Quiet Times Search

Paul tells us that we don't know how to pray like we should - Romans 8
Part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit is to help us in this area - Romans 8:26-27

God will answer this prayer
We have a tendency to become distracted - help me to be focused

Do not have because we have not asked - James 4:2
Don't forget to pray about praying

After asking for help from the Holy Spirit, then focus on the relationship with
Prayer is primarily a vehicle of relationship

Pater (greek) = father
Abba (aramaic) = intimacy and endearment = daddy

Holy Spirit in our lives is a spirit of adoption by which God give us our spiritual birthright (Romans 8:16; Galatians 4:6)

He delights when we come to Him as our Father, Abaa, Daddy:

• Mr. Bentson - wrong
• Mr. Benson - contact
• Benson - co-worker
• Chad - friend
• Dad - daughter
• Honey - wife

The closer you are, the better responce you will get
He delights in your desire to spend time with Him

This relationship is critical to a healthy and vitaul prayer life
His fatherhood becomes real in my life
Bridge the gap between what I know in my head and what I experience in my life

• Satan would be destroying himself
• Or He was telling the truth

• To submit to the will of God
• To please the Father
• To affirm my powerlessness
• To experience His presence
• To know his will
• To be transform (character)
• To become spiritually mature
• To be humble
• To be fruitful
• To walk in the Spirit
• To obey willingly and joyfully
• To receive blessing
• To be protected
• To be useful

By nature, fathers are designed to be providers

Jesus instructed the disciples to pray "Give us this day our daily bread"

Father knows our needs already - Matthew 6:32
Preoccupation with our needs reveas a lack of trust in God as provider - Matthew 6:25-32
Our priority is God's kingdom - Matthew 6:33

First phrases of the prayer all point to God:

• Hallowed be your name
• Your kingdom come
• Your will be done

Then topics having to do with us:

• Give us this day
• Forgive us
• Lead us

• Search me
• Know my heart
• Test me
• Know my anxious thoughts
• See if there is any offensive way
• Lead me to the way of everlasting

• God can discern our errors
• Forgive our faults

Two enemies we needed to be protected from - Flesh and Satan

Flesh - lead us not into temptation - there is an internal struggle

I know that nothing good dwell in me - Romans 7:18
Our tenency to be self-centered (our old nature)

Almost every internal struggle we face in our spiritual lives is a product of this fallen dimension of our being

Activities of the flesh -  Galatians 5:19-21

People don't get into shape because they don't know what to do or how to get going

Learning how to start slow and build gradully plays a critical role in getting into shape

The practice if prayer has the same dynamics
Many men respond to emotional appeals to pray more but do not know how to start

1. Am I properly positioned to pray?

• Ask the Holy Spirit to help us to pray (true intimacy)
  
• Thank God for what he has given us

One may ask, where is the quiet listening part of prayer in this book

God encourages us to be still and know that he is God - Psalms 46:10

Mature prayer is not intended to be a monologue, but a dialogue

Christian meditation and Eastern meditation has to do with is in our minds as meditate
Eastern = empty our minds - dangerous activity
New Age = visualization of pleasant and peaceful landscapes as spiritual guides - opens a door to tremendous spiritual deception

Biblically based contemplation and meditation seeks not to empty the mind but fill it
God will speak through impression and intuition - should always be checked against the Bible and mature Christians

It is helpful to keep a separate list of needs for times of pure intercession:

• Ministry
• Neighbors
• Family
• Special Needs

Also good to have a "miracle list"

God can do anything - nothing is impossible - Luke 1:37

During difficult times, God extended a seeming impossible invitation:
Jerusalem was under attack from the Babylonians and the city was destroyed

Call to me and I will answer with great and unsearchable things  - Jeremiah 33:3
God promised healing,  forgiveness, and cleansing to Israel - Jeremiah 33:6-9

He can do immeasurably more than what we can ask - Ephesians 3:20

We know God can do anything; we just don't know if he will do them

• God cares for them
• God knows all about them
• God takes delight in them
• He longs to be close to them

How can we tell if our oldrer chidlren are disrepectful?

