WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.520 --> 00:00:06.360 Hey, thanks for joining us today on Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. 2 00:00:06.400 --> 00:00:09.240 We are so glad that you found us today. I've 3 00:00:09.240 --> 00:00:12.439 got a question for you. Are you feeling stuck like 4 00:00:12.640 --> 00:00:16.879 maybe you've hit a wall and just nothing's moving forward. Well, 5 00:00:16.920 --> 00:00:20.719 you're not alone and you're not without hope. You know, 6 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:25.079 the Bible is full of people who faced impossible situations 7 00:00:25.399 --> 00:00:30.239 like Mary, Noah, Job, even the apostle Paul, and they 8 00:00:30.359 --> 00:00:35.840 all experienced one thing that changed everything, a breakthrough from God. 9 00:00:36.280 --> 00:00:41.079 So today Pastor Rick continues his series called Seeking God 10 00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:44.399 for a Breakthrough. Rick's going to walk us through biblical 11 00:00:44.439 --> 00:00:49.479 accounts of faith, prayer, and perseverance, reminding us that God 12 00:00:49.640 --> 00:00:53.640 still moves in powerful ways whether you're in a season 13 00:00:53.719 --> 00:00:56.200 of waiting or searching for hope. 14 00:00:56.240 --> 00:00:57.840 This series offers. 15 00:00:57.600 --> 00:01:01.719 Encouragement and biblical truth to help you keep going and. 16 00:01:01.679 --> 00:01:05.560 Get the breakthrough you need. So let's get started. 17 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:08.840 Here's Rick with the final part of a message called 18 00:01:09.079 --> 00:01:10.840 talking to Your Heavenly Father. 19 00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:15.799 Now he says, they're asked and it will be given. 20 00:01:15.799 --> 00:01:17.799 Seeking you fine knock and the will be open. Sounds 21 00:01:17.840 --> 00:01:20.159 like I'm just asked for anything. The answer is you 22 00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:24.200 can ask for anything. It doesn't mean God's going to 23 00:01:24.239 --> 00:01:29.920 give it. God always answers every prayer, always, but he 24 00:01:29.959 --> 00:01:34.840 doesn't always say yes. In fact, in a future message, 25 00:01:34.879 --> 00:01:37.079 I'm going to tell you the four different ways next week, 26 00:01:37.120 --> 00:01:41.000 the four different ways that God answers prayers, and I'm going. 27 00:01:40.959 --> 00:01:42.799 To show you the conditions for answered prayer. 28 00:01:43.760 --> 00:01:46.680 But he says, you can always ask, but there are 29 00:01:46.719 --> 00:01:51.319 some obvious qualifications. In other words, God has some things 30 00:01:51.319 --> 00:01:54.640 he wants you to understand about prayer. And that leads 31 00:01:54.719 --> 00:01:57.239 us to the second reason that I can always pray 32 00:01:57.280 --> 00:01:58.319 with confidence, and it's this. 33 00:01:58.439 --> 00:01:59.079 Write this down. 34 00:01:59.480 --> 00:02:04.280 God will will never give me anything that's unhelpful. Now, 35 00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:06.760 this is going to help you build confidence because you 36 00:02:06.760 --> 00:02:08.879 don't often know what to pray. He said, I don't 37 00:02:08.879 --> 00:02:10.479 know if this is good for me or not. God 38 00:02:10.560 --> 00:02:14.840 will never give me anything that's unhelpful. He will not 39 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:17.599 give you everything you want, because not everything you want 40 00:02:17.639 --> 00:02:21.080 would be helpful. And in verse nine, he says, if 41 00:02:21.120 --> 00:02:25.159 your child remember this a father daughter father son relationship. 42 00:02:25.400 --> 00:02:27.680 If your child asked you for some bread to eat, 43 00:02:28.879 --> 00:02:31.080 would any of you fathers give her a stone? And 44 00:02:31.120 --> 00:02:35.319 said the obvious is of course not. Of course, God 45 00:02:35.360 --> 00:02:37.439 would not do that to you, and you wouldn't do 46 00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:40.159 it to your child. If your child came in said Mommy, 47 00:02:40.199 --> 00:02:42.759 I'm hungry, you would say, oh, here, have a stone, 48 00:02:43.479 --> 00:02:47.159 eat a rock. By the way, this is humor in 49 00:02:47.199 --> 00:02:51.039 the Bible, you guys, it's okay to laugh at this. 50 00:02:51.039 --> 00:02:54.520 This is Hebrew humor, humor by exaggeration. Jesus has several 51 00:02:54.599 --> 00:02:56.800 laughlines in the Sermon on the Mount, and this is 52 00:02:56.840 --> 00:02:57.319 one of them. 53 00:02:58.439 --> 00:03:00.520 He's going, it's ridiculous to think. 