WEBVTT

NOTE
Podcast: Acts 29 Vancouver
Episode: Persistent Prayer
Publishing Date: 2025-09-14T06:04:44-07:00
Podcast URL: https://acts29.ca
Episode URL: https://acts29.ca/persistent-prayer/

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.000
We will be nice to her for the next 10 days.

00:00:14.760 --> 00:00:21.760
That aside, Heidi, can you come up? Heidi had a dream last night, and I think it's worth

00:00:21.760 --> 00:00:28.760
listening to this dream. Last night I woke up early and then I fell back asleep, and

00:00:37.760 --> 00:00:44.760
I had this dream, and it was about us, actually. We were meeting here in church, just as we

00:00:44.760 --> 00:00:51.760
do right now, and suddenly this building was starting to flood. Initially I thought,

00:00:53.800 --> 00:00:58.400
oh, is there a leak somewhere? In my dream I was asking, is there a leak somewhere on

00:00:58.400 --> 00:01:05.400
the roof or in the building? As the flooding was occurring, there were also people, and

00:01:06.160 --> 00:01:13.160
then Jacob said, oh, don't worry about that, we are moving soon. We are moving soon into

00:01:13.440 --> 00:01:20.440
a different building. Then I realized it was actually not water that was flooding the building,

00:01:21.960 --> 00:01:28.960
but people. It was like God saying, you are moving at the right time, because I will bring

00:01:29.680 --> 00:01:36.680
in people that could have not come into this building.

00:01:44.160 --> 00:01:51.160
I love it when someone else has a dream that conveys what God has been trying to convey

00:01:51.320 --> 00:01:58.320
to us. I love it when it's someone as honest as Heidi, because it's more believable.

00:02:04.200 --> 00:02:11.200
I want to talk about persistent prayer. You know, when I was, I told you about how that

00:02:11.200 --> 00:02:18.200
lady in Shillong took us to meet some ministers. One of them was the Minister of Education,

00:02:18.480 --> 00:02:25.480
and he had been playing soccer, and then he tore his ACL, and so his foot was in a cast,

00:02:26.440 --> 00:02:33.440
and he couldn't bend it much. So when we went to his house, the lady asked if I would pray

00:02:34.440 --> 00:02:41.440
for his leg, and I prayed, and then asked him to flex his leg, and there was hardly

00:02:43.800 --> 00:02:50.000
any change. It was so minimal, one couldn't claim that anything had changed. One of the

00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:57.000
questions was, Father, when? I mean, I see you guys wearing these sweatshirts and t-shirts

00:02:57.560 --> 00:03:04.560
that say, Signs, Miracles, and Wonders. When? When? And so this idea of persistent prayer

00:03:08.200 --> 00:03:12.440
is something that we need to explore both for the things we are waiting for, the things

00:03:12.440 --> 00:03:18.200
that you're waiting for in your own life personally, and that's why we're going down this track.

00:03:18.200 --> 00:03:25.200
I wish the guy's foot had been healed, and can you imagine if his torn ACL got repaired?

00:03:25.840 --> 00:03:32.160
And it's not like I haven't seen that before, but when I prayed for him, nothing happened.

00:03:32.160 --> 00:03:36.120
What if something had happened? What would have happened to the rest of the cabinet?

00:03:36.120 --> 00:03:43.120
What would the word be that went around Shillong? And so, when? Why not? What do we do? How

00:03:47.280 --> 00:03:49.120
do we pray?

00:03:49.120 --> 00:03:56.120
So, you know, in Luke 18.1, Luke 18.1, and in Luke 11.5-8, Jesus shares stories, and

00:04:11.560 --> 00:04:18.560
when he teaches on prayer, the emphasis often seems to be on prayer, and the emphasis is

00:04:19.120 --> 00:04:26.120
pray and not lose heart. In fact, when Jesus shared the parable about the widow who went

00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:37.000
to the judge who had no regard for God or for man, he starts Luke 18.1 saying, and then

00:04:38.160 --> 00:04:45.160
Jesus taught a story about how to pray and not lose heart, because it seems to be something

00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:52.360
that affected people then and still affects us now. And to not lose heart is basically

00:04:53.800 --> 00:05:00.800
to persist, to not quit, to not give up. But what does it even look like? Because sometimes

00:05:00.840 --> 00:05:07.480
you get fast answers. Sometimes you pray and you get fast answers, and sometimes it takes

00:05:07.480 --> 00:05:14.480
long despite earnest prayer. And I think everybody here has experienced this. And I think that

00:05:15.160 --> 00:05:20.560
you've experienced it despite earnest prayer. But some of your situations, there are situations

00:05:20.560 --> 00:05:27.560
in this room that church, because I'm a pastor, I happen to know them. But if you'd be surprised

00:05:27.720 --> 00:05:33.960
at the difficult situations that people have gone through in this room, how people are

00:05:33.960 --> 00:05:40.960
going through this room, every face does not tell a story. Every face hides a story.

00:05:45.840 --> 00:05:52.280
So many situations, eh? And sometimes you hear them, you think to yourself, how did

00:05:52.280 --> 00:05:57.920
the person even survive? How is the person still smiling? Those are the kinds of stories

00:05:57.920 --> 00:06:04.920
sometimes in this church. And so persistent prayer will help us break into a place that

00:06:05.080 --> 00:06:12.080
is broader, a broad place to stand. And so sometimes answers are fast. You look at Elijah

00:06:13.080 --> 00:06:20.080
and Elijah prays once saying, oh God send fire that will consume the sacrifice. It's

00:06:22.920 --> 00:06:29.920
in 1 Kings 18.37. And immediately fire from heaven comes and burns up the wood, the water,

00:06:31.520 --> 00:06:38.520
the ox that was put on it, just consumes everything. And yet shortly after, in verse 45, Elijah

00:06:39.520 --> 00:06:45.560
is sending a man up seven times to go and see whether there's any sign of rain. Up and

00:06:45.560 --> 00:06:50.600
down the servant goes, I always think if there was one job I wouldn't have wanted in the

00:06:50.600 --> 00:06:56.360
Old Testament, it would be Elijah's servant. He would come down and he would tell his master

00:06:56.360 --> 00:07:01.720
with great patience, no master, there is no sight of a cloud, go again. Seven times he

00:07:01.720 --> 00:07:06.120
goes, I'm thinking to myself, the sixth time the servant is thinking, can I jump off from

00:07:06.120 --> 00:07:13.120
here? Seven times he went up. And sometimes things take time. So how do you define persistence?

00:07:16.400 --> 00:07:21.120
And this is our experience too. Sometimes answers come immediately and you scratch your

00:07:21.120 --> 00:07:26.040
head thinking is this the same God? And other times it takes forever and you think to yourself,

00:07:26.040 --> 00:07:33.040
yeah this is the same God. But that's so sad. And then we don't know how to pray. And so

00:07:33.400 --> 00:07:40.400
how do we define persistence? Persistence is patient insistence. Patient insistence.

00:07:46.760 --> 00:07:53.120
I insist, but I insist patiently. Patient insistence. That's what sometimes parents

00:07:53.120 --> 00:08:00.120
have to do with children. Patient insistence. What else? That is relentless. Patient insistence

00:08:01.120 --> 00:08:08.120
that is relentless. Sometimes it borders on insolence or impudence. It borders on insolence

00:08:14.840 --> 00:08:21.000
where you think to yourself, man this guy is really crossing the line here by insisting

00:08:21.000 --> 00:08:28.000
the way he is doing. It borders on insolence and it is unashamed. And sometimes it's a

00:08:30.520 --> 00:08:37.520
little bit. When you define persistence that way and it's based both on the, just a simple

00:08:37.640 --> 00:08:41.760
definition of the word and the definition from the stories in the Bible, you suddenly

00:08:41.760 --> 00:08:48.760
realize that persistence in prayer is not necessarily a quality that we have developed.

00:08:50.220 --> 00:08:57.220
This is not usually how I pray. So this is what it looks like in Luke 18.1 and Luke 11

00:08:58.220 --> 00:09:03.540
verse 5 to 8. That's what Jesus is saying. Listen, I want to teach you how to pray and

00:09:03.540 --> 00:09:10.540
not give up. But the moment he says that, my question is why should I persist? Why should

00:09:16.180 --> 00:09:23.180
I persist in prayer? If you, oh God, are honest and you are patient and you are patient, then

00:09:27.220 --> 00:09:34.220
you are all powerful. If you are father, if you are my father and if I'm praying according

00:09:43.780 --> 00:09:50.780
to your will, why should I have to persist? That's my question. Why should I do this?