• Slamming doors
• Rolling eyes
• Muttering
• List is endless

Our children honoring us is to show honor to God and his plan
As our children come to respect our authority, they learn to respect God himself

Claim your authority! Expect to respected!
If you not expect it, you will not get it

Children really want deep down inside - the confidence from knowing their limits
They want to know how far they can go

It starts with 'No'
Sometimes we excuse it by saying, "Well, you'rejust tired"
Shows lack of willpower and fear - compromising ways by raising an isecure, definant, spoiled brat

The key is to break their defiance with crushing their spirit
Be lovingly firm and we can never let them wear us down
Make sure they know it is in their best interest to obey

Israelites - if only we had meat; we never see anything but manna - Numbers 11:4-10
Any grumbling we do is really grumbling against God

God met the needs of the Israelites but he punished them for their attitude - Numbers 11:33
God did want to their needs to be known
Complaining springs selfishness and ingratitude

Must teach our kids to be grateful
Also teach them to express their wishes, opinions, likes and dislikes in a pleasant, positive tone of voice

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

These Commandment (v. 6)

Bible is the underlaying basis for all training
It is the very word of God:

• To be revered
• To be loved
• To be believed

Paul said of Timothy  - from infancy you have know the holy scriptures - 2 Timothy 3:!5

Love the Lord your God (v. 5)

Training flows from a relationshop of love with the personal God
Not  "do-it-ot-else" mentality - missed the point
Bible should be used continually, not just for some "extra" authority is needed

Character

• Start early to build on good points and strengthen any areas of weakness
• Even a child is know by his actions

Beliefs and faith in God - Trust God in prayer / stand for the truth

Attitudes

• Teach them to love life
• Expect them to do their best
• Teach them to expect God to move powerfully

Values - good morals - honesty and purity - if learned young - they will not abanon them

• Some need to realize that our kids are not likable
• Don't let your kids be social outcasts, weird, or rude
• Some kids think they are hilarious when they are not
• Other act strangle to get a attention
• Some are are bland wall flowers

We want to be know but we keep a safe distance
Jesus has X-ray vision to our hear and see right our heart

John 4:39 - Samaritan women:

• She was minding her own business
• Ran into Jesus and was never the same
• Will you give me a drink he asked - the fact that he (a Jew) spoke to her told her (a Samaritan) that there was some very different about Jesus
• Whoever drinks from living water will never thirst again - John 4:13-14
• He confronted her sin and help her see the emptiness of her life
• He wanteed her to see who she was without God
• Due to her discomfort, the woman tried to change to subject
• Jesus skillfully drove out her fears with his love -  brought her back to the conversation of life
• She shared with others

We too can be afraid of seeing who we really are
When we opened up and were forgiven,  we couldn't wait to tell other either

To set people free, we must be like Jesus:

• Relate to them in deep ways
• Not studying the Bible superficially - not helping them see who they are without God
• Ask the difficult questions
• Expose sin so they will see their deepest need for Jesus

Jesus' love and acceptance allowed the woman/us to be real and to change

Luke 7:11-17 - He said, "Don't cry", Jesus chose to be vulnerable to everyone's pain:

• His heart ached for a woman whom he had never meet
• Immediately felt her pain
• Was not oblivious to other's pain
• He gave her reason to rejoice - through his death

Jesus compassion knows no bounds
How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ - Ephesians 3:18

Are you praying to stretch the capacity of your heart to feel deeply with many others?

Is your lack of openness (rooted in fear of the sin of pride) blocking your passion and compassion?

Luke 18:22-24
Wouldn't all Christians love to meet someone who comes across as this man does initially?

