Everything resumes TONIGHT. The kids will be downstairs and the adults will be upstairs in the auditorium. See you in a few.
Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart:
Matthew 6:6, “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.”
Without spending time with the Lord, there is no possibility for us to experience a solid transformation.
And this time must be a private time with the Lord.
The Lord makes this clear in Matthew 6.
Beginning in Matthew 6:5, “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”
The Lord points out here that the Pharisees were hypocrites because the motivation behind their kind of praying was to be seen of men.
Then in verse 6 He says, “But you, when you pray, go into your private room.”
The Greek word for private room can also be translated “inner chamber.”
The King James Version renders it “closet.”
All these translations–the private room, the inner chamber, and the closet–signify a personal, private time in a private place.
In the verse above the Lord gives still further detailed instruction.
After you go into your private room, “shut your door.”
Shutting the door is a reinforcement of privacy, of aloneness with the Lord.
And then He says, “pray to your Father who is in the secret place.”
There is a deep significance in having a private time in a private place, and that is, that our transformation would be genuine and not something hypocritical.
It should not be a performance.
In our private time with the Lord, no one else is there.
We open ourself to the Lord deeply, without any pretense, without any hypocrisy, without being motivated by any onlookers.
There is no one else there saying anything or knowing anything.
This means our Christian life is taken out of the realm of man-pleasing and mere outward behavior, and is brought into the reality of an intimate, personal relationship with the Lord.
Until Tomorrow
With a Shepherd’s Love
Pastor
TODAY’S PRAYER LIST
Loretta Bailey – Funeral – Oct 23RD at Scott Ward FH
Ashley & Jason’s Friend
Bill Lawhead
Jeff Fowler
Richard Blount – Home
Amy Garner’s Mother
Ashley Burn’s Sisters
Barbara Shed’s Family
Bill Moody
Carol Lawhead
Charlie Sessom – Waiting
Colby/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Denise Stubbs – Kim Allison’s Mom
Greg Payne – Lisa’s Brother
Hanna Hall – Pray For Grace
James Garner’s Brother, G’Son, & Daughter
Kimberly – Dustin’s Sister
Larry Barker
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Lynn – Nancy Brown’s Daughter
Mary Sims
Marynell Ford
Michael Stanley
Nancy Brown’s Daughter
Nora Allison – Dustin’s Mom
Pastor Stucke– Nikki’s Dad
Paula Ferus’ Missionary Friend
Ricky Stubbs
Roseleigh Osborn
Scott Lanier – Linda’s Son
Shaelyn – Jill’s Friend
Sharon Blalock
Sheila Simmons Cousin
Tom Witcher