Getting what you pray for

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."  Matthew 21:22

Is it possible to get whatever you ask for in prayer?  According to Jesus, it's possible.  He said,"If you an believe, all things are possible to those who believe."  This includes answers to your prayers.  Three things are necessary for you to get what you ask God for.  Three conditions must be met for you to receive exactly what you ask.

ASK FOR GOD'S WILL
If you ask for God's will in prayer, God hears and answers your prayers.  (1 John 5:14)  So whatever you ask must of course agree with God's will, or at least it must not contradict God's will.  For example, it's God's will for you to love the people in your life.  If you pray for strength to love them, you can be certain that God will give it to you.

ASK WITH FAITH.
When you pray, ask according to what you genuinely believe God can do.  Paul calls this your "measure of faith."  You can receive whatever you believe.  Think about what you can imagine, then ask with only the limitation of your imagination.

ASK SPECIFICALLY
How do you know if your prayer is answered?  How do you know if it was going to happen whether you prayed for it to happen or not?  Pray specifically.  You have to ask for something that wouldn't happen without prayer.  You don't need to pray that the sun will rise, but you may need to pray that the sun won't rise!  That's very specific, undeniable, and irrefutable.  It's something that only God can do. 

Specifically and faithfully ask God for His will in your life. 
When you do this, you will get exactly what you ask for.
If you want, pray with me right now.

Father God,
Show me exactly what you want me to do after I read this blog.
In Jesus name, Amen.

Let me know in the comments how God answered your prayer.

 

The power of every believer

 

Prayer is the power of every believer. 

It's how we connect with God and receive from God.  Both the connection and provision are supernatural.

DIVINE CONNECTION
It is written, "The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth."  When you pray, God listens, in the room, with you, right then.  You have a connection because you have God's attention.  Do you realize what I'm saying?  You have the very attention of the God of all creation.  He focuses on what you are saying and why you are saying it.  This is your power as a believer.

DIVINE PROVISION
This is what the Lord says, "Ask, and it will be given to you.  Seek, and you will find.  Knock, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who seeks finds, and to everyone who knocks, the door is opened."  Not only do you have God's attention, you have his response.  He answers you every time you ask Him for something.  I didn't say He always gives you what you ask for.  But He does respond to you.  He will respond to you.  He is responding to you.

If you want to, please pray with me right now:

God, I'm praying with Olatunde just for the enjoyment of your attention and connection.  Thank you for the honor of talking to you, and for the honor of your attention.  Thank you for this power as a believer. 

You do have power as a believer, the power of prayer.  Use it today.  Use it now.  See the power of God in your life.


(image from freebiblestudiesonline.org)

The One Thing You Need As Your Pray Today

The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16


I'm assuming you believe in Jesus and that prayer is as natural to you as breathing.  We're supposed to pray without ceasing, meaning we're in constant conversation connection with God.  We're not only supposed to pray, but we're supposed to get what we pray for.  Jesus Himself agrees with this when He says, "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."  Matthew 21:22


To do this, to get exactly what you pray for, you need one thing today: 

Be a righteous person.

If you are righteous, your prayers, whatever they are, will be "powerful and effective," according to James 5:16.


To be a righteous person is easy because Jesus made it easy.  In the context of James chapter 5, being righteous simply means your sins are confessed and forgiven.  That's it.  That's righteousness.  When you believe in Jesus and your sins are confessed and forgiven, your prayers are as powerful and effective as the prophet Elijah's.  He was the "righteous person" James used as an example. Elijah's prayers were so powerful and effective that he prayed it wouldn't rain for three years, and it didn't rain for three years.  Elijah prayed again that it would rain after those three years, and it rained.  You can't pray more powerfully and effectively than to start and stop the weather!  James made it clear that Elijah was just as human we are.  But he was a righteous man.  And his righteousness made his prayers powerful and effective.


Powerful and effective prayers are prayers that are very capable of bringing about very specific results.  (Meaning you ask for God to stop rain for three years, and rain stops for three years.  This prayer is specific, undeniable, and tangible.) 


That's what you want, right?  You want to receive exactly what you pray for.  Why ask God for something if you really don't expect Him to give it to you?  Why be vague when you know you want or need something very specific, at a very specific time, like today?


