Lord Teach ME to Pray

There's something very real (deep & meaningful) about not having anything but God. That place where you learn what it is to call out to Him expecting (maybe hoping is more like it at first) Him to hear & reply.

I mean think about it - I can't see God...Touch Him...Feel Him (physically)...Smell Him...I have no tangible means of validating His reality. Everything we believe & practice about Him is by nothing but faith.

Yet, how often are our prayer & even our faith not very deep - simply because they/it doesn't have to be. If God does - fine & if He doesn't it'll be ok. That's about where we really live isn't it?

My point? Allow your relationship with HIM to adventure some. Allow yourself to believe for the ridiculous God sized things in life. Allow your self to pray for the really really really really hard things. Ask God to do things that only He can really do - not the things that we can possibly make happen w/out Him. Let your prayer life become a practicing conversation with your Heavenly Father.

When you get there - regardless of how you get there - you will learn (or relearn) to pray. I mean really pray. As in believing that you are talking to a God that can & will...

Prayer was what the Disciples saw as key to everything about Jesus.

So, when they had a chance to ask for something from Jesus - they went right to the heart of His relationship with his Heavenly Father - prayer. They asked Jesus to teach them to pray. They asked him to teach them to be able to talk to God like he does. So, He did.

Not only did He teach them - He talked about asking for the BIG things...About believing & receiving...About the role faith should play when we talk to Heavenly Father.

For me - it's paramount that I pray. I mean taking time to get away from it all & get physically on my knees & talk/cry out/weep/be silent/listen/repent/worship - MY Heavenly Father. Then as I get off my knees - I definitely feel connected to someone that I can't see or touch & yet become increasingly convinced of His reality & His participation in my life - the good & the bad.

Lord - teach me to pray!

Epic

I have many titles for these thoughts...

A Perfect God & Imperfect People...God's Plan Remains...He's Greater...It Might Not Be As Fragile As We Think...I'll go with "EPIC" - as in story...Not just any story - the story of your life - with God in it...Or as we often say - life after Christ (AC).

My theme - is it really true that God has a plan for our life? By that I mean a perfect plan...By that I mean a perfect plan for imperfect people...

By plan - I mean something designed for each of us to do/be/accomplish/achieve...etc...But therein lies the dilemma - "a perfect plan for imperfect people" or more specifically "a perfect plan for an imperfect person like me". I mean - what about our imperfections...failures... sins...flaws...all the things in us that sometimes cause us to mess up the perfect plan for our life.

Then what?

Well...

When you read the Bible - we read about God's perfect plan being accomplished through people just like you & me - imperfect. That's definitely a reoccurring theme - people mess up God's plan for their life.

However, there's another reoccurring theme that seems to be even greater than the first. That's - God is greater than our mess ups!

It seems that when we read of someone messing it up in the Bible - God somehow pulls it back together & makes something good out of it. Of course, it's conditional on the person surrendering (or re-surrendering) to God & allowing Him to create something within again...Then we see it over & over & over - God's plan remains in tact - somehow.

So...my point - if, while we are alive, the story of our life is still being written - even after our failures/sins...then why stop living like it's all over when we fail? As hard as it might be - we can't quit.

Why allow the failure to define our life or our future?
Why allow our failure to become greater than the God within?
Why allow our sin to have the greater say in our life than the God who loved us so much that He forgave us of them?
Why not give God another chance with our life after failure & see what He can do with someone that has a broken & contrite heart?
Why not risk it & see what a Perfect God can do with an imperfect person - after the imperfections have shown up?

A friend of mine says "If you're going through hell - don't stop - keep going".

So...

I'm not going to allow the sin of my life to be the greatest defining moment or to be the greater legacy of mine. Not only for me - but for my marriage...family...friendships...ministry...

I'm going to give the Perfect God a chance to help me write a better ending to my life story...

Another step...

A New Creation

2 Corinthians 5:16 - 21 says this:

Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Verse 17 is in blue... it says that if anyone is in Christ - they are a new creation; the old has passed away & all things have become new.

My prayer is that God teaches me how to fully experience that (as a man...husband...father...friend...Christ-follower...) over & over & over - not just once...not just for the moment...not just for today...UNTIL...

Until - I am truly a new creation in all areas of life - from the inside out.

The only thing I currently know to do to allow this to happen is pray & seek God...By that, I mean to put myself on my knees & cry out to Him from my heart, trusting that those moments will be God-Encounters. God-Encounters where God does something within me that I am incapable of doing myself. Then trust that in real life - the "new me" is the one that lives...

Lord - Hear my prayer...

So...

Another step...

Love Grace & Mercy

Here's where I'm at on something...

By sinning - I gave up ALL my rights to ask or expect anything.

What I mean by that - I have no right to ask for anything from anyone nor do I have any right to expect anything from them either. And I mean NONE...