54 00:03:00.400 --> 00:03:02.479 That a mother or father if they came and asked 55 00:03:02.479 --> 00:03:04.199 you for some food, you said, oh, here, bite a rock. 56 00:03:05.759 --> 00:03:07.240 No, he wouldn't do that. 57 00:03:08.680 --> 00:03:12.360 Now, if you ask God for something good, he's saying here, 58 00:03:12.879 --> 00:03:15.039 God is never going to give you something bad. 59 00:03:16.800 --> 00:03:18.080 He's never gonna give you something bad. 60 00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:21.520 If you ask for something worthwhile I want some bread, 61 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:24.599 He's not going to give you something worthless. He will 62 00:03:24.639 --> 00:03:28.159 never give you anything worthless. By the way, the opposite 63 00:03:28.439 --> 00:03:30.879 is true of this too. If you ask for something good, 64 00:03:31.120 --> 00:03:33.719 God will never never give you anything bad for your life. 65 00:03:34.120 --> 00:03:36.360 But the opposite is also true. If you ask for 66 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:39.520 something bad, God's not going to give you that either. 67 00:03:40.080 --> 00:03:43.199 Why Because God is a good, loving God, He knows 68 00:03:43.199 --> 00:03:45.240 what you need better than you do. He knows what 69 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:47.639 will make you happy more than you do. He knows 70 00:03:47.680 --> 00:03:50.680 your life more than you do. He understands what makes 71 00:03:50.680 --> 00:03:52.960 you tick, what will make you fulfilled, what will give 72 00:03:52.960 --> 00:03:56.159 your life meaning significance, more than you do. So both 73 00:03:56.199 --> 00:03:58.199 are true. You ask for good, he's not going to 74 00:03:58.240 --> 00:04:01.599 give you bad. And if you ask for bad, he's. 75 00:04:01.439 --> 00:04:05.120 Not gonna give you bad. Because he is a loving God. 76 00:04:05.159 --> 00:04:09.759 He'll never give me anything that is unhelpful. Now why 77 00:04:09.840 --> 00:04:13.120 is that good news to you? It means I don't 78 00:04:13.120 --> 00:04:16.120 have to censure my prayers. A lot of times we 79 00:04:16.199 --> 00:04:20.839 feel incompetent or unconfident about prayer because, go, I don't 80 00:04:20.839 --> 00:04:23.839 know if I should really be praying for this. I'm saying, God, 81 00:04:23.839 --> 00:04:25.560 I'd really like to marry that person, but what if 82 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:28.360 they're the wrong person. Or God, I'd really like to 83 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:30.560 have that job, but what if it was the wrong 84 00:04:30.639 --> 00:04:35.160 job for me? God says, it doesn't matter what you pray, 85 00:04:35.399 --> 00:04:37.360 because I'm the one who's going to decide if it's 86 00:04:37.399 --> 00:04:40.079 good or not. Not You, you don't have to know 87 00:04:40.319 --> 00:04:42.480 figure out if the prayer is a good win or not. 88 00:04:43.079 --> 00:04:47.240 Just ask. You can ask for anything. You can even 89 00:04:47.279 --> 00:04:50.879 ask for bad stuff. It's okay because as a child, 90 00:04:51.240 --> 00:04:53.560 a child might say, hey, Daddy, could I drink this 91 00:04:53.839 --> 00:04:54.839 a bottle of colorox? 92 00:04:57.040 --> 00:05:00.680 No? Okay, daddy, can im four years old? Can I 93 00:05:00.680 --> 00:05:01.680 have the keys of the cart? No? 94 00:05:04.439 --> 00:05:07.600 And God knows what you don't know. So he says, 95 00:05:07.639 --> 00:05:09.879 just don't worry about whether your crest request is a 96 00:05:09.920 --> 00:05:11.480 good one or a bad one. You don't have to 97 00:05:11.480 --> 00:05:14.040 worry about that. Just ask whatever you want. I'll figure 98 00:05:14.079 --> 00:05:17.399 it out. It's on me, it's my burden. I will 99 00:05:17.439 --> 00:05:22.120 never give you something that is unhelpful. God will sort 100 00:05:22.120 --> 00:05:24.800 it out. That's a great stress reliever in prayer. Now, 101 00:05:24.839 --> 00:05:27.839 the third reason he says we can pray with confidence, 102 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:31.800 He says, First, God promises to answer if I keep asking. Second, 103 00:05:31.959 --> 00:05:34.000 God will never give me anything that's unhelpful. 