Prayer is needed at all times. This is a reminder for us that in seasons of difficulty that there is power in our prayers.

Hello everyone. My name is Pastor Roderick caesar the third on the lead pastor of Bethel Gospel Tabernacle in Jamaica queens new york and my prayer is that you would be blessed. You would be encouraged and strengthened by this word. Hope you enjoy God bless Crazy Lord, everyone. Our text today comes from Second Chronicles. Chapter seven verses 12 through 16, 2nd Chronicles chapter seven verses 12 through 16. Then the Lord appeared to Solomon in the night and said to him, I have heard your prayer and I have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice when I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain or command the Locusts to devour the land or send pestilence among my people. If my people who are called by my name, humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin, I will heal their land. Now my eyes open and my ears are attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time. There’s something about the power of prayer. There’s something about the importance of prayer. There’s something about the press praying when you don’t feel like it praying when you’re unmotivated praying. When things are perhaps going well, you have to press through those moments. It’s not difficult sometimes to pray during the difficult times, difficult moments, but praying in the midst of the press, jesus said to the disciples, could you not watch and wait and pray one hour with me? Uh and it’s a difficult thing to press through those seasons is difficult thing to press and pray through uh those difficult times. But what one thing I’ve grown to understand and someone said this is there’s freedom on the other side of discipline and if we can cultivate healthy habits in our life such as prayer, developing, developing healthy prayer, life, then we’ll be blessed and better because of it and be freer as a result. Uh so our focus is uh second Chronicles 7 14, if my people, the Lord says who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin and will heal their land, Jesus, we see in scripture oftentimes in his ministry took private times to pray private times of prayer, private times of being alone with the father. Uh luke chapter 11 verse one says now Jesus was praying in a certain place and when he finished one of his disciples said to him, Lord teach us to pray as john taught his disciples. That’s so important because the disciples saw Jesus leave early and then come back to prayer. They saw jesus coming back from his time in prayer and they realized that the power behind what he was doing was his connection with the father. The power behind the authority that they saw was his connection with the father and that was rooted intimately in his time of prayer. And what I want us just to understand is the disciples asked jesus something very important. They asked Jesus teach me how to pray, teach us how to pray. They didn’t ask Jesus, teach us how to preach right. They didn’t ask Jesus, teach us how to cast out demons. They didn’t ask Jesus, teach us how to worship, teaches how to raise an offering, teaches how to lead a small group, teaches how to lay hands on people. They asked him, teach us how to pray. And in these times in our lives we too must pray before the hard times come before the difficult times come, we must pray. We must pray luke. Chapter six versus 46 to 49 Jesus says this, he says, why do you call me Lord Lord and not do what I tell you to do? Everyone who comes to me, here’s my words and does them. I’ll show you what he’s like. He’s like a man who was building a house and who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock and when the flood arose and the stream broke against that house and it could not shake it. Why? Because it had been well build, but the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who build the house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it immediately it fell and the ruin of that house was great. Before the hard times come. Be sure where you’re placing your foundation, do what jesus says to do, pray and seek the face of the Lord. Uh so that when those difficult times come, you know the foundation that you have, you know that you’re standing on christ the solid rock and the foundation is not a shaky one, but one that will prevent the house from falling. So jesus we see taught us how to pray. He taught us how to pray with his disciples. He said, you pray our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed, be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. We have to pray for the will of the Father to be done here on the earth. And one of the ways that we build our lives in battle and build our lives to be able to stay prepared for whatever circumstances come. Our way is through prayer. We have to know before the battle comes that our foundation is firm. We have to know before the difficult seasons come that our foundation is firm, before the winds raids. We have to know that our connection is clear. That we have clear communication to the Father before the waves crash, we have to know, take assessment and have knowledge of where we are standing. We have to take a responsibility. We have a responsibility to pray before the storms come pray while the sun is still shining. Pray while the rainbows are in the sky, you can wake up and smell the flowers, right? Pray when things are OK, pray to to to be prepared before the battle gets here. But also don’t be afraid to pray when the battle is still raging. Don’t be afraid to pray when the battle is all around. You don’t be afraid to pray when it seems like things are out of your control. You can still seek the face of God, You can still seek the hand of God. You can still seek the heart of God in and through prayer. We’re too busy to put prayer into practice in our lives because we’re busy looking at what someone else is doing. We’re too busy judging