Thursday, March 8, 2007
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Prayer Changes Things Pt. 1
By Mark E. Baker
Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7. and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The Apostle Paul is telling us that we should pray and make our requests made known to God, but firstly he is telling us to not be anxious. This is step one. There is no need to go to step two if step one is not followed. Unlike a set of instruction you may get when assembling something purchased, you can often look at the thing and see that this part goes here and that part goes there. God's instructions are specific in the way they are written and in the way we are suppose to follow them. You must follow God's instructions if you want to get the desired results. If you don’t follow God's instructions there is no need in blaming God for the lack of results, just go back to the Word of God and find out where you missed it.
An anxious heart will not be able to receive the promises of God by faith. Be anxious for nothing. Do not have any anxiety about anything, as one translation says. Then you can make your request made known to God, and the desired result will be peace of mind and heart. You may ask what that has to do with whatever your request was. Peace is an incredible thing. It is the desired result of praying according to God's will. If you don’t have God's peace, you won’t receive what ever your petition was.
First of all, you are to go to God with confidence and full assurity. You get this way by thinking continually on the word of God and keeping His promises before you. Secondly if you don’t have peace, you need to check and see if you have followed the first two steps. I would like to point out that this is not a formula, buts God's instructions to us in order to receive His promises.
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.
Jesus the master teacher said it so simply and directly. Step one, you must abide in Him. Step two, His words must abide in you. Step three, ask what you desire and it shall be done for you. He said a very similar thing to what the Apostle Paul later said, Didn’t He?
You see the Word of God always flows together. You are not going to have anxiety if you are doing what Jesus said to do, are you? If you are abiding in Jesus, and His words are abiding in you, then you are going to the Father in prayer, anxiety free, and the end result will be the peace of God will keep you heart and mind in Christ Jesus. I would like to point out something else while we are looking at this Scripture, Jesus said ask what you desire. He didn’t say to just ask what you need, but what you desire. Then He said that it, or the desire you petitioned God about would be given to you.
Your hearts desires will be in line with God's Word if you are abiding in Him and His words are abiding in you, won't they? Yes they will! You won't have to worry about asking for the wrong things, you will be so full of God's Word that nothing but things in line with His Word will be asked for.
When you are praying this way, your prayer is the will of God. Prayer is another way of saying you are processing out the very will of God, working out His will and bringing His will into existence here on the Earth. You might ask why do I have to ask if it is already God's will. Won’t He just bring it to pass? NO! We must ask!
The Apostle James said; Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. James 4:2b-3.
Again, if you are abiding in God's Word, you are not going to ask amiss as the Apostle James was saying here.
John 16:23 "And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. 24. "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
Peace was one of the end results of prayer, but Jesus was saying we are to ask so that our joy may be full. Have you ever considered that God wants us to have joy and peace, and He’s telling us in His Word what to do in order to walk in these things.
We must ask. We have not because we ask not. We could put this in the personal way and say we will have because we ask! I am not trying to twist something around here, only to say we are being told to ask so that we might receive. God wants us to have joy, peace, and to fulfill the desires of our heart.
Sometimes we miss God by praying the wrong way, there are many different types of prayer mentioned in the Word of God. No one single type of prayer is always the right way to pray in every situation. There is the prayer of faith, the prayer of intercession, the prayer of salvation, the prayer of consecration the prayer of repentance. We don’t need to get saved again and again after we have acknowledged Jesus as Lord and received eternal life, we do however need to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. Sometimes we need to set time aside for prayer and fasting in order to do this very thing, and to put off the old man of the flesh. An example of this is in the 13th chapter of Acts.
Acts 13:1-3. Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, "Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'' Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
Notice the conditions in which the Holy Ghost spoke, Fasting and worshiping God. …
They were given a clear direction for their calling and an anointing to accomplish what the Lord sent them to do. These men were already accomplished ministers. They could have been satisfied with what they had right there, but God had more for them. You will notice in chapter 14 when it was talking about them it calls them Apostles, up until that time they were called prophets and teachers. Paul didn’t start out as an Apostle, remember the good, and acceptable, and perfect, will. They wanted to fulfill that perfect will of God in their lives, So they were fasting, worshiping God, waiting on the Lord to give them direction, weren’t they?
Have you ever stopped to consider what would have happened to Paul and Barnabas if they had not taken the time to wait on God, seek Him, and avail themselves of Him. We each have a part to play in this. You don’t just step out into the perfect will of God without clear direction, and you don’t get clear direction unless you spend time in the presence of God and have consecrated yourself to Him.
