In Jesus Name

"And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."--John 14:13-14

How many times have I ended my prayers with this, nonchalantly. Honestly, before today, I didn't realize the power and the seriousness of this statement at the end of my prayers. In search of the answer, I found this brief snippet on a website that hit what God spoke to my heart as I prayed through these verses this morning.

Some mistakenly apply this verse [John 14:14]believing that saying “In Jesus’ name” at the end of a prayer results in God always granting what is asked for. This is essentially treating the words “in Jesus’ name” as a magic formula. This is absolutely unbiblical!

Praying in Jesus’ name means praying with His authority and asking God the Father to act upon our prayers because we come in the name of His Son, Jesus.

Praying in Jesus' name means the same thing as praying according to the will of God, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us-whatever we ask-we know that we have what we asked of him" (1 John 5:14-15). Praying in Jesus’ name is praying for things that will honor and glorify Jesus.

Maybe this is an elementary truth that I just caught on to, but man...it radically changed the way that I looked at my prayers this morning, before I stamped Jesus' name to it. Before I said amen, I thought back through what I had said to God. Did I feel comfortable attaching Jesus' name to it? Did I feel comfortable going to the creator of the universe with te authority of the son he sent to die on the cross for the salvation of the world? Mmmm...a little heavy for 8:30 am...but I love it when God speaks.

...more later--gotta go to work.

STOKED...

OUT OF MY MIND. Just got out of my first staff meeting as a NewSpring intern and I am completely excited about what God is about to do in HIS church. Get ready for some of God's bigness! It's coming in waves! Perry's gonna be back on stage, live this Sunday. My prayer is that God prepares our hearts like crazy!

WOW

Just Ask

God is teaching me to see him in everything. I pray that he opens my eyes so that I can clearly see what he is trying to teach me in every situation. This morning I was super sick to my stomach because of some medicine I am taking and I hated to wake him up but I asked him if he would please go and get me some water and a cold wash cloth. He hopped up in a snap and was back before I knew it. Just what I needed. About an hour later I woke up again, still in pain--about to barf--and hated to wake him up AGAIN...but I did because I was SO sick and asked him to bring me some crackers. Again, he got up and immediately went to help me. When I woke up feeling much better at about 7:30 he kissed me on the forhead and went off to work. Later, he sent me an email saying how much he loved the fact that I let him help me.

My husband is human, and I know that he loves me so very much...but if he is willing to help me that way...how much more is my father in heaven willing to help if I will just ask.

Don't try to take it all on yourself. God is ready to help...if you will only ask.

John 17:20-24

What if...what if all of the Christians in the world actually joined together to fufill Christ's prayer in John 17:20-24

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

What if the Church, became ONE?! Today in this week's sermon from our series One Prayer (to learn more, go here ). Craig Groeshel spoke a message to HUNDREDS of churches around the world via video about the possibilities if he could have one prayer...for the church to become one--to actually become the body of Christ.

World hunger would end this week, poverty could be a thing of the past, and he went on to say some amazing things could happen...but if you think about it...if EACH Christian did as Christ commanded us to do, if we joined together as ONE body (FORGET DENOMINATIONS FORGET DIFFERENCES) and did as Christ called us to do...we could show the rest of the world just how BIG our God is! Not that he needs us for that...BUT STILL!

My prayer is that God will show me what my part looks like in this. What can I do to make this happen? How do you feel about it? Do you think that it is possible for the church to become one?

The "In-Between"

Hold on to me, hold on
Hold on to me, yeah
Please don't let me go no, no, hold on
'Cause I am prone to wonder
Prone to leave this faith I know
Hold on
And now they say that the wise man
Well, he fears the Lord
And this fear, well, it's the beginning of all wisdom
And I must be a fool
'Cause I sure don't seem to fear You
'Cause the very things that You will me to do
Well, I just don't seem to get around to
The very things that You hate
Are the very things that I always stumble into
Hold on
--"Hold On" by Shawn McDonald

Have you ever listened to a song and you knew the words and just kinda sang your way through it every time it came up on your play list...you know, that song between your two very FAVORITE songs that you listen to just to get to the next one? Well, I finally listened to the words of this in-between-song and it just rocked my world. How many times to we treat scripture this same way. We just breeze through our quiet time digging for something that holds meaning...missing the words of our God that if we take the time to listen, will mean something? Just a thought.

Eyes on ME

Has God ever just broken your heart for something? Has he ever just humbled you and taught you so much you felt like your brain might explode. Well, that's how I feel right now. Tonight while Brad was speaking at youth I got hit with something that sort of sums up all that God is teaching me right now. Brad said something along these lines...all too often we lose sight of our God, the creator of the universe, to focus on the created.
There was a time in my life where I saw God in everything, from learning to wakeboard to the stinking juniper that I had to pull up working for my dad. There was a time when I had my eyes on the creator. Lately God's gently had his hand under my chin, turning my face toward him. So gently that I didn't even realize it until tonight.
My soul craves my God.
What does your soul crave?

I wish they would have told me...

Do you ever read or hear something and you think, "MAN...I wish someone would have told me this _______ years ago." I"m currently reading Erwin McManus' Soul Cravings and this quote just dug deep into my heart and pained me for who I used to be.

"The most powerful evidence that our souls crave God is that within us there is a longing for love."

In high school and my first two years of college I was constantly "in need" of a boyfriend, a group of friends, a place to belong. I couldn't stand to be alone. Then when I got saved during my sophomore of college, a deep, insatiable thirst for belonging seemed to be filled in such a miraculous way. I began to see that love that I received from the people around me as Jesus in the flesh, the body of Christ loving on me.

But I wish someone would have told me sooner. I wouldn't have given myself away the way that I did. I would have sought God's love rather than the world's definition of love a lot sooner and avoided a lot of mistakes...

BUT

I wouldn't be who I am today. And for that, I am thankful. I am thankful for who I am in this moment because I am a child of God--and SO blessed, because of HIS perfect plan.