayer. Related to that, a second factor that determines how long you must wait for answers to prayer in the natural (and I keep phrasing this way because that prayer has already been answered in the spiritual realm) is the nature or size of your prayer request. Money, for example, doesn't just fall out of the sky; other people must bring it into your hands. So, say you prayed for a certain large bill to be paid. At that moment God answered your prayer, and perhaps He did so by directing someone to send you a check in the mail. Although that check hasn't actually arrived yet, it is a reality. The check has been written, mailed, and is on its way to you.
There is another factor that determines how quickly you actually see in the natural the answet to your prayer. We have an enemy, the devil. One of the devil's jobs is to shake our faith, and one of the best ways to shake our faith is to attack our patience. As humans, we aren't very patient. Watch people after a stoplight turns green, and see how quickly they honk their horns if the person in front of them doesn't move instantly. (A humorist once wrote that the smallest time frame known to man is the time between a New York streetlight turning green and the cabbie behind you hitting his horn!) Satan knows we have little patience, that we live in a "now" society. He knows that if he can just delay an answered prayer, even for a few days, some people will stop believing—and once that happens, it's as if the prayer had never been answered in the fitst place. Often, then, the devil or his demons will intercept prayer answers and detour them, delay them, hold them up somehow hoping you will get off your confession of faith."
I never heard of this particular thought. The idea that we must believe at the moment of asking. The author goes on to say that we should not pray for the same thing over and over. That is not showing we have faith. We ask just once. He addresses what we do in the meantime is to thank God that He has answered this prayer and believe in faith that the problem is gone. He calls this calling the things that are that have not yet happend. The idea of how prayer is delayed is reasonable, the enemy, the size of the problem, and the level of our faith. Many of the things I am asking for now are large-size impossible problems. I do not expect them to be solved in one day. Yet I have been praying for them everyday and according to the author this shows lack of faith. I must believe God has already answered in the spiritual realm.

"What do you do in the interim—the time between when you ask for something in prayer and the time that you physically receive it—if you can only ask for something once? You thank God for what He has already delivered to you. "Father, thank You. I believe I receive that new washer that we need." When it comes to healing, you need to say, "Father, I thank You. I believe that I am healed."
People get hung up on this confession. Some people feel that if they don't talk the problem, others will think they are lying. For example, if you are waiting for the physical manifestation of your healing from a tumor, you cannot say that tumor isn't there. If your blood sugar is low, you can't say it isn't. But in the interim between your prayer and the physical manifestation of your healing, you just do not have to talk about it—you do not have to talk about the symptoms. If someone asks, "How are you?" or "How are you feeling?" you just say, "Well, based on God's Word I believe I'm healed." Instead of talking about the symptoms, you address the solution. It's important not to get caught up in talking about feelings: "For we walk by faith, not by sight for feelings]" (2 Cor. 5:7)."
"If the devil can get you into the arena of feelings and sight instead of in the arena of faith, he will take you out.
But this time I had come into the knowledge of faith and healing. I took my stand on Mark 11:24, Matthew 8:17, and 1 Peter 2:24. I said, "Father, You said in Your Word, Matthew 8:17, referring to Jesus, 'He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.' And in 1 Peter 2:24, again referring to Jesus, You said, 'By whose stripes you were healed.' In Mark 11:24, Jesus said, 'Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them (kjv).'
I am now praying, and I say, 'Father, I desire that this tumor or growth be healed. According to Your Word, I believe that I receive my healing now, in Jesus' name. Thank You, Father. I believe I am healed.'" From that point on, the battle was on. As time went on the tumor grew larger and hurt worse. Every day in my prayer time, I reminded the Father, "I believe that I am healed." You have to keep your confession in the present tense.
This went on for months. In the natural, every day the first thing that would come to my mind was a thought from the devil. "Fred, how do you feel?"
I would say, "Devil, I do not walk by how I feel. I walk by faith and not by sight. According to the Word of God, with Jesus' stripes, I was healed, and if I was, then I am, and if I am, then J is,' because Hebrews 11:1 says: 'Now faith is...,' and I believe I am healed." If the devil can get you into the arena of feelings and sight, instead of in the arena of faith, he will take you out.
In my case, I continued praying for many months, "Father, I thank You. I believe I'm healed." Finally, eleven months had passed, and one day I was in the shower, just soaping up, and all of a sudden, I noticed I didn't feel the pain. I stopped, grabbed my chest, and lo and behold, the tumor was gone. Vanished. At that point, I prayed a different prayer: "Father, I thank You. I am healed." I no longer had to believe it as a faith fact, because now I had it as a physical fact."
Prayer:
Father, I am learning some new thoughts today concerning prayer. I am learning to ask only once for something and then to believe it. On the basis of Your Word, I will appeal to You regarding my physical condition which is bothering me for many months now that I have prayed about. I take my stand on Mark 11:24, Matthew 8:17, and 1 Peter 2:24. Father, You said in Your Word, Matthew 8:17, referring to Jesus, 'He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.' And in 1 Peter 2:24, again referring to Jesus, You said, 'By whose stripes you were healed.' In Mark 11:24, Jesus said, 'Therefore I say unto you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them (kjv)." It is on the basis of Your word and Your promises that I pray for healing one last time. I know and am confident that You will answer. I hope You answer soon so that I can make it to the wedding in one week. I have learned also to pray with thanks. Thank You Father for the many ways You showed Yourself strong while I was in New York like saving me in the car accident that totaled the car but left me and dad untouched. Thank You for sustaining me through four difficult semesters and many presentations that I feared. I believe in Your goodness. Thank You today for approving my certification so that I can now take the job exams and I believe in faith You will provide employment. Thank You for knowing my heart and desire for disability ministry and I know by faith that You will provide a ministry for me that will use my passion and abilities for Your service. I pray by faith You will provide a suitable help meet to me just as You promised Adam. My faith is so small and I even feel guilty praying for a Rolls Royce. Father, You are the God of the universe. It is nothing for You to provide a Rolls Royce to Your child who asks. I don't need or want a Rolls Royce. I need employment, mission and ministry, health, and female companionship. It is in these things that I ask in faith and according to Your promises.

