You are no doubt familiar with the time when Jesus walked on the waters of the Sea of Galilee, and Peter decided he wanted to join him. So Jesus invited him to step out of the boat and when Peter did that, he actually walked on water for a few steps, until he took his eyes off of Jesus.

Well, this week I want to talk about stepping out of the boat—being willing to take a step of faith in order to do what you believe God wants you to do. If you’re willing to take a risk, as it were, to experience the new thing that God has for you, you’ll have to step out of the safe boat and do something you’ve never done before, something you couldn’t possibly do unless Jesus invited you and empowered you to do it.

So, the first challenge is to check it out and make sure this new idea or adventure is a God-thing. How do you know? Well, you pray about it a lot, you seek wisdom from godly people, and if it’s from God it will be something that will help and bless others, not something to promote yourself. It will be one of the good works God ordained in advance for you to do, as we read in Ephesians 2:10. Once you are fairly confident that this idea or passion is from God, here are some things to consider—things I’ve learned along the way.

God often gives us assignments that are outside of our gifting.

It’s true that we all have individual gifts from God and God wants us to use those gifts to serve others.

But in order to do the good works which were ordained in advance for you to do, you will sometimes be out on a limb, in territory that is not only new, but territory that doesn’t fit.

Let me give you one personal example: My skills as a manager of people are not naturally good. But to do the good works God has called me to do, I’ve had to manage people in one capacity or another for many years. It came with the God-given job. So, what do you do when you have to do something outside your gifting? You seek help! It took me too long to figure this out, but finally I have enlisted the help of people who are very good at this—people who have done it and who can teach me things I need to know. What a difference that has made.

So, I just want you to know that the work God calls you to do will have parts that you aren’t particularly good at, and parts you don’t necessarily enjoy. Don’t let that keep you from the good works God has for you to do. Don’t miss the blessing that comes when you step out of the boat with Jesus.

Most of us are sufficiently informed about safe driving techniques and rules of the road, but many times we ignore them. And when we do, we can find ourselves in many difficulties. For example, do you allow your car to warm up before revving up the motor and taking off? I’m told that's bad for the car and it can damage the motor, but many times we just turn on the ignition and go because we're in a rush.

The question is, do you live like that? How often do you procrastinate getting up until the last minute, so you don't have any time to quietly warm up your mind and your heart and tune it into the things of the Lord before leaving home? When you do that, you leave home undressed—you don't have the armor of God in place to protect you against your enemy. If you head into your spiritual battlefield without even thinking about putting on the armor of God, as explained in Ephesians 6, your enemy will often be able to defeat you.

Not only that, but you don't have time to get your inner mind and thoughts focused on Jesus. You don't have time to pray for his guidance and his wisdom, so you face your days trying to do everything yourself and relying on yourself for needed wisdom. How foolish. And you'll find that your mind easily goes in the wrong direction all day long; you'll see how easy it is for you to be impatient and unkind and uncaring. All because you left home without warming up, just like you often do with your car.

You know, you can jump in that car day after day and rush off without warming up, and you may not notice any problem, until one day the motor conks out in the middle of traffic. Bad driving habits often come home to roost later. The same is true spiritually. If you head off most days without warming up spiritually, it may not show up for awhile, but eventually spiritual failure will result.

So, do you live like you drive? I hope you'll warm your car up before you leave home, but much more importantly, make that early warm-up time with Jesus an absolute necessity and discipline that you practice regularly. I guarantee you'll see remarkable improvement in your performance as a believer if you'll get in tune with Jesus early in your day.

Here's another driving question: Do you abide by speed limits? Do you drive as fast as you think you can without being stopped by a cop? I know that often I find myself pushing that pedal down a little too far, thinking, "Oh, well, I can go a few miles over the limit; that's no harm.” Well, that's a bad driving habit, but it's an even worse living habit. God's speed limits in our lives are there to give us abundant life, not to rob our joy.

