PRAYER PRAISE & WORSHIP | PASTOR MATT ERIKSON
Prayer, Praise, and Worship: Positioning Your Heart for Transformation
Week six of our "To the Core" series brings us to a crucial value: prayer, praise, and worship. As we've examined these core values that should overflow from believers, we've covered servanthood, evangelism, discipleship, generosity, and community. Now, it's time to slow down and consider how prayer, praise, and worship position our hearts for transformation.
Why Should We Slow Down in Our Spiritual Journey?
When we begin to see success and momentum in our spiritual lives, we often believe that if some is good, more must be better. But there's wisdom in knowing when to slow down. It's not about how many people we reach or how many locations we launch if we're not slowing down to see individuals and be with people.
Maturity is measured by how we respond and take on new levels of responsibility. As we grow, we become more like Christ and less like ourselves. Every time we feel challenged, it's an opportunity to deny our flesh and lean into the things of God.
Does Prayer Really Change Everything?
Many of us have heard the phrase "prayer changes everything," but is that actually true? While I can't say with certainty that prayer changes everything external, I know without doubt that prayer changes one thing: me.
Proverbs 4:23 reminds us to guard our hearts because from it flow the issues of life. The reason I pray is not primarily to change my external circumstances but because I know prayer will change me. The reason I clap my hands, sing out loud, and lift my hands in worship is because these actions help posture my heart.
I'm a different husband, a different leader today than I was ten years ago because of prayer, praise, and worship. That's why the enemy fights nothing as fiercely as he fights our prayer life - he knows that if we're in prayer, our hearts will change and God will be our God.
Why Is Prayer Considered Spiritual Warfare?
Prayer, praise, and worship are work - they require effort and commitment. But even more than work, they're warfare. When the Spirit of God is at work, the spirit of darkness will also be at work, requiring spiritual warfare.
This type of positioning requires more than just warfare; it requires death - doing away with our old desires, wants, and dreams. Psalm 37:4 tells us that when we seek the Lord first, He'll give us the desires of our heart. This doesn't mean God will bring us material things we want; it means He'll change our hearts to desire what He desires.
What Does Prayer Position Us For?
Prayer, praise, and worship position us for three important things:
1. To Show Mercy
Contrary to popular belief, mercy is not weakness - it's power. There's nothing more powerful than taking an enemy and making them family, releasing to them an inheritance. If you're struggling to give mercy, it's likely that you've yet to fully receive mercy yourself. Matthew 10:8 reminds us that we can only freely give what we've freely received.
2. To Open Our Ears
There's nothing more immature than putting your fingers in your ears and turning away to pretend you can't hear. Yet many of us do exactly this with God. When He calls us to tithe, serve, stop gossiping, or turn our hearts, we often respond with "I can't hear you." Then we wonder why God isn't speaking to us.
If you're not hearing God, ask yourself: Am I maturing? If you feel you're maturing but still struggling to hear God, keep asking, knocking, and seeking (Matthew 7:7-8). Also, consider ways to position your heart that would cause you to take your fingers out of your ears.
3. To Soften Our Hearts
Prayer may not change everything around us, but it changes us. Some of us pray for God to change our workplace, but He's trying to change us so that when we show up, everything is different because we're there.
Ezekiel 36:26-27 promises: "I'll give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I'll take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender and responsive heart."
Life Application
This week, I challenge you to intentionally position your heart through prayer, praise, and worship. Set aside specific times to pray, even if it means sacrificing something valuable like sleep. During worship, consider lifting your hands the entire time as a way of crucifying your flesh and demonstrating that your focus is on God, not those around you.
Ask yourself these questions:
In what areas of my life am I putting my fingers in my ears when God is speaking?
Am I praying for God to change my circumstances, or am I allowing Him to change me?
How can I position my heart this week to show more mercy, open my ears to God's voice, and soften my heart?