August 15, 2012
How Did Jesus Pray?
This is by far one of the longest chapters I have read in a long while. It would take some time to get into all the details of this chapter, but the main point is to answer how Jesus prayed. The author describes how Jesus used different prayers as he described in the previous chapter. For example, in John 17, more popularly known as the high priestly prayer, Jesus prays for the disciples and for other believers. This is an intercessory prayer. The prayer in the garden of gethsemane is a prayer of consecration. The author also makes an argument that the Lord's prayer is not how we should pray today. It was a model before the cross and not a model today. I know many Christians consider this a model prayer and many churches say this at the end of service. The author's basis of saying that the Lord's prayer does not work is because is not done in the name of Jesus. Much of the focus here is praying in the name of Jesus.
Before going further, I must comment on how I am doing. I went to two fellowship groups today. In the morning I went to my dad's Cantonese Bible study. My patience was really tested there as I listened to a Bible study, worship, and sharing in a language I can only understand about 50-60 percent. Additionally, they had lunch and my dad did massage treatment for two people which made my stay there close to four hours. What is more is that it was at a house where I could not use the wheelchair and so all morning and into the afternoon, my joints felt really uncomfortable. I didn't even know if I could make it to our young adult small group. I thought I would just be there for dinner because after sitting for nearly four hours at the morning group, my joints were in bad shape which I learned that my joints need better rest and I cannot sit that long. The young adult group was like night and day,. My mood when at Happy Corner was like 100 times better. I laughed more, felt far more comfortable, and did not feel like a person with health problems. Yes, at Happy Corner, I was happy! I think it was the friends, being around young people, the food, the service, and maybe even the air condition. Maybe it was everything. The book study and prayer was nice too. I came home feeling totally energized more so than in a really long time.. I know more and more how critical it is that our emotions effect our physical health. At home I felt really bad both emotionally and physically. What is more is that someone informed me of an volunteer opportunity locally. I've been praying for some time about ways to help the community and perhaps this might be an option. Hope also is a key piece of recovery and healing. I am learning that as I pray for healing physically, it is not so simple. Physical healing involves much more than the physical condition getting better. It involves relationships, seeing hope, and growing closer to God. As I continue this journey on understanding prayer, how we pray is a key part in effective prayer. There is power in Jesus name.    
  