Most of us would say, "can we study the Bible?"
Jesus had a very different responce because he knew his heart

Sell everything and follow him = It's not what you do but who you are
For him to have a heart set fully on following Jesus - it meant a willingness to seel all
Following the exchange, it became clear - the man was out of touch with himself and God

Jesus did challenge him but he also loved him
He pointed the man to the narrow way
At the same time he drew him close want to give him strength, faith, and hope

Jesus does not get into a lengthy theological debate
He saw weaknesses the man had to deal with if he was going to enter the kingdom of God

Each of us lacks that "one thing" deep down that we must give up and following Jesus
Something we don't know what it is but God will reveal it - Hebrews 4:12-13

• Many people would have not stopped to chat
• Most would have averted eye contact
• Jews saw blindness as punishment for some sin - John 9:2
• Jesus saw an opportunity to heal and teach - so God might be displayed in his life - John 9:3
• Jesus acted but not predictably - felt something moist and hear go wash
• Blind man simply went - true blind obedience

• Simple honest - I was blind but now I see - John 9:25
• Childlike innocence - Do you want to become his disciples too? - John 9:27
• Boldness - John 9:27

Jesus, knowing he would have to face the cross alone - would be have been easay to maintain his distace
He didn't; he threw himself into life completely

Closeness reuires spending time together
Jesus was the initiator and he wanted to be with John and John want to be with him

At the last supper, John was seated to Jesus' left - John 13:23-26
Jesus confides who the betrayer without the others noticing

Jesus opened his heart to his friends
It is why John knew Jesus was troubled during the night at the garden - John 13:21

Jesus completely bared his very soul to his three closest friends - Matthew 26:38
He did not retreat to be alone - drew John and others close to him

All the while knowing that they were unworthy of his trust and fell sleep when he needed them the most

In his torment, he sees the need of his mother and he entrusts her to John's care - John 19:25-27

Jesus let John know that he trust him and needs him to take care of his mother
God in the flesh yet her express his need to John's help

John was transformed from "son of thunder" to "Apostle of Love"
John later teaches us that if we say we love God but no our brother that we are a liar - 1 John 4:19-20

The problem with not feeling close, real, or trust is our issue

How close, real, and trusting are your relationships?

What do your relationships with people tell you about your relationship with God?

Upon hearing about the death of his close friend Lazarus, Jesus wept...

Jesus really felt the emotions that we feel
He fully divine and fully human at the same time
He knows what it is like to experience loss, pain, hurt, and fatigue

Why did he cry? Scripture does not say. Could be because:

• He felt the hurt of Mary and Martha
• He was expressing the hurt of the loss of his friend
• He was antipating his own death

Who are your deepest relationships in the church?

Luke 18:1-8 - Jesus tells of a parable about praying not giving up; concluding, 'will he find faith on the earth?'

After Jesus was crucified and resurrected he could have gone home to the Father but chose to remain with his friends again
Enter the scene on the road to Emmaus

He wanted to know their hearts. Where was their faith? - They still did not get it

He did not walk away in disgust and give up on them
He waited to see if their faith would revive

God is faithful. He will meet all our needs
Based on the extent to which we focus on the Father and his will - extent to which God moves in our lives

He desires to meet our every need - to the point of sacrificing his own son - Romans 8:32
Does our knowledge of him transform us?
Does it propel us forward in capturing God's heart of sacrificing for the needs of other?

In Philippi, church sacrificed financially to support Paul (only church to do so) - Philippians 4:14-18
God will meet all your needs - Philippians 4:19
Those who are giving to others and giving to God can be assured that God will give to what they need - Luke 6:38

The more we are focused on his will, the more our needs will be richly met

What must be true in our lives in order for us to claim the promise that God will meet all our needs?

One of our greatest test of faith comes when we face the unexpected

We forget Psalms 91 - His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart

We often rely on our own understanding of situations and then ask God what we think we need

It is important to let God give us the answer since he knows what is best for us
Like children, we do not always know what we need

This trouble you're in is not punishment, it's training, the normal experience of children - Hebrews 12:17

• Rejection
• Persecution from someone we have helped to know God
• Loss of a relationship to follow God
• Injustice of living in an imperfect world

• Asked about your doctor's educational background?
• Arrived at the airport early to check the aircraft mechanic's work?

