prayforoneanother – herbcotton.org

Why Is the Bible So Different From Any Other Book?

Today’s Bowl of Encouragement by Herb Cotton

Bible Text for Today’s Meditation and Application:

Psalm 119:130 King James Version (KJV)

130 The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.

King James Version (KJV)

Public Domain

My Reflections on the Word of God Today:

I remember hearing the testimony of a Chinese man’s response to being exposed to the Bible; he asked, “Why is this book so different from any book I have ever read?”

Have you found that to be true in your life? The Bible is not like the textbooks we read in school. We learn by reading books, we gain information, insight and we grow intellectually.

However, the Bible is different; when we read the Bible, it changes our lives. I remember many years ago listening to the testimony of a pastor at The Gideons International Convention who gave his statement of how the Bible transformed his life.

He read our focal passage for today, and that single verse changed his life. Some of his fellow soldiers who were Navigators invited him to join them in studying and memorizing the Word of God.

What a testimony of the power of the Word of God, and the God of the Word that resulted in the transformation in the life of this soldier; from a simple man to a preacher of the Gospel of Christ.

That my friends do not happen when you read science, mathematics, physics, literature, accounting, engineering or any other textbook. The book that changes lives is the Word of God; the Bible.

Isaiah 55:11 King James Version (KJV)

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Proverbs 3:27 King James Version (KJV)

27 Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

Prayer Offered to Our Father in Heaven:

Father God, we are so grateful that we have the Bible in a language we can read and understand.

Father, we pray that everyone would have the privilege of having the Bible in their native language. Father, we know that nothing is too difficult for You to perform.

Father, we pray that we would be used to share the Word of God so that others will have their eyes opened, and lives changed by the reading of the Bible. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray, Amen.

Praying For You

Good Evening

This is Herb Cotton, I just want to let you now that today, Thursday, February 22, 2018, that I am Praying for You.

Pastoral Prayer For You

Ephesians 3:14-21 (KJV)

For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;

And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

Ephesians 6:18-19 (NLT)

Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.

Herb Cotton,

Praying for You

Have You Considered What You Still Have?

Text:

Psalm 63:1-7 (ESV)

1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.

3 Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.

4 So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands.

5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

6 when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

7 for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

Observation:

When David wrote this Psalm he was in the wilderness of Judah. However, he was not without hope, and help.

These are three things David still had:

He had God (vv. 1-2).
He had a song (v. 4).
He had the joy of the Lord (v.7).

In your wilderness experience, why not do like David did. Rejoice in how God helped you in the past.

Psalm 63:6 (ESV)

6 when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

Rejoice in how God is a present help, and protection of your life.

Psalm 63:7 (ESV)

7 for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

Rejoice in hope that God will lead and guide you in the future.

Psalm 63:8 (ESV)

8 My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

Prayer:

Father God, I praise and thank You for always being present in the lives of Your people. Wherever we look, we find You with us, and watching over us.

Father, help us to remember that in our wilderness experiences, we are never alone. We are so blessed, and so grateful. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

—

Ephesians 6:10-11 (ESV)
¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Read all the Daily Devotionals by Herb Cotton; click here:

http://herbcotton.blogspot.com/

Do You Have Living Water Flowing from You?

Text:

John 7:37-39 (ESV)
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.

38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'”
39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Observation:

What do we need most in our world today? Think about the promise of our text. O Yes, what Jesus said makes me thirst. Do you thirst for rivers of living water flowing out of you?

John 7:38 (AMP)
38 He who believes in Me [who cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me] as the Scripture has said, From his innermost being shall flow [continuously] springs and rivers of living water.

Do you have a burning desire in your heart to see a mighty move of God in your Church and community? If so, why not ask the Lord to do it again, and to begin it in you? Let’s send up an outpouring of cries for revival in our homeland, and for it to begin in us.

“Send a revival, O Christ my Lord,

Let it go over the land and sea.

Send it according to Thy dear Word,

And let it begin in me.”

Prayer:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I ask that You would open the windows of heaven and pour out Your blessings; rain on us Lord, send us a down pouring of blessings.

Father, bless us like you promised rain to Your people of old; bless us today with an outpouring of Your Spirit. Father, we need a heaven sent Holy Spirit revival to sweep our homeland, and turn Your people back to You. Lord, do it again, and begin it in me. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Zechariah 10:1 (ESV)
1 Ask rain from the LORD in the season of the spring rain, from the LORD who makes the storm clouds, and he will give them showers of rain, to everyone the vegetation in the field.

