THE PATHWAY TO THE HEART OF THE FATHER (8 OF 9)

A continuation on my teaching on Prayer. Also let us continue to look at the word beseeching. We cannot convince God to do for us what we want Him to do when we want it. Paul tried it. "For this thing I besought (beseech) the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me." (2 Corinthians 12:8) The word "given" is translated "gift"; "there was given (gift) to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, . . (verse7) What a gift from God. We would do whatever we could to get this off our back. Cast out Satan, do whatever it took to convince God to take back His gift. This was a big deal to Paul to the point God had to directly speak to Paul, "And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." (2 Corinthians 12:9) We must be willing to walk through whatsoever God brings our way, oh me! Jesus in Matthew 4 waited until verse 10 to tell Satan get thee hence. Jesus did not try to kill him, nothing. We would have tried to bind him or cast him out, whatever we had to do to get Satan gone, but Jesus did not do that. Jesus did not attempt that, He accepted, He was willing to walk in what the Father wanted for Him, for as long as the Father wanted Him to walk in it. God cannot develop us unless we are willing to endure His work in our lives. Now there is a point if not developed God will set us on a shelf so we can watch others. This is what Paul was saying here in 1 Corinthians, "But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." (1 Corinthians 9:27) The word "castaway" means (in the Greek) to be on a shelf I have seen this in lives of Christians and in lives of churches. God had enough of all the unfaithfulness from leaders and the folks, eating each other, and just selfish ambition which is agenda driven. So God will scatter the people and look for others to fulfill His will on earth as it is in heaven. The will of God is amazing so many things, but it is the very best thing for our lives. Often times, in the will of God, we begin to go under, by not being willing to walk in the will of God and God must rescue us or lose us. And we think because God has delivered us so we have succeeded, but in reality we have failed. We have failed by not going through what God desires for us to go through, not being molded and conformed into the image of Jesus, not willing to trust in God's grace. All the while the folks thinking they have succeeded because they get out of their discomfort, but it is failure. Success is found in and only happens in the will of God. Anything outside the will of God, even if God is doing it, is failure. God does not always get what He wants, look at Adam, Samson, Saul, the Bible is full of people God wanted to use, but in the end they were put up on the shelf. I do not know about you my friend, but that scares me and causes me to double my effort toward God. Just because God is using us does not mean He is happy with us or we are moving in God's will. Make no mistake God will use us in our obedience or He will use us as firewood. So we need to be willing to walk in the will of God and when God is not convinced by us we do not need to get upset and think we have succeeded when God says no. Now if we pester and push God to say yes, after He has said no, we have failed. No means no!! If God appears to have changed His mind rest assured you have NOT received God's best, but His second best. I do not know about you I want God's best for me, my family, and the folks God wants me to minister too. Beseeching also has to do with requesting or supplication. Where there is a response from in a given situation, or we give a reaction. God wants to teach us to make the right reaction or response. Jesus said, "Pray (beseeching) ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest." (Matthew 9:38) God desires to teach us that our life with God is not totally involved with praying, but through the praying much will come out in different areas of our activity in the kingdom of God. To bring us into this, to teach us to be active, so that our response, our reactions should be what they need to be coming out of our life of prayer. Prayer is not the "all and in all" or end, but the beginning of God's response to a situation and events in our lives and others. Jesus did not instruct them to pray to send forth labors into the vineyard, but to look unto the field and then He expects our response, You look and now you can give that response. God wants us to be aware. He wants our spiritual awareness to increase so that we can move in His will and how to join in all of this. Prayer trains us to be able to move with God now and in our next life to come. So that we become an expression of God. Giving what God wants you to give as a result from a response or reaction to a condition that you have seen, know, and understand that comes and now God is getting what He wants in all of that. Our prayers are to be an expression of what God wants on earth in lives as it is in heaven. You know God is not after things as much as He is after our obedience. In Luke Jesus said, "Watch ye therefore, and pray (beseeching) always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." (Luke 21:36) The word "always" means in every fitting situation. We are to give the correct response in every situation and circumstance God wants. For this to happen God must train us in this response. If we would know God's intentions it would be so easy to beseech God's will. But, we get off on our own things beseeching God. But in every situation God wants a certain response. To be trained in the righteousness of God is to walk right in the eyes of God, just to do right. God is after our total life to be a correct response, our reaction, and action is righteous. Without knowing we are right. It is God in us as He builds in us His righteousness to where we just do right. God wants to train us in His righteousness, so we can do right, live, it becomes automatic. Again in Luke, "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: 32 But I have prayed (beseeching) for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." (Luke 22:31-32) Now Jesus did not pray for Peter, it was a reaction to the Father in form of a request because of what He saw relating to Peter, "Father, do not let Peter's faith fail." Not a prayer but a request to the Father for Peter, so everything ahead for Peter and the disciples does not fall apart. And what is ahead? Returning back to the heart of the Father where he came from. Written by David Stahl

THE PATHWAY TO THE HEART OF THE FATHER (7 OF9)