"It's true, there is something about His name, and for believers, it is a divine legal instrument that we need to use responsibly. We see that in Acts 3:1-8, where John and Peter encounter a lame beggar. Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk" (v. 6). We do not know that Peter meant that he was dead broke—I'm not certain of that at all—but rather when he said, "Silver and gold I do not have," he meant, "I don't have money that will address your real problem, which is that you can't walk." The critical part comes when he says, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." At that moment, the demons of infirmity and lameness that had afflicted that man all those years said, in essence, "The name of Jesus, I know!"—and out they went. Peter went on to address the people who gathered around by saying:
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.
—Acts 3:13
What did we read in John 14? "Whatever you ask [demand] in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son."
Do you see the difference? Peter wasn't praying for the lame man; he was laying hands on him and exercising authority in the name of Jesus."
This text from Acts three has been my prayer text for healing for many weeks now. I want to get up and walk with total restoration of my body so that the healing may bring glory to the Father. I have an unbelieving brother and mother and many unbelieving relatives who know I am in a wheelchair now. There is power in Jesus name and I don't want to doubt it. I grow close sometimes in doubting the power of Jesus name when days go by and no healing happens. I don't fully understand the power of a name especially in the spiritual dimension. We cannot say in the name of John, I ask for healing of my body. Likewise, I do not grasp how we pray in Jesus name either. I long desire to be able to experience the power of praying in Jesus name.

"Notice also that Jesus said, "You will receive, that for, "in order that"] your joy may be full." God wants us to have full joy. Not just tolerable joy or partial joy, but full joy. Full joy is when your pantry is well stocked and you aren't hungry every night. Full joy is when your car works and can take you to your job without breaking down. Full joy is when your body is whole and you aren't battling sickness and disease every day. That does not mean that you should not be joyful when circumstances are not perfect, but that is not God's best for you.
In these verses we have the "how to pray" from Jesus: "And in that day you will ask me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name... " tells us everything we need to know about how to pray. That is the key that starts the car of faith, if you will.
You need to know what to do with that car once it's running, and you need to know what to pray for after you begin your prayer, but this is the formula for an answered prayer. You are to "ask the Father in My name." Do not ask Jesus."
God's best for us is not physical health conditions, or depression, or loneliness, or joblessness. These things happen. I've sat around the house wondering about purpose and meaning for a while. I battle joblessness, depression and physical health conditions and yet it is not God's best for me. If this is not God's best for me, how do I pray for His help and healing in these areas? I long desire wholeness for my life and for my body.

There are two conditions in how we should pray or what we should pray for.
 "1. What do you need?
2. Does God's Word promise you that?
If you think you "need" an adulterous affair, then forget it. God's Word does not promise you that, and you will have no success whatsoever praying to receive that. But if you need a stronger marriage, the Bible is full of promises that a believer's marriage should be blessed. Maybe there is a bully who has been harming your child. You cannot pray that God kill that bully—the Bible doesn't give you that authority. But it does promise that your enemies will come at you one way and go away fleeing seven ways (Deut. 28:7). If your child isn't old enough or spiritually mature enough to claim that for himself or herself, you can pray that over him or her. You cannot pray that a business rival will go broke. The Word doesn't promise you that. But it does promise in Deuteronomy that you will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country, that the Lord will increase your cattle and your flocks (since we don't deal in cattle today, substitute the words "bank accounts and bond portfolios"), and that the Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses (i.e., in your savings accounts). What happens to your rival should be of no concern if your business is prospering beyond all your hopes and dreams! The greatest businessmen in American history uniformly focused on themselves and their production, never on their rivals. Whatever situation it is, you cannot base a prayer on what you want to have happen, but only on what is promised to you by God in His Word."

