"Just Do It!"
by Pastor Mark Kincaid, Owosso (MI) First FMC

If ever there was a time in our nation's history that we needed to pray, it's now. Often I don't even know what to pray. I feel like the disciples in Luke 11:1? 13 ("...Lord teach us to pray..."); Lord, please teach me to pray. The disciples wanted that same close relationship with God the Father that Jesus had. Every time they turned around, Jesus was by Himself praying and there was something different about Him than them. There was power in His life and an intimate relationship with God the Father. They knew it was because He spent all that time in prayer. Prayer and confession give us a right heart. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul and with all your strength. Seek God with everything you have. Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Seek a deeper, closer relationship with Him. "Pray without ceasing ... for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Stay close to Jesus. Trust God. No matter what, no matter how dark the circumstances appear.

Look at Paul and Silas in Acts 16. They were bruised and beaten and fastened in stocks, and in these circumstances they began to sing and praise God. Their prayers immediately reached heaven. The stocks fell off their feet and the prison doors opened. The jailer and his whole family accepted Christ and were baptized that same night. The Holy Spirit gives us this incident to encourage you and me to pray. In our most discouraging moments we are to pray and praise God. As a loving Father, He wants to answer our prayers.

Seeing the power of God demonstrated in the life of Jesus whetted the appetites of the disciples for more of the power that He had. As they followed Him from day to day during His earthly ministry, they saw one key reason for His mighty ministry. Eagerly they asked Him to teach them to pray. Jesus gave them a wonderful pattern for prayer and millions have prayed that Lord's Prayer. This is more than a how to; it is action — to pray. With everything going on around us today, how can we not pray? We need to exercise the power that Jesus has given us through the Holy Spirit:

1. Prayer — When we pray, we interlock with the Divine power of God and then, as Paul says in Ephesians 6:10, "Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." Prayer brings you to the most significant place in your life as a Christian. Be strong in the Lord.
   
   
2. Fasting — Fasting is the voluntary act on our part that shows God we are serious before Him and are willing to pay the price to realize all His provisions for us. If you are like me, it's hard to give up food. That is a huge sacrifice. You, however, may need to fast in other areas of your life. There could be something else interfering with your prayer life and Bible reading that God is speaking to you about giving up or limiting the use of in order to draw closer to Him. This is a personal choice — between the individual and God. When we fast, we get "us" out of the way and allow God to work.
   
   
3. The Word of God — "All Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16) When the Word of God becomes part of our mind and then our spirit, then will we be able to "Put on the whole armor of God ..." (Ephesians 6:11). The Word of God is your shield and sword. It will help you stand against the wiles of the devil. But you must read and memorize the Word. Keep it in your heart and mind. So be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Not your might. Lord, teach us to pray, especially in these crucial times.

Just Do It!