A “road” where many people frequently speed is in their sexual practices. Even Christians who are committed to a pure lifestyle often find themselves in compromising situations because they don't abide by the speed limits. Let me tell you, this is one area where if you deviate from God's principles, you can end up in a spiritual wreck. Most people who start speeding down this road never intend to commit adultery or fornication, but they lose control of themselves, just as you lose control of a car if you drive too fast.

You cannot go too slowly when it comes to dealing with your sexual drives and passions. Just as you drive very cautiously on a road covered with ice and snow, you have to be exceptionally careful about sexual temptation. Don't put any confidence in yourself when it comes to controlling those impulses. Stay off the road that leads down that path, and travel very slowly when your sexual impulses kick in.

Many Christians push the speed limits in the area of what they read and listen to and view. Trashy or unedifying reading material just fills your mind up with junk, and most movies are even worse. Are you highly selective about what you allow into your mind? If you're exceeding the limits of purity in these are...

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

Are you desiring transformation in your life? Spiritual renewal and growth in your walk as a follower of Jesus?

This is one of my favorite prayers from Psalm 139:

Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24).

I love this prayer of David. He invites God to investigate his life, to put his life and actions to the test. He asks God to know his every thought, examining not just his outward conduct, but what he thinks about.

If God were to examine your thoughts, what would he find? What passes through your mind; what occupies your imagination and memory; what thoughts do you dwell on? Anxious thoughts? Fearful thoughts? Self-defeating thoughts? Sinful thoughts? Most of us let our thoughts run wild when God tells us to hold our thoughts captive to him. Which essentially means, our thoughts should align with God’s thoughts. Philippians 4:8 gives us guidance on the thoughts to entertain: whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. The mind is super powerful. It has been said that the directions of your thoughts determine the direction of your life. And David gives God an open invitation to try his thoughts to ultimately see if they stand the godly test.

David invites God to test him. You can hear the desire in David’s words. He wants his life to reflect that of a man following hard after him. To rid himself of anything that is offensive to God and walk in integrity as a man after God’s heart. And if you know the story of David you know he did not live a perfect life, and neither do we. If we are honest, there are parts of our lives that we let God into and other parts that have a “do not disturb” sign.

Yet here is David, inviting God into every nook and cranny of his life because his ultimate desire was to live a life fully pleasing to God. That is the kind of life that will ultimately bring us the greatest joy and fulfillment.

If you want to experience transformation in your life and a greater intimacy with God, invite the Holy Spirit to lovingly point out things in your life that are hindering you from living life to the fullest in Jesus, one that honors and pleases him.

When you do you will be led not in the way of sin and evil but in the way of godliness and everlasting life in Christ.

(Click here to download the devotional for the entire week.)

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

A well-known prayer from the apostle Paul is a rich example of the power of intercessory prayer.

Intercessory prayer is the privilege of petitioning God on the behalf of others. We are not concerned with our needs but with the needs of others.

I love praying for people, and when someone tells me they are praying for me I feel loved, seen, and deeply cared for. There have been seasons in my life where the burdens have felt very heavy. I have been anxious, worried, and desperately needing direction and comfort from God. In moments of hardship, inexplicably waves of peace and comfort would come over me and I would feel a sense of “groundedness.” Then I would find out that a friend was praying for me. The prayers of my friends have sustained me and encouraged me in times of difficulty.

You can easily pray for the needs of others. For their health, job, financial issues, marital problems, broken relationships, dreams, desires, and unmet longings. And one of the greatest things you can pray for is their spiritual growth and an increasing love for, trust, and faith in Jesus; along with a growing knowledge of his love for them and his power at work in their lives.

In Ephesians Paul prayed a powerful prayer for believers and one that we can pray as well:

“I pray that out of his glorious riches Christ may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:16-21).

One of the greatest gifts we can give people is the gift of praying for them. Who is someone you can intercede for in prayer? Who is someone you can go to battle for, petitioning God on their behalf? Write their name in your journal and commit to praying for them. See how God works in you and how he meets them as you are faithful in prayer.

