More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
Read between
January 19 - February 28, 2025
I can do all things26 through Christ who strengthens me. In all things God works27 for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Maybe we need to quit letting our circumstances get between us and God and let God get between us and our circumstances.
The church belongs to Jesus Christ. So does the battle. So does the victory.
That is where the battle is won or lost — on our knees! And when we hit our knees, God fights our battles for us.
there will always be pharaohs who get in the way of what God wants to do in your life.
I learned that we don’t have to be afraid of the enemy’s attacks. These attacks are counterproductive when we counteract them with prayer. The more opposition we experience, the harder we have to pray. And the harder we have to pray, the more miracles God does.
Quit talking to God about your problem and start talking to your problem about God.
Contend for me, my God and Lord. PSALM 35:23
Prayer is the way we let go and let God. Prayer is the way we take our hands off and let God put His hands on. Prayer is the difference between you fighting for God and God fighting for you.
I made a determination a few years ago that I wasn’t going to defend myself against any and every criticism that comes my way. Life is too short, and the mission is too important. And I’m called to play offense, not defense. God is my defender. And I believe He is contending for me if my cause is just and my heart is right.
When discerning whether to respond to criticism, I try to discern the spirit of the person doing the criticizing. Is the purpose redemptive or vindictive? And I put the criticism through the filter of Scripture. If it passes through the filter, then I need to repent. If it doesn’t, then I don’t let it pierce my heart. And I let God defend and contend on my behalf.
And you can live with holy confidence, knowing that when God is contending for your cause, your cause is destined to succeed. This doesn’t mean there won’t be setbacks and sacrifices along the way; it just means the war has already been won.
Prayer is the difference between you fighting for God and God fighting for you.
“The wind blows wherever it pleases.” JOHN 3:8
“You do not have33 because you do not ask God.” If we don’t ask, God can’t answer.
The greatest tragedy in life is the prayers that go unanswered because they go unasked.
You never know when or how or where God will answer it. Prayer adds an element of surprise to your life that is more fun than a surprise party or surprise gift or surprise romance. In fact, prayer turns life into a party, into a gift, into a romance.
the more you pray, the more you will experience holy surprises.
if we follow Jesus, our lives will be anything but boring.
God always has a holy surprise up His sovereign sleeve.
“O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God.” DANIEL 9:19 ESV
Praying hard is not the path of least resistance;
If we stand on God’s word, God will stand by His word.
He always delivers on His promises, but He does it on His timeline!
God is never early. God is never late. God is always right on time.
“On the seventh day, march around the city seven times.” JOSHUA 6:4
If your cause is ordained by God, then the battle belongs to the Lord. It’s His victory to win, not yours.
I believe in providence. I believe there is a God in heaven who directs our steps, who prepares good works in advance, who causes all things to work together for good, who fights our battles for us! And if you pray through, there will be a breakthrough! Don’t lose heart. Don’t lose hope. Don’t lose faith. Don’t lose patience.
Keep asking. Keep seeking. Keep knocking.
God rarely does things how or when we expect Him to, and it leads us to question His strange and mysterious ways.
the miracle would have been forfeited right before it happened.
You’ve got to praise God if the answer is yes and trust Him if the answer is no. If the answer is not yet, you’ve got to keep circling.
If you pray through, the breakthrough is inevitable.
If you don’t get out of the boat, you’ll never walk on water.
“Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.” ACTS 10:4
Acts 10:4 declares that our prayers are memorial offerings. I cannot promise that God will answer your prayers how you want or when you want, but I can promise that God will answer. He always answers!
If our prayers are that precious to God, shouldn’t they be more significant to us? Aren’t they worth collecting like snapshots in a family photo album? Shouldn’t they be treated with respect and dignity, like the monuments that grace the nation’s capital?
When we live by faith, we will harvest prayer seeds that have been planted for decades, for centuries, for millennia. When we live by faith, those memorial offerings turn into crowns of glory. Prayer offerings turn into praise offerings.
Our prayers don’t die when we do. God answers them forever.
He [Abraham] did not know where he was going. HEBREWS 11:8
God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.
If you wait until you’re ready, you’ll be waiting for the rest of your life.
He wants us to rely on Him.
As Christ-followers, we are called to take a why not approach to life. It’s an approach to life that dares to dream. It’s an approach that’s bent toward action. And it doesn’t look for excuses not to do something.
If you are looking for excuses, you will always find one.
“I’m giving you every square inch40 of the land you set your foot on.” JOSHUA 1:3 MSG
Drawing prayer circles is a metaphor that simply means “praying until God answers.” It’s a determination to pray as long as it takes, even if it takes longer than you ever imagined.
I’ve drawn prayer circles around impossible situations and impossible people.
God is not a genie in a bottle, and your wish is not His command. His command better be your wish.
“I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor.” JUDGES 6:37
