The Attitude of Prayer
How to
Approach God When You Pray
Psalm 10:17
Sept 11th 2011 AM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
I.
Introduction (Psalm 65:2)
A.
There is a
God in heaven… Who hears our prayers, And is ready to ANSWER our Prayers!
B.
But we don’t
get those answers very often
C.
I want to
show you this month why prayers don’t normally get answered, and how to
develop depth and effectiveness to your praying so that they do get
answered!
I.
Background
A.
The Main
Requirement of Prayer
1.
Did you know
that God is not so worried about WHAT you ask for when you pray…
2.
As much as
He is worried about YOUR ATTITUDE when you ask!
a.
What you ask
for is never too hard for God to do – there is nothing too hard for God!
b.
The key, or
the blockage to getting answered from heaven, is in your heart – it is in
your attitude that you bring to God
3.
The Bible
says we should have a load of right attitudes when we pray, like:
a.
Thankfulness
b.
Faith
c.
Persistence
and Determination
d.
Openness and
Honesty
4.
But the main
requirement of answered prayer… is humility
B.
We are
Nothing (Psalm 8:3,4)
1.
It doesn’t
matter who you are
2.
It doesn’t
matter how many people who think you are the greatest
3.
You are
nothing in the scheme of things
4.
I hate to
blow your bubble, but, What is man?
a.
Just above
dirt
b.
A tiny speck
of movement on a big twirling dustball, in the midst of an empty solar
system, located on the edge of a swirling mass of stars, a hundred thousand
light years across, from end to end
5.
We need to
come down out of our evolutionary tree, and realise… (Isaiah 40:15)
a.
We are
counted as dust on the balances
b.
A drop of a
bucket – duh, like that matters!
c.
It Humbles
God to Take Notice of Things in Our Universe (Ps 113:6)
6.
Quit
thinking that God is at OUR service!
C.
Jesus REALLY
Humbled Himself to become a Human (Philp 2:8)
1.
He had to
empty Himself of everything to become like us!!!
2.
Very
humiliating for GOD to have to bathe, and clip His toenails, and brush His
teeth, and wash His clothes, and WALK everywhere that He needed to go! VERY
HUMILIATING!
D.
So, We Had
Better Humble Ourselves if we Want to be Heard in Heaven (Psalm 10:17)!
II.
Message
A.
God Pays Attention to Humble
People (Psalm 138:6)
1.
We normally
don’t, but GOD does!!!
2.
Not poor
people – no! Most European poor people are the proudest people on the
planet! Ungrateful, unhappy, always griping and complaining, angry, bitter
3.
But people
who are “poor in spirit” (Mt 5:3) – meek people – undemanding people! People
willing to wait on God!
4.
God spends
His time with THOSE kind of people (Isa 57:15)
a.
He dwells in
their hearts, and in their homes
b.
He inhabits
their praises, and their times of sorrows
5.
He cares
about what they need, and what they want –
at least that is what He says
(Ps 10:17)!
6.
He comes
“out of hiding” when we get low, and stay low before Him
B.
God Absolutely Resists the
Proud (James 4:6)
1.
Doesn’t just
ignore them – that would be fine – most people want to be left alone
2.
But God
works against proud people – ruins their lives! I’m telling it like it is!
3.
You don’t
need the devil to destroy you – you only need pride to bring ruin into your
home and life!
4.
No wonder
people don’t get answers to their prayers!
5.
And, no
wonder people give up on praying about things…
a.
Because they
just expected God to overlook their arrogance and pride
b.
And when God
didn’t answer them, they just got angry at God instead of at their own
stinking wrong attitude that stopped Him from answering their prayer!
C.
What Does Humility Mean?
1.
Be Lowly –
able to get low, and be embarrassed, ashamed
2.
Meekness –
not demanding of God, thinking you deserve anything from Him
3.
To be broken
– not strong in yourself, but fragile, and quiet, and weak
4.
To Distrust
yourself – not relay on anything about you
5.
Free from
pride and arrogance – wouldn’t that be wonderful!
6.
Just look at
us!
a.
The way we
dress is so full of pride
b.
Our body
language toward one another
c.
The way we
pray! It’s like we are on a stage somewhere, performing!
d.
We care only
about how people see is, and what they think of us
e.
Humility
cares only about how GOD sees us and what HE thinks of us
f.
And the only
time He is impressed is when He sees humility!
D.
We Are Commanded to Humble
Ourselves
1.
Before we
can even begin to pray, we have to lower ourselves down off of our high
pedestals of pride!
a.
Mic 6:8 …what
doth the LORD require of thee, …
to walk humbly with thy God
b.
Mat 18:4
Whosoever therefore shall humble himself
as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
c.
Mat 23:12
And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and
he that shall humble himself
shall be exalted.
d.
Col 3:12
Put on therefore, as the elect of
God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness,
humbleness of mind, meekness,
longsuffering
e.
1Pe 5:5
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea,
all of you be subject one to another, and be
clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth
grace to the humble.
f.
1Pe 5:6
Humble yourselves therefore under
the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time
2.
It will be
the hardest thing you will ever attempt to do! It will take all your
concentration, and all your effort, to push YOU to the back, so that Jesus
can be first!
3.
Don’t WAIT
to be humbled!!!
a.
Many a man,
many a woman, many a nation has been broken and ruined by sin, and by God
working against them
b.
Most people
are defeated – not because they humbled themselves, but because they tried
to fight God, and lost!!!
4.
From now on,
when you are sitting down to pray, take the time to dismantle your pride,
starting by…
a.
Bowing your
knees (Acts 21:4,5)
b.
