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Showing posts with label Andrew Murray. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Andrew Murray. Show all posts

03 May, 2013

Quotes On Prayer


"He that is never on his knees on earth shall never stand upon his feet in heaven." C. H. Spurgeon

"A sinning man stops praying, a praying man stops sinning." Leonard Ravenhill

"None can believe how powerful prayer is, and what it is able to effect, but those who have learned it by experience. It is a great matter when in extreme need to take hold on prayer. I know, whenever I have prayed earnestly, that I have been amply heard, and have obtained more than I prayed for. God indeed sometimes delayed, but at last He came."
Martin Luther

The more praying there is in the world, the better the world will be; the mightier the forces against evil. E.M. Bounds

"If weak in prayer, we are weak everywhere." — Leonard Ravenhill

"True prayer is a lonely business." Samuel Chadwick

"When I am praying the most eloquently, I am getting the least accomplished in my prayer life. But when I stop getting eloquent and give God less theology and shut up and just gaze upward and wait for God to speak to my heart He speaks with such power that I have to grab a pencil and a notebook and take notes on what God is saying to my heart." A.W. Tozer

"The spirit of prayer is more precious than treasures of gold and silver." John Bunyan

"We have to pray with our eyes on God, not on the difficulties." Oswald Chambers

"See that you do not use the trick of prayer to cover up what you know you ought to do." Oswald Chambers

"You can do more than pray after you've prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed." John Bunyan

"He who knows how to overcome with God in prayer has heaven and earth at his disposal." C. S. Spurgeon

"A holy life does not live in the closet, but it cannot live without the closet." E. M. Bounds

"In souls filled with love, the desire to please God is continual prayer." John Wesley

"The more helpless you are, the better you are fitted to pray, and the more answers to prayer you will experience." O. Hallesby

"I am as certain as I am standing here, that the secret of much mischief to our own souls, and to the souls of others, lies in the way that we stint, and starve, and scamp our prayers, by hurrying over them." Alexander Whyte

"Whether we think of, or speak to, God, whether we act or suffer for him, all is prayer, when we have no other object than his love, and the desire of pleasing him." John Wesley

"People can't see your root system, but God can. Praying and meditating on the Word of God will cause your roots to go down deep into His love." Warren Wiersbe

"Nothing tends more to cement the hearts of Christians than praying together. Never do they love one another so well as when they witness the outpouring of each other's hearts in prayer." Charles Finney

"He who is too busy to pray will be too busy to live a holy life. Satan had rather we let the grass grow on the path to our prayer chamber than anything else." E.M.Bounds

"Those who know God the best are the richest and most powerful in prayer. Little acquaintance with God, and strangeness and coldness to Him, make prayer a rare and feeble thing." E. M. Bounds

"True prayer is measured by weight,-not by length. A single groan before God may have more fullness of prayer in it than a fine oration of great length." C. H. Spurgeon

"Often times God wants us to sit before Him in quietness. He doesn't want us to do all the talking. As Is. 30:15 says "In quiet and confidence will be your strength." Charles
Stanley

"The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, 'O God, forgive me,' or 'Help me." Billy Graham

"Prayer is not a hard requirement- it is the natural duty of a creature to its creator, the simplest homage that human need can pay to divine liberality." C. H. Spurgeon

"And there you have the reason why many people pray for the power of the Holy Ghost, and they get something, but oh, so little! because they prayed for power for work, and power for blessing, but they have not prayed for power for full deliverance from self." Andrew Murray

"Prayer is never an acceptable substitute for obedience. The sovereign Lord accepts no offering from His creatures that is not accompanied by obedience. To pray for revival while ignoring or actually flouting the plain precept laid down in the Scriptures is to waste a lot of words and get nothing for our trouble." A.W. Tozer


I don't often spend more than half an hour in prayer at one time, but I never go more than half an hour without praying. Smith Wigglesworth

“There is a mighty lot of difference between saying prayers and praying.”John G. Lake

Prayer is not only asking, but an attitude of mind which produces the atmosphere in which asking is perfectly natural. ~ Oswald Chambers

Worship and intercession must go together, the one is impossible without the other. Intercession means that we rouse ourselves up to get the mind of Christ about the one for whom we pray. ~ Oswald Chambers


History is silent about revivals that did not begin with prayer.~ Edwin Orr

To pray well is the better half of study. ~ Martin Luther

Study your prayers, a great part of my time is spent getting in tune for prayer. ~ Robert McCheyne


I shall see no hope until the individual members of the church are praying for revival, perhaps meeting in one anothers' homes, meeting in groups amongst friends, meeting together in churches, meeting anywhere you like, and praying with urgency and concentration for a shedding forth of the power of God.... There is no hope until we do.~ D.D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Prayer is not so much an act as it is an attitude—an attitude of dependency, dependency upon God. --Arthur W. Pink

Prayer does not fit us for the greater work, prayer is the greater work. --Oswald Chambers