00:09:50.780 --> 00:09:57.780
Why should I be patient and insistent? Why should I be relentless? Why should I border

00:10:01.860 --> 00:10:08.140
on insolence and why should I be unashamed? If you are father, if you are all powerful

00:10:08.140 --> 00:10:15.140
and if I'm praying according to your will, why do I have to be persistent? Because that's

00:10:15.620 --> 00:10:21.900
now not how we really think in our own father-son, father-daughter relationships. Children don't

00:10:21.900 --> 00:10:28.140
have to be this way. So why do we have to be this way? It seems unfair. So we need to

00:10:28.140 --> 00:10:32.940
answer this first. Why do I have to persist in prayer? If you are my father, if you are

00:10:32.940 --> 00:10:37.260
all powerful and if I'm praying according to your will, why do I have to do that? So

00:10:37.260 --> 00:10:43.500
that's what we look at first. So here's where we begin. If it is a promise from the Word

00:10:43.500 --> 00:10:47.700
and his will, now what are we looking at? We are looking at reasons why we need to

00:10:47.700 --> 00:10:54.700
persist in prayer. So here are the reasons. First one, he commanded us, very simple reason,

00:10:59.420 --> 00:11:06.420
he commanded us to keep on asking or knocking or seeking. It's not a good thing to ask for

00:11:13.580 --> 00:11:20.580
if it is a promise from his will or word. Then he says, I want you to keep on asking.

00:11:30.900 --> 00:11:37.900
And then later on in 2 Corinthians 1.20, he says that every promise, I'm just quoting

00:11:38.020 --> 00:11:45.020
the message straight, whatever God has promised, is that Elion again? Who? Oh. Whatever God

00:11:50.780 --> 00:11:57.780
has promised, whatever God has promised, gets stamped with the yes. So that's why we need

00:12:07.900 --> 00:12:14.900
to persist in prayer. Of Jesus. So that's the first reason guys. And this is the reason,

00:12:19.100 --> 00:12:24.180
sometimes we don't argue against because he's Lord, he's sovereign, he's king. So here's

00:12:24.180 --> 00:12:30.340
the first reason. He commanded us to keep on asking. He didn't say ask, seek, knock.

00:12:30.340 --> 00:12:35.540
He did say that, but then later on he says, keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking.

00:12:36.100 --> 00:12:42.120
Why? If it is a promise from his will or his word, then whatever God has promised gets

00:12:42.120 --> 00:12:49.120
stamped with the yes of Jesus. But he says keep on asking. So one reason I would persist

00:12:50.980 --> 00:12:57.980
is because he has commanded me to keep on asking. That's one reason. Any questions on

00:12:58.500 --> 00:13:05.500
that before we go on? Very early in the game Jesus talks about this in Matthew 7. He says,

00:13:05.540 --> 00:13:12.540
keep on asking. And I love 2 Corinthians 1.20. Whatever God has promised gets stamped with

00:13:14.140 --> 00:13:21.140
the yes of Jesus. When it comes to his will and his word, it's a guarantee. Just a side

00:13:21.380 --> 00:13:28.380
note, sometimes when I have a desire, when I have a dream, when someone gives me a prophetic

00:13:29.100 --> 00:13:36.100
word, then it warrants greater inspection and confirmation before you can apply this

00:13:49.140 --> 00:13:56.140
to it. When it's a desire you have and you feel convinced that God put the desire there

00:13:56.140 --> 00:13:59.940
and God wants to give you that desire, or when someone gives a prophetic word to you

00:13:59.940 --> 00:14:05.380
and it sounds so like God and it's what you wanted or what you dreamt of, or you have

00:14:05.380 --> 00:14:10.580
this feeling it's God, or when you see a dream and you interpret that dream as God is saying,

00:14:10.580 --> 00:14:16.240
do this or do that, at times like that it warrants greater introspection or inspection

00:14:16.240 --> 00:14:21.900
and it requires confirmation before you can apply point one to it. But when it comes to

00:14:21.940 --> 00:14:28.940
the word and the will of God, that has it stamped with the yes of Christ. Just remember

00:14:29.740 --> 00:14:34.900
that. I'm not saying that a word or a dream or a desire is not from God, I'm just saying

00:14:34.900 --> 00:14:41.900
it requires greater inspection. So that's point one. Reason two. Reason two is that

00:14:51.900 --> 00:14:58.900
Jesus rewards persistence. Jesus rewards persistence. That's reason two. He says in

00:15:05.060 --> 00:15:10.100
Matthew 7, keep on asking, keep on knocking, keep on seeking for whoever asks, seeks or

00:15:10.100 --> 00:15:16.860
knocks will have the door open, will receive. It's like he's assuring you, you will be rewarded.

00:15:16.860 --> 00:15:23.860
Then as if to prove the point further he says, if Brielle asked Derek for a fish, would

00:15:24.980 --> 00:15:31.980
he frighten her by putting a snake on the plate? If she asked for an egg, would he hide

00:15:33.060 --> 00:15:39.700
under the saucer a spider? If he being evil knows how to give his daughter good things,

00:15:39.700 --> 00:15:43.700
then you think I won't reward you when you keep on asking, keep on knocking, keep on

00:15:43.780 --> 00:15:50.780
seeking? Persistence has rewards. You see this with the Syrophenician woman, where she

00:15:51.740 --> 00:15:58.740
was persistent. If there was one woman in the Bible who really got the wrong end of

00:15:59.620 --> 00:16:06.620
the stick from Jesus, it was a Syrophenician woman. And yet in Matthew 15, 21 this Canaanite

00:16:07.620 --> 00:16:14.620
mother whose daughter is demonized is being almost, Jesus is almost fencing with her,

00:16:14.620 --> 00:16:18.620
trying to keep her away. And yet every time he does that she comes back with a retort.

00:16:18.620 --> 00:16:24.620
And she refuses to be pushed back, she persists and she is rewarded. Bartimaeus, same thing.

00:16:24.620 --> 00:16:28.620
With Bartimaeus there were people that were preventing him from coming towards Jesus.

00:16:28.620 --> 00:16:33.620
There was a crowd. There was Jesus' disciples, but he kept crying, kept crying. Persistence

00:16:33.620 --> 00:16:40.620
brings him his sight because Jesus actually hears him. He refuses to back down from crying

00:16:40.620 --> 00:16:47.620
out, Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. So persistence gets rewarded. The first reason

00:16:48.620 --> 00:16:55.620
is Jesus has commanded us. Second reason is persistence gets rewarded. Next one. Reason

00:16:56.620 --> 00:17:03.620
three. When you look at Daniel chapter 10 verse 12 you find out that sometimes persistent

00:17:10.180 --> 00:17:17.180
prayer, persistent prayer is required to be rewarded. And that's why we have the word

00:17:25.620 --> 00:17:32.620
breakthrough, enemy, seed, or obstacles. Okay, so let's talk about that. Daniel chapter

00:17:41.780 --> 00:17:48.780
10. Daniel has been praying. He started praying and it's been 20 days now. On the 21st day

00:17:48.780 --> 00:17:55.780
of the GEORGIA, an angel turns up and says to Daniel, Daniel, you are precious to God.