Remember, you might not be able to change everything around you, but through prayer, praise, and worship, you can allow God to change you. And when you change, everything around you begins to look different.
Week six of our "To the Core" series brings us to a crucial value: prayer, praise, and worship. As we've examined these core values that should overflow from believers, we've covered servanthood, evangelism, discipleship, generosity, and community. Now, it's time to slow down and consider how prayer, praise, and worship position our hearts for transformation.
Why Should We Slow Down in Our Spiritual Journey?
When we begin to see success and momentum in our spiritual lives, we often believe that if some is good, more must be better. But there's wisdom in knowing when to slow down. It's not about how many people we reach or how many locations we launch if we're not slowing down to see individuals and be with people.
Maturity is measured by how we respond and take on new levels of responsibility. As we grow, we become more like Christ and less like ourselves. Every time we feel challenged, it's an opportunity to deny our flesh and lean into the things of God.
Does Prayer Really Change Everything?
Many of us have heard the phrase "prayer changes everything," but is that actually true? While I can't say with certainty that prayer changes everything external, I know without doubt that prayer changes one thing: me.
Proverbs 4:23 reminds us to guard our hearts because from it flow the issues of life. The reason I pray is not primarily to change my external circumstances but because I know prayer will change me. The reason I clap my hands, sing out loud, and lift my hands in worship is because these actions help posture my heart.
I'm a different husband, a different leader today than I was ten years ago because of prayer, praise, and worship. That's why the enemy fights nothing as fiercely as he fights our prayer life - he knows that if we're in prayer, our hearts will change and God will be our God.
Why Is Prayer Considered Spiritual Warfare?
Prayer, praise, and worship are work - they require effort and commitment. But even more than work, they're warfare. When the Spirit of God is at work, the spirit of darkness will also be at work, requiring spiritual warfare.
This type of positioning requires more than just warfare; it requires death - doing away with our old desires, wants, and dreams. Psalm 37:4 tells us that when we seek the Lord first, He'll give us the desires of our heart. This doesn't mean God will bring us material things we want; it means He'll change our hearts to desire what He desires.
What Does Prayer Position Us For?
Prayer, praise, and worship position us for three important things:
1. To Show Mercy
Contrary to popular belief, mercy is not weakness - it's power. There's nothing more powerful than taking an enemy and making them family, releasing to them an inheritance. If you're struggling to give mercy, it's likely that you've yet to fully receive mercy yourself. Matthew 10:8 reminds us that we can only freely give what we've freely received.
2. To Open Our Ears
There's nothing more immature than putting your fingers in your ears and turning away to pretend you can't hear. Yet many of us do exactly this with God. When He calls us to tithe, serve, stop gossiping, or turn our hearts, we often respond with "I can't hear you." Then we wonder why God isn't speaking to us.
If you're not hearing God, ask yourself: Am I maturing? If you feel you're maturing but still struggling to hear God, keep asking, knocking, and seeking (Matthew 7:7-8). Also, consider ways to position your heart that would cause you to take your fingers out of your ears.
3. To Soften Our Hearts
Prayer may not change everything around us, but it changes us. Some of us pray for God to change our workplace, but He's trying to change us so that when we show up, everything is different because we're there.
Ezekiel 36:26-27 promises: "I'll give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I'll take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender and responsive heart."
Life Application
This week, I challenge you to intentionally position your heart through prayer, praise, and worship. Set aside specific times to pray, even if it means sacrificing something valuable like sleep. During worship, consider lifting your hands the entire time as a way of crucifying your flesh and demonstrating that your focus is on God, not those around you.
Ask yourself these questions:
In what areas of my life am I putting my fingers in my ears when God is speaking?
Am I praying for God to change my circumstances, or am I allowing Him to change me?
How can I position my heart this week to show more mercy, open my ears to God's voice, and soften my heart?
Remember, you might not be able to change everything around you, but through prayer, praise, and worship, you can allow God to change you. And when you change, everything around you begins to look different.
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