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A true disciple is one that denies self and lives for Christ, rather than ignoring the commands of the Lord Jesus by living for themselves. A real disciple is one that abides in Christ, takes up his cross and follows Him, rather than ignoring the way of the Cross and following the way of the world. A Genuine Disciple is a man or woman who will forsake the things of this world by losing their life and dying to self, rather than seeking after the things of this world: Every disciple is a believer but not all believers choose to take the route of discipleship, by way of the Cross. Though this passage is often incorrectly applied to the unbeliever, the Lord Jesus was speaking to his disciples and pointing out the two ways that a believer can follow: 1. The carnal way, which is the way of the world where a believer lives for themselves, not understanding that the life we live on earth will dictate our future role in heaven. 2. The spiritual way, which is the way of Christ, understanding that the world is not our home, and only things done in the Spirit will last for eternity. If our life-work is carried out in the flesh, it will be burned up, which means that the life that we lived for ourselves will be lost. If we build up rewards on earth instead of securing treasures in heaven and if we delight in the praises of men rather than that of the Lord, we will have nothing to show for the life that we lived. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?  Our United Prayer:
Dear Lord, there is nothing in this world that we can accumulate to exchange for our own souls. The price is too high for us to pay. But Lord, You paid the price for our souls with Your shed blood upon the Cross. The free gift of the salvation of our souls cost You so dearly. Help us to understand how precious we are to You. Help us to live lives that are pleasing to You, lives that seek Your will not ours. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. We are urged to preach or explain the Word of God. We are instructed to preach or proclaim the truth of Scripture, the Word is life and light, it is hope and it is peace, we preach Christ was crucified. To preach the Word is to preach the truth, and to preach the truth of God's Word is to preach Christ with no compromise. Whether convenient or not, in season and out of season, we should be ready and prepared to patiently preach the truth of Scripture, not only with our words but in our lives. Not only with our actions but with our attitudes. Not only in our behaviors but in the hidden motives that rule our thinking. To Preach The Truth In Love may require us to patiently and compassionately correct a brother or sister who has been led astray from the Word of truth. It may require us to follow scriptural guidelines to rebuke or challenge a person or ministry, but any admonishment should never be aggressively or deliberately confrontational. Preaching the Word is often to encourage and exhort the Body of Christ as we watch and wait for the any day return of the Lord Jesus for His Church but it should always reflect Christ's gracious character. To preach the Word does not mean to teach others what you think it says, what you would like it to say, or what others conclude that it says. It means to preach what God literally says in His Word, in the context in which it is written. Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage with great patience and careful instruction.  Our United Prayer:
Loving Father, we pray that our lives, in words and deeds, may be sermons to others. Give us, we pray, a correct understanding of the truth of Your Word. Prevent us from adding our own fallible interpretations of Your Word, but may we rightly divide and preach the Word of truth. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. It was once said that, "the devil is never more satanic than when he carries a Bible," and the Scriptures give multiple warnings to Beware Of False Prophets and flawed teachers with their counterfeit gospel, their doctrines of demons, and a different 'Jesus', which too often results from their fraudulent greed. We have the assurance from Scripture that those who distort the Word of God for personal power and monetary gain, and who willingly deceive the people of God with false teachings and unscriptural doctrine, WILL receive their due reward. May we who have been saved by grace through faith in Christ, study to show ourselves approved unto God, so that we will be able to discern what is false and identify those that are distorting the Word of God so that we may be in a position to help to warn others who may have been deceived by their flattering words and ungodly ways and point the way to Christ. In their greed they will make up clever lies to get hold of your money. But God condemned them long ago, and their destruction will not be delayed.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for Jesus Who died on the Cross, so that by faith in Him we might be saved from the wrath of God, which is demanded for humanities sinfulness. Keep us alert to any false teachings and give us the discernment to identify and expose those that seek to exploit the flock of God. In Your grace we pray that many who have been indoctrinated with these satanic lies, would come to a knowledge of the truth. This we ask in Jesus' name, AMEN. Like believers in Christ today, the Jews who believed in Him had a choice. They could: 1) Choose to learn of the Lord Jesus and become His true disciples so that they would grow in grace and become spiritually mature. 