I close with my prayer for today but then after include a really timely devotional from ODB that really lifted me up today about hopes and dreams. I still do not know why I am here but I pray constantly for purpose.
Prayer:
Father, I am not sure I get the power of the name of Jesus. I want to feel Your power and presence in my life. Today, just a little bit during small group I felt really happy and connected. It had not been like this in the morning. today had been a fairly depressing day especially with my health condition. Yet, we know that these things are not Your best for us. So, Father, I ask that in the name of Jesus You remove my health conditions and help my body towards wholeness and health. I have battled depression and discouragement for some time. It is really uncomfortable to feel defeated and useless most of the time and so pray that in the name of Jesus that You release me from that which is oppressing my mind. Joblessness and loneliness are not part of Your will and so I pray in the name of Jesus to You Father that You soon provide employment and female companionship. There are so many impossible situations I face as someone with limited resources and physical conditions. I have so many hopes and dreams for meaning, for ministry, and for family and marriage. I place my dreams in Your hands, and pray for Your direction and help. I cling to the chapter of Acts that I read today from Acts 3, that in the name of Jesus I can get up and walk and by this my family and relatives might know there is a God in Sacramento.

 
Hopes And Dreams August 15, 2012
Our Daily Bread is hosted by Les Lamborn

READ: Acts 20:16-24

So that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. —Acts 20:24
In 1960, everyone in the high school I attended participated in Project TALENT. For several days, we took tests that surveyed our aptitudes in academic subjects. In addition, we were asked to express our plans, hopes, and dreams for the future. What we didn’t know was that we were among 400,000 participants from 1,300 schools in the largest study of high school students ever conducted in the US. None of us involved in the study could have imagined how our lives would turn out.
The same was true for Saul of Tarsus. As a young man, his goal was to destroy the followers of Jesus (Acts 7:58–8:3; Gal. 1:13). But after his conversion, he became the apostle Paul, whose mission was to multiply them. As he journeyed to Jerusalem, facing prison and hardship, Paul said, “I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace” (Acts 20:24 niv).
When our goal is to honor the Lord, He guides and guards us each step of the way. Whatever our hopes and dreams may be, when we place them in God’s hands we know that everything, including setback or success, is under His control. —David McCasland
When we give our hopes and dreams to God
And then leave them in His hand,
We can trust His love and care for us
To fulfill what He has planned. —Sper