104 00:05:34.079 --> 00:05:35.160 That's confidence. 105 00:05:35.319 --> 00:05:37.439 And the third reason I can always pray with confidence 106 00:05:37.519 --> 00:05:40.079 is God will never give me anything that could harm me. 107 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:43.600 Now he's taking it a deeper step. Not just something 108 00:05:43.639 --> 00:05:46.879 that's unhelpful, but God says, I would never give you 109 00:05:46.920 --> 00:05:51.040 anything that would harm you or hurt you. As I said, 110 00:05:51.040 --> 00:05:53.680 if I profray, you know, can I drink this poison? 111 00:05:53.800 --> 00:05:53.959 No? 112 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:57.480 A parent say no, No, you can't. In verse ten, 113 00:05:57.560 --> 00:06:01.680 he says, if your child asked for some fish, Hey, dad, 114 00:06:01.720 --> 00:06:03.160 can I have some fish sticks? Can I get them 115 00:06:03.199 --> 00:06:06.319 a McDonald's fish sandwich? Would you put a snake on 116 00:06:06.360 --> 00:06:12.720 their plate? That's humor, that's exaggeration there, and no parent, 117 00:06:12.800 --> 00:06:14.720 no loving parent, would do that. What's he saying here? 118 00:06:15.000 --> 00:06:17.079 A snake's a little different than the rock. A snake 119 00:06:17.120 --> 00:06:20.600 can be dangerous. In fact, sometimes a snake could be deadly. 120 00:06:21.560 --> 00:06:24.399 Sometimes you might ask for something that's actually dangerous in 121 00:06:24.439 --> 00:06:27.279 your life, or you might ask for something that would 122 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:30.240 actually be deadly and incredibly destructive in your life. 123 00:06:30.360 --> 00:06:31.839 God say it doesn't matter. Just go ahead and. 124 00:06:31.879 --> 00:06:34.920 Ask, because I will never give you anything that's deadly 125 00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:40.240 or destructive. All figure it out, all sorted out, all 126 00:06:40.279 --> 00:06:43.000 sorted out. You don't have to worry. I will take 127 00:06:43.040 --> 00:06:45.639 care of it. I'm never gonna give you anything that 128 00:06:45.800 --> 00:06:48.439 hurt you. That gives me confidence, Well, I don't know 129 00:06:48.439 --> 00:06:50.279 should I pray for this or not? I don't know 130 00:06:50.319 --> 00:06:52.079 if this is the right thing. God just says, go 131 00:06:52.079 --> 00:06:54.720 ahead and ask. I'll figure it out. You don't have 132 00:06:54.800 --> 00:06:57.160 to you can be confident. And here's the fourth reason 133 00:06:57.560 --> 00:07:01.720 we can always pray with confidence, will only give me 134 00:07:01.959 --> 00:07:02.879 what's best for me. 135 00:07:03.759 --> 00:07:04.279 He says that. 136 00:07:04.319 --> 00:07:07.920 In the next verse, God will only give me what's 137 00:07:08.120 --> 00:07:11.279 best for me. That gives me a lot of confidence 138 00:07:11.279 --> 00:07:17.399 when I pray, And in verse eleven, he says this, Now, 139 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:23.879 since even you, as a sinful, imperfect parent, know how 140 00:07:23.920 --> 00:07:26.279 to give good gifts to your children, how much more 141 00:07:26.720 --> 00:07:30.800 does your perfect, good and perfect father in Heaven give 142 00:07:31.000 --> 00:07:33.959 only gifts that are good, circle that only gifts that 143 00:07:34.000 --> 00:07:38.560 are good to those who ask him. Now, this gives 144 00:07:38.600 --> 00:07:40.720 me a lot of confidence in praying too. In the 145 00:07:40.720 --> 00:07:43.000 first place, you need to understand God is not a 146 00:07:43.040 --> 00:07:44.040 slot machine. 