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

When was the last time you sat before the Lord and thanked him? Really thanked him—expressing your heartfelt gratitude to Jesus?

Here is another Psalm of David. This one gives us a rich example of what it looks like to pour out our hearts in thanksgiving to God.

King David had many highs and lows in his life. David experienced hardship, loss, suffering, fear, anger, worry, and despair. In the midst of being hunted down by his enemies, we see a man who passionately pursued God as his faith was being purified. Psalm 138 are the words of a man faithful to God and grateful to him in all seasons of life.

Let this be your prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord.

I will give you thanks with all my heart;

I will sing your praise before the heavenly beings.

I will bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your constant love and truth.

You have exalted your name and your promise above everything else.

On the day I called, you answered me;

You increased strength within me. If I walk into the thick of danger, you will preserve my life

from the anger of my enemies.

You will extend your hand; Your right hand will save me.

The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me. Lord, your love is eternal; do not abandon the work of your hands (Psalm 138:1-8 HCSB).

Prayer is an authentic outpouring of our thoughts and emotions to a holy God who hears us; a gateway to intimacy with God as we humbly come before him acknowledging his goodness and faithfulness.

It can be easy to thank God when things in life are going according to your plan. But do you praise him when it feels like your life has taken a detour or dreams are delayed? Do you express gratitude in times of trouble because you know God’s character? Do you thank him that he will never leave you nor forsake you and that he is with you in the middle of life’s storms?

Isaiah 26:3 says, “You will keep the mind that is dependent on you in perfect peace, for it is trusting in you.”

Praise is not something conditional based on our circumstances; praise exposes the condition of our hearts. How will you spend time pouring out your heart to God in gratitude this week? He is worthy of your praise.

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

The book of Psalms has often been called a book of prayer and it is rich with examples of the Psalmists' communication with God. As a follower of Jesus, you have a relationship with God that enables you to have rich spiritual communication with him. You have the privilege of talking to God, of pouring out your heart to him, and also hearing and listening to him by the power of his Holy Spirit.

We see this pouring out in prayer in Psalm 25, a Psalm of David. David was a king of Israel and referred to as a man after God’s own heart. Throughout Psalms we see him crying out to God as he is repeatedly pursued by his enemies, lamenting of his sin, and praying in his times of deepest struggle and need. David gives us an honest look into what it sounds like to come before God in times of trouble. In this Psalm we hear the cries of his heart as he seeks counsel from the Lord and confesses his utter dependence on him.

Where do you turn when you feel desperate? Who or what do you depend on in times of trouble? Maybe you are in a tough season in your marriage, your singleness, your health, your job. Perhaps a co-worker has talked poorly about you and given you a bad reputation or you are out of work and don’t know what is next and you desperately need guidance. David reminds us where to keep our focus.

“Lord, I turn to you. My God, I trust in you. Do not let me be disgraced; do not let my enemies gloat over me. No one who waits for you will be disgraced; those who act treacherously without cause will be disgraced. Make your ways known to me, Lord; teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me; for you are the God of my salvation; I wait for you all day long. Remember Lord, your compassion and your faithful love, for they have existed from antiquity.” (Psalm 25:1-6 HCSB).

You hear the longing, humility, and gratitude in David’s words. He begins this prayer by acknowledging God and declaring his trust in him and his character. God is trustworthy no matter what difficulties he is facing. He courageously asks God for what he needs. He desperately desires to hear from God, to know his ways and to be guided in truth. He waits on the Lord as long as it takes until he hears his voice and his direction.

I think it can be easy to forget the goodness of God. Or to pray and get impatient in the waiting. Have you forgotten the goodness of God in your time of desperation? Are you impatient as you wait on him? Someone once said, God is never late, he is rarely early, but he is always on time. Pour your heart out to him, praise him, trust him. He knows just what you need.