00:17:55.820 --> 00:18:01.940
The moment you started praying, your words were heard. And I was coming to you with an

00:18:01.940 --> 00:18:07.160
answer. Please don't think that because it's the Old Testament that the Holy Spirit couldn't

00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:12.300
have brought the answer. But it is an answer of such great importance that it would be

00:18:12.300 --> 00:18:19.300
the measure of kingdoms rising and kingdoms falling. We do not understand the spiritual

00:18:19.300 --> 00:18:23.660
realm well. Some of us may understand it a little. Some of us don't understand it at

00:18:23.660 --> 00:18:30.660
all. Some of us pretend it doesn't exist. But what Daniel was going to say after God

00:18:30.900 --> 00:18:36.660
gives him the answer for his prayer would be responsible for the rise and fall of kingdoms

00:18:36.660 --> 00:18:43.540
for the next thousand years. The rise and fall of kingdoms is brought about not just

00:18:43.540 --> 00:18:49.460
by man electing or man tearing down, but by angelic forces and battles in the heavenlies

00:18:49.460 --> 00:18:56.460
that we cannot even imagine. We get a glimpse of it when the angel says that I had to fight

00:18:56.820 --> 00:19:02.100
the prince of Persia to bring this answer to you. And when I return, I'll have to fight

00:19:02.100 --> 00:19:07.700
the prince of Greek angelic powers and principalities before I can return. And there is no one to

00:19:07.700 --> 00:19:14.700
help me except the guardian angel of Israel, Gabriel, or Michael, sorry. You suddenly realize

00:19:15.540 --> 00:19:22.300
that you have this short quick glimpse into a realm that we have no idea about. Persistent

00:19:22.300 --> 00:19:29.300
prayer is required to break enemy seeders and to break enemy obstacles. And we do not

00:19:30.300 --> 00:19:36.700
know how to, but we always start somewhere, right? And here's where we start. Sometimes

00:19:36.700 --> 00:19:40.540
the things that are delayed in your life. Here's the problem though, guys. As we go

00:19:40.540 --> 00:19:47.540
through these points, it is, what is required is I have to know what it is that is happening

00:19:48.740 --> 00:19:55.560
to me so that I can determine how to respond. That's important. This one's easier. I have

00:19:55.560 --> 00:20:00.760
to know what is happening to me so I know how to respond. And that is where the spirit

00:20:00.760 --> 00:20:07.360
of God has given us discernment and the spirit of God has given us leaders. Hear me again.

00:20:07.360 --> 00:20:12.040
Please, both go hand in hand. You cannot have one without the other. Let me assure you of

00:20:12.040 --> 00:20:19.040
it. The spirit of God gives me two things. He gives me discernment and he gives me leaders.

00:20:19.560 --> 00:20:23.200
I'm talking about Jacob. I'm not talking about you right now. He gives me discernment to

00:20:23.240 --> 00:20:27.560
kind of figure out what's happening and then he gives me leaders as in ones that I look

00:20:27.560 --> 00:20:32.960
up to or ones that I walk with that I go and talk to. And you can ask people in this church

00:20:32.960 --> 00:20:36.860
whether I have the humility to do that and the answer is yes. Do you have the humility

00:20:36.860 --> 00:20:43.860
to do that? That's the question. And so those are the things because one is discernment

00:20:43.860 --> 00:20:50.860
and the second thing is okay, now that I've discerned, can I go and find out what's happening?

00:20:54.300 --> 00:20:57.380
Can someone else begin to talk to me about this? Because there are many that will know

00:20:57.380 --> 00:21:04.380
more than you about this. I haven't done this for 21 days. I haven't forgotten your questions

00:21:07.140 --> 00:21:12.060
here. I haven't done this for 21 days but I wish Jeevan was here. Jeevan would testify

00:21:12.060 --> 00:21:19.060
to this. We went to this place in India called Rishikesh, Haridwar, the Kailash Mountains

00:21:20.020 --> 00:21:25.140
where Hinduism was born. And I remember driving down from there and there were five of us

00:21:25.140 --> 00:21:29.140
in the jeep. I only had one thing to do. I knew that one thing God had charged me to

00:21:29.140 --> 00:21:34.300
do was you will not sleep but for nine hours you will pray continuously. It's the longest

00:21:34.300 --> 00:21:40.620
stint I've ever prayed. Nine hours just praying continuously. Sometimes through villages,

00:21:41.420 --> 00:21:47.620
other times praying as we go up. It was fascinating that once you've given an assignment you have

00:21:47.620 --> 00:21:52.380
more than enough strength to do it and you begin to enjoy. The deeper you get into it,

00:21:52.380 --> 00:21:56.380
you're supposed to be more exhausted but the deeper you get into it, it's like the Tesla.

00:21:56.380 --> 00:22:00.380
Keep pressing the brake and the engines go up again like Derek Fondhaut on a trip to

00:22:00.380 --> 00:22:07.380
Kelowna. So this thing is real. The question is, how

00:22:10.980 --> 00:22:17.980
in your situation is this what is happening? Go ahead, Zia.

00:22:26.220 --> 00:22:32.220
In about 40 minutes I'll be answering that. And it's towards the end of the sermon so

00:22:32.220 --> 00:22:39.220
you know how long the sermon is. Oh my Lord, 640. Okay, we'll have to move on faster.

00:22:40.980 --> 00:22:47.980
Next thing, reason four. It's in 1 Kings 1837 which we talked about already which is to

00:22:52.140 --> 00:22:59.140
birth things of significance, to birth things of significance, that will shift momentum.

00:23:10.900 --> 00:23:17.900
Persistence is required. It's almost similar to giving birth to a baby where there's a

00:23:22.860 --> 00:23:29.620
travail that has to happen for something that is God is trying to birth of significance

00:23:29.620 --> 00:23:36.620
here on earth that will bring a momentum shift to a people group or to a city or to a church.

00:23:36.620 --> 00:23:43.620
Persistence is required. It is not something that is just thrown your way as if it comes

00:23:44.140 --> 00:23:51.140
to a bird. It requires a, part of the reason persistence is required is that so your heart

00:23:51.260 --> 00:23:56.620
and your mind, your body and your soul and your spirit is completely engaged in that

00:23:56.620 --> 00:24:01.940
one thing. The question is, are we a people like that?

00:24:02.260 --> 00:24:07.020
The question is, am I a guy like that who can do that? Or do I only know how to do it

00:24:07.020 --> 00:24:10.860
for 10 minutes and then say, oh that should be enough, I have enough faith for it. God

00:24:10.860 --> 00:24:15.820
is not testing my faith always when it comes to persistence. God is trying to form my heart,

00:24:15.820 --> 00:24:22.500
my mind, my soul, my strength and my spirit around one thing where one thing becomes singular.

00:24:22.500 --> 00:24:29.500
The only time it happens to a guy is a few hours before he gets married. And now he's

00:24:30.500 --> 00:24:37.020
coming to his senses, oh my God, whatever God, I'm done. And suddenly the focus is intense.

00:24:37.020 --> 00:24:41.820
Trust me, when Kezia gave birth, her soul, her strength, her spirit, her mind, her heart

00:24:41.820 --> 00:24:48.820
were formed around just one thing. How do I birth this baby? Don also had singular focus.

00:24:48.820 --> 00:24:55.820
What do I do about this now? Before I faint. Yeah. So this is important guys. In the Bible,

00:24:56.820 --> 00:25:02.820
you'll see this many times. What was happening with Elijah in 1 Kings 18, 37 to 45? Why is

00:25:02.820 --> 00:25:08.820
he bent over, almost rolled into a fetal ball, praying for something? Because what is going

00:25:08.820 --> 00:25:14.220
to happen is going to change an apostate nation into a nation that begins to follow Christ

00:25:14.220 --> 00:25:20.540
again. What is happening with Jesus on a mountain, praying continuously, he's the son of God,

00:25:20.540 --> 00:25:24.380
surely he knows the will of his father. Why is he spending the entire night praying? And

00:25:24.540 --> 00:25:28.740
then he says after that he came down the mountain and he picked out of the people before him

00:25:28.740 --> 00:25:33.460
12 that were going to be apostles because they were going to take care of the rest of

00:25:33.460 --> 00:25:40.460
the world. You'll find this happening again and again. You see it with Hezekiah, you see

00:25:41.020 --> 00:25:45.420
it with Isaiah, you see it with Jeremiah, you see it with Ezekiel. They know that what

00:25:45.420 --> 00:25:51.580
they're going to now birth. And Daniel knew that whatever he's going to get is going to

00:25:51.580 --> 00:25:58.580
affect not nations but empires for the next thousand years. Yet it is said of people like

00:26:02.060 --> 00:26:09.060
Daniel, people like Elijah that they were just like you and me. So we put them on this

00:26:09.620 --> 00:26:15.500
pedestal when it comes to really hard things. That's a safe bet. That way we don't have

00:26:15.500 --> 00:26:22.500
to do the hard things they do. That's the fourth reason. And so if you're trying to

00:26:23.740 --> 00:26:28.500
birth something that's going to ignite the 20s and 30s across the earth, you think that

00:26:28.500 --> 00:26:35.500
doesn't need persistent prayer? And when we do gather and we sometimes pray, you know

00:26:37.300 --> 00:26:43.500
how long it lasts at the most? And it sounds and feels very long. It lasts about 20 minutes

00:26:43.500 --> 00:26:50.500
max. What is that called? A 20 minute prayer. But when the 20 minute prayer happens every

00:26:52.940 --> 00:26:59.260
day for 10 days, now it's called persistent prayer. You must ask the question, so Jacob,

00:26:59.260 --> 00:27:06.260
is that what you do every day? Don't ask because you won't get the answer you want. This is

00:27:06.580 --> 00:27:13.380
what persistence looks like, guys. Why are we teaching this so that we can learn and

00:27:13.380 --> 00:27:20.380
maybe start practicing it? Yeah. Next one. This one was breaking enemy seed or obstacles.

