The Simplicity of Trust and Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Defining Trust

After studying Trust and how it is such an integral part of prayer, did we finally conclude that it is indeed a simple concept? So often we take something that should be viewed, and taken, as being quite simple, and by attempting to dissect and intellectually define it we transform it into something quite difficult, complex and hard to achieve. However, the Holy Spirit, and our soul, takes us where our intellect cannot, and they can reveal the simplest truth at the heart of the most overwhelmingly complicated things… such as “what is trust?”

Believe Without Doubt, and Testify

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Edification and Testimony

Today I am going to share an email with you that I wrote several years ago (on March 5, 2016). I wrote it to a very dear friend, and brother in Christ, with whom I was reading a devotional book each day. I wrote this daily message just before I started sharing my devotionals beyond family and a few very close friends. Then, as he often did, my friend Chuck wrote me a note in return, and I am almost reluctantly sharing it with you because of its personal nature. However, it demonstrates the power of our testimony, and the impact it has on those around us… believers and unbelievers alike.

Faith, Trust, and Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Faith and Trust

From the moment I began to read Bounds' words this morning I was grasped and carried off into thought. The bold statement that "Trust brings eternity into the history and happenings of time" is a powerful statement that demands much thought and contemplation. This morning's devotional brings us once again into the spiritual realm of faith and our trust in God. The gist of Bounds' offering to us is that trust increases faith and faith increases trust. This seems to be a paradox until we remember that trust is perpetuated by those things that God has already accomplished and faith is holding to those things as yet unseen.

Perseverance in Prayer and Worship

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Perseverance in Prayer

When we read scripture that tells us to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, or to give thanks in every situation, do we worry about being able to do these things? Are we concerned about becoming distracted, losing interest, or eventually becoming tired as we stand chanting, worshipping, and praying in the presence of God? Do we find ourselves failing at these things now after short periods of time and grow concerned about disappointing God, not making it to heaven, or failing miserably once we do get there? Do we worry about how long eternity lasts, and our ability to do these things faithfully forevermore? Well you are not alone, but do not fear.

Trust is Faith Accomplished

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Trust in God

Trust is a wonderful word on which to begin our month of March devotional studies. I will dwell today on the observations of E.M. Bounds who wrote that faith and trust were feelings of the soul. I find it appropriate to discuss this topic in March because this is the month when we trust that spring is imminent and anticipate the coming renewal of life. This is also the time of the year in which our faith and hope are elevated to sheer joy as we realize that this is the season in which the Messiah fulfilled God's planned salvation of mankind. This is the culmination of Lent and the celebration of Easter. Easter is the one event which is truly the accomplishment of faith that prompted Bounds to say: "Trust is faith accomplished.... It is the feeling of the soul - the spiritual sight hearing and taste."

Looking at Faith through Mercy

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Mercy and Faith

Has some act of mercy ever led you into unexpected prayer? Have we ever performed something spontaneous and good for someone, then found that while doing so you found that you had been led into a place spiritually that you hadn’t anticipated, and yet it blessed you immensely? The things we do for those in need can have legs and sometimes they travel far into our spirituality. A simple act, a meal, a drink, an article of clothing, or any other act of mercy we perform, can drop us into some very deep waters of faith. When this happens we might be thrilled by the blessing, but sometimes we can be forced to look beyond our mercy at who we really are, or to see a deeper sin in the situation, and it will scare us.

Is There Hope Where We See None?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Hope in Prayer

We can find ourselves waiting on the answer to a prayer that doesn’t seem to be coming, or at least coming anytime soon. We are suffering, or waiting to be rescued, and yet all we hear is the silence of God. But friends, we can rest assured of two things today; the first is that someone is experiencing this right now (possibly you) as they read these words, and the second is that help is on the way. We might lose hope as we suffer through the pain and fear in our lives, but God is ever faithful and true. When we feel lost or abandoned do we continue to pray? Or maybe we hear ourselves shouting out to the Lord in our frustration rather than finding strength in our anticipation and trust in Him.

Are God’s Promises Dependent upon Our Prayers?

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Prayer and Promises

This morning in my devotional reading E.M. Bounds made the general statement that "God's promises are dependent on our prayers." Although I believe that prayer is powerful, important, and allows us to communicate our needs to God, I don’t think that He is limited to them, and only acts when we ask Him to. We should pray without ceasing, and within the will of God, and we should ask to receive His promises, but I don't feel that God's promises are necessarily dependent upon our prayers. To say this limits God.

God’s Will, and the Foundations of Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Foundation’s of Prayer

This morning I was studying one of the foundational elements of answered prayer, the will of God. As I read scripture and a devotional regarding this subject, my belief that it was truth was confirmed once more. The will of God is indeed a foundation of prayer. Unless we are praying in conformance with His will, and not asking Him to do something that is contrary to His character, desire, and in our faith and the name of Jesus, then our prayer will be answered.

Six Miracles, Seven Prayers, and Life Lessons

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Living Scripture

In the Bible story about Elijah and the seven times he prayed for rain to return to Israel we are reminded to pray and continue to pray for those things we desire of God... But most of all, we learn to pray for the things that are within the will of God, and to live out our lives as scripture teaches us to. Every story teaches us something about how we should live, but how often are we applying those lessons in our daily lives? Do we carry them with us when we close our bibles, and set them on our nightstands, or when we leave our secret places of prayer?

Praying Despite the Thunder

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Distracted Prayers

We begin our prayers focused on certain desires, and thoughts, but as we continue on in our conversation with the Lord our minds often begin to wander, and we lose sight of the real reason we were praying in the first place. Sometimes we stop our prayer altogether, but many times we have heard something like a child coughing elsewhere in our house, the urgency of a passing siren on the street, or the sound of thunder off in the distance, and they take us into a different prayer and we seek another of God’s promises. Our prayers should include a request that our hearts and minds be guarded in Christ so that we will remain focused on the prayer at hand, and we will not be distracted.

Humility an Ingredient that prepares us for Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Ingredients of Prayer

This morning I would like to stress further the importance of humility in respect to our ability to pray. I especially enjoyed an observation I read that was written by Pastor E.M. Bounds when he said that "To be clothed with humility is to be clothed with a prayer garment." I have often toyed with the idea of using a prayer shawl to prepare myself, and set the mood of prayer, before I enter into my place of prayer each morning, but I never really felt it necessary. Perhaps we are already being clothed, not by cloth, but in a meek and humble spirit, and by reading scripture or a devotional message. It is so important that we prepare ourselves for prayer, but do we do so?

We Seek God with the Energy of Prayer

Richard Forbes
Christian , Daily Devotional, Energy in Prayer

Have you ever thought of prayer as a way of channeling spiritual energy? E.M. Bounds gave us this remarkable thought to contemplate when he wrote these words “Prayer as spiritual energy makes way for, and brings into practical realization, the promises of God.” So far this year we have been studying the power of prayer, but until now we have been thinking of it simply as a tool, or means of communicating with God. Today however, we are seeing it in a new light… it carries a form of spiritual energy all unto itself, and not only delivers our thoughts to God, but changes who we are inside, and brings us into conformance with God’s will. Prayer is not just a means of asking God to deliver on His promises, but it makes us firm in our belief in them. Prayer is a fuel that strengthens our faith.

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