July 5,2020

Thought: “Let Us Pray With An Attitude of Gratitude In God’s Liberty” 
Scripture: 1 Timothy 2 : 1-6
Background: As we continue in our series,  Don’t Give Up On God  last week we shared on Living in God’s Presence and the importance of acknowledging God’s presence, being mindful of our activity in God’s presence and finally our acceptance of God’s presence. But what is our attitude towards the liberty and freedom that Jesus secured for us on Calvary’s Cross! This weekend many have celebrated Independence Day or what we call the 4th of July. The celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.
A Declaration that proclaimed to the world our separation from Great Britain and our  emergence as a new sovereign nation. The United States of America, the freest, most creative, productive, and richest nation in the history of mankind. The very attributes which are in question today especially in light of our current government status and the state of affairs in the world today. 
This signed Declaration which clearly spelled out the purpose of government, which was to secure our God-given unalienable rights and begin the end of slavery.  A Declaration which was to serve as the basis on which slavery would finally be abolished in the United States. Unfortunately this seems to be a set of principles which has failed the minority race as a standard and minimized the opportunity for the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
But for the Christian, the battle was fought 2,000 years ago at a place called Golgatha on Calvary’s Cross and we can thank God for Jesus Christ, the one who declared our independence giving us the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in fellowship with the Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. The very reason prompting us to do as our lesson incites today to “Let Us Pray With An Attitude of Gratitude In God’s Liberty” 
 
We are going to examine one point on today:
Prayer is……
#1: Communicating with God through conversation making our requests known out of faith that as long as it is according to God’s will whatever we ask will be done. 
Luke 11:9-10 9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”
 
#2: Believing that prayer is the key that unlocks the door to receive the blessings that God has stored up in heaven for you to meet your needs.  Phil. 4:19: “ And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”
 
#3: Going into your secret closet, your holy ground and into the very presence of God with the right attitude. Humbly bowing down to God with an unselfish heart and an open mind, taking off self and having our heart and mind focused on God and what His Son, Jesus Christ bore for us on the cross. Exodus 3:5: 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
 
#4: Rejoicing in God with thanksgiving for every blessing that he has bestowed upon us with moderation and admiration. Praising God because He is so worthy of the praise.
Phil. 4:4-7: 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
 
#5: Worshipping God in all that you do and say with your whole being becoming a living sacrifice in your prayer life. Romans 12:1: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
#6: Confessing your sins in confidence to God and knowing that God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness! The same God Elijah prayed to then is the same God we pray to today under the anointing that breaks and destroys the yoke that Satan  James 5:16-17: 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.17 Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 
            
#7: Powerful as a tool in pulling down the strongholds in our life, our family’s life and for others who we stand in the gap for. It is our weapon God has given us to tear down and destroy the strongholds that Satan has so strategically blinded us into believing we are supposed to stay stuck in. 2 Corinthians 10: 3-5 says, “ For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
 
CONCLUSION:
So in closing, 
Prayer is… Praising God for your past, Seeking God in your present and Expecting to see the Power of God more in your future. So “Let Us Pray With An Attitude of Gratitude In God’s Liberty” for it was our liberty that was bought by the blood of the lamb on that old rugged cross. I Thessalonians 5:16 says: 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Amen