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00:00We are pretty self-sufficient people, but that has caused us to make prayer our last resort when we're in trouble.
00:11We make prayer so difficult. Prayer may be mysterious, but it's not complicated. It's simple.
00:19And in this series, I'm going to teach you how to transform your prayer life.
00:24I'm not here to make you feel guilty about not praying as much as you should.
00:31The real issue isn't guilt. It's that we're missing out on the great adventure God has for us.
00:39So you want to know why you're not seeing your prayers being answered?
00:43Well, they're just not specific enough.
00:46Your prayers should be so specific that when God answers it, you recognize it.
00:51If you want your prayers answered, three things need to be true.
00:56The request needs to be right, the timing needs to be right, and you need to be right.
01:03Don't pray like an adult. Pray like a child.
01:07Keep it simple, keep it specific, and keep at it.
01:10God cares about everything in your life, even the little things.
01:17Nothing is too insignificant to get on your prayer list,
01:20because God has the capacity to care about every detail of every one of His children, including you.
01:27What is prayer?
01:29Prayer is a conversation.
01:31Prayer is a relationship.
01:33And prayer is a great adventure.
01:35Coming up on Turning Point.
01:42The God who answers this prayer is a good and gracious and loving God.
01:47He never gives us anything that He does not give us the grace to deal with.
01:52He never asks us to walk a road that He does not lead us and go with us.
01:57Prayer. Keep it simple, keep it specific.
02:03Everything to God in prayer.
02:05Guided prayers for your deepest needs and biggest dreams by Dr. David Jeremiah
02:09provides you with 100 carefully crafted prayers to guide you through life's challenges and celebrations.
02:15When words fail you during times of grief.
02:17When your heart is filled with gratitude, but you can't express it.
02:21When you're facing decisions that seem impossible.
02:23Dr. Jeremiah helps you bring everything to God.
02:26The Bible tells us to go to God in prayer for all things.
02:30But sometimes we need guidance on how to pray effectively and specifically.
02:34Reading and praying these guided prayers by Dr. Jeremiah will help you learn to pray with confidence and clarity
02:39and with a renewed passion and purpose.
02:43Request Everything to God in Prayer, new from Dr. Jeremiah,
02:46when you give a gift of any amount in support of Turning Point.
02:50Everything to God in Prayer.
02:52The perfect companion for your prayer life.
02:54And a thoughtful gift for anyone in your Bible study or prayer group.
02:57And you can request two copies for a gift of $60 or more.
03:01Your deepest needs and biggest dreams deserve the right words.
03:04Request Everything to God in Prayer by Dr. Jeremiah from Turning Point today.
03:08The daughter of an atheist once told a friend that she had been raised without any religion.
03:25I don't believe in God, she said.
03:27And then a little wistfully, she added,
03:29But the other day I came across an old German book that contained a prayer.
03:35And if the God of that prayer exists, then I think I might be able to believe in Him.
03:41Her friend asked, what was the prayer?
03:44And she replied slowly,
03:46Our Father who art in heaven.
03:48The Lord's Prayer is one of the most powerful evidences of God's existence.
03:56Such a prayer could not have been conceived unless God was real.
04:01Unless He had revealed Himself and made it possible for us to know Him.
04:06This prayer, recorded in Matthew 6, is one of many prayers of the Lord Jesus.
04:12In fact, we know of at least 20 prayers that Jesus prayed.
04:17Luke 3 tells us that Jesus prayed at His baptism.
04:22Later, when crowds began pressing Him in Capernaum,
04:26He seemed to be aware of the danger of a misplaced devotion.
04:31He arose, and a great while before dawn, He prayed.
04:34Before selecting His 12 apostles, Jesus spent the whole night in prayer.
04:40Then there is His high priestly prayer, which is recorded in John 17.
04:44And of course, the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, where He surrendered to the Father's will, saying,
04:50Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done.
04:54But the most well-known prayer associated with Jesus' name is the one we call the Lord's Prayer.
05:02What a privilege it is to take a few moments today to learn from the Lord's Prayer.
05:07Not just how to pray, but how to live in harmony with the will of God.
05:12I find it interesting that the disciples never went to Jesus and said,
05:17Lord, teach us to preach, or teach us to lead.