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

Have you ever longed for something—prayed fervently for something you wanted with all of your heart and soul? Maybe you are single and you have prayed for a spouse. Or you are married and have prayed for a child. Perhaps you have prayed for a specific job, a raise, or a promotion. Sometimes we see God answer our prayers in a way we desire, other times he answers in a way that we did not expect and is not in alignment with what we hoped for. Maybe you are in a period of waiting and wondering if and when God will come through.

Sometimes we ask God for something and he answers with a “no,” “yes,” or a “not yet.” It is in the times of no or not yet that our faith can be stretched. And it is also in these times where it can be super easy to miss the blessing and provision that is in front of us because we are so fixed on the outcome we want.

When I think of a prayer of longing, it reminds me of Hannah’s prayer in 1 Samuel.  Hannah was grieving over a difficult situation in her life. She desperately desired a son but was unable to bear children so she went before the Lord and poured her heart out before him. First Samuel 1:10 tells us, “Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept many tears.” Hannah declares, “I am a woman with a broken heart…. I’ve been pouring out my heart before the Lord… I am praying from the depth of my anguish and resentment” (1 Samuel 1:10,15-16 CSB). Hannah is honest about the pain of her unmet longing.

What is a longing of your heart that has not been met in the way or in the timing that you want? It can be really hard to trust God to give us what is best when a deep desire of our heart is delayed. Hannah was in a heartbroken place and she poured her heart out to God and God heard her.

We don’t like hard places, but God uses difficult places to draw you into a deeper relationship with him. He wants you to come to him with your hurts, heartache, bitterness, and resentment. God already knows what’s on your mind and heart but praying helps you to work through and process your pain when you verbalize and give words to your emotions, allowing the vulnerability and depth of your heart to cry out to him.

When you are suffering from hardships, difficulties, and unmet longings, God is working in ways you cannot see. It may not turn out like you had hoped but God is at work and he will strengthen you to walk by faith and trust when you pour your heart out to him.

(Presented by Lisa Bishop)

I have a question for you. How are you doing? No, really, how are you doing? What are the things that are most consuming your thoughts? What is a worry, concern or uncertainty, maybe a disappointment, unmet need, longing or loss that is weighing on your mind?

If you were to do a check-in with your heart and your soul, what would you notice? Are you weary, tired, stressed out, angry, or depleted? Are you feeling overwhelmed or overworked? In the busyness of life, it is important to take time to do a self-check and get a gauge on our souls. Because let’s face it, life can be hard, and it is easy to get depleted.

How do you experience renewal, refreshment and supernatural strength in your life? How do you receive sustenance in difficult times and grow in your ability to experience the divine power and presence of God? I want to remind you of the power of prayer. Now before you say, “I already know about prayer,” my question is, how consistently do you practice the power of prayer?

I read a quote that said, “If you want your life to experience divine power, it needs to be a praying life.” Far too often it can be easy to bypass the transformation that comes from prayer because we are prone to put it on the back burner. But we can experience the divine presence and power to greater degrees in our lives.

If you think about it, what are the reasons we don’t make prayer a daily habit? Being brutally honest, we don’t really believe that prayer works. Or since God already knows what we are thinking, why do we need to pray? And all too often the old “I am too busy” can become a barrier to a praying life.

If you think you are too time crunched to pray, you need only to look to Jesus who modeled prayer and whose life points to not only the necessity of prayer but the practice of prayer in the busyness and demands of life. In Luke chapter 5, we see that crowds of people came to hear Jesus teach and to be healed of their sickness, and then it says, “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed” (Luke 5:16). In the midst of his ministry, healing and teaching, Jesus points us to the power of prayer.

In the hustle and bustle of life it is so easy to be on autopilot, going at warp speed, that we neglect to take the time to slow down and get away from the crowds and pray.

Retreating from the crowds doesn’t necessarily mean going to a mountain or rural place, although that sounds really nice. It may simply be waking up early in the morning before the demands of the day kick in. Sitting in a quiet place in your house or apartment, even if for a few minutes before you start your day, to come before the Lord and in the quietness of his presence, pray. Of course, prayer is not reserved just for morning times. There is no one right time of day to pray, it is something you can do throughout your day.