Checking
your harsh words that you say without thinking
c.
Confessing
the hatred and anger you carry against others – who do you think you are…
God?
d.
Stopping
yourself when you defend yourself and protect your feelings
e.
Just
blessing and honouring those around you, no matter who they are, or what
they have done against you – think of others, and meet their needs!
f.
Decide to
pray about other people’s needs instead of mainly only yours!!!
5.
How to know
you are humble… here is the Humble Test:
a.
You actually
WON’T think you are humble, but at least these things will be quite real and
active in your life!
b.
You will
love this Bible (Dt 8:2,3) – you won’t love it until you have learned how to
humble yourself and NEED it
c.
You won’t
argue with God anymore
d.
You will
accept correction (Psalm 141:5)
e.
You will
accept the will of God, no matter where it is taking you, like Jesus did
f.
You just
believe God is good, and don’t complain and whinge and gripe about
everything anymore
g.
You will
love unlovely people, like Jesus did
h.
You are able
to instantly forgive anyone, just as Jesus does
i.
Your heart
is tender and able to be hurt again – not hard and callused (2Kgs 22:19)
j.
You won’t
think about yourself at all, or at least very little
6.
So… No
wonder we are getting very few of our prayers answered!!! None of the above
is in us – at least not much of any of it! Shame on us!
E.
What Will Humbleness Get You?
(Ps 10:17)
1.
It will get
you more than the fanciest praying will get you
a.
More than
the most religious holy ground or
b.
More than
the most awesome religious feelings will get you
2.
What will
you get, if you actually got your deepest heart attitude right?
a.
God’s
Attention!!!
b.
Everything
you need!
1)
A job
2)
Ability to
win someone to Christ
3)
Wisdom –
guidance from God about what to do about something
4)
Long life –
a good kind of long life
5)
Restoration
of a broken relationship
6)
You won’t
get your problem fixed, until your attitude is broken!
7)
Why go to
God in prayer if it is not to get the ANSWER to that prayer?
c.
Even your
desires – if you will be patient long enough (Ps 37:4)
1)
For a wife
or husband
2)
For a house
to sell, or to buy a house
3)
For a great
job – not just a job, but best job!
4)
For good
success in your business
d.
If you not
born again, it will enable you to get eternal life (Luke 18:13,14)
1)
Too many
people will come in here and then leave, lost and still on their way to hell
2)
NOT because
God can’t save them
3)
But because
they won’t humble themselves and break before Him
4)
And finally
admit just how much they desperately need Him!
e.
It could
save this nation (2Chron 7:14)!
III.
Conclusion
A.
I hope you
understand that God is not so worried about WHAT you ask for when you pray…
B.
As much as
He is worried about YOUR ATTITUDE when you ask!
C.
The main
attitude of answered prayer… is humility
D.
God Pays Attention to Humble
People (Psalm 138:6)
1.
God spends
His time with THOSE kind of people (Isa 57:15)
2.
He cares
about what they need, and what they want –
at least that is what He says
(Ps 10:17)!
3.
He comes
“out of hiding” when we get low, and stay low before Him
E.
He Absolutely Resists the Proud
– that ought to scare you!
F.
What Does Humility Mean?
1.
Be Lowly –
able to get low, and be embarrassed, ashamed
2.
Meekness –
not demanding of God, thinking you deserve anything from Him
3.
To be broken
– not strong in yourself, but fragile, and quiet, and weak
4.
To Distrust
yourself – not relay on anything about you
5.
Free from
pride and arrogance – wouldn’t that be wonderful!
G.
We Are Commanded to Humble
Ourselves
1.
Before we
can even begin to pray, we have to lower ourselves down off of our high
pedestals of pride!
2.
1Pe 5:6
Humble yourselves therefore under
the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time
3.
It will be
the hardest thing you will ever attempt to do! It will take all your
concentration, and all your effort, to push YOU to the back, so that Jesus
can be first!
4.
Don’t WAIT
to be humbled!!!
5.
From now on,
when you are sitting down to pray, take the time to dismantle your pride,
by…
a.
Bowing your
knees (Acts 21:4,5)
b.
Checking
your harsh words that you say without thinking
c.
Confessing
the hatred and anger you carry against others – who do you think you are…
God?
d.
Stopping
yourself when you defend yourself and protect your feelings
e.
Just
blessing and honouring those around you, no matter who they are, or what
they have done against you – think of others, and meet their needs!
f.
Decide to
pray about other people’s needs instead of mainly only yours!!!
6.
Regularly
take, The Humble Test:
a.
See if you
are loving this Bible more and more or less and less
b.
See if you
are spending all your prayer time arguing with God or praising Him
c.
Check to see
if you are accepting his correction
d.
Check to see
if you are accepting the will of God, no matter where it is taking you
e.
Take note of
whether you are always complaining and whinging and griping about
everything, or you just believe God is GOOD
f.
Check to see
if you are loving some unlovely people
g.
Make sure
you have instantly forgiven everyone
h.
Make sure
your heart is tender and able to be hurt again – not hard and callused
i.
Check your
prayer list to see how much you pray about YOURSELF and YOUR needs, or about
the needs of others
H.
What Will Humbleness Get You?
(Ps 10:17)
1.
God’s
Attention!!!
2.
Everything
you need! No matter how impossible!
3.
Even your
desires – if you will be patient long enough (Ps 37:4)
4.
If you not
born again, it will enable you to get eternal life (Luke 18:13,14)
5.
It could
save this nation (2Chron 7:14)!
I.
In Summary… You will never get
your problems fixed, until your attitude is broken!