1. Knows us better than we ourselves
2. Even as the manufacturer knows his product better than anyone else
3. Knows our weaknesses and our strengths
4. Is the best source to find the answers to such questions as:

a.  Where did I come from?
b.  Why am I here?
c.  Where am I going?
d.  How should I live?

1. A more abundant life - John 10:10
2. Peace that surpasses understanding - John 14:27; 16:23; Phillipians 4:6-7
3. Love that passes knowledge - John 15:9; Ephesians 3:19
4. Joy that is inexpressible - John 15:11; 1 Peter 1:8
5. Hope that sustains in the face of death - John 11:25; Revelation 14:13

Prophets – God can forgive your sins
Jesus – He said their sins were given by him
To the paralytic - “…may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Mark 2:10)
To the sinful women – “her many sins have been forgiven” (Luke 7:47)

Prophets – God saves
Jesus knew he was the one to save the world from sin
“…Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45)
“This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28)

Prophets – God judges
Jesus - “…my judgment is just” (John 5:30))
On the last day - “Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord…” (Matthew 7:22)

1. How to live
2. Be committed to him
3. Should love him

• Jesus - error for not knowing
• Some modern religious leaders - scriptures are in error

• Jesus served humbly as their servant - his life was all about love
  
• All men will know you as a disciple by your love of one another
• Distinctive mark by which Christians are recognized
• Does not say "they will know by your doctrine"

• People would beat tools of division into tools of peace - Isaiah 2:4
• Impossible unity - Isaiah 11:6-9
• Men would protect each other - Isaiah 32:2

• Praying for show - Matthew 22:29
• Studying the scriptures - Matthew 22:29

• NT letter deal with relationships more than any other subject
• Carry each other's burden - burdens produced by sin
• Christians are to be involved to know what sin's others are struggling to overcome
• Helping your brother to overcome a sin is a fulfillment of the principle of Christ
• Jesus carried our burden - Isaiah 53:4-6; 1 Peter 2:24

Effective with the crowds

Mark 3:7-12

• Jesus was approachable.
• He was known as a man who meet people’s needs
• What are we like in front of a crowd?
  • Become self-conscious?
  • Concerned about how people will perceive us?
  • Lose ability to think or speech clearly and passionately?
• Jesus was not anxious, afraid, insecure

Mark 7:14-23 - He had no stomach for the misdirection spread by the Pharisees and the Teachers of the Law

High Expectations

• He let them know that they were spiritually stupid.
• How many of us are willing to rebuke when asked a stupid question by people who should know better?
• Jesus was determined that these men would rise above the rank and file.
• He got upset and urged them to change
• The dreamer never gives up the dream.

Blame

• The responsibility for our actions resides with us, the decision makers, and not with our environment.
• We are not simply a product of our environment; environment is determined by our choices.
• We cannot rightly blame others or fate or circumstances for our behavior
• We must take responsibility for the consequences of our decisions
• Changes in people occur from the inside out. · Involves helping people to acknowledge what they are really like deep down and then to deal with their inner self
• We cannot on our own change our own or someone else’s heart.
• We must realize how desperately we need God’s intervention in out lives.
• The Bible exposes, in a unbiased way, the true qualities of our hearts.
• Deep character changes in our lives fuels our faith.

• Known as the Jesus cult.
• They spent night and day with His disciple and they were always astonished.
• Some people astonish us when we first meet them but after getting to know them we grow accustomed to their usual actions. 

• James and John expected to pull this one over on Jesus
  
• He didn’t correct them for being manipulative or disrespectful

• There is a great difference between lording leadership and servant leadership.
• It is hard to see politicians as servant leaders.

Cockiness

Mark 12:18-27

• Every one of these phrases cut like a knife:
  • Are you not in error?
  • You do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.
  • Have you not read?
• He comfort the disturbed, he also made it his goal to disturbed the comfortable.
• He was not afraid to rock the boat.
• In order to have lasting impact it is necessary to be willing to challenge our opponents to their face.