What Happens When We Are Devoted to Prayer?

Text:

James 5:17-18 (ESV)

17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.

18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.

Observation:

Yesterday I wrote about, “Are You Praying Kingdom Prayers”. Today, I want to share with you how God has been working in me through a series of events that intensified five days ago.

I set a goal in late January while I was vacationing in Hawaii prompted by a 4 day devotional series “One Word Goals”. On February 7 I committed to the one word goal of “BE”. My focus and filter has been this one word goal.

I woke up early last Friday morning, and decided not to go back to sleep, but to “Be prayerful”. I cried out to the Lord in prayer about many things for a long period of time. I was able to sing this song truthfully.

O the pure delight of a single hour

That before Thy throne I spend,

When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God,

I commune as friend with friend!

I started a new document that I named, “Morning Prayer”. I have been writing in that journal, and praying before I get out of bed each morning for the past five days.

On Sunday morning my computer network was not working so I read from 2 of my devotional books. I was prompted by the Spirit of God to pray for my family and friends. The prayer I prayed was Ephesians 3:14-19. Then, I was prompted to send to 15 people a text message with that prayer. I’m glad I did because I got wonderful feedback of how the prayers were appreciated, and met a pressing need.

One of my friends responded to the prayer I sent her with this comment, “Thank you for your prayers for me. May they cause God to bless you ten fold”. Well, praise the Lord, I have already been blessed more than ten fold.

It pays rich dividends to pray for others. When you pray, God works from His throne in heaven, and He works through you. I just sent a prayer up to the Lord for a dear friend; why don’t you pray for someone the Lord is laying upon your heart, and tell them you prayed for them. Let us pray without ceasing.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Father, I’m so thankful that prayer works; that you are a God who hears, and answers the prayers of Your people.

Father, stir the hearts of your people until we are set on fire to pray faith filled prayers; prayers that are righteous; prayers that come from a fervent and earnest heart. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Are You Praying Kingdom Prayers?

Text:

Nehemiah 1:4 (ESV)

4 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

Observation:

I don’t believe it is possible to overstate the case for why every believer should be devoted to prayer.

The disciples of our Lord knew the importance of prayer. They were privileged to be eye witnesses of the prayer life of Jesus.

Luke 11:1 (ESV)

1 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”

They were so profoundly touched by the prayers of Jesus that they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray; they wanted to be more effective in their prayer life.

Would you like to be more effective in your prayer life? Here is one area that your prayers could make a profound difference in our fallen world. The need of the day is for people to pray Kingdom prayers; prayers of compassions for others.

Luke 11:2 (ESV)

2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come.

When we pray Kingdom prayers, which Jesus teaches us to pray, then we know that we will receive the things that we ask of God.

Why not do the most that you could do for the hurting people around you by taking their cries for help to the one who can satisfy their pressing needs? Why not be an intercessor like Nehemiah?

Notice how compassionate and committed Nehemiah was to praying for the needs of God’s people. There is power in praying Kingdom prayers. When God’s people pray to Him, He opens the windows of heaven, and pours out blessings.

James 1:17 (ESV)

17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Prayer:

Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Father, as You look down from Your throne room in heaven I know that You see the millions of people who are hurting; You love them and care for them.

Father, I’m praying that You will also see and hear millions of people crying out to You in desperate and persistent prayer for You to rescue the perishing that all around us. Father, help us to see You as the source for all of our needs, and to see people like You see them. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Colossians 4:2 (NLT)

2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.

Why the Child of God Should Pray

Text:

Psalm 107:1-6 (ESV)

1 Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!

2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble

3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.

4 Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in;

5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.

6 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

Observation:

There is so much in our focal passage for today, but the thought I want to focus on is the power of prayer. God answers prayer; we see that in verse six. However, I find something to shout about when I see in verse two that the Lord answers prayer on the basis of redemption.

Why do we spend so much of our precious time worrying when just a little talk with the Lord would fix our problems. The hymn writer recognized this truth when he wrote these words.

“O what peace we often forfeit,

O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry

Everything to God in prayer!”

Notice what it took for God’s people to cry out to Him in prayer in the day of the Psalmist.

Psalm 107:5-6 (ESV)

5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.

6 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

Don’t be like the people of God then; and, like so many of us today. Why don’t you forfeit your burdens, and take all of your cares to the Lord in prayer. If you have been redeemed by the Lord, you have access to Him all the time. He is waiting to hear from you.

