Key to Answered Prayer

God longs to answer our prayers, but  this 1-minute devotion shares the key to answered prayer.

God promises to fulfill our heart desires. 
But this doesn't mean He fulfills our selfish, worldly desires. 

Notice the order in this passage: 

"Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4 

First we delight ourselves in the Lord. Then he gives us the desires of our hearts. 

If we think we can use prayer to fulfill our selfish desires, we'll always be disappointed. 

"When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." James 4:3 

But when we delight ourselves in the Lord, we find our happiness in Him. We obey God's Word, treasuring our relationship with Him above all else. 

Then we no longer want to please ourselves. We want to please God. We begin to think His thoughts and have His desires (Romans 12:1-2). 

We put off our former way of thinking which is corrupted by deceitful desires, and we put on our new self which gives us new attitudes and right desires (Ephesians 4:22-24).
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For additional thoughts and Scriptures on this devotion, see Bite Size Bible Study HERE.

I also encourage you to read these devotions about prayer:



https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Life-Devotional-One-Minute-Reflections/dp/1087775760

I also encourage you to check out the Wisdom for Life Devotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word. Read the story behind Wisdom for Life HERE. And find out about the two free Bible studies with purchase HERE. You can read the first four devotions in the book by clicking "look inside" on Lifeway or AmazonIn addition, you can buy the book in Kindle format on Amazon and as an e-book on Barnes and Noble.
 
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God longs to answer our prayers, but  this 1-minute devotion shares the key to answered prayer.



Bible Love Notes

3 comments:

  1. This is blessing to read this; for me, I have learned that once I gave my heart to the Lord without reservations, the desires of this world grew cold. My heart then turned towards pleasing Him and helping others. I find when my focus is off Him, my desires then turn back to me and myself and my wants. The key is to stay focused on the Lord and the things (as the song says) will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.

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