The Secret Place // Pray Like This... // Pastor Josh Evans

Amen. Amen. Has your heart been blessed so far today?

And I hope it has if if it hasn't something's wrong in the old days like 70 years ago. They probably said something like your blessings broken or something. I don't know what they used to say. I'm sure Pastor Bailey has a saying for whatever.

I'm trying to get across and but listen, it is so so good to see you here today. If you have your Bible, you can go to Matthew chapter number six, Matthew chapter number six, and I'm just excited to be able to share God's Word here today. And we kicked off a series last week entitled The Secret Place entitled The Secret Place. And this series is is all about all about prayer. And and as I study, I was kind of debating, you know, it's homecoming.

Do we stay in the series or do we get out of the series? And I think I think today I think it fits so perfectly because as I prayed through today, I really do believe that one of the reasons God's hand of provision has been on this place is because of a lot of people who have spent time on their faces before God and prayer to him. And and so I believe prayer is is what has brought God's power down in our ministry over these last 76 years. And I'll tell you this church that prayer is us inviting his power to come down from heaven and to continue to place his hand on our ministry in the days to come. Listen, I said this in the video that you know, like we think a church growth and it's all about strategy and and all of these things like that.

And those things are important. Don't get me wrong, but I'm telling you this where it's going to start is a bunch of our church people saying, hey, listen, I want to get serious about God using Union Grove to reach the nation's with the gospel and we're not going to stop and we're not going to get off of our knees until he's done that. And that's what we need to be doing. We need to be a praying praying church. So if you have your Bible Matthew chapter 6, if you left it, it's okay.

It'll be up on the screen here today. But Matthew chapter number number six, we we learned last week that prayer is simply this. It's just relational a communication that you have with with God. It is the means by which we ask God to bring his power and his kingdom down to Earth. The goal of prayer is for us to to welcome God's power in his kingdom and for him to touch humanity and for us to experience heaven while here on on Earth.

Now, that sounds pretty good, right? I think all of us when you when you know what prayer is, you're like all of us want that. I don't think there's a person in this room and I don't know everybody in this room, but I don't think there's a person in here that would say hey listen, I don't I don't really need that. I don't really want God's power. I really don't want his kingdom to be furthered here on this Earth.

No, I believe everyone wants those things to happen, but so few of us are willing to do what it takes to to make that happen or to ask for God to send down his power down on Earth. We looked last week at the attitudes that we need to come to God in prayer. We need to come to God boldly. We need to come with him come to him persistently and believing that he can do whatever it is that we are asking to do.

And today I wanted to answer this question. You might have asked this at some point in your life. But but how should we we pray?

Have you ever kind of thought about that question? How should we we pray? How should we pray? I referenced this last week, but I grew up an hour from here in Ashboro and and the church that I grew up in they would have all of these prayer meetings and and my dad would take me to these things whether they be on Saturday or a night of the week or something and we'd gather and as a young boy, I would I would come and and all these men would gather in our fellowship Hall and and we would get on our knees, you know, and we would you know, kneel at our seat and and we would just pray and a lot of times it was what they used to call like popcorn prayer.

You know what I'm talking about? It's kind of like hey whenever you feel led to pray you pray and and so, you know, the pastor would usually start or say he would call on somebody to start and people would just just pray and as a young boy, I would I would sit there and I'd be like, okay, he's a really good prayer and and so he sounds really really eloquent when he prays and and this guy I can tell this is his first time ever praying and and so I would I would look at guy I might not have thought that but as a kid, there's no telling what I was thinking. I was probably thinking when can I get home to play Nintendo honestly, and so so I would be sitting there and and I would I would look at all of these prayers and and I would think you know, like how should I pray? How should how should I pray?

You know, do you have to be kneeled? I would you know, they would tell me at church, you know pray before bed and so I'd get in my bed and I'd lay there and pray and I'd lay down and next thing, you know, it's like I've I've dozed off. How many of you have ever dozed off in prayer be honest before God and and you kind of you kind of jump afterwards and you're kind of like did I what just happened? Did I did I say anything?

You know what? I don't even know where I was God. I'm sorry, you know, I know you already know what I just did but I'm still saying I'm sorry and and you kind of doze off and I would think I was like what what is this prayer really like and how should we go about doing it? People would get up and preach at my church and they would say hey prayer is just talking to God just talk to God like you talk to your friends like you talk to people and I would be like what's it's different than that. There's got to be more to to how we pray and if you've ever asked the question, how should we pray then you are not alone. In fact, the disciples they asked the same question.

