originally posted on May 7, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Scripture References;
You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 2 Corinthians 3:3 NIV
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. 39And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.40On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matthew 22:36-38 KJV
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13 KJV
The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. Psalm 145:18 KJV
What if we got a small tablet and pencil and kept it with us each day? Then, what if we earnestly prayed first thing each morning that the Lord would have his way in our hearts, minds, and our lives?
Then, what if each time we noticed that we were about to dwell on something that we shouldn’t have been dwelling on, we confessed it to the Lord and thanked Him for showing it to us? Then, if the thought was about a person; pray that the Lord would have his way in their heart, mind, and life?
Then what if we wrote down briefly what we prayed about, and at the end of the day we read all that had been written, but instead of feeling ashamed about the number of times that we “started” to think something bad, we felt thankful and glad that the Lord made us able to turn those moments of thought into moments of prayer, and realized that this new pattern of behavior was the result of the Lord answering the first prayer we prayed that day?
Then finally, what if we thought about how wonderful it is that the Holy Spirit is really active in the hearts of those who have put their trust in Jesus, and be glad?
Why don’t you give it a try? It matters not who you are, where you have been, or what you’ve been up to, whether you are a church goer or not; the Lord is very near to all who call on Him. The message is so simple (John 3:16). If you have never prayed before just believe the message, and call on Him in prayer (receive Him). Go ahead…
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.”
Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.
Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just go to http://www.biblegateway.com. They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!
Moore to Ponder 
Ann said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:00 pm
Thanks for the heads-up, Theresa.
I once heard someone say everything we need is right there in the Bible. God has made provisions for everything we’re going to come across…
I like the concept of writing down thoughts and praying about them. Wonderful response – turning the “moments of thoughts into moments of prayer”. Nice! 🙂
Thanks so much for sharing. I’m smiling because of what I wrote for next week’s blog. I like the way God connects 🙂
Blessings
ann
Moore to ponder said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:07 pm
That’s right He can take the bad and change it to good!
I already have gotten into the habit of asking myself “Is it Monday yet?”! Over the next few days I will be asking that question even more often! 🙂
Theresa
Ann said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:21 pm
Our God is great!
After I left your notes I went to visit Linda. Look what I found!
http://lindakruschke.wordpress.com/2011/01/18/did-i-forget-to-pray/
Our God is so wonderful. I can’t imagine what I’d do if I didn’t have a relationship with Him and a connection with His children.
Here’s another point to pray for – that the family of God would come together and operate as such. All for His honour and glory!
Blessings,
ann
Moore to ponder said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:35 pm
Ann,
That is a good idea. I was thinking about it in terms of naming them before the Lord as they came to mind, but to pray “collectively” I think would be pleasing to Him, too.
Linda’s post was beautiful and convicting. We should thank the Lord for conviction it is one of the ways that the Lord expresses His unfailing mercy, grace, and love! 🙂
Theresa
ServantBoy said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:15 pm
Hi Theresa,
How interesting your challenge is to pen our every thought that God turns from evil to good! I would like to try but I suspect I will not succeed unless I stay committed and not be drawn away by the busyness of my life. Thank you for this gentle but direct reminder that we need to be watchful about what we think and how we respond to our thought. We generally are what our environment is and so we need to consciously move away from what should not shape us into what should. With Christ in our lives, the Holy Spirit stirs in us the need to steer away but our sinfulness can dull the voice of the Holy Spirit and our hardened hearts can get more calloused. I shall venture with my tablet and pen and praise God for what He is able to do in me.
In Christ,
Vineet
Moore to ponder said,
January 19, 2011 at 10:58 pm
Vineet,
Those are great words of wisdom you shared. One of the points that I was making was that we have both the flesh (our sinful nature), and the Spirit. That flesh will be there tempting us planting little thoughts in our minds. When we choose to dwell on them we are sinning. We will never be completely free from our flesh until we go to be with the Lord in Heaven. The good news is that the Lord will not abandon us. He really does grant our requests when we pray “if” they are according to His will. It is always according to His will to forgive us, to cleanse us, to strengthen our “Inner Man”…our “Hidden Man of the Heart”… so we really can know that if we really desire to be cleansed, forgiven… to be conformed, and we ask the Lord to do that for us that He really will do it. This concept is what I call “Reckoning”. Reckoning helps us to boldly approach His throne:
14 Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold fast to the confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, yet without sin. 16 Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time. Hebrews 4:14-16 HCSB
Looking Unto Jesus,
Theresa
bendedspoon said,
January 20, 2011 at 1:01 am
What a perfect timing — your post is speaking to me! I like the idea of recording what we prayed for and God’s response to it. Oh God renew my spirit that I may totally embraced the greatness of You; the greatness that is You!
