"16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
I believe that prayer isn't just saying our morning prayers, meal prayer, bed prayers, but it is so much more. I will try to explain. How often do you think you pray in a day? The Bible says to pray without ceasing, to keep a mind set of Christ. When we keep Christ at the center of our lives it isn't about what I want or do not want, but what He wants in me. Matthew 6:33 says "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Can you imagine if when hard or easy times came that instead of focusing on the struggles at hand, we change the way we think, we start thinking of how Jesus would handle the situation, it changes our thought process. Proverbs 3:5-6 says it the best way "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."
When we become Christ followers, we need to be willing to change how we are, instead of being like the world who is quick to react, quick to anger, quick to expressing, we need to be James 1:19 "This you know, my beloved brethren But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger;" or in Proverbs 19:11 "A man's discretion makes him slow to anger, And it is his glory to overlook a transgression." These things were not written in the Bible just for a reading pleasure, they are written so that we may learn and follow them. There are examples from every aspect of our lives, but we must be willing to look. When we place Jesus at the center of our lives, it is no longer about "me". And then I am able to have a mind set of prayer and my heart has to be right with God.
When I am selfish I think only of myself, I think of what I can get out of things. I will offer help, but hope that they do not take me up on it, because I only offer out of selfishness, not out of being willing to do what it is God is calling me to do. When I am selfish, I am not filled with the Joy of my Savior, because it isn't about Jesus, it is all about me. Selfishness is the opposite of being a Christ follower, because walking as a Christian it can't be about me, but about my Lord and Savior. He wants me to place Him at the center, to have a heart of worship to Him and for Him. When I stop doing things for myself and start living for Him, I start to see the change that will occur in me, because no longer is it about "I", but you Lord. When you are able to make it about living for Jesus, about making it that our actions are a representation of who He is in us, we start realizing that our lives are a living example of Him. It changes us, because He is changing us. Our actions are no longer about what I get from it, but what Jesus gets from it.
We need to be willing to look at life through Jesus's eyes and in doing that, our hearts will be transformed from the "I" role into the "You Jesus". Our hearts need to be in an attitude of what brings Jesus glory instead of what I do for me. When I ask Jesus to change my heart, I have to be willing to do what He calls me to do, regardless of how I feel. That is laying down my self, my wants, because it is no longer about if I have time, it is what Jesus wants is more important than self. If you are unable to do this, the issue is not if you have time, it is a HEART issue, isn't it time to get your heart right with God. He needs to be the center and when you allow Him to be, then praying isn't about what time it is, it is about honoring God. It is saying praise you Lord and I love you Lord throughout the day, you don't have to say it out loud (if you do, people may look at you strange)... But it is keeping Jesus at the center of your thoughts. A hard situation comes up, cry out to God first. Someone curses the name of Jesus, pray that God bless them. Someone cuts you off in traffic, pray that God watch over them.
When we change how we are, not because it is easy, but because of God. When it is no longer about what I want, but what He wants, He will begin to transform you into what He wants. This process is not easy, because He will be working out the selfish desires in you, He will turn up the heat, to purify you and your thinking. You can give up or you can press into Him more and more, because He is doing a work in you. Philippians 1:6 "being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Isn't it time to live as Christ and stop living as the selfish, self-centered people that we are. Isn't it time to live as Christ calls us to?
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