Just a Bit of Prayer Here and There

I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

-Psalm 34:1

Okay, let's get this straightened out a bit...I have to constantly, consistently, AT ALL TIMES, praise God? I can't talk about anything else?

Not quite.

This psalm of David actually refers to more of a consistency than anything else. It is not a scripture saying that one must never do anything else but praise God. I mean, that is actually a great thing: to give praise to the Lord. It can't hurt, nor does it halter you. But let's face it, that's a hard task...a near impossible one.

But it doesn't mean we can't pray everyday at a set time or devote a certain number of hours in our day to think about God, praise Him, or read the Word. As a matter of fact, that's what this scripture is telling us to do. We must praise Him in all situations of life and be consistent about it.

One way that I make an effort to do this is to do a little bit of praying here and there. Some people can sit down for two hours and just pray (talk to God, ask Him for help, thanking Him for all things). Personally, I am part of a generation that unfortunately has a short attention span and needs to constantly keep moving. Therefore, I designate certain areas of my time to pray. Here are a few examples of when I pray and how I pray. Hopefully they help you set up a schedule of prayer.

In the Shower

The shower is one of the best times to pray. Most people shower to start their day and it's very good to start your day off with prayer and the inclusion of God. It will lift you into a positive mood for the remainder of your day hopefully and will start your day off on the right foot. Just like a balanced breakfast provides proper nutrition to get your day going...a good 10-15 minutes of praise and thanksgiving during your shower will help you look forward to all the wonderful things to come on each specific day.

This is the day the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

-Psalm 118:24

In addition, use your time in the shower to ask God for help with some challenges that my lie ahead in your day. Pray for comfort, protection, and success for your family and yourself each and every day.

In Your Car

Whenever I step into my car, I am tempted to just drive and turn up the music. Sometimes this is a good thing (if you're listening to some Christian, gospel, or worship music, God may use that to allow you to praise Him). However, I make a strong effort each time I enter my car to thank God for his mercies, gifts, and the glory He has provided on each one of us. It's a great time to be alone and just pray. God wants you to have a relationship with him. He wants you to talk to him like a best friend. God is your best friend and you'll find that the more you speak with Him, the more often you will hear His voice. 

In many instances, people are confused when they hear people say, "God spoke to me." Well, most of the time what they don't understand is that God dwells within us all...*ehem* Holy Ghost *ehem*. The Holy Ghost has the power to make us smarter in our actions and our thoughts. Those "smart" thoughts that a person receives when he/she prays are God speaking to them. I'm not talking about 2+2=4 kind of smart thought either. I'm talking about revelations and things that you finally start to realize and wonder why you never saw it that way before. Those are the "smarter" thoughts (as my uncle and pastor Dave likes to call them).

Anyway, I find that God reveals a lot of insight and deep answers to our lives when we pray alone and in secret...in places like our cars. So, when you step into your car next, try praying. Try having that one-on-one with God that you've desired for so long. I mean, what do you have to lose? Nothing. If anything, you'll find you've gained something.

In Your Room

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

-Matthew 6:6

The best place to pray is your room. It is your "room" for a reason. It is your place where you can truly be alone and feel comforted. And if you don't have a room to yourself, create one. God is more flexible than you think. He's not going to reprimand you if you choose another room to pray in, just as long as you both can be alone.

Many times in the past, I have gone into my room and prayed, pacing back and forth (like my uncle), thanking Him, praising Him, and asking for help, guidance, and revelation knowledge. This is where I tend to go when things have grown increasingly serious and I need to focus. I don't want to be focusing on the road or having distracting thoughts of what I am doing next after my shower. My room is my place to truly have a meeting with God.

We should do this more often, including myself. I have found that some of my greatest experiences in my life have occurred during prayer, alone in my room. These experiences are not winning the lottery or completing a life goal; rather, they are humble and personal. These experiences help you to grow and be strengthened in Christ. God is living and a great place to find His will in your life is in your room.

Pray the Lord's prayer (found in Matthew 6) and meditate over scriptures. Have a conversation with God. One of the best ways to do that is out loud. It's okay to pray "in your head." But I find it feels better to pray "out loud." That is another reason why it is good to do this in secret. Because you can say things out loud that you've been keeping secret. It provides a good release on your soul. Confess your sins to God and repent, ask for His forgiveness in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, our savior.

That is a very crucial part of prayer.***  Be sure to address the Father, always, in the name of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

Try praying this prayer with me...and don't be afraid to voice it out loud. This is the sinner's prayer, which is the beginning of your road to salvation and finding God. Pray this prayer and take your time to understand what it means...

