““The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:

“Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are. Set the world right; Do what’s best— as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything you want! You’re ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes.”Matthew 6:7-13 MSG

I have to admit; this translation is very different sounding than the one I memorized as an elementary school child! On the other hand, it states its intent very succinctly and clear. We who have chosen a life in Christ are sons and daughters of the Most High God. To function as He created us to function, we need the revelation of Who He is, His true character and who He says we are. We need to understand His power and vast ability; His just nature; His restraint; His mercy on us-His grace. His Kingdom is perfect – no pain; no suffering; order-no chaos; no death. We are instructed to pray for His Kingdom to come to earth as it is above which brings me to today’s blog title: “Whose Kingdom Are You Building?”

These words came to me this morning while listening to the last session of the 2017 Passion Conference. You see I’d been struggling with some questions both personal and some that were not about me at all. Yesterday, I had listed them during my quiet time asking God for answers, and during the last speaker’s message today, I began to realize a few things.

• I have peace in the midst of the questions with which I am wrestling.
• Do those struggles mean I’m out of sync with God? Not necessarily!
• I realized I couldn’t experience that peace if I were out-of-order or not at peace with God.
• Struggles are part of life, but not necessarily an indication your outside God’s will. Maybe He’s revealing something new or fresh; no it doesn’t necessarily have to pertain directly to you. But you may find it helpful in dealing with your struggles

This lead up to the poignant question: “whose Kingdom are you building?” We all have hopes, dreams, goals. That is a great thing! God also has goals and plans for us. (Jeremiah 29:11, plans for a hope and a good future.) But whose Kingdom are we building? Please hear my heart, this isn’t a judgment for I am asking myself these questions as much as anyone. If we are indeed sons and daughters of God, how much time do we actually spend praying this sincere and powerful prayer or thinking about the fact there is a higher existence; a greater kingdom? I realized that a lot of my thought life lately had been focused on the questions I was struggling with when I should have prayed more and reasoned less. The reasoning doesn’t accomplish much! Prayer is powerful, and it moves the heart of God! All the logic in the world cannot achieve change or a difference BUT the moment I laid my questions out before God asking for His help; His perspective and positioned myself to hear; He sent an answer to an even greater question through a simple yet powerful question, also bringing several scriptures to my mind. One was the Lord’s Prayer. Another was Seek first His Kingdom, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33) Also, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” (James 1:5) ““This is GOD ’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as GOD: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’” Jeremiah 33:2-3 MSG

These are but a few of the promises we can rely on when we have times of struggles, questions or problems! They all came about because of a simple prayer, crying out for wisdom and understanding, and patiently waiting for His answer in His timing when it would have the most profound effect in my current walk with Him. It was the result of seeking His Kingdom first rather than reacting on impulse or assumption in a situation. You see, I didn’t understand why a situation was happening over and over. The answer was all about whose kingdom was being built.

Tags: Questions, Struggles, Answers, Promises, Kingdom Building

Categories: Prayer, promises, Perspective