We learned last week Luke chapter 11. They they saw Jesus praying they saw him and and and as they saw Jesus praying the disciples they watched him and and then they said Jesus teach us to pray you see they and you got to remember they were Jewish Jewish men and these guys had they knew what prayer was. I mean, they they actually would pray each and every day.

It was their custom. This wasn't something that they were they had never seen before. It wasn't that person who attends a prayer meeting and have never seen people pray. No, they saw Jesus and and they knew what prayer was.

In fact, they had to as Jewish kids recite some of the Old Testament while they pray that's what they were used to. But yet when they saw Jesus pray they saw something totally different and and they were like man the way we pray is not like the way that Jesus is praying. So they approached Jesus and and they say teach us to pray Matthew chapter 6.

We have you know this account as well. We looked at Luke 11 last week and and here Jesus is teaching the sermon on on the Mount and he's going over all of these things with with with people as disciples are there and and there's also other people who have kind of come in and and Jesus is teaching on a lot of different a lot of different things. This is the the greatest sermon ever to have to have been preached and he's he's dealing with everything. It's kind of one of those really long continuing sermons and Jesus is going on and on and here in Matthew chapter 6.

He actually teaches his disciples again. What prayer is we're going to pick it up in verse verse 5. He says this and when thou prayest thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are. So let me say this if you're like man, it must be a sin if I don't know how to pray then man, I must be wrong if you're curious in here of how you should pray. Let me say this that don't feel bad or guilty for that and here's why it's because Jesus knows that all of us have to learn to pray. You know when I got saved, you know, I was a five-year-old boy and when I accepted Jesus as my Savior, I didn't just you know, get up from from that and and just become a prayer warrior, you know from that moment. No, it's something that that we all have learned. If you if you go to any of some of these old timers like Pastor Fletcher and and we recognize the guy like Claude and and people like that, you know, if you go to any of those guys and say hey listen, tell me I mean, how did you become a a prayer warrior like tell me about that.

It wasn't something that just clicked and happened overnight. It's something that they had to learn in Jesus. He recognized that he tells the multitude he says right now. He's like hey listen when thou pray is here's how it should be done.

In fact, he starts with how it shouldn't be done before how it should be done. He said don't be like the hypocrites are here's why for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you they have their reward. So Jesus says listen, here's what he's saying. First of all, prayer is not something that should only be done in public. He's saying listen, they're getting their reward if your reward is to impress the people around you with your prayer. You're getting exactly what you want and that's attention. That's what the that's what the hypocrites wanted.

They just wanted to impress everybody around them. But deep down when nobody was looking they weren't really doing what they should be doing verse 6, but thou when thou pray is and here it is. He says enter into thy closet or thy room and and when thou has shut the door pray to the father thy father which is in secret and then thy father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Let me let me say this about about being in secret. You need to have a place where you pray, you know, Jesus he if you look and follow him in the Gospels there was multiple times. They found him praying and in pretty much all of those instances.

Here's what it would say. Jesus got away from the crowd and went into a certain place. Listen, we should have places that that we go to where we pray. You see real prayer starts in private.

It's built in private prayer Warriors are built in private not in in public. But when you pray verse 7 use not vain repetitions as the heathen or as the pagans do that just means babbling for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Let me say if you're like me as a kid, you don't have to try to impress God with things. God already knows your heart by the way, and he already knows what you were about to ask.

We see that in the next verse and and here's the thing. You don't have to go to God and try to impress him. I used to think when I became a pastor, you know, I was young and and I you know was there was a lot of older people in my church.

I'd go to these things and I'd be like, okay. This is my moment to really gain some respect and and help other people think that I'm just a mature person that I can handle what they've called me to do. And and so I would try to impress them with the words and and with the with the volume sometimes of my prayer and Jesus is saying this listen. Listen when you pray don't don't use all of those things be or be not you ever say therefore like unto them for your father. He knoweth what things you have need of before you ask him now question when you see a verse like that. You probably might have pushed back said then why do we even need to pray here?

He knows here. He knows everything that that you know, we need before we ask him. So why does prayer really do any good think of it like this? You know, if you have kids and and you know what they need right, but sometimes it's good to teach them to ask us. We want them to come to us when they have a need when they need something. We invite them as our children to come and ask us now.