00:27:20.380 --> 00:27:27.380
The next one is prevailing over satanic or demonic resistance against you. And the next

00:27:50.380 --> 00:27:57.380
one is through prayer. This maybe many of us have partaken in where you know that there's

00:28:08.460 --> 00:28:13.620
a threat that is coming against you. You know that the way you were dismissed from your

00:28:13.620 --> 00:28:19.260
job, there's something about it that isn't right, that isn't even man. It's almost like

00:28:19.300 --> 00:28:24.820
an attack from the enemy. You know that what's happening to your child or your spouse or

00:28:24.820 --> 00:28:31.820
your family who is completely healthy is suddenly so odd, so not from God. You know that some

00:28:31.820 --> 00:28:37.180
mishap or accident or something that blows up that happens suddenly, the very smell of

00:28:37.180 --> 00:28:44.180
it you know it is not God. And that is when the resistance in you should rise up and persistent

00:28:44.540 --> 00:28:50.460
prayer should meet it because it is almost like prevailing over resistance. Someone who

00:28:50.460 --> 00:28:56.100
did this and who modeled it for us in Gethsemane was Jesus to the point where later on in Hebrews

00:28:56.100 --> 00:29:03.100
12 it says you haven't resisted to the point of shedding blood. But there is a resistance

00:29:04.060 --> 00:29:08.780
to evil that only comes with persistent prayer. I'm just saying I rebuke you in the name of

00:29:08.820 --> 00:29:15.820
Jesus Christ. You are no longer in control here. Hallelujah. Great. Sometimes it is enough

00:29:15.900 --> 00:29:21.780
but other times you need to persist. Have you noticed how if a thief enters someone's

00:29:21.780 --> 00:29:27.180
house they don't say in the name of the law and the RCMP please leave now. Hallelujah.

00:29:27.180 --> 00:29:34.180
They don't do that. There's a resistance, there's a persisting, there's a pushing back. We haven't

00:29:34.180 --> 00:29:41.180
learned it so we don't know what persistence looks like. But many times a question that

00:29:41.180 --> 00:29:46.300
one must ask as things go wrong in our lives, don't start connecting the dots to condemn

00:29:46.300 --> 00:29:50.740
yourself but start connecting to the dots to say I have a good God, I have a good father,

00:29:50.740 --> 00:29:54.380
I have a one who protects me. Why is this happening? And oh God if you show me I need

00:29:54.380 --> 00:30:01.380
to resist this, show me how. I'll persist and resist it.

00:30:05.060 --> 00:30:12.060
It's arm wrestling with an opponent that is strong but you know a trick about his elbow.

00:30:16.820 --> 00:30:23.300
This I've done with people, for myself. I've seen amazing victories, amazing victories

00:30:23.300 --> 00:30:30.300
that things turn around within 24 hours, 20 hours, 36 hours where things turn around.

00:30:31.180 --> 00:30:38.180
And many of you have had this experience too. Any questions thus far? Here's the thing,

00:30:41.940 --> 00:30:48.940
Jesus said pray and do not lose heart which means it is a present reality and it also

00:30:50.260 --> 00:30:55.740
means that there is no other way around it. So Jacob does not have a choice in these matters.

00:30:55.740 --> 00:30:59.700
If Jacob is thinking of birthing something new on earth, if Jacob is thinking of prevailing

00:30:59.700 --> 00:31:03.740
over the enemy or breaking through the seed of the enemy, both for himself and for the

00:31:03.740 --> 00:31:10.740
church he passed as, Jacob has no other choice. This one you'll find in Exodus 17, 11 where

00:31:23.300 --> 00:31:28.340
Erin and her, it's a classic example, Moses' hands have to be held up to prevail over the

00:31:28.380 --> 00:31:35.380
enemy. Joshua takes a page from that and in Joshua 8 he does it too. In Joshua 8 verse

00:31:36.660 --> 00:31:42.740
18 and 26 he realizes that as long as he holds out a javelin he'll win. He puts his hand

00:31:42.740 --> 00:31:47.140
down, they lose. So I don't know how many hours they did it man but the guy held a javelin

00:31:47.140 --> 00:31:54.140
for hours on end eh, till the battle was won. Here's another one. Acts chapter 9, verse

00:31:58.900 --> 00:32:05.900
12, 5 and 12 and Esther 4, 16. Persistent prayer is required when you want deliverance from

00:32:05.900 --> 00:32:12.900
persecution. Persecuted churches know this. One of the things persecuted churches do

00:32:12.900 --> 00:32:19.900
most is pray. I met some of the guys who have been to prison and who have been persecuted

00:32:20.900 --> 00:32:27.900
and we have never seen this kind of thing. I met some of the guys who have been to prison

00:32:27.900 --> 00:32:34.900
and who have been persecuted in Vietnam and other places and my God, the amount they pray

00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:42.740
is crazy because they know that out of the 10 that are taken, 7 may return alive if they

00:32:42.780 --> 00:32:49.780
pray and the 3 that may die will die and they will go to heaven and they will be buried

00:32:50.140 --> 00:32:57.140
in the grave. So they know that out of the 10 that are taken, 7 may return alive if they

00:32:57.900 --> 00:33:04.900
will be martyrs among the community but they know that their prayers can save 3 or save

00:33:05.260 --> 00:33:12.260
7. So Acts chapter 12, verse 5 and 12. Peter has now been taken into deep prison and he's

00:33:13.100 --> 00:33:17.940
locked in and they begin to pray. The church gathers in verse 5 and they begin to pray

00:33:17.940 --> 00:33:24.940
and that's at some time in the early day and then it says around 2am that night he is set

00:33:25.540 --> 00:33:30.980
free. The doors start opening. I mean I would have loved to be a fly on the wall, not a

00:33:30.980 --> 00:33:37.980
fly, maybe something else on the wall but just imagine as he approaches the door, the

00:33:38.220 --> 00:33:45.220
door is just open man and then this massive gate, it must have creaked like crazy because

00:33:45.220 --> 00:33:51.900
they didn't have WD-40 then but somehow the blooming thing swings open and Peter walks

00:33:51.900 --> 00:33:57.660
out and his arm must be full of pinch marks because every time he passes a guard he pinches

00:33:57.660 --> 00:34:02.820
himself. It doesn't say so in the Bible, I'm just imagining it. And he finally is free.

00:34:02.820 --> 00:34:08.180
The point being after he gets free he goes to Mary's house where he knows the believers

00:34:08.180 --> 00:34:15.180
are gathered. Guess what they are doing? Still praying. Persecuted churches know the secret.