Paul and Barnabas would not have received their Apostleship. They never would
Have had hands laid on them, and they would have never received the anointing to fullfill the work God had called them to fulfill, and they would have never fulfilled the perfect will of God in their lives
God equipped them and anointed them to fulfill His purpose. That equipping happened during a time of fasting, seeking Him, ministering to Him, worshiping Him, and availing themselves to Him. They consecrated themselves unto the Lord. The calling of God was already there, but they had to put themselves into a place where they could receive that calling and anointing didn’t they? .
Paul went on to fulfill the calling of God on His life and wrote 2/3s of the New Testament in the process.
The prayer of salvation is the prayer we pray when we receive eternal life. As I said earlier you don’t get saved over and over again, just like you don’t get born naturally over and over again. It is a one time deal. There are times when we miss God and we have to pray the prayer of repentance.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
This was written to Christians, not to the world. The world doesn’t have fellowship with God at all.
Broken fellowship is always the end result of sin, and only true repentance can restore broken fellowship. Fellowship is another way of saying communion. Christian have fellowship or communion with God and sin keep us from having fellowship. In the same way you could have an argument with a spouse or friend and your fellowship is broken, when you go and say your sorry and make things right, then you restore that fellowship.
This is such an important aspect of the Christian walk.
Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, putting away lying, each one speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 26. "Be angry, and do not sin'': do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27. nor give place to the devil.
This opens the door to the devil so making things right not only restores broken fellowship but shuts the door in his face.
Keep the door shut on that liar and don’t give him any place. We will continue with the other types of prayer in the next Soul Food.
Do you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Do you want to be a joint heir with Christ?
If so, I urge you to earnestly pray the following prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus. Your word says, “…and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.” (Jn.6:37),
So I know You won’t cast me out, but You take me in, And I thank you for it. You said in your Word, "whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.'' (Ro. 10:13).
I am calling on Your name, So I know You have saved me now, You also said, “…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.” (Ro.10:9,10).
I believe in my heart that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I believe He was raised from the dead for my justification. And I confess Him now as my Lord, Because Your Word says, “… with the heart one believes to righteousness…” and I do believe with my heart, I have now become the righteousness of God in Christ. (2 Cor. 5:21),
And I am saved! Thank You, Lord!
I can now truthfully say, I see myself as a born again child of God!
Glory to God!!!! Amen.
I was raised Catholic, and was born again at the age of 17. I received God's call into ministry at the age of 19 and began to prepare for ministry. I graduated from Rhema Bible Training Center in 1979, The Lord has called me to teach. I want to help other come to a knowledge of the truth and have started a web site for the purpose of teaching and discipleship called The Olive Branch;
Mark E. Baker
http://www.olivebranchministries.us
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_E._Baker
http://EzineArticles.com/?Prayer-Changes-Things--Pt.-1&id=157913
Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7. and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The Apostle Paul is telling us that we should pray and make our requests made known to God, but firstly he is telling us to not be anxious. This is step one. There is no need to go to step two if step one is not followed. Unlike a set of instruction you may get when assembling something purchased, you can often look at the thing and see that this part goes here and that part goes there. God's instructions are specific in the way they are written and in the way we are suppose to follow them. You must follow God's instructions if you want to get the desired results. If you don’t follow God's instructions there is no need in blaming God for the lack of results, just go back to the Word of God and find out where you missed it.
An anxious heart will not be able to receive the promises of God by faith. Be anxious for nothing. Do not have any anxiety about anything, as one translation says. Then you can make your request made known to God, and the desired result will be peace of mind and heart. You may ask what that has to do with whatever your request was. Peace is an incredible thing. It is the desired result of praying according to God's will. If you don’t have God's peace, you won’t receive what ever your petition was.
First of all, you are to go to God with confidence and full assurity. You get this way by thinking continually on the word of God and keeping His promises before you. Secondly if you don’t have peace, you need to check and see if you have followed the first two steps. I would like to point out that this is not a formula, buts God's instructions to us in order to receive His promises.
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.
Jesus the master teacher said it so simply and directly. Step one, you must abide in Him. Step two, His words must abide in you. Step three, ask what you desire and it shall be done for you. He said a very similar thing to what the Apostle Paul later said, Didn’t He?
You see the Word of God always flows together. You are not going to have anxiety if you are doing what Jesus said to do, are you? If you are abiding in Jesus, and His words are abiding in you, then you are going to the Father in prayer, anxiety free, and the end result will be the peace of God will keep you heart and mind in Christ Jesus. I would like to point out something else while we are looking at this Scripture, Jesus said ask what you desire. He didn’t say to just ask what you need, but what you desire. Then He said that it, or the desire you petitioned God about would be given to you.
Your hearts desires will be in line with God's Word if you are abiding in Him and His words are abiding in you, won't they? Yes they will! You won't have to worry about asking for the wrong things, you will be so full of God's Word that nothing but things in line with His Word will be asked for.