05:21They felt the same need that we feel.
05:24Lord, teach us to pray.
05:26The Lord's Prayer begins with some preliminary instructions about prayer.
05:30Before He gives the prayer in Matthew 6, He lays out a couple of requirements.
05:36When Jesus said, after this manner, pray,
05:39He first wanted to teach us something important about the prayer itself.
05:45First thing that you learn when you read these preliminary instructions
05:48is that you should never pray like the hypocrites.
05:52That's what He says.
05:54The first warning He gives us is that our prayers must not be hypocritical.
06:00I think that's so interesting in light of what I've observed in many prayer meetings that I've attended.
06:05He even uses the word hypocrite in His teachings.
06:09Matthew 6, 5,
06:10And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites,
06:15for they love to pray standing in the synagogues
06:18and on the corners of the streets,
06:20that they may be seen by men.
06:22Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
06:26Hypocrites are more interested in the position than in piety.
06:32In Jesus' day, Jewish Pharisees were committed to praying at set hours,
06:383 o'clock, 6 o'clock, 9 o'clock, and 12 o'clock.
06:43Wherever they were when the hour struck,
06:45they would stop and pray out loud.
06:47Some of the Pharisees even planned their schedules
06:52to ensure that they were in the most public places when it was time to pray.
06:57At 12 o'clock, they would find themselves in the city center,
07:01and at just the right moment,
07:03they would lift their hands and begin praying aloud.
07:06And the crowd would look on and say,
07:08Now that must be a really spiritual person.
07:12Jesus said,
07:14Don't pray like that.
07:16Hypocritical praying is more concerned with position than with piety,
07:20more concerned with the people who are watching
07:23than the God you hope is listening.
07:26This doesn't mean that public praying is wrong.
07:30Some groups have taken these words of our Lord
07:32and have used them to forbid group praying.
07:35That's just not what it means.
07:37After all, the Gospels show Jesus praying publicly on several occasions,
07:41and the book of Acts, which is the history of the early church,
07:45records many examples of believers praying together.
07:49There is a place for public prayers,
07:51but they must be genuine,
07:53and they must never take the place of our private praying.
07:57One of the most sobering truths in studying the Lord's Prayer is this.
08:02No one can try to impress people
08:04and at the same time truly connect with God.
08:08It's not possible.
08:09Jesus warns us up front,
08:12prayer isn't about impressing others.
08:14If we pray for recognition,
08:16that's the only reward we'll ever get.
08:19Jesus gives a second warning.
08:21Not only should we avoid praying like hypocrites,
08:24but we must also avoid praying like the heathen.
08:27He actually says that.
08:29And when you pray,
08:30verse 7,
08:31Do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do,
08:36for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
08:40You might ask,
08:41Do the heathen pray?
08:43Oh, yes.
08:45And Jesus describes one of their key mistakes,
08:48vain repetition.
08:50This is the idea that we must repeat the same words over and over,
08:55almost like a spiritual mantra to get God's attention.
08:59And if we're honest,
09:01even as Bible-believing Christians,
09:04we can sometimes fall into this habit.
09:08Jesus warns us not to approach God with rote prayers,
09:12but with real prayers,
09:14prayers that come from relationship,
09:16not from routine.
09:18It's striking that before giving the Lord's Prayer,
09:20one of the most frequently repeated prayers in history,
09:23Jesus specifically warns against vain repetition.
09:28In Luke's account of the Pharisees and the tax collector,
09:32there's an intriguing phrase.
09:34The Pharisee stood and prayed with himself.
09:40Think about that.
09:41Have you ever heard someone pray with themselves?
09:45Maybe God is just listening in as a secondary thought.
09:48Jesus warns us that prayer must not be like that.
09:52In some cultures,
09:54people write their prayers on paper
09:56and place them in prayer wheels,
09:59believing that each turn of the wheel
10:01offers the prayer up to heaven.
10:03The more spins, the more prayers.
10:06That's vain repetition.
10:09You see, prayer is all about God wanting our hearts.
10:13That's why Jesus gives these warnings.
10:15Don't pray like the hypocrites.
10:17Don't pray like the heathen.