We already know that they needed what they're asking for but we want and welcome them to come and to share with us. Think of it like like that verse 9 and then he goes and he pretty much just I mean drops a truth bomb on everyone in his audience of exactly what prayer should look like. So if you're in here and you say man, I don't really know how to how to pray here. Here's your model prayer. We call it the Lord's Prayer verse 9 after this manner. Therefore pray ye our father which art in heaven.

Listen relationship. Let me remind you when you when you address him address the person that you are talking to our father. Think about you know, everything good now you might not have had a father who was good to you. And I'm sorry if that's your earthly experience, but I want you to think of of the best father figure that you could ever ever.

Imagine ever ever draw up in your life and you say that's the pinnacle of what a father should look like. And let me say this that our Heavenly Father is better than that. You see we should address him as father the the comfort and love and forgiveness and understanding and grace all of those things that the father has the best interest of his kids and in heart that is who we get to address each and every day our father which art in heaven hallowed be thy name. Praise him thy kingdom come thy will be done in Earth as it is in heaven. Remember prayer is not you trying to get your will done on Earth. It's asking God to do his will here on this Earth and forgive or give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

Amen. So if you're in here and you're like man, how do I need to pray? I have needs I have thoughts. How do I need to pray Jesus gives us a plain and simple way that you should address your father in prayer. You say how should I pray? I want you to pray like like this and this is straight from Jesus number one. Here's how we pray. We need to give praise every time you pray give praise to the father. Every time you praise we need to lift up our praise to the father. He says here's how we need to start our father which art in Heaven.

Hallowed be thy name father relationship. Think about your relationship with with God, you know when I was when I was growing up I had great parents. My parents were awesome and and they were great to me and but there was a few times as a kid where I would you know kind of want to do my own thing and my parents would say you're not doing whatever it is that I want to that I want to do and so there was numerous occasions as a as a kid where I would get mad at mom and dad for not allowing me to do something and we had a tree house out back outside of our house in the woods. And so I would get so mad at my parents that I would say well listen, if you're not going to let me do what I want to do, then I am going to pack my stuff and I'm going to move right out of here.

And my parents, you know, so strategic. They just said okay go. I don't know if they were trying to push me out or what was going on there like man, but they would they would let me go and so I'd say okay. Well, I'm going to I thought that was the moment where they're going to be like don't go don't go.

We'll give you anything you want, right? Well, they're just like just go so I'd go to my room and I'd grab my duffel bag because I just you know, it's about all that I thought I needed and so I grabbed my duffel bag. I grab a few pairs of clothes and and I'll throw them in there and you know, I'd really want them to hear because they're in the living room. So I'd make as much noise as possible dragging my your kids do that. It's kind of like they want you to hear and you're trying to ignore them and you're like, you know, try not to tell them hey stop again, you know, but I was I was dragging it through there and I'm I'd walk out and be like, all right, I'm gone.

Your son's moving out. And I'd go out there and I'd climb into that treehouse. I'd be like man. I showed them. I I am up there and I got my clothes. I'm sitting on this wooden treehouse, you know, it's most uncomfortable thing in the world. I was like, this is all that I need.

I don't even need them. And then it was about 15 minutes. Okay, this isn't what I imagined and and they were keeping me.

What I saw is they were keeping me from from from getting something that I wanted. And here's what I recognized is that being gone for 10 or 15 minutes. I had no idea until I was gone for just a minute how much I truly needed my parents.

I started thinking okay. How am I going to do this whole dinner thing? You know, like that's pretty important. I'm going to survive. I got to learn to to eat. You know, I was about 17 at this time.

And so okay, just kidding. But I was a kid and it's I'm thinking, you know, okay dinner. I don't know what I'm going to do. Maybe I could sneak in and grab some food from them. But but I don't want to do that because it's like I'm caving to the fact that they I need them and I don't want them to know how bad I needed them. And so I'd get frustrated in about 15 minutes. It's just like, okay, this is this is not as good as the other side of the fence that I thought it was. I'm going back in so I'd go in and I'd mow for a second and they just want me to come to them, right?

And finally I'd go to them and be like, listen, I'm sorry. I had no idea how much I really needed you. You see, when we address him as father, it's a acknowledgement and a recognition to him recognizing and it's important for us to recognize who he is and who we really are. Our father. He's father. We're his children.