When you are praying this way, your prayer is the will of God. Prayer is another way of saying you are processing out the very will of God, working out His will and bringing His will into existence here on the Earth. You might ask why do I have to ask if it is already God's will. Won’t He just bring it to pass? NO! We must ask!
The Apostle James said; Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. James 4:2b-3.
Again, if you are abiding in God's Word, you are not going to ask amiss as the Apostle James was saying here.
John 16:23 "And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. 24. "Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
Peace was one of the end results of prayer, but Jesus was saying we are to ask so that our joy may be full. Have you ever considered that God wants us to have joy and peace, and He’s telling us in His Word what to do in order to walk in these things.
We must ask. We have not because we ask not. We could put this in the personal way and say we will have because we ask! I am not trying to twist something around here, only to say we are being told to ask so that we might receive. God wants us to have joy, peace, and to fulfill the desires of our heart.
Sometimes we miss God by praying the wrong way, there are many different types of prayer mentioned in the Word of God. No one single type of prayer is always the right way to pray in every situation. There is the prayer of faith, the prayer of intercession, the prayer of salvation, the prayer of consecration the prayer of repentance. We don’t need to get saved again and again after we have acknowledged Jesus as Lord and received eternal life, we do however need to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. Sometimes we need to set time aside for prayer and fasting in order to do this very thing, and to put off the old man of the flesh. An example of this is in the 13th chapter of Acts.
Acts 13:1-3. Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, "Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'' Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.
Notice the conditions in which the Holy Ghost spoke, Fasting and worshiping God. …
They were given a clear direction for their calling and an anointing to accomplish what the Lord sent them to do. These men were already accomplished ministers. They could have been satisfied with what they had right there, but God had more for them. You will notice in chapter 14 when it was talking about them it calls them Apostles, up until that time they were called prophets and teachers. Paul didn’t start out as an Apostle, remember the good, and acceptable, and perfect, will. They wanted to fulfill that perfect will of God in their lives, So they were fasting, worshiping God, waiting on the Lord to give them direction, weren’t they?
Have you ever stopped to consider what would have happened to Paul and Barnabas if they had not taken the time to wait on God, seek Him, and avail themselves of Him. We each have a part to play in this. You don’t just step out into the perfect will of God without clear direction, and you don’t get clear direction unless you spend time in the presence of God and have consecrated yourself to Him.
Paul and Barnabas would not have received their Apostleship. They never would
Have had hands laid on them, and they would have never received the anointing to fullfill the work God had called them to fulfill, and they would have never fulfilled the perfect will of God in their lives
God equipped them and anointed them to fulfill His purpose. That equipping happened during a time of fasting, seeking Him, ministering to Him, worshiping Him, and availing themselves to Him. They consecrated themselves unto the Lord. The calling of God was already there, but they had to put themselves into a place where they could receive that calling and anointing didn’t they? .
Paul went on to fulfill the calling of God on His life and wrote 2/3s of the New Testament in the process.
The prayer of salvation is the prayer we pray when we receive eternal life. As I said earlier you don’t get saved over and over again, just like you don’t get born naturally over and over again. It is a one time deal. There are times when we miss God and we have to pray the prayer of repentance.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
This was written to Christians, not to the world. The world doesn’t have fellowship with God at all.
Broken fellowship is always the end result of sin, and only true repentance can restore broken fellowship. Fellowship is another way of saying communion. Christian have fellowship or communion with God and sin keep us from having fellowship. In the same way you could have an argument with a spouse or friend and your fellowship is broken, when you go and say your sorry and make things right, then you restore that fellowship.
This is such an important aspect of the Christian walk.
Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, putting away lying, each one speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. 26. "Be angry, and do not sin'': do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27. nor give place to the devil.
This opens the door to the devil so making things right not only restores broken fellowship but shuts the door in his face.
Keep the door shut on that liar and don’t give him any place. We will continue with the other types of prayer in the next Soul Food.
Do you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Do you want to be a joint heir with Christ?
If so, I urge you to earnestly pray the following prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus. Your word says, “…and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.” (Jn.6:37),
So I know You won’t cast me out, but You take me in, And I thank you for it. You said in your Word, "whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.'' (Ro. 10:13).
I am calling on Your name, So I know You have saved me now, You also said, “…that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.” (Ro.10:9,10).
I believe in my heart that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I believe He was raised from the dead for my justification. And I confess Him now as my Lord, Because Your Word says, “… with the heart one believes to righteousness…” and I do believe with my heart, I have now become the righteousness of God in Christ. (2 Cor. 5:21),
And I am saved! Thank You, Lord!
I can now truthfully say, I see myself as a born again child of God!
Glory to God!!!! Amen.