147 00:07:45.720 --> 00:07:46.480 Or you put in the. 148 00:07:46.439 --> 00:07:48.480 Prayer and you pull the lever and you get whatever 149 00:07:48.480 --> 00:07:50.959 the slot machine gives you. A slot machine give you 150 00:07:51.120 --> 00:07:54.480 can give you bats or a vending machine even is better. Illustration, 151 00:07:54.839 --> 00:07:56.920 You put money in a vending machine, pull the lever, 152 00:07:57.360 --> 00:08:01.040 and you're gonna get stuff that has carcinogens in it 153 00:08:01.079 --> 00:08:01.680 and stuff. 154 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:06.079 That can harm you. God is not a vending machine. 155 00:08:06.519 --> 00:08:08.879 In fact, I've noticed that in vending machines it never 156 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:13.199 vending machines never have the best stuff. God will only 157 00:08:13.240 --> 00:08:16.120 give you the best If you've ever had a donut 158 00:08:16.160 --> 00:08:18.120 in a vending machine, it's not nearly as good as 159 00:08:18.160 --> 00:08:19.319 another kind of donut. 160 00:08:19.680 --> 00:08:20.480 Or if you've. 161 00:08:20.319 --> 00:08:22.279 Ever had a sandwich in a vending machine, is it 162 00:08:22.319 --> 00:08:25.879 the best sandwich you've ever had? No, God is not 163 00:08:25.959 --> 00:08:28.839 a vending machine. He will only give you what's best 164 00:08:29.240 --> 00:08:29.480 for you. 165 00:08:29.600 --> 00:08:30.160 He says that. 166 00:08:31.319 --> 00:08:34.279 And by the way, God is not your genie. Some 167 00:08:34.320 --> 00:08:37.759 people treat prayer like the Aladdin's lamp, and you know, 168 00:08:37.799 --> 00:08:40.440 you rub the Aladdin's lamp, the genie comes out, and 169 00:08:40.919 --> 00:08:42.639 God says, your wish is my command. 170 00:08:42.720 --> 00:08:43.679 No, you don't. 171 00:08:43.799 --> 00:08:48.000 God doesn't serve you, You serve him. God is not 172 00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:51.840 your butler. God is not your genie. God is not 173 00:08:51.919 --> 00:08:54.879 your vending machine. God is not your servant. You are 174 00:08:55.000 --> 00:08:59.159 God's servant. He said, Well, then why should I even ask? 175 00:08:59.200 --> 00:09:03.039 Because he is your father. He's not your vending machine, 176 00:09:03.279 --> 00:09:06.000 but he is your father, and he loves you more 177 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:09.399 than you even love yourself. And God says, I am 178 00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:13.320 your loving, heavenly father, and I'm waiting to answer your prayers, 179 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:17.200 and I'm wanting to answer your prayers. So why are 180 00:09:17.240 --> 00:09:21.080 you all nervous about praying? He's just your father in heaven. 181 00:09:21.240 --> 00:09:23.159 You don't have to say fancy words. Yet God, I 182 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:26.919 need this. That's a good enough prayer. God will sort 183 00:09:26.960 --> 00:09:29.120 it all out, and I will. 184 00:09:28.960 --> 00:09:29.559 Never give you. 185 00:09:29.600 --> 00:09:33.720 He says, what's not best for you now? God wants 186 00:09:33.759 --> 00:09:37.279 you to have a breakthrough. That's why we're doing this 187 00:09:37.399 --> 00:09:42.960 thirty four thirty forty days of breakthrough in praying three 188 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:45.759 times today. God wants to give a breakthrough in your life, 189 00:09:45.879 --> 00:09:49.440 but he says you have not because you ask not. 190 00:09:50.639 --> 00:09:54.320 I wish I could read this stack just from the 191 00:09:54.360 --> 00:09:56.840 first few days of our time together as a family. 192 00:09:57.320 --> 00:10:00.240 I'll just read you one because they're so inspiring. This 193 00:10:00.279 --> 00:10:04.960 one here, this one on top, is about a financial breakthrough. 194 00:10:05.799 --> 00:10:09.759 It's from Tom and Eleanor and it says this. You're 195 00:10:09.799 --> 00:10:12.840 Pastor Rick, my wife and I are participating in thirty 196 00:10:12.840 --> 00:10:15.240 four days of seeking God for breakthrough along with the 197 00:10:15.279 --> 00:10:18.639 rest of our church family and using the ten fingers 198 00:10:18.639 --> 00:10:21.720 of praying. Remember we talked about this what to pray 199 00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:23.360 and how to pray and who to pray for. 200 00:10:24.440 --> 00:10:26.639 I made a list a. 201 00:10:26.559 --> 00:10:28.759 Sheet to remind me of how each of my fingers 202 00:10:28.759 --> 00:10:32.240 could represent ten topics to pray for in each of 203 00:10:32.240 --> 00:10:33.399 my five minute prayer times. 