00:34:16.020 --> 00:34:23.020
Richard Wombrand, I met him once. He would talk about this. Andrew, brother Andrew, God

00:34:29.900 --> 00:34:36.900
smugglers, he would talk about this. The other guy, Tom Hamlin. Tom Hamlin had this amazing

00:34:37.900 --> 00:34:44.900
method of smuggling Bibles into forbidden countries. He would pack them in a suitcase,

00:34:46.700 --> 00:34:50.820
take them with him, it would come on the conveyor belt, a customs guy would come and ask him

00:34:50.820 --> 00:34:57.740
what's in this and he would say Bibles. That's how he smuggled Bibles. He decided that every

00:34:57.740 --> 00:35:03.620
time he takes Bibles into any country he will tell them what it is. And so they'll take

00:35:03.620 --> 00:35:07.940
his luggage and they'll take him and put him in a room where they'll start interrogating

00:35:07.940 --> 00:35:11.660
him. While they're interrogating him along will come someone from the royal family or

00:35:11.660 --> 00:35:15.860
from the ministers family and they'll say hey Tom what are you doing here? Come, come,

00:35:15.860 --> 00:35:20.140
come, come, come. And his suitcase is with the Bible and he will leave. And it happened

00:35:20.140 --> 00:35:26.140
again and again and again till the Middle East was saturated with Bibles. I met these

00:35:26.140 --> 00:35:33.140
guys. I was only 24 or 25. They were my heroes man. Something else. I was a Christian. I

00:35:33.620 --> 00:35:40.620
was a Christian. Another reason we should persist in prayer is found in Genesis 18,

00:35:46.900 --> 00:35:53.900
23 and Deuteronomy 9, 25 where sometimes persistent prayer delivers those who are going to be

00:36:03.660 --> 00:36:10.660
destroyed and it builds a wall of mercy and buys them time to change. This you will do

00:36:28.060 --> 00:36:32.880
if it's someone that you really care about when it's a son, when it's a daughter and

00:36:32.880 --> 00:36:38.320
you know that the lifestyle they're going down is destructive. It's going to end really

00:36:38.320 --> 00:36:45.320
badly. That's when persistent prayer kicks in because this means so much to you. For

00:36:47.800 --> 00:36:54.800
a spouse that's gone astray, for someone whose life is going to be destroyed. You know that

00:36:56.280 --> 00:37:00.380
the wickedness has reached a place where if you don't intervene and pray persistently

00:37:00.380 --> 00:37:03.940
something is going to go wrong and that's when you begin to pray. And as you begin to

00:37:03.940 --> 00:37:10.940
pray God begins to build a wall of mercy around that person. Genesis 18 that's what's happening.

00:37:12.100 --> 00:37:17.820
Abraham is saying to God, God any chance that there are 10. God knows how many there are

00:37:17.820 --> 00:37:23.060
but he's willing to have this conversation with Abraham because he wants to show Abraham,

00:37:23.060 --> 00:37:30.060
listen I'm merciful. Ask for it. Build a wall. Deuteronomy 9, 25. I didn't know that. I didn't

00:37:30.460 --> 00:37:37.460
know this. They've just made a calf and you know what Moses has been doing for 40 days

00:37:37.460 --> 00:37:41.660
and 40 nights. For 40 days and 40 nights he was lying before God and praying mercy for

00:37:41.660 --> 00:37:48.660
the people. How do you do that? How do you lie down before God for 40 days and 40 nights

00:37:49.380 --> 00:37:55.700
and cry out for mercy for the people that have almost stoned Moses a little while ago?

00:37:55.700 --> 00:38:00.860
How do you do that? Man these guys must have had some heart and they didn't have Jesus

00:38:00.860 --> 00:38:07.860
living in them. How do you care for people so much? Crazy. That you will do for sons

00:38:14.740 --> 00:38:21.740
and daughters. I've seen parents. My mom man when my life was heading down a crazy path

00:38:22.740 --> 00:38:26.660
she would fast. She would get other women to fast till some of them said there's no

00:38:26.660 --> 00:38:31.820
point I'm going to stop fasting because they've fasted for too many months. But they are week

00:38:31.820 --> 00:38:36.860
after week after week. When it's your own summon you'll be surprised at how strong

00:38:36.860 --> 00:38:43.860
persistent prayer is. I can't even tell you how many days Madhu has spent praying for

00:38:43.860 --> 00:38:50.860
Dennis. Let's not even go there. Right Dennis? Yeah. Next one. The next reason. These reasons

00:39:04.060 --> 00:39:11.060
now get quite interesting. Isaiah 40 verse 31. Waiting upon God. Waiting upon God. Waiting

00:39:13.860 --> 00:39:20.860
upon God in a matter actually is God's way of renewing your strength. Of giving you firm

00:39:30.460 --> 00:39:37.460
footing. Giving you a song on your lips. And God's way of renewing your strength is to

00:39:44.420 --> 00:39:51.420
give you wings. Causing you to soar. This is the kind of persistent prayer. Isaiah 40

00:39:54.180 --> 00:40:00.900
verse 31 and Psalm 40. This is the kind of prayer where God says hey listen can I invite

00:40:00.900 --> 00:40:05.740
you into persistent prayer because I want to do this for you. And sometimes he tells

00:40:05.740 --> 00:40:12.460
you what he's going to do early. Like he's going to do it in 2028 but he turns up and

00:40:12.460 --> 00:40:19.460
says to you hey Vignesh this is what I want to do for you. And he tells him in 2025. And

00:40:20.260 --> 00:40:25.300
Vignesh on the first day he hears it he thinks hallelujah. But he doesn't realize that the

00:40:25.300 --> 00:40:31.220
hallelujah is good for now but now begins the real journey. Because through this God

00:40:31.220 --> 00:40:36.780
begins to do this. Isaiah 40 verse 31. Day that. Wait upon the Lord. Shall do what? Renew

00:40:36.780 --> 00:40:42.180
their strength. What shall they do? They shall mount up as and begin to climb. With what?

00:40:42.180 --> 00:40:47.260
With wings. Mount up with wings like an eagle. It changes your perspective. It changes your

00:40:47.260 --> 00:40:53.540
radius. It changes what you see. How you think. It brings you to a new place. Psalm 40. I

00:40:53.540 --> 00:40:58.300
waited patiently for the Lord. He turned and heard my cry. He lifted me up from the miry

00:40:58.300 --> 00:41:03.380
clay. He gave me a firm footing on a rock. He put a song on my lips. And he gave me a

00:41:03.380 --> 00:41:10.380
new place to stand. Now many will see. Many will fear. And put their trust in the Lord.

00:41:10.620 --> 00:41:15.540
This is when God is saying hey this kind of persistent prayer I can do without it but

00:41:15.540 --> 00:41:22.540
I just want to change you. What a cool God. I can do without it but I want to change you.

00:41:24.540 --> 00:41:30.780
And if you get it you get this. If you don't get it nothing happens. He will still give

00:41:30.780 --> 00:41:37.780
you what you are supposed to get. There is no loss here. But there is great gain here.

00:41:37.780 --> 00:41:44.780
I want to tell you this. Some of the things that you young people. Please you young people

00:41:45.620 --> 00:41:51.300
sound like oh you young people. No. Some of the things that you wonderful young people

00:41:51.300 --> 00:41:57.340
that we are so privileged to have. That sounded so artificial. Some of the things that you

00:41:57.340 --> 00:42:03.260
young people today benefit is because some of the older ones and me stood for years

00:42:03.260 --> 00:42:09.060
and years when there was absolutely no sign on the horizon. Stood knowing a day will

00:42:09.060 --> 00:42:15.620
come when this church will look like this. And it's absolutely worth it. Not only because

00:42:15.620 --> 00:42:22.620
we see the reward now but because it changed us. Next one is kind of similar. Yep. No not

00:42:22.620 --> 00:42:29.620
really. Wings. Next one. Romans 417. Habakkuk. Two three. And the last one is the same. And

00:42:53.260 --> 00:42:57.260
you know sometimes God will grant you as I was just saying. God grants you a promise

00:42:57.260 --> 00:43:04.260
early. And now that he has given you the promise early it will require waiting for an appointed

00:43:07.940 --> 00:43:14.940
time. And during that time many things will challenge the truth of that promise. The substance

00:43:14.940 --> 00:43:21.940
or the authenticity of that promise will be tested. And you will begin to doubt it

00:43:24.860 --> 00:43:31.860
because too much time is going by. Nothing is happening. Oh man if you can stand on it

00:43:31.860 --> 00:43:36.860
because sometimes too much time is passing. He gave it to you early. It's deliberate.