what someone else is doing. We’re too busy looking all around us everywhere but ourselves. And we see that Jesus says in Luke chapter six. Why do you see the speck that’s in your brother’s eyes, but you don’t notice the log that’s in your own eye. Uh huh. How can you say to your brother brother? Let me take out the speck that is in your eye when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye. You hypocrite first take the log out of your own eye. Then you will see clearly to take out of the speck that is in your brother’s eye. So we must take a look at ourselves while we’re praying. We must take a look at ourselves. When we enter into the throne room and seek God’s face, we must take a look at ourselves. So many of us were too busy judging other people, looking to other people’s faults, looking to other people’s flaws and and and pointing things out in them. When God is saying, look at yourself, examine yourself and let God do the work, allow God to work and take the speck or the log out of our eyes so that he could get full full glory. So how do we pray? We have to pray in faith. We have to pray prayers that are repentant. We have to pray prayers that are humble. We have to pray prayers of repentance because understand this repentance isn’t just okay, God forgive me my sins and I keep it moving. I don’t know, repentance is a turning of the heart, returning of the heart returning to God. And being humble is knowing that we don’t know, simple as that. It’s knowing that we don’t know. Knowing that we don’t have the answers all the answers. Isaiah Chapter 55 versus six through nine says seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near, let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts let him return to the Lord God that he may have compassion on him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon for my thoughts are not your thoughts. Neither are your ways. My ways, declares the Lord, for as the heavens are higher than the earth. So are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. Humility is knowing that we don’t know that there are things that God knows. There are ways that God thinks and God processes and there are ways that God gets things done that we don’t even know about, that. We can’t even begin to scratch the surface of beginning to understand and understand when we know that fact. It routes us in humility. We have to be rooted in humility. James Chapter four verse seven says, submit yourselves to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you, cleanse your hands, you sinners and purify your hearts. You double minded, be wretched, mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom humble yourself before the Lord And then he will exalt you many of us. We try to resist the devil. We try to resist the temptation of the enemy, but we are not submitted to God. It says submit to God. 1st, then you can resist the devil and then hopefully from you. But many of us we try to resist without submitting submission is key submission to the Lord. And then we need to uh through submission. We understand that we have to cleanse our hands and and purify our hearts and be humble before the Lord so that he then can lift us up. So we have to pray in repentance, pray in humility. We have to also pray in boldness, pray in boldness. Hebrews chapter four verses 16, let us then with confidence with confidence draw near to the throne of Grace that we may receive mercy and find grace and help in time of need with confidence we can draw near to God. The father James chapter five verse 16 through 18 says excuse me, verse 17 says Elijah was a man with the nature just like ours and he prayed fervently that it might not rain and for three and three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again and heaven gave rain and the earth bore its fruit. If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray and seek my face, we are his people. We are bought with a price. We must draw near with confidence knowing that Jesus paid it all. Knowing that jesus laid his life down so that we could pick our life up in him. That gives us confidence. That gives us boldness. That gives us authority. With that truth, we can approach the throne with confidence with boldness knowing that we are sons. Knowing that we are daughters, knowing that we are chosen and God has called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light. So we are his people, the people of God, the sons and daughters of God, the Children of God. We are bought with a price as a result of this. We have access to the most high God. We must pray like it. We must live like it. We must seek the face of God like it. We must pray for our land. We must pray with confidence and boldness. We must pray for our nation. We must pray with confidence and boldness. We must pray for one another. We must pray with confidence and boldness. We must pray over our families. We must pray with with confidence and boldness as sons and daughters of God. Did you know that there is power in your prayer. You know there is power in your prayer, Daniel chapter 10 verse 12. Then he said to me, fear not Daniel. For from the very first day that you set your heart to understand and you humbled yourself before your God. Your words have been heard and I have come because of your words, Daniel was in a place of spiritual warfare. And the angel of the Lord came to him and said, I, I was, I was on my way to you from the very first day. You set your heart to understand. But I got caught up. I I got tied up some some things kind of came and tried to block my path. But I was on my way from the very first time you set your heart to understand. But the reason that I am here now, the reason why I’ve made it in front of you, the reason why I’m answering your prayer is because of your words. Many of us, what the enemy wants to do, a silence our prayers, silence or words because he knows there is power in our prayers. He knows this. So he tries to silence