I was raised Catholic, and was born again at the age of 17. I received God's call into ministry at the age of 19 and began to prepare for ministry. I graduated from Rhema Bible Training Center in 1979, The Lord has called me to teach. I want to help other come to a knowledge of the truth and have started a web site for the purpose of teaching and discipleship called The Olive Branch;
Mark E. Baker
http://www.olivebranchministries.us
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_E._Baker
http://EzineArticles.com/?Prayer-Changes-Things--Pt.-1&id=157913
Prayer and Consciousness
By Margo Kirtikar Ph.D.
There is a method to prayer and a method to growth in consciousness.
Some of us make the error of thinking that it is enough to believe in God, to sit in silence and to think about God. Some of us think it is enough if we attend church every Sunday, recite a little prayer before every meal or to help charity once in a while. Some of us think it is enough to mention the name of God or to follow habitual rituals of prayer. All this, however, is not enough. I am genuinely sorry to disappoint you my friend, but this is not enough.
God, the Divine, the Logos, Allah, Brahma, demands much more of us. We wonder why our prayers are not answered. The question is how genuine are we in our prayers? How true are we? How faithful are we? Do you know that it is the intensity of our prayer that determines whether our prayers are answered or not? How much of our energy and passion do we put into our prayers? How much of our true selves do we put into our prayers? Just how committed are we to God when we pray? Are we committed in whole or only in part as we pray? i.e. Is our mind wondering on to other things as we pray therefore in part only or are we fully focused?
You see, because the fact is, that we are required to commit to God totally and fully, in body mind and soul, no less. God demands this of us. This does not mean that we need to be fanatics, not at all, because that would be just as bad an extreme as being too lax in our devotion to God. Let me explain…
We are divine beings and there is a spark of God within each living soul. It is this little spark that is within each one of us, regardless who we are, that we need to fan to a roaring blaze so that we feel God’s warmth. We need to expand this divine spark within us for us to grow in our consciousness level. Too many of us wallow in our follies and mistakes and we defend ourselves with a thousand excuses of why we cannot move forward and away from the habitual negative spaces and detrimental energies that we are stuck in. Year in year out we make virtues of our shortcomings, we say ‘this is who I am and I can’t change that’ or ‘that is how I am and there’s nothing I can do about it’ or ‘this is much too difficult I can’t do this’ or 'I have no time' but these are all nothing but excuses for being lethargic and plain lazy, not interested in making any effort to move away from our zone of material comfort. We spend more time focusing and nurturing and feeding our shortcomings, displaying them like trophies to each other and to the world, instead of shifting our focus on how we can be better human beings, on how we can develop and add positive qualities to our character, to be more constructive and to contribute to family, friends, work place and to the society at large.
There is a method to this if you really want to know. There is a method to growth in consciousness. A simple but effective method used by all who thread the spiritual path in earnest. This method is to judge oneself, not others, but to judge oneself. Constantly and regularly, every end of the day, to look back on the day, to our thoughts and actions, we see where we have failed as good human beings, we see our own mistakes, we acknowledge that with acceptance, and we pray to ask for pardon and forgiveness and then we pray for the right guidance to do better. We pray for patience and for inner strength. We pray for insight, inner vision and wisdom. This we need to do with our whole being and not only with a part of us. We need to be engaged fully with mind body and soul as God demands it. We need to be totally devoted. When we do this regularly without fail, the positive results are guaranteed.
Let’s take this as an example. If you love someone deeply you have the wish and the need, to show this to the person you love, right? You want to express your love to them and you give of yourself without holding back. You don’t think or say, ‘but you know I love you, why do I need to show you? or ‘why should I do this or that for you, you know I love you isn’t that enough ?’ or ‘you know I love you so I do not need to be respectful or appreciative of you’ and so on.
It is of no difference at all with the Divine. We need to show our love, to demonstrate it, to express this in all our prayers to God. We need to love and to cherish God the Divine. We also need to show our love to God by loving the Divine God Spark, the Spirit within ourselves. We need to respect and to love the Divine God Spark within every other human being we deal with. If we keep this thought alive in our mind that there is a Divine Godly Spark in every soul we meet, the Spirit within, and we address this God Spark in everyone we meet, our whole attitude towards our fellow beings will change. Our whole world will change if every one of us made a point of holding this thought in our mind. Imagine that each one of us is a Universe and a mini God in the making and we are all constantly interacting with other mini Gods in the making. For in the end the ultimate truth is God is Cosmic Consciousness, God is Energy, God is Life, God is Light, God is Love and we are all One with God.
I’d like to quote the following from a book ‘The Secret of Light’ by Walter Russel, 1871-1963, a visionary, known as the man who tapped the secrets of the universe.
