Righteous Prayers of a Righteous Person

Read: James 5:16

Reflect: What does it mean to be a righteous person? How does righteousness help our prayers?

Request (Prayer): Ask God to make you a righteous person?

The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Does that mean that the prayer of an unrighteous person doesn’t have power? Yes. How so? In order to understand this whole idea about a righteous persons prayer being powerful, we first need to understand what the word “righteous” means.

The word, righteous, means, “just and right; free from guilt and sin”. So the righteous person is one who is free of sin and guilt. What person is righteous? It’s the person whose hope and trust is in Jesus. It is the person who has confessed with their mouth and believed in their heart that Jesus is Lord. That’s the righteous person.
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What is Prayer Centered On?

Read: John 14:13

Reflect: What should our prayers be centered around?

Request (Prayer): Ask for God to be glorified in your life and in everything you pray for.

John 14:13 says, “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

The whole idea behind prayer is not so we can get what we want, but to align our will and desires with God’s. What does that mean?
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Desiring Prayer

Read: Psalm 63:1

Reflect: Do you have a desire to talk to God? What do you talk to Him about? What keeps you from talking to Him?

Request (Prayer): Ask the Lord to give you a passion for prayer.

Do you desire God? Do you look forward to spending time with God?

David was in the wilderness when he penned the words, “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” I can only imagine how he could have felt, being in the wilderness, with no food or water, yet it allowed him to spend quality time with God and he was able to see his need for God.

I’m sure David was hungry and thirsty physically, and it was a fresh reminder to him how a person can become hungry and thirsty if they do not stay connected to God. Is this true of you?
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The Lowly Shepherds

Read: Luke 2:8-9

Reflect: Shepherds were considered very lowly in Bible times. Why did the angels appear to the shepherds?

Request (Prayer): Give thanks to God for sending Jesus for any who need Him!

The birth of Jesus Christ is a big event not only on the Christian calendar, but in the entire event of history. The virgin birth is crucial to Christianity, and here we see that this baby, Jesus, King of the Jews, was not revealed to kings, princes or world-rulers, but rather the great news of Him being born was revealed to lowly shepherds.

Shepherds, in the time of Christ, were not considered men worthy of an opinion. No one cared about them, no one thought of them as even people worthy to be a citizen in the city, yet of all people that God could have revealed this great news to, He revealed it to shepherds.

A shepherd then is like a trash man today. No one wants that job, no one really thinks highly of them, they are just some other person at the bottom of the totem pole.

What is the reason for Jesus to be revealed to shepherds of all people? This was an act of humility. Sure God, the Creator of the world could have revealed Himself to kings all around the earth but He didn’t. This is a great picture of how we too should be humble.
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Mary: Mother of Jesus, Servant of God

Read: Luke 1:1-45

Reflect: Mary decided that she was going to be obedient to the Lord no matter the cost (verse 38). Are you able to submit yourself to God like Mary did? What’s holding you back?

Request (Prayer): Ask God to show you anything that is holding you back from submitting to Him completely.

When Mary was given the news about her being pregnant while still being a virgin, she wasn’t given the news by email, text or phone call, it cam from an angel of the Lord. The angel, Gabriel, came before Mary and told her everything about the baby that she was going to conceive of.

I don’t know about you, but if an angel came to me and gave me news that was completely impossible of actually happening, I’d freak out! Mary is going to be pregnant but remain a virgin?! How is that possible?
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Kingly Gifts

Read: Matthew 2:1-12

Reflect: When the wise men came they brought gifts. This is why we give gifts during Christmas. What gifts can you give to Jesus during this time of year and all year long?

Request (Prayer): Ask God to show you what gifts you can give Him and His people (other Christians).

When the wise men came to the birthplace of Christ, they brought Him 3 gifts, gold, frankincense and myrrh. There is great significance in these 3 gifts, and the symbolism that each holds really explains the entire being of Christ.

The wise men may have not known the exact reasoning of each gift, but the gifts mean much more than just the gifts the magi brought to Him.
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