10:19That's what the scripture says.
10:20Now, notice the pattern for prayer.
10:24When you begin to study its meaning,
10:26you discover some profound theology.
10:29Look carefully at the prayer and notice the emphasis on God
10:33in the first three petitions.
10:36By name,
10:37by kingdom,
10:39by will.
10:41Then observe the second half of the prayer,
10:43which highlights the poverty of man.
10:45Let me rephrase it so you see the contrast.
10:49Us.
10:49Give us daily bread.
10:51Us.
10:52Forgive us our debts.
10:54Us.
10:54Lead us not into temptation.
10:56Us.
10:57Deliver us from evil.
10:59The first part of the prayer is thy,
11:01thy,
11:01thy.
11:02The second part of the prayer is us,
11:04us,
11:04us.
11:05God has all the glory,
11:06all the power,
11:07all the majesty.
11:08We,
11:09on the other hand,
11:10have all the needs,
11:11all the wants,
11:13and all the poverty.
11:14Isn't it a privilege to come to a prayer
11:17where you can say,
11:19Lord,
11:19I'm empty,
11:20but oh God,
11:21you are full.
11:22You are my source.
11:23You are the one I come to.
11:25Samuel Zweimer once wrote,
11:31every possible desire of the praying heart is here.
11:35This prayer contains a whole world of spiritual requirements,
11:39and it combines in simple language every divine promise,
11:44every human sorrow and want,
11:46and every Christian aspiration for the good of others.
11:50This prayer is everything we need for a life of prayer,
11:54for a season.
11:56I used the Lord's prayer as the outline for my prayer every day.
12:02Let me show you how it works,
12:04why it's a powerful way to pray.
12:07The prayer begins,
12:08first of all,
12:09with praise.
12:10Our Father in heaven,
12:12hallowed be your name.
12:14The Bible tells us to enter into his presence with thanksgiving.
12:20Jesus said,
12:21hallowed be thy name.
12:22That means we begin by honoring,
12:24worshiping,
12:24and praising God.
12:26How easy it is to rush into God's presence with a long list of needs.
12:32We start asking before we have even acknowledged who he is.
12:36But God invites us to begin with praise.
12:40Take the names of God,
12:41open the Psalms,
12:43find words that exalt him.
12:44Here's why this matters.
12:47If you start your prayer focused on your needs,
12:50you may not have confidence in your prayers.
12:53But if you begin by seeing God as he is,
12:57high and lifted up,
12:59full of power and majesty,
13:01you know that your prayers are being offered to someone who can hear you
13:05and answer you and help you.
13:07Make God big in your prayers.
13:11Begin with praise.
13:13Our Father who art in heaven,
13:15hallowed be thy name.
13:18And then,
13:19after praise comes priorities.
13:26Your kingdom come,
13:28your will be done,
13:30on earth as it is in heaven.
13:32What would happen if God's will were done on earth as it is in heaven?
13:39In heaven,
13:40his will is done perfectly and completely.
13:43This is where we surrender.
13:44We lay our priorities before him and align them with his.
13:48I remind myself almost every day of my priorities.
13:52I want to give them to you.
13:53Here's what they are.
13:55And if you know anything about me
13:57and have watched what's happened here over the years,
13:59you probably will see that these priorities are what have guided my life.
14:04First of all,
14:05I am a person before God.
14:08I must take care of that relationship.
14:12Secondly,
14:13I'm a partner to my wife.
14:16She's the most important person on this earth to me.
14:20Only God gets ahead of Donna.
14:22Thirdly,
14:23I'm a parent with my children.
14:26I need to tell you that when you do what I do
14:28and what some of you guys do who have responsible positions
14:32that demand a lot of your time and attention,
14:34if you're not careful,
14:36you can sacrifice your children on the altar of your success.
14:41And it is a very poor choice if you do that.
14:45When I was first beginning to be a pastor back in Fort Wayne,
14:49I was trying to build the church.
14:52I had started there with seven families.
14:53One of my favorite sayings to everybody was,
14:56sure,
14:56I got to work every day and every night.
14:58I'm the gross national product.
14:59Don't you know that?
15:00There's nobody but me.
