Abide in him and he will lead us.

I was reading the start of 2 Samuel the past couple days and God reminded me that he calls to simply abide in him and depend on him.  God showed me that when we do abide in him and depend on him, he provides for us in his timing.  Even during the whole time that David was being hunted by Saul,  he still was abiding and depending on God.  David had to go through running through a cave then staying with the Philistines that he formerly hunted before he could become king.  In the same way, God has been showing me that he wants to increase my dependence on him more and more. He will lead me to the job that is the best fit for him in his timing.  Also, God wants me to abide in his Son, Jesus Christ for everything in my life and listen to his Spirit daily.  Our relationship with God is a growing process.  Philippians 1:6 says, God will keep working in us until the day of Christ Jesus.  This shows that God will keep maturing in me until I do come face to face with his Son, Jesus Christ.

Why is the culture and world against God

Why is the culture and the world so much against God?  Is it because of their perception of who he is? Is it their perception of Christians?  Or is it just an all-out hatred against God? The last question I will discuss in these next few blog posts why do people say when one is sharing the gospel stop talking about religion.  God is not some religion, God is three in one.  God is love.  God is the Trinity.  Following God, his Son, and his Spirit is a way to live life. 

Trust him more

God has been showing me how much I need to desperately depend on him.  He has been reminding me that he is trust worthy.  We have to trust him with the little things then he will provide the big things.  God desires us to depend on him for his leading and guidance in our life.  When we look to him, he reminds us how much he can provide for us. 
God showed me that I need to daily remind myself of Proverbs 3:5-6.  We have to keep trusting God with all of our heart then he will lead us where he wants to go.  This type of trusting is a daily trusting, where we are surrendering our plans to God for him to lead us where he wants us to go. 

Billy Graham's life- what to learn and gain.

Today, I will be discussing what we can learn and gain in our life from Billy Graham.  I will be looking at a few important concepts that he implemented in his life that are important for us as believers in Christ.  I will be detailing how and why these are important for us to live out on a weekly basis in order to grow as Christ followers and keep us centered on Christ.  The main two concepts I will be discussing are Billy Graham's integrity/humbleness, dedication to prayer, and his passion to preach the gospel wherever he went.  It is important that we implement these two concepts in our lives on a daily basis.
First, Billy Graham came from a humble beginning.  He was a simple farm boy from North Carolina.  After he preached, he always deflected the praise to God alone.  Also, I remember hearing stories of how he kept himself pure in his integrity.  He was always above reproach in everything he did.
Second, concept was his dedication to prayer and a his daily walk with God.  I heard a story that he always ended the day and began the day with prayer.  He put his walk with God before anything else in his life.  Another story was that ordered the TV out of his room before he would preach and do revival so he could spend time with the Father in prayer.  He considered prayer and his time with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ of upmost importance in his life. 
Lastly, it is important to remember to share the gospel.  Billy Graham just preached the simple message of God's love for us.  All he preached was that God sent his Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our sins and rose again from the grave.  If we believe in him, we will have eternal life and a relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Billy Graham wanted to be remembered that he lived his life for his Savior Jesus Christ alone and was faithful in serving God all of the days of his life. 

Pray Passionately

This morning at church Dr. Dean reminded us of how much we need to pray fervently and passionately during the dark times of our life.  He used the story from Luke 22:39-46 when Jesus prayed passionately during a dark time in his life.  When he prayed, sweat dropped from his brows.  This showed how passionately he was praying to the Father during this time.   Dr. Dean also reminded us of how Jesus prayed for his companions/disciples during this time.  In our dark times, we are to have prayer partners who are with us during these times in our life.  In this same respect, Dr. Dean painted a picture of how we need to pray with passion, diligence, fervency, and desire during dark times in our life.  All in all, God revealed to me today that I need to have a passionate dependency on him this coming week for him to lead me in some important areas in my life.  I know that he is in control and he is working in my life.  The main thing is that I need to cry out to him more to lead me to the right job for me.  We are desperately dependent on Jesus for everything we need in life and he is all we need.  God reminded me of how much I need to daily depend and abide in him: John 15:5. 

Surrender your plans to : Psalm 37

This next step of prayer that I am discussing today is the surrendering of our plans to God.  When we surrender our plans to God, then he will provide for us in his timing in our life.  Also, we are to wait on God when seeking his leading in our life. 
First, committing our ways and surrendering to God in Psalm 37:5 shows our trust in him.  Our ability to surrender helps God see that we trust him and his ways.  When we surrender all our plans and desires to God, then he will act upon our behalf through Jesus.    Jesus hears our cries and requests when we go to him.  Lastly, in 37:4 when we delight in who God is then he will provide for us in his timing. 
Second, it is important that we wait patient on God for all things in life.  The Psalmist first mentions this important concept in first seven when discussing waiting on God to save the saints from trouble.  The Psalmist also mentions waiting on God in verse 34 when discussing waiting on God to inherit the land. This shows us the when we exalt God and wait on him he will provide for us.  Overall, this theme of waiting on God shows the importance of waiting on God and he will provide and protect us. 
Thirdly, this Psalm shows us that God leads us when we rest in him.  When we are abiding in him daily, God leads us in his will and ways.  God then gives us the ability to surrender our plans to him.  Also, when we abide in God and see his leading in our life, he will protect us.  Lastly,  when God leads and when we rest in him, God reminds of his law and his ways. 

Ask Specifically

Dr. Dean's sermon today reminded me that is important for us to be specific in our asking.  When we ask specifically, God hears our prayers and cries.  Also, it is important that we are bold in our asking.  When we are bold in our asking he hears us through Jesus.   He also helped me see that we are to be confident in our asking in boldness.  In this confidence, we are to be persistent in our prayer to God.  This implies an asking, seeking, knocking, then we will find an answer.
It is also important we pray specifically.  In the verse that are used for this asking in prayer it specified a specific number.  It is important we keep a prayer journal. He reminded us that God never gives us on his children or does anything that is harmful to them.  When we ask specifically God may say yes or no. 
Lastly, we are to ask expectantly of God. In this manner, we are to pray with a hope that God will provide for us.  God knows what we need before we even ask of him.