When you spend time in prayer, you make space to hear from God and for the Holy Spirit to guide your steps and transform your heart. Having a vibrant prayer life is a significant spiritual practice among followers of Jesus. Prayer positions you to pour out your heart so that you can be filled up and experience deep connection with the Lord.

In Psalm 116 the Psalmist says, “I love the Lord because he has heard my appeal for mercy. Because he has turned his ear to me I will call out to him as long as I live” (Psalm 116:1-2).

I love the reminder all throughout the Bible that God inclines his ear towards us. He listens intently. He delights in hearing your voice.

Throughout the years I have struggled to pray. Especially in times where I felt distant from God, it was really hard for me to want to talk to him. Sometimes I didn’t even know where to begin. And then I read a book that suggested starting each day with the Lord’s prayer.

It is better to pray a bad prayer than not to pray at all, because there are no pointless prayers. But praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers—praying as Jesus taught us to pray in what we call the Lord’s Prayer—this is even more powerful praying.

So, even though it is better to pray a bad prayer than not to pray at all, it is better still to pray effectively. How do we make sure our prayers are as powerful and effective as they can be? Well, Jesus gave us a format for prayer, which we call The Lord’s Prayer but it really is The Disciple’s Prayer, and if you pray like Jesus taught you to, then I believe it will be more effective and powerful.

Years ago I realized that my prayer time was rather monotonous, repetitive and not very exciting. It was more of a duty than a privilege. So, I took The Lord’s Prayer as my guide and I began a prayer journal, where I organized my prayer time based on how Jesus taught us to pray. That absolutely revolutionized my prayer life. It gave structure and meaning to what had been rather generalized prayers, and I began to keep a record of answers to prayer. Now, many years later, I have pages and pages of answered prayer—many I would have forgotten had I not made a record.

And I began to pray Scripture into my life. That has truly transformed my prayer time and me. For example, I pray Romans 12:1-2 regularly, committing my body to him as a living sacrifice for that day, asking that I will not be conformed to this world, but transformed by the renewing of mind, and in that way I can prove God’s will for my life for that day. I promise you, that is effective, powerful praying.

(If you would like the devotional for the entire week, click here.)

In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 we read: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Prayer is simply conversation with God, and that should be an on-going conversation, where at any time in any day you are so connected with God that you keep the conversation going.

I was thinking of the ways we stay connected now with the people in our lives. Because of all the technological advances and gadgets that we have, we truly can keep a conversation going just about all the time, can’t we? Well, don’t you think we should stay connected with God throughout our entire day at least as much as we do with our loved ones and friends?

I have a long-time friend who is a successful lawyer, and she incorporates prayer all through her day. I asked her how she keeps this continual conversation with God in the midst of a busy day, and how that affects her life. Here is how she replied.

“I have many goals every day as I work—like providing valuable legal advice, articulately presenting a client's position, clearly and accurately drafting necessary documents—but there is no more important goal that I have in my work with clients and with co-workers than to show the love of Jesus to them in every interaction. I try to pray before every call, every meeting, and even as I am walking through the halls of my office, that I will show Jesus' love. I text my prayer partners before important calls and meetings to pray that I will show Jesus' love to everyone. It changes everything about how I see people and how I treat them. It helps me focus on the most important thing—the love of Jesus. And no matter what the outcome is of the call/meeting/interaction, whether I performed well or whether I delivered the value that I wanted to deliver to our client, if I was able to share just a tiny bit of the love that Jesus has given me, then I consider it a success and not a failure because love never fails.”

I am one of her prayer partners and I love the way she brings a conversation of God into everything she does. She prays on all occasions with all kinds of prayers, and as we read in James, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16b). When you have been born from above and the righteousness of Jesus has been given to you, then you can claim this promise, that your prayers are powerful and effective, because you have the righteousness of Christ.

I strongly urge you to keep a conversation going with God all day long. His Spirit is totally with you and is attentive to your prayer, so pray! And remember, there are no pointless prayers!