Use the Right Tool
Today is another day of waiting. It has been for the most part an ordinary day. Not that I am looking for an extraordinary day, but it is approaching the half way mark of August and no signs of breakthrough. However, even though I woke up fairly early and did not get good sleep, I still had this sense in the morning that everything will turn out fine. I had a very encouraging dream where I was to make a presentation. I slipped out and while outside was so gripped with anxiety about the presentation as I am often in the past. Moments later, a familiar sister sat with me to encourage me in my fears. I woke up from that dream feeling really ministered to. I rarely if ever remember such a dream where I woke up from and felt this calm sense of God's sovereign grace. It also help that I was able to recall God's faithfullness in my life. Last night as I broke forth in spontaneous worship, the song that struck out to me the most is "There is none like you". It is with this context that I must approach prayer.
The author believes that not all prayer is the same. We need to use the right kind of prayer for the situation. He lists six different types of prayer. The first is the prayer of agreement.
"In Matthew 18:19, Jesus introduced the prayer of 'agreement when He said:
Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.
Right off the bat you can see that for the prayer of agreement to work, people involved in the prayer have to... agreel You cannot know what someone else wants—what someone is believing for— and God cannot answer your prayer for someone else against his or her will. To use the prayer of agreement, you must be sure that the person with whom you are agreeing is in line with what you are asking for. If someone asks me to pray in agreement with them, I ask, "What specifically do you want me to pray for?" Even husbands and wives sometimes are not in agreement over what to pray for when they use the prayer of agreement. If they are praying for a new car, the husband might be praying for a sports car, while the wife is praying for a small SUV. Neither of them can get their prayer answered because they are not really in agreement.
You absolutely must be on the same page when using the prayer of agreement. It is even difficult to set yourself in agreement with people over their healing, because often healing to you may mean something totally different than what healing means to a sick person. Some sick people just want to be out of pain. A person may be praying for a doctor to provide a cure—and there is nothing wrong with that, unless you are praying for the person's supernatural healing."
This is a very interesting catagorization. I never heard of the prayer of agreement but it appears to make sense. I guess that is why we say "amen" after a time of praying in groups. It has been some time since I have prayed with one other person for very specific things. It is interesting how he says that we can have different ideas of what we are praying for like the different kind of car or different meaning of healing. That is why it is important to pray specifically in the prayer of agreement. The author goes on to share that he prayed for a woman to be healed while she was praying to die. They were not praying in agreement. The second type of prayer is the prayer of faith.
"The prayer of faith, also known as petition prayer, is the prayer that most people think of when they use the term prayer. Petition prayer is between you and God. It is you asking God for a particular outcome, whether it's a job, money, a lifetime mate, or whatever. The key verse for the prayer of faith is Mark 11:24, where Jesus says:
Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
The rule to consider here is when you pray—not after you pray... not when you feel something... not when you see something. When you pray (the moment that you pray) you must believe that you receive what you asked for.
This is a difficult concept for some people. God is a present tense God. He doesn't operate in the past or in the future, but in the now. Whenever you pray, at that moment you are in the present. At that precise time, you must believe that you receive what you are praying for. At the moment you pray, believe that you receive what you have requested. Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Your faith is substance—it is something real, something tangible. It is evidence of things you cannot see."
"Part of the faith required to make a prayer transaction, to activate your faith request, is that you can only pray one time for something—because if you believe you have already received it, why would you ask for it again? Imagine I'm standing in front of you, and I say, "Please give me your Bible."
You reach down, pull out your Bible, and hand it to me.
Then I say, "Please give me your Bible."
What? You would rightly say, "Are you crazy? I just gave you my Bible." If you have asked God for something once, you must have faith enough to believe that He heard you and that He has answered your prayer. That's what Jesus meant when He said, "Believe that you receive them" (referring to things you prayed for).
God answers prayers, and He will answer your specific prayer in line with His Word (more on that later), but it is your faith that brings that answer out of the spiritual world and into the physical world. How many times in Scripture does Jesus say to someone, "According to your faith...," or "Daughter, your faith has made you whole"? He referred to peoples' faith constantly, and even though it was His power that healed them, He always credited their faith with being the catalyst. In fact, when Jesus went to His hometown, we are told: "Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief" (Matt. 13:58)."
I have known about how faith is what activates miracles and healings and how Jesus could not perform mighty works in His own home town because of their unbelief. What is most interesting about his thoughts is that we can only pray once for something. His illustration makes sense about asking someone for their Bible. It makes sense to ask once in that context. The author appears to ignore Jesus's encouragement in Luke 18 about a persistent widow. In that context Jesus used the story to encourage people to pray continually for something and not give up. Although this idea of asking once makes sense theoretically, I am not sure if it is Biblical. We can say that the people who asked for healing asked once, but then again Jesus healed them on the spot. I am just really unsure about this one,. What is further puzzling and controversial about what he says we can pray for.
"So what should you pray for? The answer to that question is simple: you pray for those things that God promises to you in the Bible. "Does that mean cars? They didn't have cars in Jesus' time. How could I pray for that?"
Maybe some technologies, specifically, did not exist in the past, but that doesn't mean that the concept isn't in the Bible. Cars serve a purpose—to transport us from one place to another, to  our lives easier. So do houses, and so do bank accounts. They all fall under the rubric of prosperity or wealth. A better question would be, "Does God promise me prosperity?" Yes, He does.
Many—though certainly not all—of God's promises are outlined in a tremendous chapter in the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 28, where God tells the children of Israel that if they "hear and obey" God's Word, He will bless them. Just look at a few of the promises God makes in chapter 28:
Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, the produce of your ground and the increase of your herds, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. The Lord will command the blessing on you in your storehouses and in all to which you set your hand, and He will bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
—Deuteronomy 28:3-8
  Now, while cars are not specifically mentioned, it seems pretty clear that if you are blessed in the above manner, you'll be able to buy any car you want. Certainly "herds" could have referred as easily to horses as to, more likely, cattle. If we Christians are indeed the "seed of Abraham," as Paul says, then we are promised prosperity. So you can either pray for a car, or pray for the money to buy a car—either way, it has been promised to you. And God doesn't care if you have a Volkswagen or a Ferrari or a Ford. They are all the same to God. (He has heavenly chariots!) Some Christians can't really believe for the car they want because they feel unworthy or guilty asking for something that is very expensive. God does not care about the expense. He lives in the most luxurious, wealthy city to ever exist. Our earthly concepts of wealth are dwarfed by His riches—and I don't mean just spiritual riches. Don't think your request is an affront to God. If He has provided for it and promised it, you are fully within the rights He has given you to ask for it."
Some conservative Theologians believe certain promises like this one only refer to Israel. They were made to a particular people at a particular time. Others like this author think we are Abraham's seed and all promises apply to all God's people. I would like to agree with the author. He makes a valid point about how we feel guilty and unworthy for asking for a sports car or something beyond our own means. I don't think he is trying to promote a prosperity gospel even though this comment is on the borderline of that type of thinking.. I struggle right now even believing that God can provide for me employment. I have been through so many failed applications. I imagine that the author is able to believe that God can provide all these things is because he has seen it in his own life. I personally have not seen God come through in these ways.