Expertise

Mark 12:28-34

• He was prepared to give an answer on any topic that anyone might choose to challenge him.
• We need to know our stuff.
• Good students make the best teachers.
• Good listeners are worth listening to.
• Some of us what to skip over the student phase and jump right into the teacher phase.

Discernment

Mark 12:41-44

• We must be able to discern the relative merits of people’s deeds.
• We often fail to notice the hidden glory of those who deny themselves

Snoopiness

• It is a mistake to think that we can effectively help people when we don’t know the details of what is going on in their lives
• “Mind your own business” – society is not favor of this idea
• We must demonstrate a genuine concern for the welfare of others. – not gossip

Romantic

Mark 14:3-11

• We have love and passion and gratitude all bottled up and safely stored away. – Need to break the alabaster jars.
• Spontaneity, extravagance and apparently unreasonable actions are the trademarks of passionate love.

Accepting Praise Graciously

• We don’t want people to know how much we crave the compliment, so we pretend that it means nothing to us.
• They way a person responds to a compliment is a clear indication of the condition of his or her self-image.

Connections

Mark 14:12-16

• Sometimes it is not what you know but who you know.
• If you don’t have many connections, this is probably because you are not a friendly person or influential people intimate you.

Emotional Transformation

Mark 14:32-42

• Jesus’ friends provided him with absolutely no support at all during this spiritual struggle.
• All are overwhelmed with losses, failure, challenges, frustrations, by life
• If you are a leader, you cannot afford to be “down” for any significant length of time.
• The ability to make a quick and complete emotional turn-around is invaluable for the man or woman who wants to have an impact.

In touch with His feelings

• A person unfamiliar to their own emotional nature is a slave to it, while the person who is familiar with their weaknesses is in a position to master them.
• A spiritual man, through humility, has become acquainted with his own emotional self, and armed with that knowledge, has learned to turn his negative emotions around quickly.

• Swords, camouflage, six-shooters, uniforms
• Boys want to be powerful and dangerous
• Aggression is part of man’s design – God’s image (Exodus 15:3)
• They do not want to call and talk about relationships
• Boys play is a rehearsal for a bigger drama
• Life needs man to be fierce and fiercely devoted
• Every man needs to know he is powerful – be the hero

• Fights the grizzly, wins the beauty
• Recipe for fun with boys – add an element of danger
• We may fear the test, yet we yearn to be tested and discover what it takes
• If a man has lost this desire (says he doesn’t want it) does not know he has what it takes – believe he will fail the test.

• Nothing more inspiring to a man as a beautiful women
• Make you want to charge the castle, slay the giant
• Men going to war carry a photo of their sweetheart in their wallet
• Paintings on side of airplanes
• Lonely men fight lonely battles
• Where would James Bond, Robin Hood, King Arthur, Indiana Jones be without their women
• Man needs a battle to fight, he needs someone to fight for (someone in particular – women he loves)

Where do we come from?

A man must know where he comes from and what he is made of both past and family fathers

Most men are trying not to be like their fathers

Who will they derive their sense of strength?

To men God is: Distant and weak (How they would describe their father)
Jesus has become – Mister Rogers with a beard
God – gives a reason and purpose to fight

Reminds us that life lived in fear is no life at all – all will die someday
Jesus = Mother Teresa or William Wallace? Both

1. No battle to fight
   
2. No swords and castles
3. Without a great battle in which a man live and die - fierce part goes underground

• We doubt very much that we have and real strength to offer
•  If we did offer what we have it wouldn’t be good enough

• can not learn it from any other place
• can not learn it from other boys
• can not learn it from women

• physical contact
• sandpaper of my whiskers
• to test their fathers

• We do not know how to initiate boys into men
• We are not sure we really want to

• slavery stopped
• Nazis were stopped
• Who gave up their seats on the Titanic?

• Career
• Belonging
• How well he plays sports
• Yes, even women

• Where does your sense of power come from?
• Is it your position?