Know Him

Brian Tracy is one of America's leading authors on the development of human potential. He said this..."If I had to pick the #1 key to success, it would be...self-discipline. It is the difference in winning or losing; between greatness and mediocrity." As I read that I said to myself that is also true spiritually. It take self discipline to read your Bible, Pray if we are to know who Jesus Christ really is. That means we are going to have to self discipline ourselves. Reading your Bible with your Pastor every time you go to Church is not what I would call Bible reading. Bible reading is when you on a daily basis read and as you read you think about what you are reading. It does you no good to read and be thinking about other things. If you are going to know anything about praying you are going to have to use self discipline and many times self doesn’t want too. Some times self doesn’t want to go to work but then self discipline kicks in and off you go. I want to give you what has helped me in my prayer life. I had not been long asking Jesus to come into my heart and forgive me of all my sins when I first realized I needed to pray. Every morning before my wife would leave for work I would hold her hands and say the Lords prayer and off to work she would go. That’s fine for a young Christian but when I looked at what we call the Lord’s Prayer that is not what the Lord was teaching. He didn’t want us to repeat that prayer on a daily basis. Read with me what is said? Luke 11:1 And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

Luke 11:2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, (not if) say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.

Luke 11:3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

Luke 11:4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Was Jesus telling his disciples to repeat these words just as I have spoken them? NO! I want to teach you the pattern in how to pray. The first thing is to “PRAISE.” Praise God for who He is and what He has done. Many times we rush into our prayer closet and we began telling Him all our problems; poor old me! NO! NO! We must first praise Him. Then look what’s next, our “NEEDS”, this is the time to ask our Heavenly Father to supply our needs whatever they are. Then we are to ask for “FORGIVNESS” for our sins; not somebody else’s, but our own. You may think you don’t have any; that’s not what the Bible says 1John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1John 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. Then we are to ask for “PROTECTION” Lord, protect me from the weak areas in my life which are; name them and ask the Lord to keep you from being lead in those directions. In order for you pray like this you will have to get honest with yourself for you will have to know your weak areas of your life. Where are you most vulnerable, and where did you fail yesterday? Ask for help today that you don’t fall into the same traps. So what do you want in your Christian life Greatness or mediocrity. If you are to know Jesus Christ and see Him do great things in your life and the life of others. Then you must spend time with Him and if you don’t you will only know about Him but you will not know Him. Paul said in Philippians 3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;