Seven Steps to Answered Prayer : by James Lantz
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Choose what you want from God!
We are made in the very image and likeness of God and like God we have been given the privilege to choose. Our choices determine our direction and our direction determines our destiny. There are many things that God has established and made His choice in. God has established that righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit is what His kingdom consists of. God has decreed those who will receive Jesus righteousness as being righteous in His sight. God has predestined before the foundation of the world that He would adopt those who receive Jesus as His very own children and they would be blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. God raises up those in governments and God has chosen the husband to be the head of the home. God has chosen what part of the body of Christ we are. 1 Cor. 12:18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. We choose life by choosing God’s plan for our life! We who chose to make Jesus our Lord must also choose to walk in the blessing of the Lord. We must be specific and definite in our prayer requests with no wavering which is doubting. James 1:6-8 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. When you place your order with a waiter or waitress you need to specify that you want your eggs sunny side up with whole wheat toast and real butter or you could be disappointed. Look to the Holy Spirit to lead and to guide you and remember it is not about what God can do, but what you can believe.
2. Read scriptures that say this belongs to you!
God’s word is His will for you and me! When we speak to one another we convey our thoughts, our will, and our desires and it is no different when we write it down. God, however is not a man that he should lie. God is right and His word is right! Gods words tell us what has been given to us and empowers us to receive what He said. Jesus knew the scriptures (Gods words) and thus defeated the devil every time. Jesus had God’s word in His heart so He used what God had said to defeat Satan’s temptation in the wilderness. Luke 4:4 . . . It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. Luke 4:8 . . . Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Luke 4:12 . . . It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. You and I can overcome every temptation, every trial, every evil work of the enemy by the blood of the lamb, the word of our testimony, and loving not our own life. Find two or three or more scriptures that say what you are desiring to receive from God. For example if it is healing that you desire, find what God’s will is for you in the scriptures. Matthew says that Jesus took our infirmities and bare our sickness. The Psalmists says that disease is evil and we know that no evil comes from God. Peter tells us that we were healed by the stripes they laid on Jesus. ( Mt. 8:17, Ps. 41:8, 1 Pet. 2:24 ) God has healing for all of His children, even those who have disobeyed, and God’s will is that the disobedient turn from their rebellion, repent and be healed. ( see Heb. 12 )
3. Ask God for the things that you need and desire!
God greatly desires for us to ask Him for the things we desire and need! God is only pleased with those who believe that He is the Almighty God and that He desires to reward you with every benefit of the kingdom! God is not pleased if we do not believe that He is the one who forgives, saves, heals, delivers, protects, prospers, makes whole and believes that He will. Mt. 7:7&8 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Hear the words of the Lord Jesus, everyone who asks receives! Remember, there are only two reasons why people don’t get their prayers answered. Those who don’t ask and those whose heart is not right towards God. Good news! we can change from not asking to asking and we can put God’s word in our heart and watch our heart be changed and cleansed.
4. Believe that you receive them the moment you ask God for them!
All of God’s grace is received through faith and God has given us His word by which faith comes when we hear God’s word. Faith calls those things which be not as though they were and then they become. Abraham did just like God, he spoke that he was the father of many nations and it came to pass. You might say, yes, but Abraham heard from God. We have a more sure word of prophecy and it says that we who believe are made righteous through faith, we are blessed and we were healed.
( Eph. 2:8 , Rom. 4:17 , 2 Pet. 1:19-21 , Rom. 4:3 ) Jesus explains how the God kind of faith works and it doesn’t work any other way. You must believe that you receive (take or have) them and then you will get them. If you are checking your body to see if God healed you then you are walking by sight and not by faith. Mark 11:24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
5. Refuse to doubt!
Once we have believed that we received that which we have asked God for let every thought and desire affirm that we have them. We must guard our heart and our minds from doubt which is from the devil. Our minds are the doorway to our hearts and real faith is from the heart. When thoughts or mental pictures come that are contrary to what we asked God for realize they are to be resisted. Jas. 4:7 . . . Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. If the devil can get you to consider anything else except what God said you are defeated and the thing you asked for will not appear. Abraham considered his and Sarah’s body fertile and alive and they had Isaac when they were both past the child bearing age. Speak the word (This is the Sword of the Spirit) of God and cast down every imagination that is contrary to what God said. ( see 2 Cor. 10:4&5 )
6. Continually feed and strengthen your faith through meditation of God’s word!
The impossible is made possible through the power of God and faith is the connector to God’s power. The devil is endeavoring to get us to let go of God’s word because then we are limited to the weakness of our flesh. God instructed Joshua to continually speak His word and meditate in it day and night so that he would observe to do all that is written in it for then he would make his way prosperous and have good success. God is not a respector of persons and he wants you and I to have good success as well! Pro. 4:20-23 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Mark 5:34 . . . Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole . . .
7. Keep your faith active through Praise and Thanksgiving!
Praising and thanking God is only fitting for those who were down for the count ( doomed for an eternity in hell ), but now have been supernaturally raised up from the dead through God’s mighty power in the resurrection. Being thankful is a must, as it partners with humility and faith, recognizing that without Jesus we would be nothing, could do nothing, and have nothing. Col. 1:12 NLT always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. Heb. 13:15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. Ps. 34:1 I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Since we believe that we have received what we prayed for it is time for thanking and praising the Lord!