Continuation of my teaching on "Prayer." In Mark we read, "And there came a leper to him, beseeching (praying) him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." (Mark 1:40) The word "prayer" is often translated "beseech" (#3870 parakaleo) one who pleads another's cause with one; to convince; to persuade; and convict of sin. The leper was attempting to persuade Jesus to heal him. The leper knew Jesus could heal him because he heard and saw he was totally convinced Jesus could, but he was not convinced Jesus would heal him. I know you can, but will you. In our prayers we often know God can move in our lives, but we question will He. His faith in his approach was in the ability of Jesus to heal him. Our faith is easily put into the ability of God. There is no question about the ability of God. God can do anything He wants to do. Nothing in God should amaze, because God can do anything. But can we put our faith in His willingness to do something right now is the question. At the end of the day we MUST put our faith in God's willingness to heal us not His ability. So God wants to move us in alignment with what He wants rather than His ability. We cannot follow His ability, it is so vast. But His will for our lives we can accurately follow in that and experience the ability of God as it relates to us, and not someone else. What does He want? What does He want from you? What does He want you to do? Our faith must be in God's will for our lives not in what we see and hear or even others victories. The leper was not sure of Jesus' will. He was not convinced, but He pressed in, "And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean." (Mark 1:41) What comes first "be thou clean" or "I will"? The order is important. In prayer all we really need from God is, "I will" and then we know exactly how to move, exactly what to do, how to act. Because when we hear we then know how to move. If God gives us the word then we move on the word knowing we are in the will of God. Knowing faith comes with the word from God. "So then faith cometh by hearing a word of God." (Romans 10:17 (Greek)) Everything we will need to walk in the word God speaks to us is in the word. We do not to struggle, strain, or work it up. It is nice to know we do not have to manufacture faith. If God says raise the dead, just say dead person raise up. God brings it to us. Healing the sick is the easiest thing in the world. God wants us to join with Him, to move with Him, and walk with Him in all of His moving, doings, wishes, desires and ways. God wants us involved. So don't worry so much about straining after the will of God. He will clue us in, and if it is none of our business He will not clue us in. But if He wants us involved along a certain line or issue, He will bring us into that understanding and it will become for us the will of God. And, everything fits together, everything works in the will of God. If God does not tell us we must not try to guess and follow after that guessing, or we'll fall into a ditch. We need to relax and allow God to speak to us concerning what He wants us to do. But often many Christians operate in guessing what God wants and not knowing (by hearing from) what God wants. Then we get into trouble seeking after God's will. God should I do this or that? God is the boss we need to allow God to call the shots and not ask Him just move in what He is giving us at that time. The more we can relax the more we can hear from God. As we begin this wondrous Christian walk we are after something; The key of receiving. The key is not, is He able, but is He willing. And, if we do not get the answer we are looking for, we then go into a tether whether it is or is not God's will, because we are looking to receive. The less we are concerned about receiving the more we will find ourselves in God's will. We should not want to receive anything from God. Do you know God can do a lot without money? We cannot eat money or wear it, nor can we live inside it. Many think God is tied to our money. Often times God will link Himself with our money for us to give and help spread the gospel, in order to get from our heart the habitual giving and sacrifice he wants. Our focus should be on giving not receiving. Why? Because the more we give the more God can give to us. God will give to us as He wills and that will be all sufficient. He is able to give us $20,000 a month if He wants, He is able. But we must move in the will of God and we will see His suffienecy. We will never get a better view of God's faithfulness then from the bottom of the barrel. Do not worry about hard times you will be able to see God better than in good times. Whatever God gives to us should be all that we want. We must not get upset as He does His will in us. Many think Satan has attacked them when they are in the will of God. Satan has nothing to do with it, we are just walking in the will of God, to know Him and see Him. Oh, that He may show Himself to us. We best see God in tough times and narrow places. If we really want to come to know God then we will have to know tough times. Often times we can approach God not knowing if it is the will of God, but knowing God can come across if he wants to, and we move in it and sometimes we hit God's will, but most often we miss it. But sometimes we hit it and God says "I will" we get so tickled and think we are blessed, but if this becomes a pattern and/or habit we get all bent out of shape when it does not happen. We must never get use to God providing one way or another. He is God He can use anything. Did you know there are no rules or formulas in God? God operates by His divine spiritual principles that always leads back to the heart of the Father. Written by David Stahl

THE PATHWAY TO THE HEART OF THE FATHER (6 OF 9)