In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. -- John Bunyan

The true spirit of prayer is no other than God's own Spirit dwelling in the hearts of the saints. And as this spirit comes from God, so doth it naturally tend to God in holy breathings and pantings. It naturally leads to God, to converse with him by prayer. --Jonathan Edwards

Whether we think of or speak to God; whether we act or suffer for him; all is prayer when we have no other object than his love, and the desire of pleasing him. --John Wesley

God never gives us discernment in order that we may criticize, but that we may intercede. -- Oswald Chambers

There is nothing that makes us love a man so much as praying for him. --William Law

Notice, we never pray for folks we gossip about, and we never gossip about the folk for whom we pray! For prayer is a great deterrent. --Leonard Ravenhill

The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer. --John R. Mott

I must secure more time for private devotions. I have been living far too public for me. The shortening of devotions starves the soul, it grows lean and faint. I have been keeping too late hours. --William Wilberforce

We hear it said that a man will suffer in his life is he does not pray; I question it. What will suffer is the life of the Son of God within him, which is nourished not by food but by prayer...Prayer is the way the life of God is nourished. --Oswald Chambers

The Church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men…Men of prayer." --E. M. Bounds

Pray, and let God worry. -- Martin Luther

Is the Son of God praying in me, or am I dictating to Him?....Prayer is not simply getting things from God, that is a most initial form of prayer; prayer is getting into perfect communion with God. If the Son of God is formed in us by regeneration, He will press forward in front of our common sense and change our attitude to the things about which we pray. --Oswald Chambers

Those who know God the best are the richest and most powerful in prayer. Little acquaintance with God, and strangeness and coldness to Him, make prayer a rare and feeble thing. --E. M. Bounds

How often have we prayed something like, "O Lord, be with cousin Billy now in a special way"? Have we stopped to consider what it is we're requesting? Imagine that you are a parent who is preparing to leave your children with a babysitter. Would you dream of saying, "O Betsy, I ask you now that you would be with my children in a special way?" No way. You would say, "Betsy, the kids need to be in bed by
9 pm. They can have one snack before their baths, and please make sure they finish their homework. You can reach us at this number if there's any problem. Any questions before we go?" We are very specific with our requests and instructions for our babysitters. We want them to know specifics. It should be no different with prayer. --David Jeremiah

There is a general kind of praying which fails for lack of precision. It is as if a regiment of soldiers should all fire off their guns anywhere. Possibly somebody would be killed, but the majority of the enemy would be missed. --Charles Haddon Spurgeon

When a Christian shuns fellowship with other Christians, the devil smiles. When he stops studying the Bible, the devil laughs. When he stops praying, the devil shouts for joy. --Corrie Ten Boom

We must alter our lives in order to alter our hearts, for it is impossible to live one way and pray another. --William Law

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?-- Corrie Ten Boom

Pray often, for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan --John Bunyan

Always respond to every impulse to pray. The impulse to pray may come when you are reading or when you are battling with a text. I would make an absolute law of this – always obey such an impulse. --Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Some people pray just to pray and some people pray to know God. --Andrew Murray

There is a mighty lot of difference between saying prayers and praying. --John G. Lake

"Prayer requires more of the heart than the tongue."
Adam Clarke



"The greatest tragedy of life is not unanswered prayer, buy unoffered prayer."
F.B. Meyer

"Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work."
Oswald Chanbers

"Do not make prayer a monologue-make it a conversation."
Author unknown

"Every great movement of God can be traced to a kneeling figure."
D. L. Moody

"O, let the place of secret prayer become to me the most beloved spot on earth." -- Andrew Murray

"The secret of praying is praying in secret." - Leonard Ravenhill

_________________


09 December, 2012

The School Of Obedience



 A few months prior to the Holy Spirit leading to my wilderness wanderings, I was led to a little book that changed my attitude drastically and really helped me grasp what God had awaited for me in the wilderness, which basically were trials after trials and trails inside of trials. My church was selling books that were of no used in the library, as I walked in there, there was this little book amongst all the other books. While I did not know the author yet, I felt compelled to buy the book. As, I got home, I started reading it, to my surprise I could not put it down because I found myself drawn to the writer’s words which felt as if all of it were meant for me specifically. The way I read the book felt as if I was drinking into it. My mind was so open and was capturing each data. What felt mesmerized to me was the fact I understood each word at a level that made me desire this life and I could see it all with the eyes of my heart.

By the time I reached the last chapter of the little book, I knew God was speaking to me, I knew something much deeper was about to happen in my life and I needed to remain alert and sober. The funny thing about this experience is that I did not know God yet, and I did not have an intimate relationship enough with the Holy Spirit to truly capture the experience. So, I still smile when I remember how I was so looking forward to what was to come, because I was so sure it was going to be good. Don’t get me wrong, I understood Christianity comes with trials but I never expected what was coming next. I never expected to reach the bottom where there was nowhere else to go. Even when I reached the bottom, I had no idea that it could actually fall off and I would find myself facing an abyss where I knew from that moment on, that life would never be the same again.