“Every happening anywhere happens everywhere. The milkweed fluff floating lazily in the summer sky affects the balance of the whole universe of suns and galaxies. Every part of the universe moves in interdependent unison as the wheels of a watch move in unison. The watch wheels are geared together mechanically. The rhythmic wave universe is geared together electrically. The entire universe is one and must be kept in balance as one. Changes of condition in any one part are simultaneously reflected in every other part and are sequentially repeated in it.
Everything that is, is of everything else that is. All things are indissolubly united. – from the Divine Iliad.”
All of us should reflect on these words and remember them as we pray and as we move forward each of us on our own individual path towards cosmic consciousness.
Margo Kirtikar is a spiritual coach and guide, helps people to find their path, achieve their goals, discover their true potential.
http://www.mindempowerment.net
http://www.visionsunusual.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Margo_Kirtikar_Ph.D.
http://EzineArticles.com/?Prayer-and-Cosciousness&id=369761
There is a method to prayer and a method to growth in consciousness.
Some of us make the error of thinking that it is enough to believe in God, to sit in silence and to think about God. Some of us think it is enough if we attend church every Sunday, recite a little prayer before every meal or to help charity once in a while. Some of us think it is enough to mention the name of God or to follow habitual rituals of prayer. All this, however, is not enough. I am genuinely sorry to disappoint you my friend, but this is not enough.
God, the Divine, the Logos, Allah, Brahma, demands much more of us. We wonder why our prayers are not answered. The question is how genuine are we in our prayers? How true are we? How faithful are we? Do you know that it is the intensity of our prayer that determines whether our prayers are answered or not? How much of our energy and passion do we put into our prayers? How much of our true selves do we put into our prayers? Just how committed are we to God when we pray? Are we committed in whole or only in part as we pray? i.e. Is our mind wondering on to other things as we pray therefore in part only or are we fully focused?
You see, because the fact is, that we are required to commit to God totally and fully, in body mind and soul, no less. God demands this of us. This does not mean that we need to be fanatics, not at all, because that would be just as bad an extreme as being too lax in our devotion to God. Let me explain…
We are divine beings and there is a spark of God within each living soul. It is this little spark that is within each one of us, regardless who we are, that we need to fan to a roaring blaze so that we feel God’s warmth. We need to expand this divine spark within us for us to grow in our consciousness level. Too many of us wallow in our follies and mistakes and we defend ourselves with a thousand excuses of why we cannot move forward and away from the habitual negative spaces and detrimental energies that we are stuck in. Year in year out we make virtues of our shortcomings, we say ‘this is who I am and I can’t change that’ or ‘that is how I am and there’s nothing I can do about it’ or ‘this is much too difficult I can’t do this’ or 'I have no time' but these are all nothing but excuses for being lethargic and plain lazy, not interested in making any effort to move away from our zone of material comfort. We spend more time focusing and nurturing and feeding our shortcomings, displaying them like trophies to each other and to the world, instead of shifting our focus on how we can be better human beings, on how we can develop and add positive qualities to our character, to be more constructive and to contribute to family, friends, work place and to the society at large.
There is a method to this if you really want to know. There is a method to growth in consciousness. A simple but effective method used by all who thread the spiritual path in earnest. This method is to judge oneself, not others, but to judge oneself. Constantly and regularly, every end of the day, to look back on the day, to our thoughts and actions, we see where we have failed as good human beings, we see our own mistakes, we acknowledge that with acceptance, and we pray to ask for pardon and forgiveness and then we pray for the right guidance to do better. We pray for patience and for inner strength. We pray for insight, inner vision and wisdom. This we need to do with our whole being and not only with a part of us. We need to be engaged fully with mind body and soul as God demands it. We need to be totally devoted. When we do this regularly without fail, the positive results are guaranteed.
Let’s take this as an example. If you love someone deeply you have the wish and the need, to show this to the person you love, right? You want to express your love to them and you give of yourself without holding back. You don’t think or say, ‘but you know I love you, why do I need to show you? or ‘why should I do this or that for you, you know I love you isn’t that enough ?’ or ‘you know I love you so I do not need to be respectful or appreciative of you’ and so on.
It is of no difference at all with the Divine. We need to show our love, to demonstrate it, to express this in all our prayers to God. We need to love and to cherish God the Divine. We also need to show our love to God by loving the Divine God Spark, the Spirit within ourselves. We need to respect and to love the Divine God Spark within every other human being we deal with. If we keep this thought alive in our mind that there is a Divine Godly Spark in every soul we meet, the Spirit within, and we address this God Spark in everyone we meet, our whole attitude towards our fellow beings will change. Our whole world will change if every one of us made a point of holding this thought in our mind. Imagine that each one of us is a Universe and a mini God in the making and we are all constantly interacting with other mini Gods in the making. For in the end the ultimate truth is God is Cosmic Consciousness, God is Energy, God is Life, God is Light, God is Love and we are all One with God.