204 00:10:34.039 --> 00:10:36.639 It's been very helpful each day, and. 205 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:40.080 Your explanation of how our two smallest fingers I remember 206 00:10:40.200 --> 00:10:43.840 talked about praying for yourself last and praying for material blessings. 207 00:10:43.840 --> 00:10:45.759 It's okay to pray for material blessings. They're just not 208 00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:47.519 the most important. It's the smallest thing. 209 00:10:48.360 --> 00:10:48.759 He says. 210 00:10:49.159 --> 00:10:51.519 I learned that our two smallest fingers could represent my 211 00:10:51.639 --> 00:10:56.360 needs and material blessings. That made me bold in seeking 212 00:10:56.399 --> 00:11:01.039 God's guidance and in blessing each day God's blessing each 213 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:03.559 day before I began my work. And here's his story. 214 00:11:04.200 --> 00:11:07.799 On Monday, this last Monday, this past week, I went 215 00:11:07.840 --> 00:11:11.080 to the Charles Schwab office to request that my rollover 216 00:11:11.200 --> 00:11:16.279 from our account would be given to Saddleback Church. Said, 217 00:11:16.519 --> 00:11:18.519 my wife and I wanted to give it three different ways. First, 218 00:11:18.559 --> 00:11:20.559 we wanted to use this money to give God our 219 00:11:20.600 --> 00:11:24.279 tithe on this year's income. Then we wanted to give 220 00:11:24.320 --> 00:11:26.600 God a second installment of our Daring Faith pledge from 221 00:11:26.679 --> 00:11:29.639 last year. And then third we gave our end of 222 00:11:29.639 --> 00:11:33.519 the year offering, thanksgiving offering and thanksgiving to God and 223 00:11:33.639 --> 00:11:36.960 as our Christmas gift gift to Jesus. And he says 224 00:11:36.960 --> 00:11:40.399 two days later, that's Wednesday, this last week. Two days later, 225 00:11:40.759 --> 00:11:44.440 on Wednesday morning, in my seeking God for a breakthrough 226 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:48.600 prayer time, I asked God to show me if he 227 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:53.039 approved of how I was investing our money to build 228 00:11:53.159 --> 00:11:55.360 the retirement nest egg and also to be able to 229 00:11:55.360 --> 00:11:57.440 give more to support all that's good that we do 230 00:11:57.480 --> 00:12:02.080 at Saddleback. Well after my morning prayer time, I opened 231 00:12:02.159 --> 00:12:05.720 up my computer and I discovered that my investment gains 232 00:12:06.559 --> 00:12:10.240 were nearly double the amount that we had given to 233 00:12:10.279 --> 00:12:12.320 God on Monday. 234 00:12:12.919 --> 00:12:15.879 I was so touched by this that I was brought 235 00:12:15.879 --> 00:12:16.360 to tears. 236 00:12:17.639 --> 00:12:20.720 So I called my wife in and I showed her 237 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:26.519 the breakthrough that God had done, and we both wept together. 238 00:12:27.080 --> 00:12:31.720 Feeling so blessed by God's grace and breakthrough. In gratitude, 239 00:12:31.759 --> 00:12:34.639 we decided that I should go back to Schwab and 240 00:12:34.720 --> 00:12:36.080 give even more to God than. 241 00:12:35.960 --> 00:12:37.279 We had just two days earlier. 242 00:12:38.480 --> 00:12:44.200 Then he says, another breakthrough miracle happened when I got home. 243 00:12:44.639 --> 00:12:47.159 In just those few minutes, I checked my investments, and 244 00:12:47.200 --> 00:12:49.720 I was astounded. In that short time that I had 245 00:12:49.720 --> 00:12:54.399 been gone, those investments had increased nearly three times more. 246 00:12:55.159 --> 00:12:55.440 Friends. 247 00:12:55.480 --> 00:12:59.360 That's called the breakthrough. He couldn't have, no way, could 248 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:01.559 he be figured that out. He had no control over this. 249 00:13:01.759 --> 00:13:03.799 God just said, oh, I see what you're doing. I'm 250 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:06.679 gonna you can't outgive me. You cann out give me. 251 00:13:06.679 --> 00:13:09.399 We're going to play this game. And God did something. 