15:01If I don't do it,
15:02nobody's going to do it.
15:03So I worked many hours.
15:05I would get up early and study,
15:07make appointments with people,
15:08and I would eat supper and then immediately even go visit.
15:12And I visited every night.
15:13In many ways,
15:14it was a wonderful time.
15:15I led many people to Jesus Christ and the church grew.
15:18But in that particular time,
15:20I was out of sync with God.
15:23I would come home and after we would eat,
15:25my wife would say to me,
15:27are you going to be gone again tonight?
15:29And then I would give her my little gross national product speech
15:33and tell her if I didn't go,
15:35there was nobody else to go.
15:36And if I didn't go,
15:37this church would never grow.
15:38And she would say,
15:41okay,
15:41but she had two little children that she had fought with all day long.
15:44And she was hoping for a little help at night.
15:46And this went on until it got out of control.
15:49And one day,
15:50I don't know if your wife has ever said this to you,
15:52but Donna said to me,
15:53honey,
15:54we need to talk.
15:56Yikes.
15:59Yikes.
16:01And so we sat down in the kitchen
16:04and she gave me the speech.
16:07I'll never forget it.
16:09She said,
16:10I don't know what to do.
16:12She said,
16:13I love you.
16:14I love this church and I love these children.
16:17But I can't do this by myself.
16:20And I feel so awkward saying anything to you about it
16:25because I feel like I'm getting in between you
16:27and what you think God wants you to do.
16:30So I finally figured out what to do.
16:32And here it is.
16:33I am never going to say anything to you again
16:36about how you spend your time.
16:38I'm going to let you and God figure that out.
16:42And it broke my heart.
16:44That's part of this list of priorities.
16:47Once again,
16:48I'm a person before God.
16:50I'm a partner to my wife
16:52and I'm a parent to my children.
16:54And then I'm a pastor to the church.
16:58And I remember telling the church one Sunday,
17:00you guys are number four.
17:04And I had many of them write me little notes and say,
17:07pastor, don't overchange that
17:08because if we're not number four,
17:10you got nothing to give us
17:12because this is God's priorities.
17:15And so thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.
17:19What would happen if you prayed,
17:21Lord, let your will be done in my relationships with you.
17:24And my spouse and my children and my calling.
17:28This is the place in the prayer
17:30to submit every part of your life to him.
17:33First praise, hallowed be thy name.
17:37And then priorities,
17:39thy kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.
17:42So after praise and after priorities comes provision.
17:47Isn't it interesting that it's number three in the prayer list,
17:50but it's number one on our practice list
17:52because we always want what God has
17:54and we don't have up front.
17:56And we jump in at that and we don't praise him.
17:58We don't ask him about our priorities.
18:01And we ask him for what we need.
18:03Matthew 6, 11,
18:05give us this day our daily bread.
18:08How many of you have needs?
18:11Some may say, are we talking about physical bread
18:15or spiritual bread?
18:16And the answer is both.
18:18God desires to meet our needs,
18:20but notice the order.
18:22First, we focus on who he is.
18:24Then we align our lives with his will.
18:27And then we bring our needs before him.
18:31Number four, personal relationships.
18:33And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
18:40Interestingly enough, if you study this prayer,
18:42you will discover this is the only part of the prayer
18:44that Jesus repeats.
18:46In Matthew 6, 15, at the end of the prayer,
18:49he says,
18:49If you do not forgive men their trespasses,
18:52neither will your father forgive your trespasses.
18:55Is there someone in your life you haven't forgiven?
18:57Jesus teaches us to pray,
19:00Lord, forgive me in the same way that I forgive others.
19:05That's a sobering thought.
19:07Life is full of relational challenges.
19:10Every one of us in this room has them.
19:13Friendships, family, work relationships.
19:15Every day there's something to bring before God in prayer
19:18in the relationship factor.
19:20And then we pray for protection.
19:23And do not lead us into temptation,
19:27but deliver us from the evil one.
19:31Walking through life today is like walking through a minefield.
19:35It's worse now than it's ever been in my lifetime.
19:38I say that honestly before all of you who are Christians here,
19:42because I know most of you are.
19:43It's more difficult to be a Christian now than it's ever been.