I’d like to quote the following from a book ‘The Secret of Light’ by Walter Russel, 1871-1963, a visionary, known as the man who tapped the secrets of the universe.
“Every happening anywhere happens everywhere. The milkweed fluff floating lazily in the summer sky affects the balance of the whole universe of suns and galaxies. Every part of the universe moves in interdependent unison as the wheels of a watch move in unison. The watch wheels are geared together mechanically. The rhythmic wave universe is geared together electrically. The entire universe is one and must be kept in balance as one. Changes of condition in any one part are simultaneously reflected in every other part and are sequentially repeated in it.
Everything that is, is of everything else that is. All things are indissolubly united. – from the Divine Iliad.”
All of us should reflect on these words and remember them as we pray and as we move forward each of us on our own individual path towards cosmic consciousness.
Margo Kirtikar is a spiritual coach and guide, helps people to find their path, achieve their goals, discover their true potential.
http://www.mindempowerment.net
http://www.visionsunusual.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Margo_Kirtikar_Ph.D.
http://EzineArticles.com/?Prayer-and-Cosciousness&id=369761
A House of Prayer for All Peoples?
By David Ben-Ariel
On Simchat Torah (Festival of the Rejoicing of the Law/Last Great Day) I went up to the Temple Mount with my Bible to pray. Although I do not usually wear a kippa (skull cap), I took one with me.
My first challenge was to pass the guards near the Temple Mount entrance; if they saw me with my Bible they would not let me enter. I silently prayed all the way up to the site where God's Temple stood twice, and will be rebuilt for a third and final time, that I would be able to go in. I got past the guards.
You say Jewish guards prevent Christians and Jews from exercising their religious right to pray on the Temple Mount? That's right! Only Muslims have unlimited access to Judaism's most holy site. Only the Koran is permitted within. The Tanach (Jewish Scripture, known to much of the world as the "Old Testament") and Christian Scriptures (the New Testament) are forbidden. Yet Israel claims to respect the religious rights of all people.
Israel has no law against Christians and Jews praying or reading scriptures on the Temple Mount. However, it does have an unwritten agreement with the Wakf (Muslim religious authorities) prohibiting this. No sign is posted, stating: "Warning! Christian and Jewish prayers are forbidden! Bibles not allowed inside by Muslim religious authorities. Proceed with caution!"
I do not accept that Moslems have the authority to forbid me from reading appropriate Psalms or the New Testament account of Jesus celebrating the Water Libation Ceremony (Psalms 120-134, John 7:37). My question was, where should I read those passages? I ended up between the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aksa mosque, just to the right of the place where Moslems wash their hands and feet. I was on the other side of the raised platform there, if you face the Mosque of Omar.
First, I nervously sat and read. Then I put on my black kippa, stood up and started to read for a few minutes until I became distracted by fears of being attacked by the Moslem guards. I sat down, took off my kippa, and continued to read. Then one of the Wakf guards noticed me and asked what I was reading. I replied, "Yes, it's my book." He took it from me and saw that it was a Bible. He demanded to know if I was a Christian or a Jew. When I told him I was a Christian, he asked me why I was wearing a magen David (Star of David).
I did not feel obligated to explain that it was a gift from my mother and youngest sister, and told him, "Give back my Bible." He ordered, "You have to leave now!" Again I said, "Give back my Bible." When he refused, I demanded its return more loudly. He raised his fist as if to hit me and warned me not to raise my voice. This attracted the attention of some passing tourists, who gathered around us. I told them, "This thief has stolen my Bible!"
The Wakf guard told me to leave again and threatened to hit me. He said he would give me back my Bible outside. Since there was no reason for him to confiscate it in the first place, I told him to return it to me then and there and I would go. At this point he radioed an Israeli policeman, who came running. The Israeli handcuffed my right hand, which I raised and showed to the assembled tourists, saying, "This is Israeli democracy!" I asked the Israeli repeatedly, "What law have I broken?" knowing that I had not broken any law, yet was being treated like a common criminal.
I am shocked that Jewish police in the Jewish State help maintain Moslem domination of the Temple Mount by suppressing Christian and Jewish religious rights there. Is it the Temple Mount or the Mosque Mount?
An Israeli policeman led me away. I told the bewildered tourists, "This is what happens to a Christian or Jew who wants to read the Bible where the holy Temple stood. This is what happens to Christians and Jews who want to pray where our prophets and patriarchs prayed, and where Jesus and his disciples taught."