252 00:13:09.519 --> 00:13:11.440 When you have a breakthrough, you know it because you 253 00:13:11.480 --> 00:13:12.360 know I didn't do this. 254 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:14.120 God had to do it. 255 00:13:14.720 --> 00:13:17.480 Now, Pastor Rick, you always say you can't outgive God, 256 00:13:17.519 --> 00:13:20.879 and it's true. So thank you for teaching us how 257 00:13:20.879 --> 00:13:25.320 to build the breakthrough habits of starting our day with God, 258 00:13:25.759 --> 00:13:30.000 with Bible reading and talking to God, by putting God first, 259 00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:34.759 by giving and faith, by trusting God's timing. Our first 260 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:39.200 breakthrough in our home was financial, and God replenished in 261 00:13:39.240 --> 00:13:42.919 a single day what had been depleted over several years. 262 00:13:43.559 --> 00:13:50.960 That's a breakthrough. God replenished in a single day. This week, 263 00:13:51.000 --> 00:13:53.559 he said, all that we had lost over the last 264 00:13:53.679 --> 00:13:58.399 several years, that's a breakthrough. Friends, He said, Now only 265 00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:01.080 God knows what other kinds of breakthroughs he has in 266 00:14:01.120 --> 00:14:04.440 store for us, because there's many kinds, and for our 267 00:14:04.519 --> 00:14:07.440 church family. But every time this week that I've thought 268 00:14:07.440 --> 00:14:09.879 about what God did on one day when we had 269 00:14:09.879 --> 00:14:12.759 trusted him just two days earlier, tears have come to 270 00:14:12.799 --> 00:14:16.279 my eyes again. We're filled with great gratitude and a 271 00:14:16.320 --> 00:14:19.480 deeper love for God and our church. And we're continuing 272 00:14:19.519 --> 00:14:23.000 to pray now for everybody else in our saddleback family 273 00:14:23.200 --> 00:14:26.240 who's asking for some kind of breakthrough. So this guy 274 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:29.279 and his wife are praying for you, and I'm going 275 00:14:29.320 --> 00:14:31.879 to teach you in this thing how to pray for 276 00:14:31.960 --> 00:14:37.080 each other. Now, have you noticed that these first four 277 00:14:37.120 --> 00:14:39.120 things why you can be confident in prayer? None of 278 00:14:39.120 --> 00:14:42.000 them have to do with you. When he says, God says, 279 00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:45.159 I'll answer you. Just keep asking. Okay, all I got 280 00:14:45.159 --> 00:14:47.720 to disaster. There's no big deal about that. God will 281 00:14:47.720 --> 00:14:50.440 never give me something that is unhelpful. God will never 282 00:14:50.480 --> 00:14:54.159 give me something that is harmful. And God will always 283 00:14:54.240 --> 00:14:56.240 only give me the best. None of those have to 284 00:14:56.240 --> 00:14:59.000 do with me. So why am I worried about my prayer? 285 00:14:59.440 --> 00:15:01.679 I I do as a little child and just ask God. 286 00:15:01.720 --> 00:15:02.240 I need this. 287 00:15:02.720 --> 00:15:05.440 If it's a good quest, I'll get it. If it's 288 00:15:05.440 --> 00:15:08.159 another quest, I'll get it in a different ways. If 289 00:15:08.200 --> 00:15:09.840 it's a bad request, God is not gonna give it 290 00:15:09.840 --> 00:15:11.320 because he's good and loving and kind. 291 00:15:13.080 --> 00:15:17.879 We'll talk about that more next week. Now there's one more. 292 00:15:17.720 --> 00:15:19.919 Reason that I can always pray with confidence, and it's this, 293 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:24.559 God wants me to give to others what I want 294 00:15:24.600 --> 00:15:28.600 to get. God wants me to give to others what 295 00:15:28.799 --> 00:15:33.200 I want to get myself. Now, this is the golden rule. 296 00:15:33.799 --> 00:15:36.159 Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. 