Whether it's my wife...my kids...friends or anyone else - I have no right to ask for anything.

The way I see that is - I gave all that up through my sin. So...If anyone (Shawn included) decides to: come back into my life...love me...be my friend...hang out with me...it's all a "measure" of love grace & mercy being given back to me. I have no right to ask for it nor expect it...

When you stand alone & are truly lonely - you are reminded real quickly how much love grace & mercy means to you - not in talk - but in action...

So, it causes you (me) to go from living, to some degree, a life of taking things for granted - to a life of taking nothing for granted. NOTHING! Anyone that chooses to come back into my life is exactly that - their choice & therefore a gift in my life.

So, what's that mean for me?

To all the people that have made the choice to come back into my life (& those that will), I'm hoping that I never loose that feeling of deep appreciation for each of you...It means the world to have friends & family that choose to come back in my life!

Thanks.

So...

Another step...

PS
Some are asking how to reach me or Shawn - our email is bobgroves@cox.net. You can reach either or both of us there...

Random Thoughts Rants & Thanks

For those of you that have been on this site a while - you know the blogs have slowed down. I wanted to share what's going on in my journey - but since it doesn't fit a blog very well - I have to just throw it all out there.

You see - it's not that "nothing is happening" - because it is - lots...Lots of good things as a matter of fact - for me...Shawn...my marriage...my kids..my family..etc...

So, in general - we are doing good...But some of the other things going on - the thoughts & stuff I/we are dealing with is what I want to share about...


Random Thoughts

Sin - there is no scale for sin. It all stinks - period. However, we all scale sin & make some worse than others - I do the same thing too. We all sin...


Silence is sometimes the loudest noise...


Rumors are like wildfire. The longer they live - the more out of control they become. 


Gossips are NOT looking out for your best interest - no matter what they say or how they say it...


Self righteousness stinks...

Unforgiveness is a spiritual emotional cancer that will rot your soul...

To not react is wrong - to live in your reaction is too...

Love is the main thing...

Like faith without works is dead - Love without action is too... Love is a verb & without action the words make no sense & becomes meaningless...

Talk is cheap...


Pastors have few friends show up if/when they fall...



Bottom line - this is all about heaven & hell - where we will spend eternity...Like you - I have to make it!

For the 100's & 100's that have reached out to us (Me...Shawn...My kids...) - you'll never know how much that has meant & continues to mean...THANKS!

Every contact (cards...calls...visits etc...) that has been made with Shawn is greatly appreciated...THANKS!

For those that embraced my kids at FAM - THANKS!


For those that have "risked" being our friends - THANKS!

Shawn & I are doing really well...So are my kids...We are determined to get through this...It's friends & family that have not made this about them & rallied around us that have helped buoy us in this storm...THANKS

As I said, this is just a bunch of things we are dealing with on a daily basis - stuff that's just running around in my brain...So, I thought you'd just like to know...

I'm learning & changing...

Another step...

Inputs & Filters

I'm hearing voices...

How do you sift through all the stuff? All the inputs of life & believe in some truth that's greater than your opinion of things?

I mean, just with people in general (let alone - books...song lyrics...TV...Speakers (Spiritual or secular) how do you know? I'm not even speaking of the people you don't want to hear from (& yet sometimes do somehow). I'm speaking of just the ones you seek out & really do want to "know their thoughts".

Even they have their opinions...view points...ideas...what I thinks...etc...And each of them have heard from others/have their experiences/hurts/successes/sins...etc...And unless they have heard from God - they too are offering something less that truth - right?

I mean - trying to sift through it all & make sense of it - can get really crazy - really fast. Not to mention all the unwanted stuff that sneaks in somehow too...

I look around knowing my stuff is all public now. And because of that - I hear through that filter...I see through those eyes...I feel through that failure (sin)...And I really do have to rethink so much of what I thought I knew - about myself, others & even God...

To really be able to trust - when you can't trust yourself...WOW!

What is truth? How can you know you've found it? Even when you "hear from God" - you do so through your own filters - possibly with some bias toward what you were already thinking...

Is there a truth? I believe so - but I don't think it's always the first thing that comes to us - regardless of the source. Well, to clarify - I know God speaks truth - but even then we could hear what we wanted - not what we needed & call it God...

I have nothing to offer God & yet trust Him for it all in some crazy way again...I am reminded often that I am a sinner...And every now & then, I'm reminded that I am a sinner saved by grace...Praise God!

So, in trying to find truth & trust it - for me...my marriage...my family...and anything else - I put my greatest trust in HIS Word...Then I believe that as I humble myself before the Lord and as I allow Him to remake me again through:
prayer...meditation...silence...worship...brokeness...humility...service...etc... - that I will know HIS voice & that HIS truth will make me free...

Another Step...