Dear Heavenly Father, I repent of my sins and I ask you for forgiveness. Please Lord, forgive me of my sins by the blood of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. I plead the blood of Christ before you Father and I thank you for your mercy, which endures forever. Lord Jesus, come into my heart and make me a new creature. Lord, make me a new creature in Christ. Thank you Father, in Jesus' name. Amen.

If you said this prayer and you meant it, then good for you! It is a beautiful prayer and it is going to change your life forever! God is with you, always. Peace be with you, always.

God bless and have a great day. And remember to pray!

NOTE: It took me eight years to find God from the moment I started looking. Be patient, good things will come your way. I had help though. My Uncle David is a pastor and writes a blog for Dedicated Christian. I have found that much of my understanding of Christ and the Bible have originated with his teachings. But remember, don't trust anything you read or hear! Find out for yourself! Look up these Bible passages mentioned in my blog and his too. Be blessed!

About Drinking

I used to enjoy drinking to the point of inebriation. I used to let myself go wild and drink as much as I can until I couldn't handle it anymore and had to stop. I used to enjoy getting drunk.

And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.
-Ephesians 5:18

Getting drunk used to make me feel good. I would be "loose" and felt like I needed it to have a good time. I felt like it was impossible to be completely happy at a party or hanging out with friends unless I was drinking. And even so after drinking I wouldn't be satisfied. I needed more. It was never enough. I wasn't an alcoholic by any means, but there was no happiness there.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
-Proverbs 20:1

Then I asked God for help. I asked Him to separate me from the things that were keeping me from experiencing total happiness. And then I waited. I waited and waited. And then I waited some more.

It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.
-Lamentations 3:26

Slowly, over a period of time God began to reveal things to me that I had already known but not taken into my heart yet. Depending on alcohol was not good. Spending money at bars and drinking on the weekends was doing nothing good for me. It never has done anything good for me. How often have we heard stories of families being torn apart by alcoholism? How often have we heard stories of people dying young because they drank too much? How often are people killed driving because they were under the influence of alcohol?


Let's be honest, the results of drinking are more often bad than anything else. Should something I take into my body cause me to vomit? Should it make me feel a wide range of emotions uncontrollably at times? Should it cause my speech to be slurred and misunderstood? Should my judgment be altered? Should I lose control? When was the last time losing control was a good thing?

I'm sorry if I offend anyone with this but I don't want to lose my mind, my control. It's not appealing to me. It's something I've learned I could live without doing. It's something God has shown me I don't need.

LET'S CHANGE IT UP A BIT...


What is good about drinking? About alcohol? Didn't people drink wine in the Bible?

Yes, it's true. The Bible does talk about drinking wine. After all, Jesus turned water into wine. (Refer to John 2:1-11)

I made a lot of good friends at parties. I've met a lot of cool people. I always used to come home from a night of being drunk and feel like I didn't have a care in the world. It was fun, I must admit. But like every thing that is made to look and seem good, if it's not of God, it's not the right path.

The Bible doesn't specifically say it is a sin to drink wine. It did say being drunk or being influenced by alcohol could lead to sinful things. Sin is in the hearts of man, nowhere else. The question remains, as a Christian, is it okay to drink?

I'd be lying to you if I told you I have a clear, concise, documented answer for you. I can tell you it is not good to be drunk. Seeking inebriation is not something we should do as human beings. It has caused too much pain for others and we should not subject ourselves to that same fate. We all know someone who has been negatively effected by alcoholic dependency and maybe it's not you right now but one clear way to be sure it doesn't become you is to stop now. Have I had a drink since confessing my sins to God and asking for forgiveness? Yes. Has it always come back to bite me? No. Has it though? Yes.

But is that uncertainty enough for you? There's only thing to do if you know God. Ask.

And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
-Luke 11:9

I Love You, Jesus Christ

Lord, I come to you.
Let my heart be changed with you.
Flowing from a place that I found in you.


Hold me close, let your love surround me.
Bring me near, draw me to your side.
And as I wait, I'll rise up like the eagle.
And I will soar with you.
Your Spirit leads me on, in the power of your love.


(Lyrics taken from "The Power of Your Love" by Hillsong United)

I love God. I can sit in my room alone and be perfectly content praising Him and worshiping the Lord. Excuse me, I shouldn't say content. I am perfectly FULFILLED and JOYFUL while praising and worshiping in song. One of my favorite bands to listen to for worship is Hillsong United. For those unfamiliar with Hillsong, they are an Australian band based out of Hillsong Church in Brisbane.