"In Luke 22:41-42, we see outlined the prayer of consecration and dedication:
And He [Jesus] was withdrawn from them [Peter, James, and John] about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."
Jesus knew that God was the Creator and Ruler of the universe. If there was any way man's salvation could be accomplished, God would know how to do it. Jesus was looking at separation from the Father for the first time ever—not just in His earthly life but through all eternity. He was praying, in essence, "If there is any other way to do this, let's do it that way." But the key for Jesus, and for us, is, "Nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done." You pray that God's will be done only when you don't know that will or do not know if an alternative path that appears is equally "correct" or godly.
I was ministering in a denominational church when God began to deal with me about leaving that church and starting an independent ministry. But even though I was certain God was telling me to leave, He didn't give me explicit instructions on where to go. In other words, God didn't say, "Frederick, thou shalt go to Hollywood and startest thy ministry there," or "Frederick, take thyself and thy family to Compton, and there shalt thou teach." (Actually, God doesn't speak in King James English to modern Americans, but I just used that for effect.) Like Abraham, I had some marching orders but no specific direction. So I prayed the prayer of consecration and dedication: "Father, if it is Your will that I go to Los Angeles to start a church, I'm willing to go to Los Angeles; but if it's Your will that I go to Santa Monica, then I will go there."
In the absence of direct instructions, the prayer of consecration and dedication says you will allow God to set your direction or make your decisions."
The author states this is the time when we say "if it is your will". Because there is no uncertainty in this situation, we ask using a prayer of dedication. Sometimes we have a general calling or vision like the author for a particular ministry. We might even have two or more choices. In my case, I had three options for grad school. I got no specific directions on which one. However, using some indicators such as location, opportunities, and disability services, I made a choice for New York and committed the choice to God.
"In this prayer, you are not asking God to do something for you or to give you something. You are not even asking for direction and dedicating your life to whatever it is God has called you to do. Rather, you just want to praise the Lord, to thank Him for His many blessings and mercy. You want to tell Him how much you love Him. A good example of this type of prayer appears in Luke 2:20, discussing the reaction of the shepherds who had seen the baby Jesus:
Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, as it was told them.
This means that it happened just as the angel of the Lord said it would. In Luke 18:43, we see the blind man "glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God." Ostensibly, they prayed prayers of thanksgiving." (p. 20).
This prayer like the prayer of faith appears to be the most common types that we practice from day to day. This kind of prayer is missing in churches today.. I have been to so many prayer meetings where we are long on asking for things but short on thanking and praising God for who He is. I often why this is.. We focus more on asking God for things. We need to cultivate a heart of worship and have times when we come to God only to worship and nothing else. I am guilty of treating me parents also in this way of asking. It is often been said that when a college student calls home it is usually for money. More so now, I ask my parents for things because of my health condition such as reaching for things I cannot get to. I value my relationship, but too often it is more about asking rather than merely being with.
"Intercession means you are interceding—acting in prayer—on behalf of someone else. This person may be incapable of praying for himself or herself. Perhaps the person is on drugs or mentally confused by demonic doctrines. Perhaps the person is so sick he or she can't muster the energy to stay awake, let alone pray. On a general level, intercession involves praying in a general sense for others. For example: "Father, bless and protect our troops overseas in the war zone that they would return home to their families." You aren't identifying a particular individual or even a particular unit. In general intercessory prayer, you pray, for example, for the church or for our government.
In Ephesians 1:15-18, Paul wrote:
Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.
This goes on, but Paul is making it plain that he prays for the church at Ephesus, and for the individuals there to receive these blessings. He does not set himself in agreement with anyone, so this seems to be a good example of intercessory prayer. Likewise, in his greeting to the Philippians, he wrote: "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy" (Phil. 1:3-4). The fact that Paul said he made requests^r them suggests that this also was an intercessory prayer."
This is another form of asking prayer but it is not focused on ourselves but on others. In our prayer meeting this is the most common when we pray for the church, different ministries and individuals. We pray also for our nation. With this being the second to last form of prayer, most of this makes sense so far. I guess the major thing I have issue with is the prayer in faith and how we ask only once for something and also asking for extravagant things.
"6. The Prayer of Binding and Loosing
This prayer is found in Matthew 18:18-19, where Jesus says:
Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.
There are several important nuggets in Jesus' statements here, with the first being that we have authority here on this earth by virtue of our covenant rights through Jesus.