00:43:36.860 --> 00:43:43.860
He could have told you in 2027 but he told you in 2021. Two years have gone by. Three

00:43:43.900 --> 00:43:46.900
years have gone by. Four years have gone by. And you're thinking to yourself gosh man this

00:43:46.900 --> 00:43:51.900
is not true. People laugh at you. People laugh at you. People laugh at you. People laugh

00:43:51.900 --> 00:43:56.900
at you. People laugh at you. People laugh at you. People laugh at you. People laugh at

00:43:57.120 --> 00:44:04.120
you. And as it begins to happen you think to yourself no. And yet in Habakkuk 2.3 what

00:44:06.780 --> 00:44:13.780
does it say? This vision is for an appointed time. It will not fail. The righteous shall

00:44:13.860 --> 00:44:20.860
live by faith. That's why we need to be successful. And that's why we need to be successful. And

00:44:20.860 --> 00:44:25.460
This vision is for an appointed time. It will not fail the righteous shall live by faith

00:44:27.100 --> 00:44:29.100
In

00:44:29.140 --> 00:44:33.500
Romans 4 17 what does it say 25 30 years have passed by and now

00:44:34.060 --> 00:44:37.060
Abraham is at a place where he's saying I did not waver

00:44:37.420 --> 00:44:42.280
But as time passed I began to glorify God even though I knew my body was important

00:44:42.280 --> 00:44:46.360
I began to glorify God because I was fully convinced that what God had said he would do

00:44:47.120 --> 00:44:52.140
This is when God gives you something early so that you can wait for the appointed time

00:44:52.140 --> 00:44:59.520
But in the waiting for the appointed time everything about that promise will be shaken the reason for persistent prayer here is to prove

00:45:00.080 --> 00:45:05.320
Your faithfulness and reliance upon him who is always faithful

00:45:10.640 --> 00:45:12.640
Some make it through

00:45:16.360 --> 00:45:18.360
James

00:45:25.480 --> 00:45:33.280
Chapter 1 verse 4 says that these kind of testings where you persist and you don't see a result yet

00:45:35.240 --> 00:45:37.240
These kind of testings mature you

00:45:42.920 --> 00:45:44.920
It matures you

00:45:45.800 --> 00:45:50.600
Beautiful a and this will allow you to prepare the younger ones

00:45:53.040 --> 00:45:55.560
Guys as each generation

00:45:56.880 --> 00:46:03.720
Continues know that you're going to meet generations that are more and more instant generations than you can imagine

00:46:08.120 --> 00:46:10.280
Everything at just

00:46:11.280 --> 00:46:15.000
One one button you press and you get what you want at that time

00:46:15.480 --> 00:46:20.440
You have to remember Jesus's words when I come to the earth will I find anyone?

00:46:21.800 --> 00:46:23.080
with faith

00:46:23.080 --> 00:46:25.720
Why because faith requires persistence?

00:46:26.600 --> 00:46:31.920
Will I find anyone with faith part of the reason you may not find anyone with faith is because everything is instant

00:46:31.920 --> 00:46:35.800
If you don't get it instant you do not know how to persist you just don't know

00:46:35.960 --> 00:46:40.840
Yesterday I was writing down two columns of people someone was writing down two columns of people

00:46:40.840 --> 00:46:44.840
And I gave it to the summon to do it because I thought this will take forever to arrange it

00:46:45.160 --> 00:46:50.040
And then and someone did something with chat GPT and they pressed a button and everything came out beautiful

00:46:50.040 --> 00:46:52.040
I'm thinking of myself

00:46:55.000 --> 00:46:58.200
That's the generation we live in persistence patience

00:46:59.240 --> 00:47:01.240
Why would you have that?

00:47:01.320 --> 00:47:05.960
As the older ones walk this they will be able to teach the younger ones the way to live

00:47:10.040 --> 00:47:16.280
So these are the reasons Jesus asks that we persist in prayer not lose heart

00:47:16.280 --> 00:47:22.520
Some of the critical factors we'll go as far as we can go and then stop some of the critical critical factors for persistence

00:47:23.160 --> 00:47:24.760
one

00:47:24.760 --> 00:47:26.760
Persistence is the most important thing

00:47:27.160 --> 00:47:30.680
Some of the critical critical factors for persistence one

00:47:32.840 --> 00:47:39.240
Is your prayer an abstract activity outside you

00:47:46.280 --> 00:47:51.000
Or does it carry

00:47:53.320 --> 00:47:55.320
The urgency

00:47:56.040 --> 00:47:58.040
Of heart

00:48:00.040 --> 00:48:06.280
I want to say that often unless it's something that deeply involves me and it's

00:48:08.520 --> 00:48:11.160
Important to me unless it is about

00:48:11.800 --> 00:48:19.480
Something that's happening with you or with your life or with the church that's deeply important to me often prayer becomes an outside abstract activity

00:48:19.720 --> 00:48:22.520
Oh father dish salty needs a job

00:48:22.520 --> 00:48:25.720
So in the name of Jesus Christ I just pray father that out of the goodness of your heart

00:48:26.040 --> 00:48:28.760
And you would give the shawlty a job that he likes hallelujah. Amen

00:48:29.960 --> 00:48:31.960
that

00:48:32.040 --> 00:48:35.320
Is not how the shawlty prays for a job

00:48:38.760 --> 00:48:40.760
When he prays for himself

00:48:43.080 --> 00:48:45.080
So some of these are the critical

00:48:45.640 --> 00:48:50.600
Requirements for persistent prayer is it an abstract activity outside of you or is it

00:48:52.920 --> 00:48:59.160
An urgency of heart and I want to say to the you say this to you you can't take on too much to pray

00:49:02.200 --> 00:49:04.200
Don't

00:49:05.560 --> 00:49:10.120
When someone comes and asks me i'll say I hope I remember

00:49:10.440 --> 00:49:12.920
Because there's a great likelihood that I won't

00:49:13.480 --> 00:49:19.480
Unless I write it down. So do not take on too much friend. Don't don't don't don't it doesn't work

00:49:19.480 --> 00:49:21.480
You will not be able to pray

00:49:22.040 --> 00:49:25.960
From the urgency of heart take what you can and then move on to the next one

00:49:27.080 --> 00:49:29.080
Any questions on that one?

00:49:30.920 --> 00:49:33.800
These are the requirements for persistent prayer

00:49:40.920 --> 00:49:42.920
At some point when

00:49:43.480 --> 00:49:45.480
Don and kazia share their story

00:49:45.480 --> 00:49:47.560
You'll hear about how they were praying for aliyah kim

00:49:47.720 --> 00:49:52.600
I remember him asking me to pray for him and I prayed but my god I'd have loved to hear how they prayed and how

00:49:52.680 --> 00:49:55.320
I prayed it had been completely different because it's a matter of the

00:49:56.040 --> 00:49:57.400
heart

00:49:57.400 --> 00:49:59.400
next one

00:50:02.200 --> 00:50:05.340
More than the content of the prayer more than the content of the prayer

00:50:10.600 --> 00:50:12.600
Are you aware

00:50:14.600 --> 00:50:18.600
Of the nature of the one you're praying to

00:50:26.760 --> 00:50:29.000
Are you aware of the nature of the one you're praying to

00:50:31.160 --> 00:50:35.880
Remember guys jesus has earned for you both the place

00:50:36.840 --> 00:50:38.840
And the right to be heard

00:50:38.920 --> 00:50:46.040
Jesus has earned for you every time you pray jesus has earned for you both the place hebrus 4 16

00:50:46.280 --> 00:50:49.240
Now we can approach the throne of grace boldly

00:50:49.880 --> 00:50:50.920
and

00:50:50.920 --> 00:50:52.920
Have what we need from him

00:50:53.080 --> 00:50:59.400
He has earned for you and for me both the place and the right to be heard

00:50:59.880 --> 00:51:01.480
John 16 verse 26

00:51:01.560 --> 00:51:04.920
I love what jesus says if you read it from the message he puts it this way

00:51:05.080 --> 00:51:09.640
You don't even need to come and ask me you can ask the father directly. He'll speak to you directly

00:51:09.640 --> 00:51:12.040
You don't have to go through me. That's what jesus says

00:51:13.140 --> 00:51:15.320
beautifully

00:51:15.320 --> 00:51:18.680
And so are you aware john 16 verse 26 and 27 berri

00:51:21.880 --> 00:51:23.880
And the first one is hebrus 4 16

00:51:25.320 --> 00:51:27.320
So

00:51:27.960 --> 00:51:29.960
Are you aware

00:51:29.960 --> 00:51:31.400
you know

00:51:32.200 --> 00:51:35.000
We don't think much of it, but imagine the 12 disciples

00:51:35.720 --> 00:51:38.040
They've always only known yave

00:51:39.320 --> 00:51:41.320
Jehovah god

00:51:41.480 --> 00:51:47.160
They they don't take his name and then along comes jesus and they go to him in matthew 11 and they say hey jesus

00:51:47.480 --> 00:51:49.480
Can you teach us how to pray?

