100 Days of Prayer
— Preparing the heart

JANUARY 02
Precept (Principle)
Proverbs 4:7b
Get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

Promise (from God)
Psalm 89:15
Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of Thy countenance.

Prayer (to God)
2 Chronicles 1:10
Give me now wisdom and knowledge.

Take each Precept and Promise and Prayer and pray them back to the Lord as one prayer

FREE prayer helps are always available on our Prayer-Basics-Page

1/2/2019, Father, as we begin this year I am reminded of a verse, very near the beginning of the book of Proverbs. Verse 7 of chapter 1 finds your reminder to awe You, for it is the beginning, it’s where we start. Forgive us Lord, for being more like the second half of the verse, “fools who despise wisdom and instruction.” Father, I plead with You for a revival of respecting, awing, and fearing You to return to The Body of Christ. . . And let it begin with me.

DECEMBER 31
PRAY OR SIN

Movie . . . The Great Escape

• Steve McQueen looks up at his colleague who has just been killed and decides to get the information outside the camp, get himself recaptured, and then give up his freedom, for the rest of his colleagues.

  • What are you willing to give up for other Christians?

  • You are on the precipice of a brand new year and I cannot think of anything better to decide, than to pray. Will you?

Read Today’s Verse

1 Samuel 12:23a (HCSB) “As for me, I vow that I will not sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. . .

Background for Today’s Prayer:

Just like in the movie, sometimes a commitment is costly.

• When was the last time you promised to pray for someone, but didn’t?

• Have you ever considered praying for that person’s request even though the need is over?

• I know it sounds odd, but remember, God is outside of time?

• Have you ever asked God to rehear your prayers afresh?

TODAY’S PRAYER:

Lord the verse above is sobering. I rarely consider it sin when I do not pray for someone I promised to. Lord, would You create in me a desire to make prayer my foremost spiritual discipline this year. And Lord, while I am praying, let me leave a legacy of praying, to those around me. Let them see me pray with my Bible open. Thank You Lord.

Join us tomorrow as we begin to Prepare the Heart, in and for Prayer:
Pray All Year With us at #PrayAllYear.

DECEMBER 30
GLORIFYING GOD

Movie . . . City Slickers

• Jack Palance holds up his index finger to Billy Crystal and then tells him that the secret to life is “One Thing” but that you have to figure out that “One Thing” for yourself

  • But as Christians, is there one thing?

  • And if there is, do we have to figure it out?

Read Today’s Verse

1 Corinthians 10:31 (AMP) So then, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you may do, do all for the honor and glory of God.

Background for Today’s Prayer:

Unlike in the movie, Christians have a clear direction.

• Think about this, when you pray, do you find yourself going to God, wondering what He wants you to do?

• If so, then begin that journey with our verse

• Begin this year with a commitment to glorify God in absolutely, positively, everything you do.

• How do we pray about it? Like this…

TODAY’S PRAYER:

Lord, Your word is so clear, our role here on earth is to bring glory to You. Oh Lord, let that be the question we ask ourselves about every single thing we do, or think about doing, every time I answer the phone, every time I get in the car, every time I speak to my spouse, or my kids. Lord, allow me to have a keen sensitivity to be honoring to You, bringing You glory in ALL that I do. Thank You Lord.

A Glance at Tomorrow’s Prayer:
The Great Escape and what does it mean to Pray and not Sin?

DECEMBER 29
LOVING GOD

Movie . . . Blazing Saddles

• Slim Pickens rides up to his other outlaw cowboys and says, “What in the wide, wide, world of sports are you doing?”

  • And that’s my question to Christians, “What in the wide, wide, world of sports are you doing?”

  • We need to focus on one thing, loving God, whatever that looks like in your life and wherever that leads us.

Read Today’s Verse

Matthew 22:37 (NASB)  And He said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’

Background for Today’s Prayer:

So far this week we have:

• Asked God to break our hearts,

• Given up our idols, including fear.,

• Determined to seek God, who promises to let Himself be found by us.

• But, how do we make sure that these have not just been, what we might call academic decisions?

• Simple answer…. “LOVE!” Our love for Him is the way He asks us to demonstrate our decisions.