297 00:15:36.559 --> 00:15:39.799 And many people know that golden rule, but they don't 298 00:15:39.840 --> 00:15:44.919 realize it's actually connected to prayer Verse twelve. So in 299 00:15:45.000 --> 00:15:49.559 every situation, always due to others what you would want 300 00:15:49.600 --> 00:15:53.039 them to do for you. This sums up all the 301 00:15:53.080 --> 00:15:56.600 commands and all the teachings in the Bible. Now what 302 00:15:56.759 --> 00:15:59.000 that doesn't sound it has anything to do with prayer. 303 00:15:59.559 --> 00:16:04.759 But why have you ever been asked by somebody would 304 00:16:04.799 --> 00:16:05.360 you pray for me? 305 00:16:05.759 --> 00:16:08.960 Probably? And you go, okay, they asked me to pray 306 00:16:09.000 --> 00:16:11.559 for them? What do I pray? I have no idea 307 00:16:11.840 --> 00:16:12.519 what to pray. 308 00:16:12.679 --> 00:16:14.840 When somebody comes up to me and I get asked 309 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:17.120 aldon On pastor Rick, will you pray for me? I'm 310 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:19.720 going I don't know what to pray for them. What 311 00:16:19.759 --> 00:16:21.759 do you pray for somebody when they ask you to 312 00:16:21.759 --> 00:16:22.240 pray for them? 313 00:16:22.279 --> 00:16:26.519 Here's what you do. You pray whatever you would like 314 00:16:26.600 --> 00:16:32.159 people to pray for you. That's it. That's it. 315 00:16:32.320 --> 00:16:35.480 Would you like to have safety and security and success 316 00:16:35.519 --> 00:16:38.440 in your life? Yes, then pray for safety and security 317 00:16:38.440 --> 00:16:41.960 and success in other people's life. Would you like the 318 00:16:42.039 --> 00:16:44.799 financial blessing of God in your life? Yes, then pray 319 00:16:44.840 --> 00:16:47.120 for the financial blessing of God on other people's life. 320 00:16:47.399 --> 00:16:49.360 Would you like to have a healthy body, Yes, then 321 00:16:49.399 --> 00:16:52.440 pray for the healthy body of other people. Would you 322 00:16:52.559 --> 00:16:55.480 like to have a better use of your time? Yes, 323 00:16:55.600 --> 00:16:57.759 then pray for other people to use their time in 324 00:16:57.799 --> 00:17:01.240 the best way. Whatever you want God to do for you, 325 00:17:01.320 --> 00:17:03.480 he says, I want you to do it to other people. 326 00:17:04.359 --> 00:17:06.960 And God says, the way I treat you as my 327 00:17:07.599 --> 00:17:10.400 loving child, I'm your heavenly father, That's the way I 328 00:17:10.519 --> 00:17:14.599 expect you to treat everybody else. God wants you to 329 00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:19.119 treat other people the way He treats you. And when 330 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:21.680 you pray for other people, what do you pray? You 331 00:17:21.720 --> 00:17:24.559 pray what you'd like to have prayed for you. Then 332 00:17:24.599 --> 00:17:26.319 you know instantly what to pray for people. What would 333 00:17:26.319 --> 00:17:29.160 I like to have in that situation? Guy says to you, 334 00:17:29.240 --> 00:17:31.000 my wife just walked out on me. What would you 335 00:17:31.039 --> 00:17:34.079 want people to pray for? You will you pray that 336 00:17:34.119 --> 00:17:34.440 for others. 337 00:17:34.480 --> 00:17:38.480 See how simple this is. And God wants you to. 338 00:17:38.480 --> 00:17:41.440 Treat others the way he treats you when you pray. Now, 339 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:43.799 why is this important? Because God doesn't want you to 340 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:48.839 be selfish. I told you that. In the Book of Job. 341 00:17:48.839 --> 00:17:51.680 It's in chapter forty two, verse ten. In fact, it's 342 00:17:51.720 --> 00:17:54.400 up here on the screen. It says this, After Job 343 00:17:54.559 --> 00:17:59.839 prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes. In fact, 344 00:18:00.119 --> 00:18:02.400 the Lord gave him twice as much as before. 