It shows submission. It shows need. It shows we are nothing without him, you know that feeling and I keep bringing this up of of just like, you know, the parent child relationship and and you know, when your kids, you know, are learning to talk and and they're trying to learn to talk and and you're wanting them, you know, as a as a parent you're like, hey, you're wanting them to say their first words. You always wanted to be either dada or mama, right?

You want them to say that. So you're always like say mama say dada. I even do that with my dog sometimes honestly.

I was thinking I was like, wow, I did that this morning. Just kidding. And so if you know me and you don't know me, I love my dog.

Okay. And so that's just is what it is. So he's like a real child in my life.

Lomax don't laugh at me. Okay, and so but here's the thing, you know, when they're learning your kids are learning to talk. You're you're kind of like hey say dada and mama and then when they say it, let's just be honest parents. That is a special moment. That's a special moment still as they get older when when they come to you and and they just call you dad or they call you mom.

There's something about that relationship that is different than other relationships. Yesterday. My kids were away on a kids ministry, you know activity and they were gone and and and they came they came home from from this kids ministry activity. You know, I'm excited to see them and just hear a little bit about what they what they did and the fun that they had and and and my son comes into the room and and and he walks into the room and and and my wife's there and she she's the one who picked him up and and she said hey show dad what you what you got and and he showed me this like Arrowhead that he got he said dad and and he got had two of them and he said and mom said to him like hey cam tell them why why did you get two of them? And he said because when I was at the store I wanted to one for me and one for dad is what he said and I got that with me. I'm probably going to preach with this all the time this Arrowhead and I want you to understand it's like as a parent as a parent when they come to you and they say stuff like that. I get it parents like there are tough times and tough days about about Parenthood, but when they come to you and and they recognize that relationship guy that you are the father. You are dad and we are your kids.

There's something special about that relationship. There's something that sets that apart from any other relationship that there is the psalmist David. He said it this way Psalm 63 1 Oh God thou art my God early. Will I seek thee guess what my soul thirsted for thee in a dry and thirsty land where no water is to see thy power and thy glory. So as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. Let me say this that your prayer time with God will be to the degree to how you truly view. God I firmly believe this that your prayer time with God. It'll rise to the level of how you truly view him.

You know, some of us view him as just we come to him. Hey God, I need this God. I need that. I need you to do this. I need you to do that God and then you just leave and you come back.

Got it. You didn't do what I asked you to do God. I need you to do this God. I need you to do this and sometimes it's just this overwhelming to-do list of your kingdom and your will and everything that you want getting done here on this earth.

And we never take the time to come to him and say. Father hallowed be your name. Let me say this when you pray do you have moments where you give praise to the father? Your prayer should always start with addressing who we are talking to. Let me remind you you're talking to your heavenly father. You are talking to the creator of the universe. The God who spoke the very world into existence. The God who spoke to the mountains and they arose. The God who created the seas. That's the God that we get to address each and every day.

And you have to stop and realize who you are addressing. Father creator king of kings master your sustainer your provider. Your Alpha and Omega your Savior. Listen before you go on before you bring all of your to-dos to God stop and get on your knees and remember who you're talking to remember who you are addressing. Number two align our will and purpose to his. So if you want to know how you need to pray number one, you need to always give praise to the father number two. You need to align our will and purpose to his first verse 10 thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in Earth as it is in heaven. Now the tents here of this verse is the exact same going back to the Greek of Matthew 26 when Jesus is praying in the garden and he says God if there is any way let this cup pass from me nevertheless not my will but thine be done. You see Jesus was asking the father if there was any other way and and the father said that this was the only way for the sins of the whole world to be atoned for let me say that that there are going to be times in life where you're put through things that you don't want to really go through and you're going to have to make a choice. Are you living for his kingdom purpose or are you living for your own? Like people come to the pastor a lot of times. Why would God allow this to happen to my family? It shouldn't be that way and and I get it and I empathize in those moments, but there's got to be points in your life in our spiritual life when we come to God and we don't understand why and we don't get it and it's okay to express that to God.