What are your prayers for today?  Or better put, think of one thing you are praying for today that you really need or want.  Be specific now.  Be tangible. 


For me, I'm taking a test and I need to make a specific score.  Now my part in the answer to this prayer is to study.  God won't do that for me.  But He will give me wisdom, because He promises wisdom in the book of James when I ask with unwavering single-minded faith.  I will get wisdom from God when I study because I'm a "righteous man."  Because of Jesus, my sins are forgiven and forgotten.  I can pray as powerfully and effectively for wisdom as Elijah prayed that it wouldn't rain for three years.


What about you?
What are you praying will happen today?


If you have any sin in your life, confess and forsake it by faith in Jesus' death for that sin.  After this confession, you will be a righteous person, and you can pray as powerfully and effectively as the Prophet Elijah. 


In other words, you'll get exactly what you pray for. 

The one thing you need as you pray today is to be a righteous person,

because only the righteous person can pray powerfully and effectively.

Confessing your sin by faith in Jesus makes you a righteous person.

May God bless you as you pray today.

Will God Respond to You?

Have you ever felt like you had to practically beg someone to call or text you back?  Maybe you're the one being begged!  How does it make you feel, to beg and be begged?

It makes me feel anxiety, like the person doesn't really value me.  So why am I valuing him?  Why waste my time on her?

Because he is valuable to me.
Because she means so much to me.

So I persist in seeking him; I won't stop pursuing her.

But what about God?

Does God value you enough to respond to you without you begging Him?

Hear what God says:
"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know." 
Jeremiah 33:3

Not only does God promise to respond to your call, but He promises to answer you with marvelous mind-blowing mysteries!  God will not leave you hanging after you've poured out your heart to him, like when you write a long heart felt email and get no reply.

Will God respond to you?  Yes He will!
Call to Him now, and wait for His answer!

Where and How To MEET GOD

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.  Matthew 6:6 NKJV

Two words guarantee intimacy with God.
Two words guarantee you will meet God directly:

1. Secret
2. Prayer

Where is God?
He is in "the secret place."

What is He doing there?
Listening to those in secret prayer.

Where is the secret place?
Wherever no one but God can hear you.

• Alone in a room, any room, behind a closed door.
• Alone in your mind, any time, behind a closed mouth.

The Lord Jesus promises God's open reward for those who meet God secretly.

What open reward does He promise?

The same reward promised throughout scripture:

• If you are intimate with God, He will be intimate with you!
• If you share your secrets with God, He will share His secrets with you!
• If you reveal yourself to God, He will reveal Himself to you!

 (Image from epitomic.blogspot.com)

When Jesus Prayed (Part 2)

God is hearing and answering prayers according to His will. When we are genuinely seeking God’s will in prayer, God is actively listening in the room. You are feeling it. People with you are feeling it. This is something that is certain, over which you have perfect control. What are you praying for today? What are you praying for right now? Really praying. Really seeking. Real prayers make an impression on God Himself! How can they not make an impression on you and those with you? You are wanting and needing something right now. Is God agreeing with your prayer? (Read part 3)

When Jesus Prayed (Part 1)

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” Jesus praying made an impression. How? Why? When His followers watched Him pray, they felt like they didn't know how to pray. What is prayer? Communication and connection with heaven. They felt like they didn't know how to connect to God, but they felt like Jesus did. This is the impression we should make in our prayers. Just by watching us, people should see and know we are connecting to God. So much so, that they feel the connection with us, or they desire the connection from us. They want us to teach them. They need us to teach them to connect with God. Do you make this impression when you pray? Do people see and know that you have a connection with God? Do they see God responding to you, answering your prayers?

When Jesus Prayed (Part 3)

Samuel stood by the window. As he watched a lone bird glide, he said to God, “Set me free like this bird. I feel enslaved. Anger is my master. You sent Your Son to set me free. Let me be free. Amen.” “What are you watching?” Tanya asked. “That bird gliding.” Tanya watched the bird with Samuel. Yet she felt something else going on with him. She felt like Someone was with them. Really, like Someone was with Samuel. Like Samuel was talking to Someone as he looked out the window. Like Someone was listening to him. She felt free, like that bird, with Samuel. But she couldn’t explain her freedom