I suggest you listen to "Hosanna" or "The Power of Your Love". Both are excellent worship songs and make me feel at peace and comforted no matter what situation I am in at the moment. Try praying with these songs playing the background. Ask the Lord for direction in how to worship as well. Sometimes God doesn't want music involved. You need to listen and have faith to find your answer.

In the end, it all comes down to showing love and praise to the Father in the name of the Son, Jesus Christ. God made us for His pleasure and for us to worship Him. In turn, He will provide us with all that we need, according to his riches and glory.


But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 
-Philippians 4:19 (KJV)

Amendment

In my last blog, I just want to note that I edited the first paragraph for content in regards to accuracy.

I had originally made it seem like one does not have to be born again to see Heaven. That is false and I apologize for the content being misleading. Jesus mentions being born again to Nicodemus in John 3:3 and I used that in my blog's opening. However, if you continue reading on and reach John 3:5 you'll see that Jesus said...

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.


Once again, sorry for the error. Check back soon for another post! Be blessed!

New Beginning

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. -John 3:3

I realized that "Going InShane," while familiar to people and catchy, was not an appropriate name for this blog.  As I mature as a Christian, I must continue to leave behind things of the past because God has new things planned for me.  Jesus said that a person must be "born again" to see the kingdom of God. To become born again is to become a new creature in Christ, dedicating your life to God and away from sin. One must put away their old life, becoming "dead" and being "reborn." After all, one does not pour new wine (the Word) into old bottles (my previous blog title).

The title "Fishers of Men" is derived from Mark 1:16-17 where Jesus came to Simon and Andrew while they were fishing and offered them an opportunity. They made the right move by going with Jesus. The passage reads...

Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.

What does that mean: fishers of men? Does it mean we're going to hunt and eat humans? Haha! Ridiculous. To fully understand this, one must think about how one fishes. First, you need to find the right bait. Then, you need a nice way of presenting the bait to the fish. Then, you need a whole lot of patience. And you don't always catch a fish. Sometimes, you're left high and dry. But like the old saying goes, "A bad day of fishing is better than a good day at work."

Now, let's think about what Jesus did. Jesus was a preacher and a teacher. He spoke to masses of people and did his Father's work. He spread the Word of God. But not everyone was receptive the first time around; it required patience. Jesus had to try different ways to draw people in and present the Word of God to them. That's why he spoke in parables. Often, Jesus found himself left high and dry having to flee. But it never stopped him from casting his bait out.

I'm a fisherman

Yes, I'm a fisherman. I like to go out on party boats and try my luck from the surf. I go here to there to everywhere when I fish. As a Christian, my job is to do just that when spreading the Word. God has drawn many parallels in my life to the Bible. Between building my faith and building my body at the gym, and between gathering the patience to deal with unruly children at my summer day camp job and understanding that's how God feels about us, and between fishing and spreading the Word of God...the Lord has taught me more in the past year than anyone or school ever has prior.

Keep in mind, we all have a purpose in this life. Look to God to find your's.

God bless and may be peace be multiplied unto you. Amen.


***Editing Note: This entry was edited for content in regards to validity and accuracy on 3-12-2012, 3:29 PM EST.

Foreshadowing Events

In literature, authors provide clues and hints to their readers that will help foretell future events in the plot of a story.  This is called foreshadowing.  It sounds more ominous and gloomy than it is actually.

Who's seen Titanic?  Just about everyone, right?  After all, it did gross a record setting box office number for its time.  Anyway, in the film, (SPOILER ALERT***) Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) tells Rose (Kate Winslet) that she will die "a very old lady, in her bed."  He does this while they are stranded at sea using a door to keep them afloat.  Essentially, thirty minutes later at the end of the film, that's apparently what happens.  Rose survives and goes onto die a very old woman, quietly in her bed.  That's an example of foreshadowing.

So what does this have to do with me?  With God?  Well, quite truthfully I believe there have been many events in my life where God (the author of our lives) has hinted and clued me in that He is there, watching me, and that one day, I will become a devout Christian.

Here are several life events of mine that helped me realize that God exists and that a Christian life was in the works for me...

The Delaware River Water Gap


My uncle, his daughter,her boyfriend, and I took a trip to the Water Gap in Fall of 2008.  The air temperature was a brisk 40 degrees and the water temperature was more than likely in the 30's.  We would be fishing for smallmouth bass.  We launched our boat around mid-morning.