It's okay to say God. I don't understand your plan. I don't I don't get it. It doesn't make any sense to me. But nevertheless. Not my will. But your will be done you see the purpose of our prayer. It's to surrender. It's coming to him to surrender and lay down our will and to invite his will to invite his kingdom to come down here on this Earth. Our prayer should not be father bless what I want to do today. It should not be father bless what I have chosen to do with my life. It should not be father bless what we are planning even to do as a church. I struggle with that sometimes I got all these ideas and I'm like, hey God, I need you to bless this is a really good idea that I had and here's the thing about prayer. It's coming to him and saying God, what is it that you want me to do and help us do that? That's the prayer.

It's coming to the father and say God, here's my heart and and this is how I feel. But at the end of the day, it's not about me. It's not about my agenda. It's not about my will. It's not all about my way. It's not all about my purpose.

I want whatever you want to see done. I want it done here on this Earth. Father show us your will for our lives and help us do just that. Number three recognize our total dependence on him. He goes on in verse 11 when Jesus he's teaching and and he goes on he says give us this day our daily bread. Now, this is a reference remember the Old Testament. If you've grown up in church or around church, you know the story where the Israelites, you know, they were they were led out of Egypt and and they're you know, wandering around in the wilderness and they run out of food and they run all out of all of this stuff.

And and and so what does God do? They lift up their voices to God pray to him and and next thing you know every day each and every day. There's there's mana when they wake up in the mornings.

There's mana on the ground and and they go and I can imagine as they kind of unzip their tents and and they kind of walk down and they're just thinking man, let's get as much as we can and and they're gathering all that mana up and and here's what's interesting. It's it's just enough for that day. It's just enough for that day.

Don't you think it might have made sense for God to to maybe give them, you know, a week's worth. You know a little bit more, you know than just a day, but but the point is is that when when we look to God, we have to realize that we are desperately in need of him each and every day. It's recognizing our total and full dependence on on him. We should be dependent on him for the big and the small things day by day when you wake up in the morning. God should be the source of everything that you need in life. He should be the source and the power and the authority when you go to school each and every day or when you step into a classroom to teach or when you go to work and in the factory or or when you go and do whatever you do and whatever God's called you to do. Let me say this you should go to him being fully reliant and fully dependent on him for everything. That's the point when Jesus is saying give us this day our daily bread our food everything that we do in life.

We are desperately dependent on you. So you say what should what should we pray about then? Should we pray about everything? You know, if you look in Scripture, there's there's tons of prayers to God. Hannah prayed that God would give her a son. Remember the Old Testament.

She she wanted a son. She couldn't have kids and and so and we've seen that a couple times in Scripture and guess what they ran to God and they got on their knees before God they brought that petition to him. Hannah prayed that God would give her a son the church prayed for Peter's release from prison.

You remember we learned about that last week Peter's in prison and and he can't get out. He's got all these guards around him all these soldiers around him and the church was in a house just praying on their knees before God that that God would release Peter from prison. Hezekiah prayed that God would deliver them from the hands of the Assyrians that God would deliver them the enemy to the Israelites. Hey, he prayed.

Hey God, give us the Assyrians. Jairus asked Jesus to heal his dying daughter. Moses asked God to reveal to him his glory. Elisha prayed that God would open the eyes of his enemy. Elijah prayed that it would not even rain. Solomon prayed and asked God for wisdom. The disciples prayed for boldness as they took and further the mission that God had called them to. The point is this, you say what should we pray about?

It's easy. It's anything that you worry about. Anything that concerns us should be sent up to heaven. And when you pray, give praise to the Father. Understanding that it's his will, not yours.

That you are in desperate need of him and that you can do nothing apart from him. And let me say this, God's not gonna give you everything that you want. But here's the good thing about our Father.

He will give you everything that you need. Here's the thing, is that sometimes we think this whole spirituality thing doesn't work for us because we prayed for something and it did not happen. You ever been there? You prayed for healing and God didn't heal them the way we wanted. You prayed for a job and God gave it to somebody else. You prayed for an answer and you're left with more questions.

You prayed that you'd make the team and they chose somebody else. You ever been there where you're disappointed, you're discouraged. And so we're left with these questions about, man, this whole, I'm not praying again, I'm frustrated. It doesn't work.

It doesn't work for us. And sometimes we're left with that. And let me just say this, God, I don't understand why he chooses to say yes to some of your things and wait to some of you and hey, no, we're going a different direction to the rest of you.

But I don't understand specifically this. But here's what I'll tell you. And I think anybody else that's in this room that has been saved for a long period of time, they would probably come up here and testify that this is true, that God is not going to give us everything that we want, but he will give us everything that we need. Everything that you need, I promise you God will provide for you. Number four, beg God for grace and for us to extend grace. Verse 12, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. You see, when we pray, we need to beg God and recognize that we are in desperate need of the grace of God. And when Jesus says this, it's very interesting.

I don't want to look over it in verse 12. He says, forgive us our debts as or likewise how we forgive other people. Jesus says that we should ask God to forgive us to the degree that we are forgiving those around us. Think about this thought.

It's incredibly convicting. What if our heavenly father, what if he forgave you to the degree that you forgive the people that wronged you? What if that's how he treated us? What if God the father chose to forgive you only to the degree that you chose to forgive the person that wronged you 15 years ago in grade school? Or the person that cut you off in traffic? Or the person that took your seat at Union Grove Baptist Church? Okay, now I'm really getting home.

I get it. But you see, a lot of times, like, what would we do? You see, Jesus is saying, we should pray for forgiveness in our own life and pray and ask God to extend grace to us while also extending grace to one another. Now, we all expect to receive grace, but sometimes we are slow to extend grace.

We expect to receive it, but sometimes we're slow to extend it. Ephesians 4 32, be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. You see, failure to forgive others, but wanting forgiveness for yourself, you're being a hypocrite. That's what Jesus is getting at.

He says, listen, if you can't forgive something that they did to you, but yet you come to God wanting forgiveness to him, he's saying you're nothing different than a hypocrite. You're no different than a person who puts on this exterior thing, but the interior is messed up. Now, I get it.

You might push back because I get it. You might say, hey, pastor, you don't know my story. You don't know what they did to me. You don't know what they said about me. You don't know how bad they truly hurt me. You don't know how bad they hurt my family. You don't know, hey, we had to move away because of what they did to us.

We had to find a whole new group of friends because what they did to us. And you might say, listen, pastor, I get it, but you don't get it of what they did for me. And if I forgive them, it gets them off the hook and they get away with the offense that they committed against me. And I understand that, but let me remind you what Jesus is saying. Jesus is saying that we should forgive other people and extend the same amount of grace that has been bestowed upon you.

Don't forget this, that you, if you don't want other people to be let off the hook, I'll be honest with you. I'm glad that when I was five years old, when I called upon Jesus for salvation, I am officially off of the hook. The Bible says because I'm in Jesus Christ, there is no condemnation in my life. And if you're in here today and you've accepted Jesus as savior, there's no condemnation for you. You are now off the hook. I don't have to worry about dying and going to hell.

I don't have to worry about the wrath that is to come because I trusted and placed my faith in Jesus Christ. I am off the hook. And if you're in here today and you're a Christian, you are off the hook.

So why on earth are you worried about letting them off the hook? You see, he says we should forgive and extend grace to the degree that it has been extended to us. It's coming to the Father and saying, Father, you canceled my debt, so of course I'm gonna cancel theirs.

You canceled my debt, so of course there is no way on this earth that I'm gonna hold them accountable for their debt because you canceled mine, so therefore I'm gonna do that to others. That's the gospel. Let me say this, that forgiven people forgive other people. Those who understand what forgiveness is, they understand what we've been forgiven of, they're the ones who should extend it to other people.

The last one is this, number five. Lead us not into temptation. When we pray, we should ask God for protection from evil, protection from the enemy.

Let me say that God does not insert evil desires into your heart, but he does bring us through moments where we are gonna be tempted, and it's to teach you and me that we are absolutely nothing without the grace of God at work in our lives. So every day when we come to God, it's not, man, I'm doing pretty good for myself. I can handle my day on its own. It's waking up each and every morning on your face before God saying, God, I'm nothing without you. I can't have victory over the enemy without you. God, I can't defeat what I'm about to face today. God, I need you, I need your grace in my life, and I need you to deliver me from the enemy. Deliver me from temptation.

Let me say, he always makes a way of escape for us. 1 Corinthians 10. It says that when you're tempted, he always makes this way of escape for the follower of Jesus. It's always there, but Jesus is teaching us we need to ask him for it. Ask him to give us and to lead us away from that. I was thinking about this, and sometimes my illustrations don't hit home with all of you, but my mind kind of works a little bit different.