Why the exclusive religious rights for Moslems? And Israel wants to hand over control of Rachel's Tomb, Bethlehem and Joseph's Tomb to Moslem religious authorities?! Are they crazy or what?
In the police station at the Western Wall Plaza, the officers wanted to know who else was with me. They were relieved to find that I was alone. (They should have known I was performing a mitzva [religious commandment]). The police said they arrested me for my own protection. I told them they should have arrested the Wakf guard who threatened me! Why not remove, once and for all, the threat of Moslem violence? Why reward Moslem extremists?
The police laughed in disbelief when I told them I am a Christian and that my Bible includes the New Testament, which they returned to me. A Druze officer said, "But you must respect other religions." He remained silent when I asked, "Where was their respect for mine?" I explained that our Biblical goal is to enable everyone to come and pray on the mountain where God's Temple stood, and in the Temple when it will be rebuilt. It is prophesied to become a "House of Prayer" for all nations.
The police told me I could return to the Temple Mount as a tourist - without my Bible. I said that I do not want to go up there only as a "tourist;" I want to pray there. When they asked me how many times I had been up there, I said "a thousand." They wrote that down in their report. They said I could make a short statement for the record. I said something to this effect: "Is it too much to ask during this 3,000th anniversary of King David's Jerusalem to peacefully read his inspired words on the Temple Mount?"
When I left the police compound, one of the policemen told me I did a good thing. Once outside, I was met by some Jews who saw the incident and congratulated me.
I pray that this unfortunate encounter will raise awareness of Israel's religious discrimination against Christians and Jews. The situation must change. It will when enough people cry "Basta!" (Italian for "enough!").
May the day soon come when Christians, Jews and Moslems can say: "My House shall be called a house of prayer for all Peoples." (Isaiah 56:7). The Bible says
"Moreover, concerning the stranger, who (is) not of Your people Israel, but comes out of a far country for Your Name's sake. For they shall hear of Your great Name, and of your mighty hand, and of Your outstretched arm, and will come and pray toward this house. Hear you in heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calls to You for, that all peoples of the earth may know Your Name, to fear you, as (do) Your people Israel, that they may know that Your Name is called upon this house that I have built." (I Kings 8:41-43)
"And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord to serve Him and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants - everyone who observes the Sabbath - I will bring them to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon My altar, for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." (Isaiah 56:6-7)
"And it shall come to pass at the end of days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established at the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and peoples shall flow to it. And many nations shall go, and say, 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord...and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths,' for out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." (Micah 4:1-2)
(This article was originally published in the Jerusalem-based, Root and Branch Association newsletter, January 1996.)
See Israel's 1967 Protection of Holy Places Law they have failed to enforce and refused to uphold.
David Ben-Ariel is a Christian-Zionist writer in Ohio and author of Beyond Babylon: Europe's Rise and Fall. With a focus on the Middle East and Jerusalem, his analytical articles help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Visit the Third Temple on the Temple Mount blog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Ben-Ariel
http://EzineArticles.com/?A-House-of-Prayer-for-All-Peoples?&id=99366
On Simchat Torah (Festival of the Rejoicing of the Law/Last Great Day) I went up to the Temple Mount with my Bible to pray. Although I do not usually wear a kippa (skull cap), I took one with me.
My first challenge was to pass the guards near the Temple Mount entrance; if they saw me with my Bible they would not let me enter. I silently prayed all the way up to the site where God's Temple stood twice, and will be rebuilt for a third and final time, that I would be able to go in. I got past the guards.
You say Jewish guards prevent Christians and Jews from exercising their religious right to pray on the Temple Mount? That's right! Only Muslims have unlimited access to Judaism's most holy site. Only the Koran is permitted within. The Tanach (Jewish Scripture, known to much of the world as the "Old Testament") and Christian Scriptures (the New Testament) are forbidden. Yet Israel claims to respect the religious rights of all people.
Israel has no law against Christians and Jews praying or reading scriptures on the Temple Mount. However, it does have an unwritten agreement with the Wakf (Muslim religious authorities) prohibiting this. No sign is posted, stating: "Warning! Christian and Jewish prayers are forbidden! Bibles not allowed inside by Muslim religious authorities. Proceed with caution!"
I do not accept that Moslems have the authority to forbid me from reading appropriate Psalms or the New Testament account of Jesus celebrating the Water Libation Ceremony (Psalms 120-134, John 7:37). My question was, where should I read those passages? I ended up between the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aksa mosque, just to the right of the place where Moslems wash their hands and feet. I was on the other side of the raised platform there, if you face the Mosque of Omar.