The little book in question is “The School Of Obedience” by Andrew Murray. When the bottom fell off my life and I found myself face to face with the abyss, the pain in my soul was overwhelming, by then it was almost three years since I read Andrew Murray’s book, and I was in the wilderness for a little over two years. I do not want to talk too much about what happened next because this is going to be part of my third book. But suffice to say this life with God is the most adventurous and awesome life one will ever know. Understanding the content of the book was God’s way of preparing me for my walk with Him. It was crucial to me to understand it was not up to me to claim His promises in time where I needed these promises the most, but what was important was finding and possessing the truth. And if at times like that you are focusing on the wrong promises, you might miss the boat, change the course and never even know it.

As Christians we have become professionals when it comes to putting shows on, conferences, and hold elaborate theories about the truth. We feel good when we use our big boy’s words to show off what we think we know, all the while through our own intellect. We get so puffed up and get on with those temporary sugars high in our empty pursue of the truth. I wish we could hold the press, hold the shows, and hold the conferences. Stop buying time, stop acting like one more show, or one more conference is going to make a difference. We are seeking for the truth as if it is out there, as if it is an unidentified object, or to some it seems the truth has done a good job at hiding itself.

I am not saying we should not go on putting conferences and shows to reach God’s people, not at all. But, I know with the gift of wisdom and discernment that have been given to me by God, a lot of us put on those shows as substitute to hide ourselves behind it all. We hide and spin our tails, because we know we have reached the point where a deeper commitment is to be made but the road, the uncertainties and the pain that could come with it are not palatable to us. So, we get busy convincing ourselves that God does not know what we are doing.

The School Of Obedience
The truth will not be found in one more conference or one more show. If we Christians we are tripping over it and we are no wiser, how do we expect the others to find it? What exactly are we offering them? – In essence we are saying to them “come and fail miserably like me”. The truth calls for real commitment, real surrender, and real obedience. Not in words but in actions. It is the life where the Church music has stopped, the testimonies stopped and everyone disappeared because the curtains have come down. Then you go home facing your own life. You face the uncertainties whether you will have a roof over your head tomorrow, or having children to feed yet you have no one to ask, or two red pennies to rub together. Try a life where you have been out of a job for so long you have no idea what is next, whether to give up to keep looking, you still have to provide for yourself and you are not old enough to retire. Try being a mother with only one child and you end up losing this child tragically in a senseless accident that could have been avoided. Try being a parent who lost few children all at once. Try being close to retirement and all of the sudden you lose even the shirt on your back.

If life has not taken you to places where you have more than one of these situations being your lot all at once, then it might make sense why you are still looking for the truth. When you are in situations where you stand there you have no idea whether your feet are touching the ground or whether you are cold or hot or if all of it is a nightmare. In your mind you want God to explain to you where exactly is He. How come all of the sudden when you need Him most, He is silent? You are trying to make sense of those promises in the Bible where you know for sure He says He will provide for you. You know for sure He says He will never leave you nor forsake you, yet, here you are, none of these promises seemed to apply to you. You start trying to understand where did you go wrong? Why you? And how do you continue when you have no idea or strength to put one foot in front of the other?  When darkness has become your life, the last thing you want to hear Him say to you is “I am the way the truth and life”. You feel like saying, yes I know that by heart God, but this does not tell me where I am going to sleep tomorrow.

When darkness surrounds you, then you find the truth, when you stop all anger, you stop trying to understand, you stop feeling sorry for yourself, you stop trying to work it out, and you have to bring yourself to a point where you even stop thinking about tomorrow while you are in the midst of an emergency for tomorrow. You throw yourself at Him and break down because you realize you made it all about you when all this time it was about Him. You repent and find refuge in His arms while telling Him take this life it is yours, lead me and I will follow. Now, this will not take the pain away from what the rest of your life is going to be. You might still have to find a shelter or your priority now might be which corner of the street you are going to sleep tomorrow and how you are going to survive your first time out there. But this time your WILL has become His will for you.
  
Is it easy? No. But as you find Him who is the truth, you find peace, and love. This, my brothers and sisters is just one example of how we find the truth that is nothing less than our Christ, our redeemer, our Master and Savior. The truth is Him. It is not an elusive thing and He isn't hiding either. On the contrary, He is in plain sight and we trip on Him every day. The truth has been revealed to all who wants Him, thousands of years ago and there is no need to decipher it either.  We still stumble on it, because we are as blind as the unbelievers. We find Him when we are ready to throw the towel and ready to embrace the adventure He sets us on. Good or bad, intense or dull, long or short, you will find yourself needing to surrender in obedience like Christ did. It is one thing to say that you surrender, but it is quite another thing when He leads you to a place where you live it out. It is quite another challenge to keep living a life of surrender. But it is doable, because your obedience has become His obedience.

Andrew Murray’s book “The School Of Obedience” will be ready for download tomorrow of course for free. I will have it for you in all formats