Thank you sooo much Theresa for bringing me again closer to Him 🙂
Moore to ponder said,
January 20, 2011 at 1:17 am
Thank you Rea. I am so glad it encouraged you and reminded you of the Lord’s greatness. Isn’t it wonderful to magnify Him? 🙂
Love,
Theresa
Moore to ponder said,
January 20, 2011 at 1:15 am
Thank you, everyone for all of your thoughtful comments.
This was another post that I needed to edit. I hope the underlining and highlighting made it more edifying. 🙂
Theresa
Debbie said,
January 20, 2011 at 4:46 am
Thank you for knowing just when the time is right to re-post and to post anew. I love how you listen to Him and obey and we all reap the benefits! 🙂
I’ve never tried this, to actually write them down and let Him switch them around, but I’m excited about it! Please pray for me to make this a habit . . .one of those good ones that we can become addicted to! God bless you and your habit forming ways of glorifying Him!
Moore to ponder said,
January 20, 2011 at 5:29 am
Thank you Deb. I have never literally wrote them on paper, but the idea to take those negative thoughts and turn them into prayerful moments…to be more conscious of the miracle that the Spirit really does check us whenever our thoughts go astray instead of just the awareness of one’s sinfulness …thus providing wonderful opportunities to exchange what normally brings defeat and shame for deliverance and joy. 🙂
Debbie said,
January 21, 2011 at 1:26 am
Hi dear Theresa . . .just popping in here after reading your comment on “the shepherds” poem. I wanted you to know that I left the comment I did there because I didn’t grasp it either!!!! haha! I have what I’m sure is a wonderful book of poems, from some of the top contemporary Christian poets. A friend got it for me, hoping it might inspire and help me. But . . .I can’t understand most of them. wwaaaahhhh. Alas, I continue with simple poems and a simple faith. 🙂
Moore to ponder said,
January 21, 2011 at 1:39 am
Deb,
Here is a poem I love. I put it in one of my blog posts once.
Love,
Theresa
THE TEACHER
by: Leslie Pinckney Hill (1880-1960)
LORD, who am I to teach the way
To little children day by day,
So prone myself to go astray?
I teach them KNOWLEDGE, but I know
How faint they flicker and how low
The candles of my knowledge glow.
I teach them POWER to will and do,
But only now to learn anew
My own great weakness through and through.
I teach them LOVE for all mankind
And all God’s creatures, but I find
My love comes lagging far behind.
Lord, if their guide I still must be,
Oh let the little children see
The teacher leaning hard on Thee.
“The Teacher” is reprinted from The Book of American Negro Poetry. Ed. James Weldon Johnson. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1922.
Debbie said,
January 21, 2011 at 2:03 am
Thank you so much! This I can understand and relate to!!!!! God bless you! love, deb
pbus1 said,
January 22, 2011 at 6:04 am
Hello Theresa,
This post definitely stirred something within my soul. It has caused me to reflect upon my prayer life, my thoughts, and to experience “Reckoning”. I praise God for the privilege of going boldly to the throne of grace, that I might obtain mercy, and find grace to help me in my time of need. God knows that I need Him, every moment of every day! I need Him to direct my pathway, to direct my thoughts, and to turn my idle thought time, into prayer time. I don’t want my thoughts to stray into areas that are not pleasing unto the Lord! It’s my desire that the Lord increases in my life, and that I decrease. I want to walk after the Spirit, and not after the flesh, and I know that as I earnestly seek the Lord in prayer, my Spirit will be renewed and strengthened! Thank you so much, for sharing this post.
I loved the poem. May God continue to richly bless and use you.
Paulette
Moore to ponder said,
January 22, 2011 at 6:42 am
Paulette,
I am so glad this post and the following comments blessed you.
God just a minute ago richly blessed me…He blessed me with your words:
“God knows that I need Him, every moment of every day! I need Him to direct my pathway, to direct my thoughts, and to turn my idle thought time, into prayer time. I don’t want my thoughts to stray into areas that are not pleasing unto the Lord! It’s my desire that the Lord increases in my life, and that I decrease. I want to walk after the Spirit, and not after the flesh, and I know that as I earnestly seek the Lord in prayer, my Spirit will be renewed and strengthened! Thank you so much, for sharing this post.”
I share this same need and desire. I hate my flesh. I hate it when I catch myself having petty childish and sometimes even mean thoughts. I know that there is nothing good in my flesh. I, too long for it to decrease.Your words summed it all up so beautifully…they formed a prayer. I will be praying that prayer as soon as I post this comment.
Theresa
Debbie said,
January 22, 2011 at 8:03 am
Me too! Thanks Theresa and Paulette!
Moore to ponder said,
January 22, 2011 at 2:42 pm
I hope you have a really nice weekend, Deb! 🙂