First, I nervously sat and read. Then I put on my black kippa, stood up and started to read for a few minutes until I became distracted by fears of being attacked by the Moslem guards. I sat down, took off my kippa, and continued to read. Then one of the Wakf guards noticed me and asked what I was reading. I replied, "Yes, it's my book." He took it from me and saw that it was a Bible. He demanded to know if I was a Christian or a Jew. When I told him I was a Christian, he asked me why I was wearing a magen David (Star of David).
I did not feel obligated to explain that it was a gift from my mother and youngest sister, and told him, "Give back my Bible." He ordered, "You have to leave now!" Again I said, "Give back my Bible." When he refused, I demanded its return more loudly. He raised his fist as if to hit me and warned me not to raise my voice. This attracted the attention of some passing tourists, who gathered around us. I told them, "This thief has stolen my Bible!"
The Wakf guard told me to leave again and threatened to hit me. He said he would give me back my Bible outside. Since there was no reason for him to confiscate it in the first place, I told him to return it to me then and there and I would go. At this point he radioed an Israeli policeman, who came running. The Israeli handcuffed my right hand, which I raised and showed to the assembled tourists, saying, "This is Israeli democracy!" I asked the Israeli repeatedly, "What law have I broken?" knowing that I had not broken any law, yet was being treated like a common criminal.
I am shocked that Jewish police in the Jewish State help maintain Moslem domination of the Temple Mount by suppressing Christian and Jewish religious rights there. Is it the Temple Mount or the Mosque Mount?
An Israeli policeman led me away. I told the bewildered tourists, "This is what happens to a Christian or Jew who wants to read the Bible where the holy Temple stood. This is what happens to Christians and Jews who want to pray where our prophets and patriarchs prayed, and where Jesus and his disciples taught."
Why the exclusive religious rights for Moslems? And Israel wants to hand over control of Rachel's Tomb, Bethlehem and Joseph's Tomb to Moslem religious authorities?! Are they crazy or what?
In the police station at the Western Wall Plaza, the officers wanted to know who else was with me. They were relieved to find that I was alone. (They should have known I was performing a mitzva [religious commandment]). The police said they arrested me for my own protection. I told them they should have arrested the Wakf guard who threatened me! Why not remove, once and for all, the threat of Moslem violence? Why reward Moslem extremists?
The police laughed in disbelief when I told them I am a Christian and that my Bible includes the New Testament, which they returned to me. A Druze officer said, "But you must respect other religions." He remained silent when I asked, "Where was their respect for mine?" I explained that our Biblical goal is to enable everyone to come and pray on the mountain where God's Temple stood, and in the Temple when it will be rebuilt. It is prophesied to become a "House of Prayer" for all nations.
The police told me I could return to the Temple Mount as a tourist - without my Bible. I said that I do not want to go up there only as a "tourist;" I want to pray there. When they asked me how many times I had been up there, I said "a thousand." They wrote that down in their report. They said I could make a short statement for the record. I said something to this effect: "Is it too much to ask during this 3,000th anniversary of King David's Jerusalem to peacefully read his inspired words on the Temple Mount?"
When I left the police compound, one of the policemen told me I did a good thing. Once outside, I was met by some Jews who saw the incident and congratulated me.
I pray that this unfortunate encounter will raise awareness of Israel's religious discrimination against Christians and Jews. The situation must change. It will when enough people cry "Basta!" (Italian for "enough!").
May the day soon come when Christians, Jews and Moslems can say: "My House shall be called a house of prayer for all Peoples." (Isaiah 56:7). The Bible says
"Moreover, concerning the stranger, who (is) not of Your people Israel, but comes out of a far country for Your Name's sake. For they shall hear of Your great Name, and of your mighty hand, and of Your outstretched arm, and will come and pray toward this house. Hear you in heaven Your dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calls to You for, that all peoples of the earth may know Your Name, to fear you, as (do) Your people Israel, that they may know that Your Name is called upon this house that I have built." (I Kings 8:41-43)
"And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord to serve Him and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants - everyone who observes the Sabbath - I will bring them to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon My altar, for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples." (Isaiah 56:6-7)
"And it shall come to pass at the end of days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established at the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and peoples shall flow to it. And many nations shall go, and say, 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord...and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths,' for out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." (Micah 4:1-2)
(This article was originally published in the Jerusalem-based, Root and Branch Association newsletter, January 1996.)
See Israel's 1967 Protection of Holy Places Law they have failed to enforce and refused to uphold.
David Ben-Ariel is a Christian-Zionist writer in Ohio and author of Beyond Babylon: Europe's Rise and Fall. With a focus on the Middle East and Jerusalem, his analytical articles help others improve their understanding of that troubled region. Visit the Third Temple on the Temple Mount blog.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Ben-Ariel
http://EzineArticles.com/?A-House-of-Prayer-for-All-Peoples?&id=99366
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