Continuation of my teaching on prayer. We need this work of God constantly in our lives. Jesus said, "And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;" (Luke 18:1) It say and He (Jesus) means "always." Just like we have a life of breathing, we must have a life of praying. Do not try to move yourself to the next prayer pattern, it does not work that way. Being faithful in duty prayer and a prayer life, will lead us into the next pattern, a life of prayer. And next, I do not know. All I know is it will be beyond our ability to understand. Paul tells us to, (a continual direction) "Pray with out ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17) God will put things in our heart so we can carry them with us until God gives us the understanding. Carry them until God, what Paul called, "the pure conscience" (1 Timothy 3:9) of the mystery of Godliness." (1 Timothy 3:16) causes things to happen in our lives and cause things to function that we do not understand. You know we do not really need to know everything. There are some things that God knows and not meant for men to know and we must stop wanting to know the things that belong only to God. But we do not need to try so hard, just relax, go along for the ride. We do not need to think about things so hard. But in "pure conscience" just allow God to do the work, He understands and we do not need to. What we need to do is surrender ourselves to His work and He then can bring it all to pass, not us. The more surrender in our lives the more work of God in our lives. Often, most Christians get into trouble trying to bring things to pass for God. We do this in trying to get people saved. God knows the times and seasons, He knows when one is to be saved. We press on for our own time and our own season. We want what we want when we want it. So often, we cannot wait for God, He is too slow for us. But God will teach us to wait for Him if we allow Him. Our wants in and out of God gets us and most often others in trouble in God. Funny how our disobedience to the LORD affects others more than us. Take heed, it does matter who your Christian friends are. Now no one wants to wait. Just go to a food store and see how long you can stand in line patiently. Most people (me too at times) cannot wait 5 minutes without saying something to themselves. But in these waiting periods in our lives God is teaching us to wait, even at a food store. The best making places God teaches us to wait is in our failures and the loss in our lives. Yes tough places indeed, but a sure method of teaching patience none the less. Jesus goes into the wilderness to pray. The wilderness is a great place to pray. It is a great place to develop that communion with God. When it seems you are all alone and no one understands. No one understands what you are doing. And when you tell them they, seem never to have the right answer. They can tell you exactly what is wrong, but they cannot touch you. But God's servants are developed in silent (you can scream in the wilderness and no one will hear you) heart searching and confession before God and man if need be. In Luke we read, "What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?" (Luke 15:4) Here the good shepherd goes looking for one sheep, but he leaves 99 of his sheep in the wilderness. I would think he would have left them in a well watered place with green pastures, but no he leaves the 99 in the wilderness. Why? Because God has lured us into the wilderness to get alone with Him. Strange as Luke 15:4 is in Hosea we find something even stranger, "Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her." (Hosea 2:14) God "allures" or tricks, even baits her to get into the wilderness not to see her suffer, but to "speak comfortably unto her." The wilderness is the place God speaks comfort to us, where we will finally listen. The wilderness has a way of getting our attention. God brings us there alone with no answers. Away from the crowds and masses of people. There in the wilderness He can give us the answers. Unless we get alone with God we will never have our answers from God, the world yes, but not from God. If we find our answer from the world and the religious folks then we do not need to lean on Him. Solomon said, "Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? . . . " (Song of Solomon 8:5) Our direction in prayer will lead us by way of the wilderness to be given answers and learn how to lean on Him. The purpose of the wilderness is to LEARN to lean on God! I promise you one thing here if you go through tough times, bad situations, dry periods, etc. one of two things will happen: you will learn to pray or your carcass will fall in the wilderness and fall out of God. Speaking of the Children of Israel the writer of Hebrews (I believe to be Paul) says, "But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?" (Hebrews 3:17) He knows everything. We do not need to know everything, so now we can rest in Him not knowing , but can trust Him and His wisdom for our life. The wilderness is a great place to learn how to have communion with God, to learn how to pray. God will have to keep us into the wilderness (depending on us learning) for a time, until we get over the complaining, before He can begin to teach us how to trust Him and be quiet to know Him, to walk with Him. So He will lead us to the wilderness to teach us in the wilderness to pray right. We do not need blessings we need God. The one we are to be dedicated to. The blessing and such are by-products. And in the learning process in the wilderness He must strip us of things. Because we seem to want what He gives and not Him. The more we can be stripped by God (we cannot do this work in our lives) of the world and ourselves the more of God we can have. The more of the blessings (the by-products) of God we can have. Now even deeper my friend. When we then learn, when we pray, and things keep getting worse, we must resign ourselves to the situation by resigning ourselves to trusting God in this situation. No longer do we want to get the monkey off our back. We say okay God, I will give your monkey another piggy-back ride around the track. It is not the devil as most Christians say from wrong teaching, oh no, he does not want to see you develop in God he wants to keep you in deception, take heed here. The only way to get to, "my cup runneth over" is by way of the "valley of the shadow of death." We need to be content to trust Him in the valley, in the situation without crying to Him for deliverance from the situation. Until we are at home in the wilderness. Even the valley of the shadow of death is home to us. We then learn who God is. God teaches and trains us who He is by delivering us from difficult situations even when there is no deliverance. Our deliverance comes not by magic wand, but by walking in the making places (the wilderness) of God where we can be developed unto deliverance. Nowhere did God deliver His people. Daniel had to go into the lions, den, the three Hebrew children had to go into the fiery furnace, Jesus had to go to the cross, and is the servant greater than the master? I think not. If God has to deliver us without developing us think not you have been saved, oh no you have lost. God knows the plan and purpose for our lives are in jeopardy of being lost, but think not we have won we have not we have lost the best for our life for now. Written by David Stahl