00:51:50.760 --> 00:51:55.560
And he says our father it must have freaked them out

00:51:57.160 --> 00:51:59.160
Because they know he's a messiah

00:51:59.320 --> 00:52:01.320
They know he's the most high god

00:52:01.640 --> 00:52:02.600
but he's

00:52:02.600 --> 00:52:05.080
Teaching them how to pray and he's

00:52:06.840 --> 00:52:11.160
Telling them listen call yave our father

00:52:13.240 --> 00:52:16.280
And and he would have said it differently he'd say go say

00:52:18.840 --> 00:52:21.000
I must have blown their minds because they've heard him call him

00:52:22.520 --> 00:52:24.840
And they're thinking to myself themselves. Oh shucks

00:52:25.640 --> 00:52:28.760
He wants us to have the same intimacy that he has with his father

00:52:29.240 --> 00:52:33.320
For us it's become too common but imagine what we're doing in persistent prayer

00:52:33.480 --> 00:52:39.800
We're going saying the same thing the same affectionate intimate term that jesus used to use we're using the term abba

00:52:44.760 --> 00:52:49.960
And if you actually ponder that for a second you will not be able to pull away from the goodness

00:52:52.280 --> 00:52:54.280
To splendor

00:52:55.160 --> 00:52:57.160
The nearness

00:52:57.880 --> 00:52:59.880
Of this god

00:53:04.920 --> 00:53:07.960
Abba same words that he used to use

00:53:09.480 --> 00:53:11.800
So when they heard our father

00:53:12.600 --> 00:53:17.320
Who art in heaven they understand who art in heaven hallowed be their name very well. They know that better than us

00:53:17.880 --> 00:53:19.880
But they don't understand abba

00:53:20.840 --> 00:53:22.840
So beautiful

00:53:23.800 --> 00:53:29.080
So more than content are you aware these are the requirements for persistent prayer because very often guys

00:53:31.220 --> 00:53:33.220
Resentment

00:53:33.320 --> 00:53:35.320
Creeps in

00:53:36.120 --> 00:53:38.120
With time

00:53:38.920 --> 00:53:41.800
I have experienced this where i'm trusting god for something

00:53:41.880 --> 00:53:45.880
It's been four years five years six years and now some days I get up and I think to myself

00:53:46.200 --> 00:53:49.800
Is this ever going to happen resentment creeps in with time?

00:53:50.600 --> 00:53:54.120
And when resentment creeps in resentment cripples persistence

00:53:56.600 --> 00:54:03.100
And that is when you have to go back to this word abba and it'll take you back to the goodness

00:54:05.300 --> 00:54:07.300
Nearness

00:54:07.940 --> 00:54:10.940
Splendor I don't know why i'm writing in that small space

00:54:10.940 --> 00:54:12.940
Resentment

00:54:21.260 --> 00:54:23.100
Is caused

00:54:23.100 --> 00:54:25.100
by time passing

00:54:25.400 --> 00:54:27.660
resentment cripples persistence

00:54:28.300 --> 00:54:34.380
And throws a shroud on the face of god. It becomes very hard to persist in prayer

00:54:34.860 --> 00:54:40.700
Who is a person that you feel resentful towards and can't even express your resentment

00:54:40.940 --> 00:54:42.940
because

00:54:43.900 --> 00:54:46.700
Recently something like this happened where I was feeling resentful

00:54:47.260 --> 00:54:51.580
about something that has been taking too long and I don't have the confidence and I

00:54:52.140 --> 00:54:55.500
don't know what to do and I was feeling pretty lousy about this thing that

00:54:57.180 --> 00:55:02.140
I was feeling so down that I was going telling her. I don't know you said this i'm not too sure and I

00:55:02.380 --> 00:55:04.380
I was doing my usual morning

00:55:04.460 --> 00:55:06.460
and

00:55:06.700 --> 00:55:09.900
Then it came to my daily reading and my reading for that day was

00:55:10.620 --> 00:55:17.100
Job 15 verse 11 to 13 job 15. Let me read to you job 15 11 to 13 from

00:55:17.900 --> 00:55:19.820
uh the message

00:55:19.820 --> 00:55:21.980
Even in my misery god is kind

00:55:22.700 --> 00:55:25.740
And here's what it says are god's promises not enough for you

00:55:26.460 --> 00:55:28.460
One day spoken so gently and tenderly

00:55:29.260 --> 00:55:32.540
Why do you let your emotions take over lashing out and spitting fire?

00:55:32.940 --> 00:55:36.460
Pitting your whole being against god by letting words like this come out of your mouth

00:55:36.460 --> 00:55:45.280
Resentment develops as time kicks in and things are not happening resentment cripples persistence

00:55:52.380 --> 00:55:58.940
And if you ever get resentful it's job 15 11 to 13 from the message it should set you right

00:55:59.820 --> 00:56:02.540
Okay at 6 30. We haven't gotten too far. So

00:56:02.620 --> 00:56:03.820
So

00:56:03.820 --> 00:56:07.820
We'll do the rest later two more points that you can write down

00:56:08.860 --> 00:56:10.860
one

00:56:12.140 --> 00:56:19.260
When it comes to critical factors or persistence the help of the spirit you have the help of the spirit when you're struggling

00:56:20.520 --> 00:56:22.520
persistence

00:56:23.660 --> 00:56:25.660
Is helped

00:56:26.300 --> 00:56:28.300
By the spirit

00:56:29.900 --> 00:56:31.900
When you're at loss

00:56:32.780 --> 00:56:34.780
For words

00:56:35.660 --> 00:56:37.660
For words

00:56:38.140 --> 00:56:40.140
And thoughts

00:56:40.460 --> 00:56:42.460
Romans 8 26

00:56:43.980 --> 00:56:48.540
When you do not know what to say when you reach the end of the words you have when you don't even know how to form

00:56:48.540 --> 00:56:53.660
Your thoughts thoughts then romans 8 26 says the spirit will still begin to present

00:56:54.140 --> 00:56:59.740
Your thoughts and your grow and your prayers to god through groanings through

00:57:00.540 --> 00:57:05.100
Moaning through weeping inside you he'll still present it before god jacob

00:57:06.220 --> 00:57:08.220
Even though you're not using words and thoughts

00:57:08.380 --> 00:57:10.380
And so sometimes when you get to that point

00:57:10.380 --> 00:57:16.380
When you don't know how to pray anymore and you know that you have to stay with it to see what needs to happen happen

00:57:16.700 --> 00:57:21.500
Then begin to fall back and say spirit of god would you take over sometimes tongues may work

00:57:21.580 --> 00:57:25.100
Sometimes you don't even feel like speaking in tongues because it doesn't make any sense to you

00:57:25.260 --> 00:57:28.220
Well, then go into those places where you begin to groan

00:57:28.860 --> 00:57:30.860
Read romans 8 26

00:57:31.020 --> 00:57:33.020
Romans 8 26

00:57:35.580 --> 00:57:38.240
Romans 8 26

00:57:41.660 --> 00:57:45.420
Meanwhile the moment we get tired in the waiting or in persisting

00:57:45.740 --> 00:57:51.260
God's spirit is right alongside helping us along if we don't know how or what to pray. It doesn't matter

00:57:51.500 --> 00:57:57.980
He does our praying in and for us making prayer out of wordless sighs and aching groans

00:57:58.700 --> 00:58:00.620
Come on, man

00:58:00.620 --> 00:58:02.620
Lean back on him

00:58:02.620 --> 00:58:05.420
You know, we trust the spirit, but we don't trust the work of the spirit

00:58:06.620 --> 00:58:08.300
There's a difference

00:58:08.300 --> 00:58:10.300
Trust the work of the spirit

00:58:11.660 --> 00:58:17.340
He's not a standby as in a spare tire he's a standby as in you can't stand so please stand by

00:58:19.580 --> 00:58:21.580
That's not scriptural but made sense

00:58:21.580 --> 00:58:23.580
Yeah

00:58:26.780 --> 00:58:29.020
Persistence is helped by

00:58:30.700 --> 00:58:35.260
Persistence is helped by other friends

00:58:37.340 --> 00:58:39.340
Who hold me up

00:58:43.020 --> 00:58:47.260
You can ask some of the guys here during covet when things were

00:58:47.980 --> 00:58:54.620
Um all shut down i'd actually taken another place to meet where some of the leaders used to come

00:58:54.940 --> 00:58:56.940
And we would sit there and pray

00:58:57.340 --> 00:58:59.340
Just sit there and pray

00:59:00.780 --> 00:59:06.780
Because when you don't know how to stand and pray and you call two or three others persistence becomes easy

00:59:08.140 --> 00:59:10.140
Read ecclesiastes 4 12

00:59:10.380 --> 00:59:12.380
Hey judah, what are you doing here man?