The second thing we notice is the direction of the action. Things do not begin in heaven and come to earth, but rather the action starts here on earth. Notice that it says, "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Like all things in God's system, this prayer only works in line with God's Word and His laws. You cannot bind things willy-nilly. Binding a team to lose in the Super Bowl won't work any more than loosing someone to love you will work. You can bind foul spirits that are at work in people's lives or loose angelic spirits to work on your behalf in those areas where God has already promised you results. When you pray in that manner, God affirms it in heaven and puts His seal of approval on your prayer. Binding and loosing have to be based on the authority that God has granted you in Scripture, not on some desire you have."
More and more of this author's charismatic Theology and practicies is starting to come out. I have only heard of the prayer of binding and loosing in charismatic circles. I am not even quite sure what it means. He spends a little bit over a paragraph explaining it. Now, with this sixth and final prayer, I am not sure if I gained any new knowledge. I might have been made more confused than when I first began. What I do know now is that I need to worship more and ask less. That was not in the chapter but is this sense that I have been having.
Prayer:
Father, I just finished chapter one of this book and it feels like it is far from the quality of the last one. There are no powerful testimonies, and the insights from Scripture seem a little bit shaky. I ask for discernment. I don't even know what the prayer of binding and loosing is about either. Right now, I don't know if it is Biblical to ask You for things that seem too much. Actually, I don't want a nice car or a million dollar home. Right now, I am asking for the basic needs of employment, companionship, ministry, and health. Like the persistent widow I pray continually and I ask for the wholeness and health of my body which You have given to me. I thank You that You hear prayer. I thank You for the ability to come to You on the basis of what Christ has done. I long desire to see Your majesty and provision. I am praying for breakthrough in these different areas. Please help me in my times of discouragement and doubt.

