Be

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Character - Romans 12:12 - Be - Constant In Prayer Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Character – Romans 12:12 – Be – Constant In Prayer Growing As Disciples

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 (NIV)

Help 

On my own I can be none of these things. What things? I cannot be joyful in hope, patient in affliction or faithful in prayer. Why do you say that? On my own I have been the opposite of each of these. I have been unhappy in discouragement. I have been impatient in affliction. I have been unfaithful in prayer. So, your track record tells you that you will need my help and strength and endurance to be all these things. That’s right. Do you feel like you are on your own? Do you believe that I will be with you to help you? Do you know that I am molding and shaping your life? Do you know that I will make you into the person that I have called you to be? I know that I am not alone. I believe that you are molding and shaping my life. That’s good.

Are you encouraged to know that I am working in your life? Can you have hope and joy in knowing that I am like an artist molding and shaping you and making you into one of my masterpieces? Do you trust my work? Do you trust my skill? Do you trust my hand? Can you rely on my timing? Yes, I trust you. I can have hope and joy, knowing that I am the work of your hands. That’s good.

You know that you will experience pain and suffering and affliction in this life. I suffered, you will suffer. I felt pain, you will feel pain. I was afflicted, you will be afflicted. Does any of this surprise you? No, it does not. You also know when you have grown the most in life. You also know when you have drawn near and grown closest to me. Yes, I do. When is that? When have you made the most progress in your life? When have you drawn nearest to me? Both, have happened when I have gone through pain and suffering and affliction in life. That’s right. Can you then, be patient in pain and suffering and affliction? Yes Lord, I can be patient. That’s good.

You mentioned to me that you will need my help and strength and endurance. Yes, I did. How will you go about receiving help and strength and endurance from me? I’m not sure what you mean. What must you do if you want to receive strength and hope and endurance from me? I must ask you for these things if I want to receive them. Will your prayers for these things be one and done prayers of yours? No, I will continually come to ask you for all that I need. Will you be faithful in prayer? Yes, I will be faithful in prayer. That will be very good.

Lord, I will keep on following you. I will be completely devoted to you. I will follow you to wherever you lead. I will do whatever you ask of me. With all your help and strength, I will be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer. I will rely on you. Amen

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional study guide click here:

Character – Romans 12-12 – Be – Constant In Prayer – 4 Page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide

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Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Constant In Prayer

Discipleship Study - Be - Romans 12:12 - Constant In Prayer - Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Study – Be – Romans 12:12 – Constant In Prayer – Growing As Disciples

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12 (ESV)

Constant

That is the word that I would like to describe my prayer life with you. What word is that? I would like to be constant in prayer with you. What do you mean by that? I want to live in a constant dialogue of prayer with you. I want to be talking to you constantly. I want to be listening to you constantly. That is a very good desire.

I know that you would like me to be joyful. I know that you would like me to rejoice in the hope that I have in you. Yes, that’s true. I think there is only one way for me to be joyful and rejoicing in the hope I have in you. How is that? If I want to be full of joy and rejoicing in you I will need to keep my heart and mind and life focused on you. This is a broken world. This world is filled with trials. I will face pain and suffering and difficulty in this life. This world will do its very best to discourage and defeat me. If I keep my heart and mind and life focused on the difficulties of this life I will not be filled with joy. I will not be able to rejoice in the hope I have in you. No, you will not. Only as I keep my heart and mind and life focused on you will I be joyful and rejoicing in the hope I have in you. That’s true. So, I need you to do a work in me. What kind of work do you want me to do in you?  I want you to help me to be constant in prayer. I want you to strengthen my ability to live and walk in a daily, moment by moment dialogue of prayer with you. I want to be able to hear your voice. I want you to hear my voice. I want to be able to pray prayers that you will hear and answer. I want to pray prayers that are according to your purposes. I want to pray prayers that are part of your plan. Only you can make me able to be constant in prayer. Only you can teach and train me to live and walk with you in a dialogue of prayer. Will you do this for me? Will you teach me to be constant in prayer? Yes, I will.

I know that you want me to be patient in tribulation. Yes, I do. I have not been patient. I am not a patient person. I have been especially impatient in tribulation. I’ve noticed. Do you have any idea how you might be able to be patient in tribulation? Yes, I do. As you teach me to be constant in prayer I will not only become joyful and rejoicing in the hope I have in you, I will also become patient in tribulation. As you teach me to be constant in prayer you will be accomplishing both these purposes in me. Yes, I will. I welcome you to begin your work in me now. That is very good.

Lord, I do want to live my life in a constant dialogue of prayer with you. I will draw near to you. I know you will draw near to me. Guide the thoughts of my mind and prayers of my heart. Help me to rejoice in hope and be patient in tribulation as I follow you. Amen

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship study guide click here:

Be – Romans 12-12 – Constant In Prayer – 4 Page Discipleship Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship study guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com