00:59:12.520 --> 00:59:14.520
Ecclesiastes 4 12

00:59:14.520 --> 00:59:16.520
Ecclesiastes 4 12

00:59:17.260 --> 00:59:19.260
Ecclesiastes 4 12

00:59:23.820 --> 00:59:25.820
Starting at verse 10

00:59:27.180 --> 00:59:31.900
Verse 9 it's better to have a partner than go it alone share the work share the wealth

00:59:32.540 --> 00:59:37.260
And if one falls down there are other helps but there was if there's no one to help tough

00:59:37.820 --> 00:59:41.020
Two in a bed warm each other alone you shiver all night

00:59:41.500 --> 00:59:45.260
By yourself, you're unprotected with a friend. You can face the worst

00:59:45.500 --> 00:59:49.420
Can you round up a third a three-stranded rope isn't easily snapped

00:59:51.820 --> 00:59:53.820
One of the mistakes

00:59:54.060 --> 00:59:56.060
We make is

00:59:56.060 --> 00:59:58.060
either because of shame

00:59:58.060 --> 00:59:59.900
or because we

00:59:59.900 --> 01:00:03.660
Don't want to share some of the deep difficult things in our lives

01:00:04.300 --> 01:00:08.300
We end up having to carry our burdens alone with jesus

01:00:09.260 --> 01:00:13.100
jesus can carry them, but he also put others in your life so that

01:00:15.740 --> 01:00:17.420
You could spread

01:00:17.420 --> 01:00:24.060
Your burdens to them and when you don't and you go into independent mode either because you think oh no

01:00:24.300 --> 01:00:26.300
I don't want to burden them. These are my own

01:00:27.180 --> 01:00:30.140
Independent problems or this is too shameful. No man

01:00:32.700 --> 01:00:35.980
I refuse to do that. I refuse to be a private person

01:00:37.100 --> 01:00:39.420
There are certain areas of my life that will be private

01:00:39.740 --> 01:00:45.660
But if my problems are private then how in the world can you publicly display a god at work?

01:00:50.940 --> 01:00:53.900
One of the qualities of leadership is to live a public life

01:00:54.620 --> 01:01:01.920
A life that can be seen in its flaws falls falls and then in its rising fixing restoring and rescuing

01:01:10.380 --> 01:01:15.900
Otherwise it becomes pretend right you only show people your good side. I think it's my left side. Sorry

01:01:17.980 --> 01:01:22.940
No, it's my right side because most photographs I stand like this because I think I look thinner if I stand like this

01:01:23.980 --> 01:01:25.180
Yeah

01:01:25.180 --> 01:01:28.700
No, it's my it's my left side because there's more hair here than here

01:01:30.460 --> 01:01:32.460
I don't know it gets confusing

01:01:33.500 --> 01:01:35.500
Plus in the photograph it reverses anyways

01:01:36.460 --> 01:01:40.540
Ah she's you're listening right? Okay

01:01:43.340 --> 01:01:45.340
Last point

01:01:47.500 --> 01:01:52.700
If you want to persist in prayer you have to overcome mental drift

01:01:57.100 --> 01:02:01.660
Mental drift is when you start praying for something and

01:02:01.660 --> 01:02:03.660
Your mind just drifts

01:02:05.740 --> 01:02:12.220
Mental drift this was not a problem in the ancient days. This is a recent problem

01:02:14.380 --> 01:02:21.660
And so the only solution for mental drift is to take your phone and put it somewhere far away

01:02:23.020 --> 01:02:25.580
Where you'll have to get up and walk and get it

01:02:25.580 --> 01:02:30.140
The reason we don't put our phones away is because but I read my bible on my phone

01:02:30.380 --> 01:02:35.500
And I make notes on my phone and if I want to google the meaning of something I have to look at my phone

01:02:36.060 --> 01:02:43.100
But I also have to answer the whatsapp by Remy the instagram by Sheldon the facebook by Dilna

01:02:45.820 --> 01:02:50.060
And check on the weather and what's happening with I don't know who

01:02:50.060 --> 01:02:52.060
Yes

01:02:52.380 --> 01:02:56.140
Mental drift is a serious threat to persistence

01:02:56.860 --> 01:02:59.980
We'll do the rest later. Mental drift is not

01:03:00.620 --> 01:03:03.660
Overcomeable except if you put your phone

01:03:04.380 --> 01:03:06.700
Sufficiently far away if you have a recliner

01:03:07.180 --> 01:03:10.540
Then it's even better because then you put your phone and you put it up

01:03:11.020 --> 01:03:13.020
To put it down and go get the phone is so

01:03:13.740 --> 01:03:19.820
Very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very

01:03:20.140 --> 01:03:22.140
Difficult that you will stay without your phone

01:03:26.300 --> 01:03:28.300
Surprisingly this is a serious problem

01:03:33.100 --> 01:03:35.100
Let's pray

01:03:37.740 --> 01:03:43.420
The good thing about peace meningitis we'll get 15 minutes more for a break. Yeah

01:03:45.660 --> 01:03:47.660
So father

01:03:50.460 --> 01:03:57.900
Can you teach me to engage in some persistent prayer this week?

01:04:04.220 --> 01:04:06.940
For someone who's a pastor of a church it ain't good enough

01:04:09.180 --> 01:04:14.940
For someone who belongs to a church where things are being birthed that I knew that will affect the earth

01:04:15.500 --> 01:04:22.700
For a church that has to battle powers in certain places if progress is to be made

01:04:24.220 --> 01:04:28.540
Then it ain't good enough in my life and it ain't good enough

01:04:29.660 --> 01:04:31.980
In the life of the leaders in this church and in the church

01:04:33.820 --> 01:04:40.460
So this week could you begin the process of teaching all of us and me

01:04:42.140 --> 01:04:44.140
How to persist in prayer

01:04:45.260 --> 01:04:52.140
Some of it can be our own personal needs some of it can be a deep need in someone's life that we are aware of

01:04:54.060 --> 01:04:58.540
Some of it can be for the things that this church is engaged in

01:04:59.980 --> 01:05:04.860
You're saying pick what you want pick what you want. It doesn't have to be about church and kingdom

01:05:05.020 --> 01:05:07.020
It can be your own personal need

01:05:07.180 --> 01:05:10.940
But can you go dig out promises and can you come and stay with me?

01:05:11.740 --> 01:05:13.740
Can you pick one of these points?

01:05:14.700 --> 01:05:20.700
The last few are so interesting they're all about you even though you're the time you're the one i'm inviting to persist in prayer

01:05:20.700 --> 01:05:22.700
It's about you

01:05:23.900 --> 01:05:28.700
Jesus please help us practice this it's an important step in our journey

01:05:30.460 --> 01:05:32.460
Please help us practice this

01:05:35.180 --> 01:05:39.740
And over the next three weeks we just want to bless this church may this church prosper

01:05:39.980 --> 01:05:42.140
We've been here for almost two years

01:05:43.420 --> 01:05:49.260
And i've enjoyed it my thank you that you opened up a new space for us, but we bless forest city church

01:05:49.980 --> 01:05:56.380
And pray that this church may know what you want for them and may step into it with boldness and the

01:05:57.660 --> 01:06:01.900
The rental that we leave now that others will come and help them with

01:06:02.620 --> 01:06:07.260
Payments and stuff like that. So we bless this church. We thank you for peace men and night in advance

01:06:07.260 --> 01:06:09.740
They're very kind about they open the church and they're giving it to us for less too

01:06:10.620 --> 01:06:13.420
So we are grateful for how you keep opening doors

01:06:14.220 --> 01:06:17.420
This church has always been one that never pitches tent

01:06:18.460 --> 01:06:25.900
But keeps moving and builds altars. So we bless you. It's been great spending time with you as a group in jesus name

01:06:37.260 --> 01:06:40.220
You