2) They could remain in spiritual infancy, born again but not growing. Discipleship is not the automatic condition of all Christians, because the disciple is a man or woman who holds to Christ's teachings. A disciple is the person who learns of Christ, the one that one follows Him, the one that keeps His Word, and takes up his cross daily and follows Him. As believers in Christ, we are eternally saved and our POSITION in Christ is secure. However, we have a choice as to our CONDITION in Christ. We can remain babes in the faith, or we can learn of Him and become His disciples. Jesus Himself said to all who believe in Him: "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples." We have a responsibility to grow and mature as we feed on the meat of the Word, deepening our knowledge and understanding of Christ and spending our lives loving the brethren, caring for our neighbors, and Sharing The Gospel Of Christ, all to the glory of God. To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You that we have been born into Your family and have become Your children. Lord, we want to grow in grace and in a knowledge of You. Help us to dig deep into Your Word every day and hold fast to the truths we find so that we may really be Your disciples. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. God's power is needed by every believer to stand fast in the evil days but in many false 'ministries' today God's 'power' is falsely labelled and misappropriated by unscrupulous teachers as their own, unique, supernatural-gift which they use to exploit unschooled believers and promote false teachings for material gain and to elevate themselves in the eyes of others. The joy of the Lord should be our strength. His power is made perfect in our weakness. It is only through the might of His power that the beautiful fruit of the Spirit can be produced in the life of a believer, His strength is made perfect in our weakness. As children of God, we are called to Be Strong In The LORD and in the power of HIS might as we clothe ourselves in HIS righteousness, HIS peace, HIS truth and HIS grace. We are to suffer patiently for HIM and to follow the example of Christ Himself, the suffering servant Who learned obedience by the things that He suffered. May we be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might so that like Christ, we too may learn obedience by the things that we suffer and patiently endure in this evil day with joy, knowing that His grace is sufficient, for His strength is made perfect in our weakness. being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience,  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, we pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ, that they may be strengthened with all power according to Your glorious might. May they patiently endure amidst the trials and difficulties of life with all joy, knowing that Your strength is made perfect in our weakness. This we ask in Jesus' name, AMEN. Everything Is For The Glory Of God. Even "the heavens declare the glory of God," and God will not give His glory to anyone else. We have a wonderful opportunity in our lives to live to the glory of God: "Whatever you do, do it to the glory of God." No matter what we eat or drink, we are to do it as unto the Lord. Wherever we go or whatever we do, we are to do it as unto the Lord. No matter what we think and how we act, whether we live or whether we die, we belong to the Lord and we are to do everything as unto Him to glorify His name. In this way, as well as glorifying the Lord, we will live at peace with our brothers and sisters, and be a blessing to them. In reality, whether our lives please Him or sadden Him, He will ultimately use it to His glory, but how much better that in all we say and all we do and all we think, we do everything as unto the Lord. As we live, let us live to honor the Lord, and should we die, let us die to honor the Lord. Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord, for He is our Savior - He is our Lord - He is our God. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, we pray that in all things, we live to please You. Not in our own strength, but through the power of Your Holy Spirit. Bring us to the point where we can say without hesitation, "Thy will, not ours be done." This we ask in Jesus' name, AMEN. However deep, dark, and dangerous the circumstances of life are, we are told that the steadfast love of God never ceases towards us. No matter how bleak and evil the world situation becomes, we have God's unfailing reassurance that His mercy and compassion are new every morning; how great is the faithfulness of our gracious God. Our unbelief looks at the overwhelming circumstances in our own lives and the tremendous troubles raging in the wider world and we feel hopeless and depressed. Our emotions flow as we fluctuate between two opinions and question God's goodness depending upon our feelings or our fortune. But a life of faith cannot be founded on the shifting sands of doubt and disappointment, but needs to be secured to the changeless foundation of Jesus Christ Who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, His Steadfast Love Never Ceases. His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, we praise and thank You that You are a faithful God. What a comfort for us that Your love, mercy, grace, compassion, strength and peace, are new every morning. Keep us, we pray, from the sin of unbelief, and help us to trust in your unfailing promises. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. How often do we fulfil God's call in our lives, but discover that circumstances appear to contradict our expectations, and we start to question God's character, God's concern, and God's care for us, so we start to murmur and to ask, "Why?" But only as we look away from ourselves, our problems, and our own limited perspectives, and call to mind the greater reality of His loving-mercies and deep-compassion do we recognize the steadfast love of the Lord which never ceases. Only as we turn our eyes away from our own disappointments and look to His wider purpose and plan, do we discover that His Mercies Never Come To An End, they are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, how we praise and thank You that you are a gracious, and loving God. Help us not to be influenced by the circumstances of our lives, but rather help us to keep the eyes of our hearts on You, knowing that Your plans and purposes are perfect. Thank You, Father, for Your steadfast love toward all Your children which is new every morning. All to the glory of Your holy name, AMEN. God alone started the work in our life by faith when we were born again. Only God can continue His work of sanctification during our earthly life, and only He can finish the good work He started, when we were declared righteous, by faith. In no sense can we make ourselves perfect. By works of the flesh will no human living be justified, sanctified, or glorified. The work of salvation belongs to God alone. Only God can carry out the work of justification in the life of a believer. Only He can bring His work to its final conclusion when we will receive our glorified bodies, and only HE can continue the ongoing work of that brings a baby Christian to spiritual maturity. We are not required to do anything to get saved or remain saved. It is by the grace of God alone that we are saved. We Are Saved By Faith and are to live by faith. It is by grace alone through faith, that we were redeemed from sin, and He alone can work the works of God in our earthy life in the ongoing process of sanctification. He is the Author and Finisher of the good work He started in us, so that we all reach spiritual maturity. We were not in a position to do anything to be justified or glorified in God's eyes, nor are we in a position to carry out the progressive work of sanctification, which is needed if we are to grow from Christian infancy to spiritual adulthood. God will certainly perfect the good work He started in each of us but may we live our lives in full cooperation with Him, as we present our bodies to Him as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to Him. being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.  Our United Prayer:
Dear Lord, thank You that You began this amazing work of grace in the soul of each believer. You knew each one of us before we were formed in our mother's womb, and You scheduled each day of our lives. In Your grace and mercy, You will perfect and complete the good work that You began, to our eternal benefit, and to Your eternal praise. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. Weeping, we are told by the Lord, shall endure for a night and the welling tear-drops that have blurred our vision and the floods of tears that have dampened our pillows will one day be wiped away. God Himself will dry every tear, He enters into every searing pain and each aching heart. Not one secret sigh that crosses the portals of our minds, nor one stabbing pain that cuts deep into our hurting hearts is missed by our gracious God of love; He Is Our Great God Of Comfort and Lord of life. Never forget that we have God's Spirit of comfort, Who is with us the moment each solitary tear-drop starts to dampen our lashes. Jesus came to heal the broken-hearted and set the captive free and His Holy Spirit understands, He knows, He loves, and He cares for each one of us, so draw closer to His arms of comfort, and trust in His love today. We may not understand why we have to endure some of the things in life that cause such heart-ache and pain, but let us never forget that His eternal perspective is broader than our restricted view. He is our present help in trouble today, and tomorrow He will wipe away the tears from all of our eyes. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”  Our United Prayer:
Father, we know You are the One that holds the future and we trust our lives into Your hands today, knowing that You are with us in every trial and pain we are facing. We don’t understand sometimes, but we trust in Your loving-kindness and tender-mercies, which are new every morning; how great is Your faithfulness. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. We live in times that are becoming increasingly difficult to make ends meet, and the temptation is to look at those around at those who appear to be so bountifully endowed with the riches of this world and yearn for a little of what they have. It seems so unfair, it seems so unjust that those who seek after the wealth of this world appear to have a purse filled with coins, with little to concern with their godless lives, whereas we have such a meagre portion and can scarce breathe for worry about provision for tomorrow, which enlarges into fear of the future. Yet, as God's blood-bought children, we are told: Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. When we look to the wealth of this world, we will be left empty. When we look to 'self' to supply our needs, we are living in carnal unbelief. But When We Live By Faith, we are trusting Him in all things even when times are increasingly difficult and our supply seems to have dried up. When we trust in the Lord with all our heart and do not lean on our own understanding, and when we acknowledge Him in all our ways, He will lead us in the best path even though it may not be in the direction we expect!  Our United Prayer:
Loving Father, we don’t want to look to the evaporating riches of this world, knowing that our treasure is kept for us in heaven. Please, Father, provide for our needs today and help us not to worry about tomorrow but simply to trust in Your Word, for You have promised to supply all our needs according to Your riches and glory. Thank You, Father, in Jesus' name, we Pray AMEN. Christ uses the parable of the widow woman and the unjust judge to encourage us to be continually in prayer, to pray without ceasing, and to remain in constant communion with the Lord as we petition Him for the blessings we need from His gracious hand, especially when those blessings seem to be delayed. This is not a teaching that describes a God as a worldly judge Who is reluctant to bestow His blessings, but rather a generous Father Who gives good gifts to all His children. Nor are we likened to some lonely, poverty-stricken, unsupported widow, we are children of God, beloved of the Father, accepted in the Beloved, and inheritors of the kingdom of heaven. We are to be continually in prayer, to pray without ceasing, and to remain in constant communion with the Lord, knowing that God Answers Our Prayers. We are assured that any perceived delay is His wise preparations. His delay is not inactivity or disinterest, but a preparation to make all things work together for the good, to those that love God and are called according to His purpose. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, help us to maintain a trusting attitude of prayer, knowing that any perceived delay is Your willing preparation. Thank You that You are holy and righteous and will avenge Your elect and make all things right in Your own perfect timing. Thank You that You are our Father, and we are Your children. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. In our Christian lives, we are commanded to be honest, to be respectful to others, to conduct ourselves with integrity, and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, love is the fulfilment of God's perfect Law. Although we are in the world and need to abide by the regulations of the established authorities and appointed governments (which we are reminded, were instituted by God Himself), we are also to remember that our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we eagerly wait for our coming Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are part of the spiritual Body of Christ and as such, we are in a spiritual battle and the only way to survive is to be Clothed In The Spiritual Armor Of God. We are to be covered in His truth, covered in His righteousness, and rest in His peace and His salvation which is ours by grace alone through faith alone in His finished work alone. It is only as we dress ourselves in Christ and cover ourselves spiritually in the Lord, day by day and moment by moment, that we will we be enabled to make no provision for the evil cravings of our physical nature, only as we are clothed in Christ can the power of sin and death be defeated in the life of a Christian. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You that we are in Christ through faith in his finished work at Calvary. We recognize that we are in spiritual battles and we can only be victorious as we abide in Christ and He in us. Keep us from trying to live our lives in our own strength, but we pray that we may put on the Lord Jesus in spirit and truth. To His praise and glory, AMEN. This psalm explodes into a song of thanksgiving to God, because His mercy and love endures forever. But it is a psalm which, verse by verse, continues to build up to a crescendo of grateful thanks as it lists the many things that God has done for His people and the many ways that He has responded to their cry for help. This psalm targets in on the truth of God's Steadfast Love. This is not only a psalm of the past, it is a hymn of praise for the present, it is a song of thanksgiving that the Church age can chorus with equal gusto and grateful hearts. Not only does this psalm explode into a song of thanksgiving, but concludes with the pronouncement that all who are wise will see that God's steadfast love, faithful love, yesterday, today, and forever. It was Paul who encouraged us to give thanks in everything. So let our hearts and voices explode into a great hymn of praise and thanksgiving to the LORD, He is good and His steadfast love endures forever, His faithfulness extends throughout time and into the far reaches of eternity. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.  Our United Prayer:
Loving Father, we thank You and praise Your name, You are a good and faithful God and Your steadfast love endures forever. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. Christ was the final revelation to mankind, and the Scriptures contain all that we need for life and godliness in our current generation. Though apostolic authority ceased with the last apostle, all God's children are gifted by the Holy Spirit as He sees fit, and we are all called to: "Kindle Afresh The Gift Of God that is in us." It is the Holy Spirit that sealed us and baptized us into the Body of Christ at salvation, and it is the Holy Spirit that enables and empowers us to serve the Lord as we grow in our spiritual life. It is the Holy Spirit that gives to each of God's children the spiritual gift or gifts that each requires to fulfil the role to which we have been called. It is the Holy Spirit Who works in us all: "To will and to do of HIS good pleasure." Let us kindle afresh the gift of God which by His grace we have received and let us do it in LOVE! If we function in the gifts of the Spirit without LOVE it profits us nothing, and dishonors our Lord. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.  Our United Prayer:
Heavenly Father, in the power of Your Holy Spirit, we pray that we may fan into flame the spiritual gift that You have given us, by Your grace. May all we say and do be done in love so that Christ may be formed in us. In Jesus' name we Pray, AMEN. |
Prayer
We are a growing group of people praying daily for and with others. We were led to start an online ministry to deliver what is needed more now than ever, a place where you can go to easily to submit a prayer request or requests involving others to pray for your needs. The Power of Prayer. Matthew 18:20- For where two or more come together in my name, there I am among them. You are never alone in prayer. The Power Of Numbers Praying.
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2023-2024 UNITED BY PRAYER