Matthew 7:7-8 (ESV)

7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

Prayer:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I am so grateful that You hear and answer prayer based on the redemption we have because Jesus shed His precious and royal blood so that we wouldn’t have to die for our own sins.

Father God, I ask that You would stir the hearts of Your people to pray, and when they pray that You would open the windows of heaven and shower us with blessings from above.

Lord, I’m getting out my umbrella waiting for the showers of blessings; I ‘m praying for a Louisiana size thunderstorm. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

How God Provides for the Needs of His People

Text:

Romans 8:26-30 (HCSB)
²⁶In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with unspoken groanings. ²⁷And He who searches the hearts knows the Spirit’s mind-set, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. ²⁸We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose. ²⁹For those He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰And those He predestined, He also called; and those He called, He also justified; and those He justified, He also glorified.

Observation:

How hungry and thirsty are you for God? How much value do you place on prayer? How big is Your God? How awesome is the knowledge that He helps us to pray? What a partnership; God and you! Notice that our text says God finishes what He starts. What a God!

Luke 1:37 (HCSB)
For nothing will be impossible with God.”

Do you have a God size need in your life today? Why not do what the Psalmist did?

Psalm 77:1-3 (HCSB)
¹I cry aloud to God, aloud to God, and He will hear me. ²I sought the Lord in my day of trouble. My hands were continually lifted up all night long; I refused to be comforted. ³I think of God; I groan; I meditate; my spirit becomes weak. Selah

Asaph was in a hard place; however, he served a great God, and Asaph cried out to God as his first option, and not his last. Asaph’s faith was not in vain; God hears and answers the prayers of His people. David said this about his prayer. God will do it for you, if you ask Him.

Psalm 6:9 (HCSB)
The Lord has heard my plea for help; the Lord accepts my prayer.

We are not alone when we pray. Don’t ever forget that God is for you, in You, and the Holy Spirit is your helper when you pray.

Romans 8:31 (HCSB)
What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?

Prayer:

Father God, my dear Father, I am so grateful for your love, guidance and support that you give to your people. Father, forgive me for the peace I forfeit when I fail to bring everything to you in prayer. Father, with the aid and assistance of the Holy Spirit, I will learn to carry everything to You in prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Praying Huge Prayers That Matter

Text:

Ephesians 3:16-19 (NLT)
16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.
17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.
18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.
19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Observation:

When it comes to praying huge prayers, our selected scripture passage for today contains one of the elements of the Apostle Paul’s pastoral prayer for the members of the church at Ephesus. In this prayer he prayed that the triune God would empower them with inner strength.

Notice three (3) things that Paul had in view when he prayed this huge prayer; this was prayed with a confident faith that was sure that the one to whom he prayed was willing and able to answer his huge prayer. The key word is rich.

Ephesians 1:7 (NLT)
7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

Ephesians 2:4 (NLT)
4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,

Philippians 4:19 (NLT)
19 And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

Now, hold on to your seat, there is still more; and, Paul closes his prayer with this amazing and powerful doxology.

Ephesians 3:20 (NLT)
20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

What will you do with this truth? Let me encourage you to respond in this way if the Spirit of God births in you the faith to pray a God-size request for others and yourself.

Hebrews 4:16 (NLT)
16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Prayer:

Father God, I ask that You would plant within the hearts of Your people the faith to come confidently to the throne room of grace, and pray huge prayers to the God of our salvation. In the mighty name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Daily Bread

Title: Love in Action – – Pray for One Another

Text:

Colossians 1:9 (NLT)
So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding.

Observation:

There is nothing more hopeful or helpful you can do for others than to pray for them. When Paul wrote these words he had never seen these people in person. He had heard about them from one of his converts and mentees.

Colossians 1:3-4 (ESV)
³We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, ⁴since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

The reason why Paul could be so hopeful, helpful and prayerful for these people was because of what Jesus had done in them and for them. These were people who were on their way to heaven.

Colossians 1:12-14 (ESV)
¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. ¹³He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

These people had demonstrated for a watching world to see that they belonged to God, and God belonged to them. They demonstrated their belief by their love for God and God’s people.

Colossians 1:4 (ESV)
since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

O, that the world would know that we are Christians by the way we demonstrate love in action; expressing our love by praying for one another.

Prayer:

Father God, help us to show love in action by our love for You, and for Your people by our prayers for Your people. Father, I have seen how surely and swiftly You answer prayer. I pray in the mighty name of Jesus, Amen.

Colossians 4:2 (NLT)
Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart.