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I think we underestimate the power of prayer. Jesus did a lot of praying as He walked this earth and His disciples realized the power He walked in because they often saw and heard Him pray. That is why they asked Him to teach them how to pray. When they could not cast out the devil from the young man, Jesus told them some things only come out by prayer and fasting.
I remember my former pastor, who lived to be 103 years old, asked me one day if I was turning my world upside down with this prayer. She taught me how we can take any person, place, or thing we are praying for, and put them in the middle of this prayer, and know without a shadow of a doubt that God is going to answer; because we are praying the way He taught us to pray.
As Christians, it is not our outward appearance which is most important, but what is on the inside of the heart, we seek to beautify the inner man, that which is not corruptible even the ornaments a meek and quiet Spirit. (1 Peter 3:3-4). If there is no evidence of true or real repentance, how can we work on or improve or even correct our faults or problems?
We can cast our burdens on Him and know that He knows just what to do with them. He has our back, He will not leave us alone. He wants us to give our total lives to Him; our children, our finances, our marriage, our jobs, every sickness, whatever we are carrying as a heavy burden. We cannot carry these loads.
We know we can't do anything to change our hearts, so we must not trust at all in ourselves or our good works. Our lives will show whether the grace of God is dwelling in us because a change will be seen in our ways of thinking, our feelings, and our behavior; and especially the difference in our personality; of what we have been and what we are now. The new us is being revealed by the way we think, feel, and behave and by our words and actions.
Remember, the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God. We have the power to pull down the strongholds of unforgiveness and wanting an eye for an eye. It's not even about us and our rights; we have no rights; our rights were given up in the Garden of Eden. It's all about Jesus. The enemy isn't fighting against us, he is fighting against Jesus in us...
To be strong is to be able to move heavy weights or tasks that are physically demanding. It also means to be able to withstand great force or pressure, to be indestructible, secure, and well fortified. Just imagine all this possible in the natural. Now think about being "strong in the Lord"! Wow!!! That means having unlimited strength to do great feats, because God is all powerful, almighty; there is no one greater than He.
We've got to get to that finish line, overcoming every obstacle, jumping over every hurdle. Do you ever wonder why there may be someone in your life whom you always end up with contention? There always seem to be a battle going on between you. You just can't seem to get it together with that person. That is a hurdle in your race, and until you master overcoming it, God will place it there time and time again.
What do people see when they see us, do they know that we are Christians? Many times we don't have to say anything in order for people to recognize the Christ in us. In Jesus' day the Pharisees wore certain clothing that made them stand out in the crowd. They walked a certain way, talked a certain way with their strict observances of the written law.
You can't have a vision without faith and faith is seeing what is not visible, before you can physically see it. It takes time for a vision to come to fruition; it is a continual process, with God working to do what He needs to do for that vision to take form. Your vision may be to discover a cure for a certain disease, or it could be for education; to establish a school in a foreign country for underprivileged children.
