The Crock Pot Theology. The practice of prayer. Become like Jesus. We are in a season where we are concentrating on becoming more like Jesus. While the world that we live in is busy trying to conform you into a mold, the beautiful and powerful work of God is working in you to transform you. When God transforms you to be more like Jesus you are becoming your deepest and truest self – the person that God had in mind when he willed you into existence. The transformation of God results in three big things happening inside of us; first, we trust God more and more. Secondly, we love God more. Thirdly, we love others more. We become more like Jesus and this world needs more Jesus! How does God transform us? Like a crockpot! The practice of prayer. To become more like Jesus, prayer is going to be essential. When we pray, we are aligning ourselves with God. We are coming underneath his covering and his protection and his power. In prayer we are listening for God’s heartbeat. And he hears our heartbeat. It’s as simple as this; God wants you to talk to him. Throughout the New Testament we are told to pray… Not to be anxious but to pray. Philippians 4:6 To be steadfast in prayer. Colossians 4:2 to pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to pray for the government. To pray for one another. To pray for healing. To pray for other saints. To even pray for your enemy. To pray boldly. To pray persistently. To pray when more suffering. James 5:13 to allow the word of God to form your prayer. But what is even more unfathomable is God’s promise to respond to prayer. Jeremiah 33:3 Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. John 14:15 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. 1 John 5:15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. What do you expect to happen when you pray? What place is prayer playing in your life? Matthew 6 contains some of the primary teachings and prayer from Jesus. Matthew 6:5 “When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. 6 But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. 7 “When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. 8 Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! In just a few short sentences Jesus throws out many of our approaches to prayer. Then Jesus models what we call the Lord’s prayer… Matthew 6:9 “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 ‘Your kingdom come. Stuff is Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread. 12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’] In the Lord’s prayer Jesus covers five things that make for transformational praying. Refocusing. Kingdom come. Reinforcements. Cleansing. Protection. Hebrews 4:14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 10:19 And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus…22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. A throne room of grace. Grace is getting everything that you could never earn or ever deserve no matter what you do. Grace. Undeserved kindness. Unearned favor. Unexpected compassion. All you find in the throne room are those who need grace. People who need God to meet them with undeserved rescue. People who need God to get them out of the mess that they’ve made. People who have figured out that they can’t save themselves and they need a Savior. Let’s see what GOD can do! Pastor Brian Harrell