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FREEDOMINTRODUCTION: TURN TO LUKE 6 This week is prayer week Prayer Week Guides are available today or you can download themfrom our website just click on the Prayer Week photo There are instructions on what to pray for each day and how to fast, ifthe Lord is leading you to fast with us this week. This week we will have pray everyday from 7 – 7:30 am at our newoffices except Tuesday the men will be praying at IHOP. Wednesday night we have a special Afterglo service that Roger Charlesand I will be leading. Pastor Chuck began the Afterglo services to provides a place for thosewho desired to grow in their use of spiritual gifts or who desired prayerafter a study where the Lord was ministering to them We will have some special guests coming to lead us in worship andminister to us so if you desire to be used supernaturally by God, Iencourage you to come. Today we are praying for the Church let’s take a moment and pray forthe local churches in San Clemente also pray for the CUP processToday I want to look at EFFECTIVE PRAYERIn his book, Effective Prayer Life, Chuck Smith writes Prayer is the most important activity a born-again Christian can engage in.It should head your list of priorities, for certainly the world around usdesperately needs prayer. Prayer will open the door for God to do aglorious work in these last days. Prayer will stem the tide of evil. Prayer is the means by which God works it is how things get doneThat’s why Jesus taught His disciples to prayThat’s why Paul says to pray without ceasingThe power of God is released through prayerRA Torrey said When the devil sees a man or woman who really believes in prayer, whoknows how to pray and how really does pray and above all when he sees awhole church on its face before God in prayer, he trembles as much as heever did, for he knows that his day in that church or community is at anend.EFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

FREEDOM Since this is prayer week, I thought it best to take a break from ourregularly scheduled programming and talk about how to have aneffective prayer lifeThe first key to an effective prayer life is to have a place to prayMatthew 6:5–6 (NKJV)5“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they loveto pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, thatthey may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.6But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut yourdoor, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father whosees in secret will reward you openly.Jesus said to have a place to pray What is the significance of having a place to pray? There is something that happens to you when you set up a place to pray It gives prayer a physical place in your life It gives prayer a real presence in your lifeEX: How many of you have seen the movie War Room. The plot of themovie revolves around the idea of setting up a place to pray they call ittheir War Room. In their war room they put their prayer requests on thewall, scriptures God has given them and it becomes a place of prayer. One of the reasons for prayerlessness is we haven’t made any place forprayer in our lives For me it’s my desk I have my prayer list that I pray through withdirections I’ve received from the Lord When I would travel on the road, my place of prayer was my car and Iwould turn off the radio and pray Whatever it is for you, it’s important that you make a place for prayerThe second key to an effective prayer life is to pray intelligentlyMatthew 6:7–8 (NKJV)7And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. Forthey think that they will be heard for their many words.EFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

FREEDOM“Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things youhave need of before you ask Him.8 The difference between the believer and the unbeliever is the unbelieverprays from a place of ignorance, but the Christian prays from a place ofunderstanding The unbeliever doesn’t know who to pray to and they don’t know if theirprayers are heard, they’re ignorant The believer knows the Father and the believer knows that He alreadyknows what we need before we ask For us this gives us a great sense of awareness that our prayers arebeing heard and answered by the Father Now this gives me an advantage in prayer I am not to pray emptywords, faithless words, repetitive words Rather I am to pray intelligently because God knows and He hearsThe third key to an effective prayer life is to begin with worshipMatthew 6:9 (NKJV)9In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Yourname. Notice Jesus begins with a statement of worship Holy is Your name I begin my times of prayer with worship because worship re-focuses myperspective It reminds me of who I am and who God isIn Isaiah 6, Isaiah sees the Lord as He truly is high and lifted up The train of His robe, representing His glory and splendor, filled theTemple in Jerusalem There are seraphim, these incredible creatures with 6 wings and theyare shouting to each other Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts The whole earth is full of His glory What a perspective to pray from this God of power and might When I begin with worship it gives me the right perspective of God I always begin with praise and thanksgiving when I pray I thank God for what He’s done, for what He’s doing and what He’spromised to doEFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