TODAY’S PRAYER:

Lord, we so often give You “lip-service” but this verse arrests our heart. Father, how can we love You with all of our heart and all of our soul and all of our mind? Lord this is so difficult to understand, but we trust You to give us the grace to, in fact, love You completely. Lord show us this year, how to in fact love You with all of our heart and all of our soul and all of our mind.

A Glance at Tomorrow’s Prayer:
City Slickers and what does it mean to Glorify God?

DECEMBER 28
SEEKING GOD

Movie . . . The Santa Clause

• Tim Allen gets into trouble because of the fine print on the Santa Clause business card.

  • In scripture there is no “fine print” because God Himself says that when we seek Him, He will let Himself be found.

  • We don’t have to “hunt” for Him and “hope” that we will find Him. We are assured that we will find Him.

Read Today’s Verse

Jeremiah 29:13 (NASB) You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart

Background for Today’s Prayer:

As we start the new year, are you committed to seeking Him?

• Often we do not seek Him because we fear where He may lead

• Dr. Charles F. Stanley, recalling his days at seminary, talks about friends of his who would not go to Missions Conferences because they feared God would call them to go over seas and become missionaries.

• Do not let fear keep you from beginning this year by seeking Him…with, I might add, your whole heart.

TODAY’S PRAYER:

Lord, so many verses talk about seeking You. Forgive us Lord for not regularly seeking You. Your word promises that when we seek You we will find You, just like it says about wisdom, that if we seek wisdom, we will find it (Proverbs 8:17 and James 1:5). Lord we pray that this year will be a year where we seek You with all our heart and watch You bless us by opening Your word to us. Forgive us Lord when we let our wants and our fears get between us and seeking You.

A Glance at Tomorrow’s Prayer:
Blazing Saddles and what does it mean to Love God?

DECEMBER 27
CHOOSING GOD

Movie . . . Indiana Jones

• The guardian of the Holy Grail says to Indiana Jones, regarding the Nazi who chooses what he thinks is the cup of Christ and drinks from it, “He chose poorly.”

  • With all of the choices you will make in 2017 let the first one be the best choice not a poor choice.

Read Today’s Verse

Joshua 24:14-15 (NASB) “Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Background for Today’s Prayer:

So if you are going to live for the Lord this year…

• Do you have any gods, any idols?

• May I suggest one that perhaps you’ve never thought of as an idol, as a god, in front of God Almighty?

• How about worry?

• Let me suggest that anything you worry about you’ve made an idol before God,. How?

• By worrying about it, rather than trusting the God you’ve chosen, God Almighty

TODAY’S PRAYER

Lord, we recognize that there are idols we have in our life and one of those is “worry.” Lord, this is a sin, an idol, a god, that our fathers and mothers have served, in some cases, for generations. Lord, we do not want to serve the god of worry in 2012. We choose You, by taking those thoughts captive, when they enter our minds. Lord, we do not want in our lives the idol of worry or any other idol, sex, money, self-righteousness, nothing Lord, but You. We choose You Lord.

A Glance at Tomorrow’s Prayer:
Santa Clause and what does it mean to Seek God?

DECEMBER 26
RENT HEARTS

Movie . . . Godfather II

• Michael Corleone grips Fredo by the cheeks and looks into his eyes and says, “Fredo, you broke my heart.”

  • We look at a broken heart as something to stay away from, something to run from, as Fredo did.

Read Today’s Verse:

Psalm 51:17 (HCSB) The sacrifice [which is] pleasing to God is a broken spirit. God, You will not despise [or turn away] a broken and humbled heart.

Background for Today’s Prayer:

Does God hear your prayers?

• 1 Peter 3:7 tells us that if there is anything between you and your spouse your prayers will be hindered.

• Proverbs 28:9 tells us that sin keeps our prayers from being heard.

• As we begin this new year, let’s get serious about sin in our lives.

TODAY’S PRAYER

Lord, as we come to You, thinking about this new year, Oh Lord we want You to hear our prayers. So Father, show us where our hearts need to be broken before You. Lord, we know that the sacrifice You want is a broken, a contrite, a humbled heart. Lord we know that You will NEVER turn aside a humbled heart. Thank You for that promise Father.

A Glance at Tomorrow’s Prayer:
Indiana Jones and what does it mean to Choose the Lord?