19:47There are more things against us
19:49than have ever been against us before.
19:51And we keep looking and waiting for it to change.
19:54And when it changes, it gets worse.
19:57And to be courageous enough to stand up in some settings
20:00and admit that you are a follower of Jesus Christ
20:03puts your acceptability with that community in jeopardy.
20:09But here's what we pray every morning.
20:12Do not lead us into temptation,
20:14but deliver us from the evil one.
20:16We never know what temptation or challenge is ahead.
20:20That is why we need to pray for God's guidance and protection.
20:24So it's praise, priorities, provision,
20:28personal relationships, protection.
20:30And guess where you end up?
20:32Right back where you started.
20:34For yours is the kingdom
20:36and the power and the glory forever.
20:39Amen.
20:40God's prayer is framed in praise.
20:44We start with worship.
20:45We end with worship.
20:46And in between, we bring our needs to God.
20:50During World War II, a young soldier lay dying in a hospital.
20:55A chaplain came to pray with him
20:57and something in his heart told him to pray the Lord's Prayer.
21:01When he finished, the soldier's eyes filled with tears.
21:05He whispered,
21:06My mother used to pray that prayer with me.
21:08Oh, how good it is to hear it again.
21:10The next day, the chaplain returned and the bed was empty.
21:14The young soldier had passed away.
21:17A nurse told him,
21:19Just an hour after you left,
21:21he was still praying out loud
21:22and his last words were,
21:24My father, my father.
21:25Yes, mother, he's my father
21:27because I've accepted him.
21:29I'm coming home.
21:31My friends, you cannot say our father
21:32unless he is truly your father.
21:34You only get into God's family
21:37if you accept God's son, Jesus Christ.
21:40You must be born again.
21:42You've never trusted Christ as your Savior.
21:45This prayer doesn't belong to you yet.
21:47You have to start by putting Christ
21:49on the throne of your life.
21:51But here's the good news.
21:53No matter who you are or what you've done,
21:56God extends an invitation to you.
21:58If you receive Christ,
22:00he will become your Lord
22:04and God will become your father.
22:06And then with confidence, you can pray,
22:09My father in heaven.
22:11For those who are already believers,
22:13let this prayer remind you
22:15of God's desire for daily fellowship with you.
22:18Not with high sounding words,
22:21not with vain repetitions,
22:24but with the simplicity of a child
22:26speaking to his father.
22:28I once heard a story about a pastor
22:31who visited a dying man in the hospital.
22:34The man had been struggling to pray
22:37until someone told him,
22:38just put a chair beside your bed
22:41and imagine God is there
22:42and just talk with him.
22:45Pastor later returned
22:46and found out that the man had passed away
22:49and he went into the room where the man was
22:51and found him with his head resting on the chair
22:54where he had been talking with God.
22:57That is what prayer is.
23:01It's a conversation.
23:03It's a relationship
23:04to a father in heaven who listens.
23:08So open your heart
23:10and speak to him
23:12and let the Lord's prayer give you an outline.
23:15It's good to memorize the Lord's prayer
23:18and we often recite it in church,
23:20but that's not the purpose of the Lord's teaching.
23:25He taught us the Lord's prayer
23:27to give us an outline
23:28so we would know how to organize our prayers.
23:33And I find that many Christians
23:35who have been Christians for many years
23:37have never thought about that,
23:39have never thought even about a prayer being organized.
23:42If we don't organize our prayers
23:44and plan them a little bit,
23:45they just become sort of a mumbling in some ways.
23:51We pray about our children.
23:53We pray about our needs.
23:55We pray about our relationships.
23:58And most of all, we praise God for his goodness.
24:02Somewhere along the way,
24:04all of this will be tested in your life.
24:06I used to say that knowing it would be true
24:09until it happened to me.
24:11It's been tested in my life.
24:13And I'm here to tell you that
24:15the God who answers this prayer
24:19is a good and gracious and loving God.
24:22He never gives us anything
24:23that he does not give us the grace to deal with.
24:26He never asks us to walk a road
24:29that he does not lead us and go with us.
24:32When I first became a pastor,
24:34I went to the church
24:35where I was going to start
24:37with a bunch of families.