Introduction
This is a very short introduction to the next book that I will spend the next seven or so days with,. The book is called Answered Prayer Guaranteed (Price, 2006). The introduction itself is only three pages but what follows is several long chapters for a book around 200 pages. What I got from the previous book is that God desires to bless us for the sake of His goodness and glory. The sad tragedy as I see it is that most churches and most Christians do not experience power in prayer nor power in their Christian lives. I have been praying for a while now to experience a vibrant faith and a victorious Christian life. For far too many years, I have been feeling defeated and discouraged. I have been to many lifeless churches throughout California, New York, and Vancouver, British Columbia. There are many Biblically sound, doctrinally correct churches, but the tragedy seems to be that the more the Bible is taught in the church, the more lifeless the church. I had been to a very conservative church in New York where the senior pastor stated that the Bible was studied in church and in house fellowships 28 times a week in that church. I had been to their young adult group for eight weeks. It is true, the preaching and teaching of the Bible was solid, but the level of spiritual maturity and God's presence was minimal at best. It is not to say that we are content with lifeless Christianity. I think many of us simply don't know how to cultivate a vibrant faith. I woke up this morning with a good amount of sleep. I actually woke up after my mom which rarely happens. I usually have a good amount of energy, but today has really been discouraging. Concerning breakthrough in employment, my application for certification had still not been processed by HR even though it should have been last Friday. I wnet online to look at positions and actually finally found about five that are somewhat local, Chico, Uba City, Sacramento, and Fairfield. However, all require many more years of experience I do not have. Concerning ministry, a man who asked that I meet with him this week concerning ministry opportunities has not responded to me for three days. Concerning healing, I feel the same as I did yesterday which is no improvement. Concerning singleness and healing, I had yet again another dream, but have not heard back in two days now. Our joy must be independent of situations, but nevertheless, circumstances sometimes can make us very discouraged. I live from day to day with a lot of discouragement, and long for the day when I can begin to experience victory in my Christian life. So the author begins with the question how do you pray.
   
 "Well, I get down on my knees or go into my room and..." Wait, that's not what I meant. I mean, what method, what process do you use to pray? Are your prayers answered? How do you know? There is a popular saying among pastors today that states, "God answers all prayers, but sometimes God says yes, sometimes God says no, and sometimes God says wait." Doesn't that seem like an odd form of answer to you? I mean, if you order a Big Mac at McDonald's, and you pay your money, you expect a hamburger. Barring the extremely unusual situation that McDonald's runs out of meat or french fries, once you pay your money, no isn't an option, and, for most people, wait isn't an option either.
Is it true that no and wait acre God's answers to prayer? If not, are you getting what you pray for? And if you do not get what you pray for, why not?
Next to the salvation experience and receiving the Holy Spirit, there is no issue in all of a Christian's spiritual life that is as critical as getting prayer rightl Yet you'd be amazed at how many people don't know that not only are there different kinds of prayers, but also that you can no more use the wrong prayer to get a certain result than you can use a Phillips head screwdriver when you need a hammer. Prayer permeates a Christian's life. It should be the first thing a Christian does in the morning, and it should be, as Paul commanded, done "without ceasing" during the day.
Unfortunately, most Christians are not informed that there are different types of prayer and that there is a proper formula for praying, so they attempt to use flowery language capped by a catch-all phrase, "If it be Thy will." People who do this are well meaning. They are sincere. But usually they are sincerely wrong, and they rarely get prayers answered."

I have often heard this answer to the question of answered prayer. God says yes, no, or wait. The author proposes that this answer is ridiculous. The burger analogy is quite vivid. When we go into a fast food restaurant and order and pay we have an expectation that our order will process and we will have our food,. There is no uncertainty about this. There is certainty and the expectation it will happen. I think what the author is proposing is that there should be certainty with prayer. I am guilty also with saying "if it be Your will" and when younger and even sometimes now being very wordy and flowery in my language. I accepted Christ and was discipled in a church here men and women prayed like poets and it sounded really nice to the ears and thought if I pray like that, God likes that kind of prayer. We pray and just hope that God will answer without the certainty of knowing that He will.  
"I want to share with you one of the biggest blessings of my life: God's instruction manual for prayer. This is not some gimmick. Don't think for a moment you are treating God like a supernatural candy dispenser. Quite the contrary, the principles I am going to share with you involve taking God at His Word. They require that we "put up or shut up" with our faith. That's why some people resist what I'm about to tell you, because it's all about faith—faith, and knowing God's promises.
There is a way to pray so that you know God hears you and has already answered your prayer. There is a way to pray in faith—all the time—a way to get answers. And no isn't an answer."
Prayer:
Father, I begin a new journey today. It is really a continuing of the last journey and this is the journey of prayer. I still continue to pray for breakthrough in my health and healing, in my employment, ministry, and life purpose as well as breakthrough in my singleness. So often there is so much uncertainty that we know that You hear prayer or that even You answer prayer. Father, the request the disciples made is the same one I make now. Lord, teach me to pray.