us with fear, he knows this. So he tries to silence us with anger, he knows this. So he tries to silence us with lust, he knows this. So he tries to silence us with with shame, he knows this. So he tries to silence us with depression or all these different tools that he uses to try and take our voice from us and silence us because he knows that’s where our power lies. From. The very first day, the angel says to Daniel that you set your heart to understand and you humbled yourself what is humility. Knowing that we don’t know, Daniel said, look, I don’t know what’s going on, I’m gonna set my heart to try and figure this thing out. I’m gonna set my heart to understand. And that shows to God that we are humble that we are humbled that we are humble that even when we don’t know the answers we can seek him in prayer even when we don’t know the answers, we can run to the throne in humility and humble yourself before your God. Your words have been heard and I have come because of your words do not let the enemy silence you. There is victory in your prayer, there is healing in your prayer, there is deliverance in your prayer, the angel of the Lord, the answer to D to Daniel’s prayer came because of his words because of his prayer because of his humility. So there is power in your prayer. The beautiful thing is we we bring our prayers with us our sons and daughters of God, we bring our prayers with us that you can pray something out into the atmosphere and you walk into your prayers, you bring it with you into your homes, you bring it with you into your jobs, you bring it with you into your schools, you bring it with you into your areas of influence, so you can just pray over yourself right now, where you’re sitting pray over yourself right now and understand that there is power in your prayer. Three things very quickly that prayer changes prayer changes three things. Prayer changes your perspective, you can begin prayer feeling depressed, you can begin prayer feeling downtrodden and you can begin prayer feeling angry but it changes your perspective because through your prayer you realize I’m more than a conqueror through your prayer, you realize through the words that you’re speaking, uh they make out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks and and you may be praying some things that you didn’t realize God dropped in your spirit to pray and you may realize that your perspective, your mindset shifts as a result in the midst of your pain, you can be praying and your prayer can change how you feel about your your situation, how you feel about it, change your perspective and in the midst of your prayer it can draw you closer to God and how many of you know, the closer we get to God, the more perspective can change Prayer changes your perspective. The second thing prayer changes is prayer can change our situation when we pray God shows up and he does what only he can do God shows up and can perhaps get you the money you need can touch you and bring a healing in your body, can reverse the situation or that that that you need reversed God can do what only he can do and work a miracle in your life through your prayer. So prayer can change our perspective, our mindset, how we see things. Prayer can change our situation or circumstances around us can change as a result of us staying committed to the cause and staying committed to the kingdom and pray situation can change. And thirdly prayer can change our heart. Prayer can change our heart not just how we see things or how we think through things, but change our heart. It makes us more like him more like the Lord God can give us the desires of our heart when we become more like him because our desires become his desires seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added. And many times we we seek the Kingdom of God just so we can get the things not realizing that those things and those desires may change over time because God is about the heart, God is about changing us. God is about renewing us. God is about making us more like him. So prayer changes your perspective. It changes your situation and it can change your heart as well. So if my people who are called by my name, humble themselves, pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, the text says, I will hear from heaven. The Lord says I will forgive their sin and heal their land. So I have a question real quick, what is it that we have to turn from? What is it that we have to turn from, identify it and deal seriously with it, identify it and deal seriously with it cleanse your hands. You sinners purify your hearts. You double minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep, let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Sometimes I don’t think we deal as seriously with sin as God would like sometimes I think we turn a blind eye to our sin and and God is saying this is something we need to mourn about. This is something we need to grieve about. This is something we need to take as seriously as God takes it, cleanse our hands and purify our hearts. And it’s so important for us to understand That we’re in this together. James chapter five says confess your sins to one another and pray for one another that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous person has great power in its working Ephesians chapter 2: verses four through 6. Let’s just understand that sin isn’t something that made us alive, but it made us dead. God being rich in mercy because of the great love with which he has loved us when we were dead in our sin and dead in our trespasses, he made us alive together with christ and it’s by grace that we have been saved, not just safe but raised up with him and seated with him in heavenly places in christ jesus, see what the enemy tries to do is even though we can be stuck in our sin or even though we used to be stuck in our sin, the enemy comes and he tries to condemn he lies, He speaks to seat, he says, you’ll never change. He says, God is not