Let faith arise

Our Daily Bread
I attended a Walk to Emmaus session a few years ago.  One of the most important moments to me was when we talked about priorities.  Some of the guys in my group bristled when I said "We should no longer say 'I don't have time'.  We should be honest and say 'You are not a priority to me!'"  Yikes!

It is true.  There are not many people that can't "make time" for things that are important to them.  If I have a friend tell me that he or she is too busy to have dinner or coffee with me, I hear the words "you are not a priority to me".  That is the truth.  On the flip side, I committed to be more honest.  I can be blunt at times, but I try not to say "you are not a priority to me".  I usually say "I am sorry, I can't" or "Maybe some other time" or "Let's try again in the next month or two".

This is a long way around getting to my point.  When it comes to "not having time" to pray or do a Bible study.  Aren't you really saying "God, you are not a priority to me"?

Lord, thank you very much for loving us.  Please help us make you the highest priority in our lives!

Simply Saturday
Let faith arise
Here is a line from today's devotional that confirmed the Simply Saturday topic for this week:
As we open our hearts and minds to God, He will be faithful to reveal the steps of life and service that honor Him. - Our Daily Bread

I want to write about how this applies to our prayer and devotional life during the new year.

Talking
I started using a new approach to prayer last year.  I call it "talking to God like a child".  It is not new, just new to me.  As adults, we like to think we are mature and not childish.  This style of prayer is child-like, not childish.  Ever hear a child tell you a story or a "somebody done me wrong" story?  That kind of innocent, frank honesty in prayer has meant a lot to me.  I balance this with some formal prayers and some prayer chants.  The bottom line is: God knows any way so talk to him about it for your sake!

Listening
Wouldn't it be boring to spend time with someone who only talks and talks and talks and doesn't listen?  Make quiet time in your prayer life or even better, throughout the day to listen to God.  He will speak to those who earnestly seek him.  The voice can be manifest in many ways, so be open.

Discernment
To be frank, there have been times when I was wrong about what I thought God was telling me.  We can get our own desires, sometimes selfish, sometimes unselfish.  Again, listening will help you discern what to ask for and where to place your faith.  Recently, a friend's child had issues with an eye.  After praying and listening and discerning, we knew that God wanted to heal him even though the doctors were skeptical.  The next week, the doctors noticed a significant improvement and changed their prognosis!  We are not out of the woods entirely, but we know faith will make a difference.

Faith
After verifying the things God told you, it is time to have faith.  Let faith arise!  I love the lyrics to I Lift up my Hands by Chris Tomlin.  God is faithful.  Let us all believe again.  Let faith arise!  A friend asked me "what does it feel like?"  Feelings can be different for each person.  For me, it feels like an almost overwhelming confidence in what is going to happen.  It is like the confidence of going to a big banquet knowing ahead of time that you are going to be recognized.  Other times, it is a quiet confidence that I know I need to hold in my heart until it happens.  Yes, there can be times when the feelings are lost and faith must step in to remind us of what is going to happen.  That is how faith works.

Let faith arise!  Let us all believe again!

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Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” John 11:40