Once we come to know who God is intellectually, we’ll desire to know Him relationally through prayer.  

Truly knowing God is the key to a vibrant prayer life and is how we overcome all the things that stand in the way of prayer.

Our world is broken, but there is hope in Jesus. We should be people, like Nehemiah, who recognize the brokenness and are driven to prayer. Passionate, teary-eyed prayer aligns our heart with God’s heart and is key to seeing awakening established.

David is described as a man after God’s own heart. He defeated Goliath, wrote many psalms, and was zealous for God. But he was also a man who horribly sinned against God. David’s complacency leads to lust which leads to coveting which leads to adultery which leads to murder — it’s a death spiral of sin! However, David’s story doesn’t end with his horrid moral failure. He sees the error of his ways thanks to the prophet Nathan and repents. He receives God’s forgiveness and is restored — but not without some natural consequences to his sin.

David’s story gives hope for sinners like us. We’ve all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. The wages of sin is death and separation from God. Yet, God in His mercy and grace has provided a way of salvation in Jesus’ death and resurrection. We, too, can receive God’s salvation by grace through faith in Jesus.

The beauty of the story of God is that He enlists misfits, and sinners, and those who once lived as His enemies to be heralds of His kingdom — to invite those who are like we used to be to the King’s banquet. 

This is terrifying to most of us, but I think if we can get a proper understanding of how God accomplishes this in us, it wouldn’t be so scary. Isaiah’s life in Isaiah 6 is a perfect picture of this process: Isaiah sees God, sees his sin, receives redemption, and is empowered and sent by God to those around him.

When we live Christlike lives in the midst of a culture that is anti-Christ it will spell trouble for us, but it will also attract others to God.

We will never convince others to follow Jesus by fighting fire with fire. Our job is to be faithful and allow the Spirit of the Living God to do the supernatural work that only He can do.

We must have faith that God is still moving and still able to do immeasurably more than we can do on our own.

No one deserves grace. All have sinned. All fall short. All deserve eternal damnation because of their sin.

The scandal of grace is that forgiveness and restoration is available to all no matter what they have done.

We’re never going to have our suffering alleviated fully. There’s always going to be pain, trials, and oppression.

But, we can rest in knowing that God sees us, cares for us, and one day will make all things new.

Here’s the thing, friends: Wherever you currently find yourself, it’s not too late for your story to be different.

Your story doesn’t hinge on your biggest mistake or your biggest success. It hinges on your response to God’s still, small voice that invites us to trust in Him for salvation, redemption, and restoration.

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Prayer must be a way of life for us in Christ. 

The Beatitudes remind us what a disciple of Jesus should look like.