Are You Willing To Pray Dangerous Prayers? Series

We are continuing our series on Poweful Prayers and this morning as always, I start with a question:

ARE YOU WILLING TO PRAY DANGEROUS PRAYERS?

What do I mean by dangerous?

Are you willing to pray a prayer that if God answered it, it would change you?

Are you willing to pray a pray that could transform your life?

Listen to the words of Romans 12:1-2:

“Dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:1,2)

Are you willing to pray and ask God to change the way you think and transform you into a person who lives in a holy and sacrificial way?

When we pray for ourselves we may pray:

Lord Bless me, Lord protect me,

Lord provide for me, Lord be will me,

Lord help me

A high percentage of our prayers are probably ‘Me’ centred. The focus of our prayers is often on what we want, on what we need, on what we would like.

This morning I want us to consider five ‘Me’ prayers that could radically change and transform us.

Five Me prayers that can lead us closer to God.

SEARCH ME BREAK ME STRETCH ME

LEAD ME USE ME

These Five Me prayers are a dangerous for us to pray if we really don’t want God to answer them.

You see theses Five Me prayers really challenge us to be totally submitted to God’s will for our lives -

to become a living sacrifice used by God for His purpose and pleasure.

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SEARCH ME - That was the prayer of King David in Psalm 139:23-24

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” (Psalms 139:23,24)

Search Me... dare you pray that dangerous prayer? God already knows who we are at our core,

no matter how hard we may try, we can not hide anything from Him.

All of us have at one time or another have probably done something that we know is not right in God’s sight.

Maybe right now some of us are involved in things that bring no glory to God.

Maybe we do them because we enjoy them,

Maybe we do them because everyone else does them,

maybe we simply do them because its a habit we have never tried to not do.

Have you ever stopped to consider if some of the things you say or some of the things you do are offensive in God’s sight?

If you search your own heart this morning - what is hiding in there that should not be?

When King David prayed “Search Me, O God” he was determined to follow God.

David knew anything and everything in his life that was an offense to God must stop.

Are there areas of your life that you need to fully surrender to God?

If God Searched your heart right now, what would be revealed?

A heart for Jesus, or a heart that is being drawn away from the things of God?

A heart that is hindered from worshipping and glorifying God or a heart that is sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit?

If God searched your mind right now, what would be revealed?

Thoughts on the things of God or thoughts of worldly things?

Is your mind occupied by turmoil or trust?

Is your mind occupied by conflict or commitment?

Listen to the words of James in James 4:8-10:

Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honour.

If we pray ‘O Lord Search Me’, may God find pure and humble hearts dedicated to Him.

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BREAK ME - another dangerous prayer.

As Christians, as Born again believers, we now live in the Grace of God but that does not give us a licence to wilfully sin.

God hates sin, and we must never misuse the grace of God as a cloak for our sin.

Sin needs to be confronted and dealt with,