345 00:18:03.960 --> 00:18:05.079 Remember the story of Job. 346 00:18:05.240 --> 00:18:08.279 He was the wealthiest man in the world, and one 347 00:18:08.359 --> 00:18:10.960 day he literally lost it all. All of his children 348 00:18:10.960 --> 00:18:14.920 were killed, his business collapsed, his crops were burned, he 349 00:18:14.960 --> 00:18:17.640 lost his home, he lost his health, he got a 350 00:18:17.720 --> 00:18:22.000 terrible disease, and he was miserable. And at the end 351 00:18:22.039 --> 00:18:25.599 of that book, it doesn't say when Job prayed for himself, 352 00:18:25.920 --> 00:18:27.960 God heard it. It says when Job began to pray 353 00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:31.319 for his friends, God said, oh, okay, you're ready now. 354 00:18:31.920 --> 00:18:35.519 God is looking for you to be unselfish. The more 355 00:18:35.599 --> 00:18:38.160 selfish you are, the more God's going to say, well, 356 00:18:38.200 --> 00:18:40.559 you got a little more grown up to do. But 357 00:18:40.680 --> 00:18:44.240 when you begin to pray for other people's breakthrough. Guess 358 00:18:44.279 --> 00:18:45.640 what's going to happen in your. 359 00:18:45.559 --> 00:18:50.200 Life, your breakthrough. Let's bow our heads. 360 00:18:55.240 --> 00:18:58.279 Would you say, God, I'm sorry that I've been nervous 361 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:03.000 about prayer. I've been confused. I've had doubts about it. 362 00:19:04.559 --> 00:19:06.599 I haven't understood it, so I didn't even know how 363 00:19:06.599 --> 00:19:10.759 to pray. But I thank you Jesus for these five 364 00:19:10.839 --> 00:19:16.559 things that you promise to answer if I just keep. 365 00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:18.599 Asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. 366 00:19:18.839 --> 00:19:22.079 Thank you that, no matter what my relationship is to you, 367 00:19:22.759 --> 00:19:27.720 whether I'm close or distant, or there's a even a barrier, you. 368 00:19:27.599 --> 00:19:29.240 Want me to ask and seek and knock. 369 00:19:31.119 --> 00:19:32.799 Thank you God that you're never going to give me 370 00:19:32.839 --> 00:19:36.519 something that's unhelpful. You're never going to give me something 371 00:19:36.559 --> 00:19:40.640 that's harmful. You're never going to answer a request that's 372 00:19:40.640 --> 00:19:43.079 a wrong request that's not going to make me what 373 00:19:43.160 --> 00:19:46.759 I really want in life. Thank you that you'll only 374 00:19:46.799 --> 00:19:49.359 give me what's best for me, so I can relax 375 00:19:50.079 --> 00:19:51.599 and I don't have to worry about is this is 376 00:19:51.640 --> 00:19:52.559 an okay request? 377 00:19:52.559 --> 00:19:54.039 That I can literally. 378 00:19:53.640 --> 00:19:56.960 Ask for anything and you'll do the sorting out. Lord, 379 00:19:57.000 --> 00:20:02.079 that's such a great relief. Attention reliever, Lord, I ask 380 00:20:02.160 --> 00:20:04.200 you to help me to give away what I want 381 00:20:04.240 --> 00:20:09.680 to receive. Help me to give away what I want 382 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:13.759 to receive, so that you may teach me not just 383 00:20:14.640 --> 00:20:17.880 your blessings, but to teach me to be more like 384 00:20:18.000 --> 00:20:21.559 Jesus Christ. If you've never invited Jesus into your life, 385 00:20:21.839 --> 00:20:23.880 say Jesus Christ, come into you my life. 386 00:20:24.599 --> 00:20:27.440 Make yourself real to me. I want to get to 387 00:20:27.480 --> 00:20:27.839 know you. 388 00:20:28.240 --> 00:20:30.480 I want to learn to trust you and love you, 389 00:20:31.160 --> 00:20:33.039 and I want to learn to talk to you all 390 00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:37.960 the time. And I humbly ask this my Father in Heaven, 391 00:20:38.319 --> 00:20:47.119 in Jesus' name, Amen, did. 392 00:20:46.960 --> 00:20:49.880 You just accept Christ? Well? Congratulations. 393 00:20:51.000 --> 00:20:54.559 If you'll email me Rickapastorrick dot com, just let me 394 00:20:54.640 --> 00:20:57.119 know that you prayed that prayer. You open your life 395 00:20:57.119 --> 00:20:59.359 to Christ, and guess what We'll pray for you and 396 00:20:59.359 --> 00:21:03.000 we'll send some free materials to help you grow on 397 00:21:03.039 --> 00:21:04.480 your spiritual journey. 398 00:21:08.480 --> 00:21:10.759 You know, one of the things you ask us about 399 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:14.880 most here on Daily Hope are the Bible scripture cards. Yeah, 400 00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:17.720 we get a ton of requests for them. So Pastor 401 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:21.079