24:39And someone had put a sign up
24:41on the door in our kitchen.
24:43I'll never forget this sign.
24:45It stayed with me all my life.
24:46It went like this.
24:48God's commandments are God's enablements.
24:51The sign was simply to encourage me
24:53that if God had commanded me
24:55to come there and be the pastor,
24:57God was obligated to give me
24:59what I needed to do it.
25:02God will never ask you
25:03to go through anything
25:04that he won't equip you for.
25:05He just doesn't do that.
25:09And the Lord's Prayer,
25:12the Lord's Prayer is a reminder
25:14of that truth.
25:15He is your Father.
25:17You are his children.
25:19I am his child.
25:20Sons and daughters of Almighty God.
25:23And there's not anything
25:24he won't do for you
25:25if you just pray.
25:28Pray.
25:28The Father's Prayer
25:31is a good place to start.
25:33Thank you for watching Turning Point.
25:43Dr. Jeremiah would like to offer you
25:44his new book,
25:45Everything to God in Prayer,
25:47guided prayers for your deepest needs
25:49and biggest dreams,
25:50containing 100 carefully crafted prayers
25:52for life's challenges
25:53and celebrations.
25:55These guided prayers
25:56will help you pray with confidence
25:57and renewed purpose
25:59as Dr. Jeremiah helps you
26:01bring everything to God.
26:03Request Everything to God in Prayer
26:04new from Dr. Jeremiah
26:06with your gift of any amount
26:07to Turning Point
26:08or receive two copies
26:10for a gift of $60 or more,
26:12perfect for your prayer life
26:13and a thoughtful gift
26:15for loved ones.
26:16Your deepest needs
26:17and biggest dreams
26:18deserve the right words.
26:20Request Everything to God in Prayer
26:22by Dr. Jeremiah
26:23from Turning Point today.
26:24If you have never taken the step
26:31to believe in Jesus Christ
26:33as your Lord and Savior,
26:34you can do that today.
26:36If you will allow us,
26:38Dr. Jeremiah would like to send you
26:39two resources that will help you.
26:41The first is a booklet called
26:43Your Greatest Turning Point,
26:45which will help you
26:45as you begin your relationship
26:47with Christ.
26:48And the second is
26:49our monthly devotional magazine,
26:51Turning Points,
26:51to give you encouragement
26:53and inspiration
26:54throughout the year.
26:55These resources are yours
26:57completely free
26:58when you contact
26:58Turning Point today.
27:03If you enjoyed today's message,
27:05watch the entire
27:06Prayer of the Great Adventure series
27:07from Dr. David Jeremiah
27:09on Turning Point Plus.
27:11Start streaming this series today,
27:13along with more than
27:141,200 messages
27:15from Dr. Jeremiah's
27:16four decades of broadcast ministry.
27:18On Turning Point Plus,
27:20you'll find Dr. Jeremiah's
27:21Bible-strong teaching,
27:22original programming,
27:24plus special collections
27:25and playlists,
27:26all on demand
27:27and on any screen.
27:28Visit turningpointplus.org today.
27:33Next time on Turning Point.
27:36Ask God to give you
27:37a forgiving heart,
27:38breathe out your prayers
27:40in an atmosphere of grace.
27:42You will be so surprised
27:43if you do this,
27:44how wonderful it will be
27:46to pray again
27:48in the right way.
27:50Thank you for being
27:51with us today.
27:52Join Dr. Jeremiah
27:53next time for his message,
27:55Why Don't My Prayers
27:56Get Answered?
27:57Here on Turning Point.
28:01Enjoy a Bible conference
28:02on the water
28:03when you set sail
28:04with David and Donna Jeremiah
28:05to New England and Canada.
28:07Enjoy the region's
28:08natural beauty,
28:09colonial history,
28:10and the quiet pace
28:11of coastal life
28:12as you refresh your faith
28:14with a week of uplifting
28:15Bible teaching
28:15from Dr. Jeremiah,
28:17worship with Michael Sanchez
28:18and Uriel Vega,
28:20and fellowship
28:20with like-minded believers.
28:22Don't miss this
28:23once-in-a-lifetime experience.
28:25Call or go online
28:27for more information.