FREEDOMThe fourth key to effective prayer is pray for God’s will to be doneMatthew 6:10 (NKJV)10Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. This doesn’t mean I end every prayer with if it be thy will This means I need to know what God’s will is How can I pray God’s will if I don’t know what it is?The primary way I can know God’s will is through His Word1 Samuel 3:21 (NKJV)21Then the LORD appeared again in Shiloh. For the LORD revealed Himselfto Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD. Now in Samuel’s day, they didn’t have a Bible, but we doThis Bible isn’t just a book about God, the Bible is the Word of the LordIt is God speaking to us and something I often do is pray the scripturesBut there is another way to pray God’s will perfectlyRomans 8:26 (NKJV)26Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not knowwhat we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makesintercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. When I don’t know how to pray, I pray in tongues Sometimes I just go straight to tongues because I don’t know how topray but the Spirit does If God has given me a way to pray His will 100% of the time, whywouldn’t I use it?The fifth key to an effective prayer life is to askMatthew 6:11 (NKJV)11Give us this day our daily bread. This is called supplication or petition when I ask God for something Jesus said to ask God to provide, to give our daily bread I believe we shouldn’t feel bad about asking God for things in fact,Paul says in Philippians 4:6 to ask God for everything It doesn’t mean I’m going to get itEFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

FREEDOM There are prayers God can’t answer God can’t your prayer when you pray Lord take away my kid’saddiction because your kid has a free will and God can’t violate free will But God can bind the spiritual darkness that is blinding your kid fromreceiving the truth about Jesus and so that’s the prayer I pray Often people pray prayers God can’t answer and then resent God for notanswering their prayer God you didn’t do what I asked as if God is a vending machine What I find is where there is another person’s will involved, God won’tviolate that person’s free will even if I pray for it James 4:3 says you ask and receive not because you ask amiss – forthe wrong thing it’s important to ask according to what God doesThe sixth key to an effective prayer life is to forgiveMatthew 6:12 (NKJV)12And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. I wonder how many of our prayers are hindered because ofunforgiveness? We know in 1 Peter 3:7 husbands are instructed to live with your wivesand treat them respect so that nothing will hinder your prayers In Matthew 18 Jesus gives the parable of the unforgiving servant andteaches us how unforgiveness results in emotional and mental torture In fact Jesus says if you have unforgiveness, get up from your place ofprayer and deal with it It’s been said that unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expectingthe person you hate to die When you are unforgiving, you will doubt God’s love for you and you willbe resentful towards anyone else who gets their prayers answeredinstead of you why didn’t you answer my prayers?Forgiveness releases us from judgment and condemnationMatthew 6:14–15 (NKJV)14“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will alsoforgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither willyour Father forgive your trespasses.EFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

FREEDOMThe seventh key to an effective prayer life is to be awareMatthew 6:13 (NKJV)13And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. ForYours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.We need to be aware of the fact that we are in a spiritual battle Paul said we wrestle not against flesh and blood but principalities,powers, rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness inhigh places So Jesus says, pray that you’re not led into temptation This can also be translated don’t let me be led into a surprise attack thattempts me to sin, rather deliver me when I’m attacked by the evil one When I am aware that the evil one is the one attacking me or attackingsomeone I love, then when they do something that offends me I won’tallow myself to react in a way that causes me to sin. I won’t retaliate with slander or unforgiveness I won’t react with jealousy or anger I won’t seek revenge through character assassination but I will respondin love As a leader of a church, that doesn’t mean I won’t protect the flock fromdivisive people as Paul did in Corinth and Galatia as led by the Spirit But it does mean I won’t allow myself to be personally drawn in so Ineed to be aware of who the real enemy is My brother is not my enemy, my brother is my brotherThere is one other type of prayer I want to mention It’s the prayer that I pray on behalf of someone else it’s calledintercessory prayer Intercessory prayer is when I ask God to lead me as I pray for the needsof others This week as we pray make sure you begin with worship, get the rightperspective Then ask the Lord to give you His heart in prayer Then pray as the Spirit leads write down what the Lord shows you Write down things you are praying for If the Lord gives you scriptures or a word of encouragement forsomeone give it to them let’s see what the Lord will do this weekEFFECTIVE PRAYER / PRAYER WEEK 2017 Holland Davis

glorious work in these last days. Prayer will stem the tide of evil. Prayer is the means by which God works it is how things get done That’s why Jesus taught His disciples to pray That’s why