going to forgive. He says you’ve done something that’s knocked you all the way off. So stop, stop praying about it. And he tries to cut us off from our power source. The wonderful thing about prayer. The beautiful thing about prayer is that if we seek the Lord, he hears us, our prayers don’t go unnoticed or fall on deaf ears. God is not so too high to look low. He sits high, he looks low, He hears us. Our prayers do not fall on deaf ears. We have access to the throne room, we have access to the throne room. We are not condemned Romans. Chapter 8: verse one says there is therefore no condemnation For those who are in Christ, Jesus, no condemnation for those that are in Christ, Romans, chapter 89 through 11 says you however, are not in the Flesh, but you’re in the spirit. If in fact the spirit of God dwells in you, anyone who does not have the spirit of christ does not belong to him, but if christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness. If the spirit of him who raised jesus from the dead dwells in you, then he who raised jesus christ from the dead will also give a life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you. So get this the same spirit that Rose christ from the dead and breathe life into the dead body of the Son of God is at work in my life is at work in your life. So don’t tell me, I’m not prepared. Don’t tell me that. My prayers don’t have uh power. Don’t tell me that. I don’t have access. I have access. I have help And my prayers have power. And I’m not going to stop praying. No matter what the climate is like. I’m not going to stop praying. No matter what my situation and my life is like. I’m not gonna stop praying. I’m going to continue to pray because there is power in my prayers. After seeking the Lord. What happens forgiveness comes after seeking the Lord. What happens? Restoration comes after seeking the Lord. What happens prayers? We understand that there is power in our prayers as a response as a result of this. We should realize that we shouldn’t be lacking or slow in our repentance. Don’t be afraid of repentance because what you’re what you’re gaining is greater than what you’re letting go of too often. We think, oh, I don’t want to repent because that means I have to let go of this after let go of this. But look at what you’re gaining. Look at what is yours now through christ jesus. So I’m 34 says, oh taste and see that the Lord is good, blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord you, his saints for those who fear him have no lack lack no good thing. The young’s lie in the young lions. They suffer and they want hunger, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. God is our strength. God is our ever present help in time of trouble. And we can run to him through whatever it is we are facing. We must not be afraid to pray. We must not be afraid to pray in the spirit if he is in Chapter six, praying at all times in the spirit. With all prayer and supplications to that and keep alert with all perseverance, making prayer. Supplication for the Saints pray in the Spirit pray. Spirit filled prayers. Walk out in the Spirit led life. So you know how to be prepared and walk when trouble comes your way. The wonderful thing about seeking the face of the Lord is that when you’re done, wonderful thing about praying is that when you’re done, the wonderful thing about drawing near to God is that when you’re done, you’re never done when you’re done. It’s just okay, now we start again. Now we start again. And it doesn’t mean you have to have these long drawn out prayers doesn’t mean you have to have these long, you can have a quality time of intimacy with God. Make that your priority to have intimate time with the Lord romans. 11 33. Oh, the depth and the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How one searchable are his judgments, How inscrutable are his ways for who has known the mind of the Lord, Who has been his counselor or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid far from him. For from him and through him and to him are all things to him. Be glory forever and ever. Amen. How depth the depth and the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God. You’re never done learning, you’re never done growing, you’re never done seeking his face. Because there’s so much to learn. There’s so much more to experience. There’s so much love to receive. I want us to give God praise because our prayer changes things. I want us to say Yes God, I thank you. Yes God, your holy Yes God, you’re awesome. Thank you for making a way for me to have access. Thank you for hearing my prayer. Thank you for hearing my cry. And let’s be prepared through prayer as we pray. Let’s remember that through prayer. We can we can have power in our prayer through prayer. We can have changes in our situation through prayer. We can change our perspective through prayer. We can change our hearts. So don’t hesitate to pray in this time and this season in your life. Don’t hesitate to pray, pray for your Children. Pray for your spouse, pray for yourself, pray for your household. Pray for your mind. Pray for your heart. Pray for your health, pray for your finances, pray before the storm hits, pray while you’re in the storm and pray after the storm, pray in each and every season, lay the foundation of your life in and whipped and through prayer. That’s my encouragement to you today. God bless you. Thank you. Hello again. Pastor roderick caesar third here, thank you so much for watching my prayer. Is that you were blessed. You are encouraged and strengthened by that message. If you would like to be a blessing to the ministry, you can text B G T. F I 277977. Again, you can text B g T f I 277977 to sow a seed into the ministry. And we thank you. Thank you so much for your generosity. Or you can visit our website at B g t F. I dot us for more information. Thank you so much. Once again, I hope you were blessed. I’m praying for you. We love you here at Bethel, God bless