After spending 30 minutes on the water, my uncle noticed that the current was carrying us in the wrong direction that he had been hoping for.  Nothing was biting, just one or two small fish every 12-15 minutes.  It seemed like a bust.  An hour had passed by and it was getting pretty close to noon.  As we were adjusting positions in the water, something caught my eye.  It was my reflection in the water.  But the Sun was behind my head giving the impression that I had a halo over me.  It shone brightly reminding me of Catholic depictions of Jesus Christ.

Not too much later, maybe a few minutes, my cousin heard someone screaming for help.  We had drifted in the opposite direction of where the river normally takes boats.  She heard it again.  She alerted her dad and said, "Look, we need to help them dad!"  There were two people in the middle of the river, around a bend where they were out of sight to us before.  If it weren't for drifting in that direction, we may not have seen them around that bend.  Nonetheless, my uncle motored us over to them and helped the two people into the boat.  It was a man and a woman, a couple.  Their kayak-thing had overturned and they were both unable to make it to the shoreline due to the strong current and cold water.  They were freezing.  The man kept saying, "You guys are saviors, you guys are saviors, we were going to die."

I'm not a savior and neither is my uncle.  He was humble about the whole experience.  I found it to be incredible and the first thing that came into my head when I fully got a chance to take in what had happened was that Jesus was there.  God was there.  God put us there for a reason.

After returning the couple to their car and warming them up for an hour or so, we headed back out to the water.  We felt accomplished but we weren't ready to go home.  Instead, we drifted in the RIGHT direction this time (the way my uncle had originally planned to go) and we caught 32 fish.  It was a blessed outing.

The Sinner


My friend Michael (from church) and I were just starting to hang out.  I had offered to take him to my favorite fishing spot and I said we could have a little Bible study to go with it.  So, I picked him up and we talked for a while.  We discussed the Lord, our personal trials, our faith, and our love for Jesus Christ.  It was different because there's not too many people I had been able to talk about God with my age.

Anyway, down at Cliffwood Beach Rockwall, I casted my lure out into the bay.  Reel after reel, I pulled nothing in.  I had my Bible out too on the roof of my car.  Before Michael and I could even get a chance to open it and talk in depth, a man pulled up next to my car (at this spot, we can park, get out of our car and cast...I call it "drive-thru fishing").  This man was middle-aged and looked like he had just come back from a bar.  Either way, he wasn't there to fish.  He was indeed a fisherman, just not ready to fish.  For some reason, he had to get away and get out.

The man talked with Michael and I about fishing for nearly 30 minutes, maybe longer.  We both felt like he was disrupting our Bible study.  But then we took notice to something.  His shirt said, "Sinner's Club."  Or something along those lines.  Was he a product of the enemy trying to disrupt our time alone to reflect on God or was it just coincidence.

For a while, we thought he was the enemy coming to distract us, so we left.  But after a while, we realized something.  Maybe it wasn't the devil tempting us (because he did nothing of the sort).  He never asked us to drink with him and he never mentioned the Bible on the hood of my car.  In fact, I caught him looking at it and it didn't seem like it bothered him.  It seemed like he sighed almost when he saw it.

My conclusion is that he needed us.  He was sent there by God to meet with us, to talk to us.  Perhaps we were supposed to minister to him?  His shirt "Sinner's Club" represented all the sinners in this world, those that don't know Jesus and have not been saved.  Michael and I realized then that it was our job to minister to those people, to talk to them about the Lord.  Our job was outlined loud and clear after that experience: as Christians, people will come to us who need God in their lives, and we must be ready to bring them in.

If I knew then what I know now, maybe then I wouldn't have taken a look at his shirt and thought "enemy."  What I should have done was ask him, "Sir, do you believe in Jesus Christ?" or "Sir, are you a Christian?"  Yeah, it's not easy talking to strangers about faith but it's what God has planned for us.

Conclusion


When all is said and done, God is living.  He can choose to interact with us when he feels it is appropriate.  Like a parent that knows what is best for their child, He will put us places to improve our faith.  I firmly believe God intended us to be there on the river that day to save those people.  He let us drift in HIS direction before we were allowed to drift OUR way.  Yeah, coincidence.  I firmly believe that the man with the "Sinner" shirt wasn't a coincidence.  Six billion people in this world, Michael and I have a Bible study, a man with a "Sinner" tee is the only person to interrupt.  Yeah, coincidence.

Coincidence.  Sure.  Coincidences like that are harder to believe than it is to believe that there is a higher power working for us, at us, and with us each day.  God is real, folks.  He has changed my life.  He has made me believe that my life has a purpose.  He has given each one of us a purpose.  God is everything.  God is peace, life, and all you need.  God is good. All the time.

Those are just two events.  Two.  Out of the several, the many, that I've had.  We all have them.  We just need to recognize them as God.