When I was thinking about this way of escape, I came across this thought. I'm not a big video gamer. I don't understand video games. In fact, you know, video games have progressed so much that if you have young children and you grew up where there was like an A and a B button and an up, down, sideways kind of button, that's about the extent of where my mind was, and so when I was growing up, it was a very simple Nintendo game with only a few buttons, and then I upgraded and got a Sega Genesis. How many of you had a Sega growing up, a few of you? And Sega, you know, and so that's just an inside joke for those.

We get it, you know, if you raised your hand. And so we had the Sega Genesis, same thing, very simple concept. When I would go on the road, you know, we had, when I'd go on the road, we were, when I'd go on vacation is the better way of putting that. I would take a Game Gear, I had a Game Gear, it was like a little Game Boy type thing, and still very simple. You took a game in, you put it in, and when you wanted to change your game, you took it out. You didn't have to worry about all the complexities of games, but today, let me say to the parents, it's a lot more complicating now, right? And so when my son plays me, he likes to, when he really wants to feel good about himself, he'll call me into his room to play video games with him because I don't understand the controller and it's too much.

So he called me in the other day and he said, hey dad, would you play a game of NBA 2K with me, basketball? And I'm like, oh man, I can choose my team well and I'll be fine. So I go in there with him and he ended up beating me by like 17 points. We played to 21.

So getting beat by 17 doesn't sound bad, but when you only play to 21, it's actually like wow, you got demolished. And so, but he destroys me. I miss the old days and when I was growing up, you know, we had Pac-Man. How many of you are Pac-Man fans?

Okay. And I love Pac-Man. In fact, you know, like I went on the senior trip back in May with the seniors here and they happened to have a Pac-Man machine in our house.

And I mean, honestly, I almost said if I knew I wouldn't get in trouble, I'd almost say, hey guys, find yourself to the Disney theme park because I'm going to stay here and play Pac-Man because I enjoy Pac-Man that much. So I would play and I would play this game and I was thinking about this when I thought about a way of escape. You know when Pac-Man, when you're going and Inky and Blinky are chasing you and Pinky and all those names that they had, you know, it was very simple, complicated days that we grew up. It was kind of weird. But you know, when you're going and Inky is about to get you, okay, and as you get to the side of the screen, there's like these places, these hallways that teleport and transport you, not to another world, just to the other side of the screen.

You remember? And if they're chasing you and they're getting closer to you, it's like if I can just get to this tunnel and get in there, then I can go to the other side and I can beat this level without, you know, falling into the enemy's trap. And as I thought about that, I was thinking, you know, like there's a way of escape if I can just get to it. But sometimes when I'm playing the game, I'm thinking, I can get all of these little dots before I get up there and next thing you know, I've gone too far and the enemy comes down on me and I die and I have to start another level.

And here's the point. When we pray, God, lead us not into temptation, there is a way of escape for those who are in Christ Jesus. There's a way of escape for you today that if you're a Christian today, God died so that you could be delivered from the enemy that's attacking you, which means we don't have to live and give into these temptations.

If you're giving into temptations and you're in Christ, that is your choice. You can have victory over it. There's a way of escape for you.

There's a way out for you. The way out is simply coming to God, asking him to deliver us and to protect us from the enemy. When was the last time you prayed for protection from the enemy? We come to God and we ask him to do these ten things for us and then we leave and then we fall into temptation later on in the day and we sin and we don't understand why. It's because we don't approach him as Father and give praise to him.

We don't realize who we're talking to. And then we go on and we forget to ask him to protect us and ask him to forgive us and ask him to provide for us, recognizing that he is your provision. So listen, how is your prayer life today? Last week we had everybody, we had this on the screen and this is just a thing for each one of us that I put up last week. God, I ask you to do blank.

What is it? What are you praying for? Is it healing for somebody in your life?

Is it boldness? Is it answers for what God may be calling you to do? Is it choosing a college where God is leading you?

That's a big decision. Is it a relational decision that you're praying for? Is it your marriage that you feel is gone and too far gone and maybe you haven't brought it to God recently? And here's what Jesus is saying about whatever it is and there's a ton of things that you're probably praying for that I do not know.

I don't know your story. But the point that Jesus is making is this. It's us coming to the Father on our knees before God and committing that we're going to stay there on our knees before God until we realize who we're talking to, until we fully lay down our will for His, until we've acknowledged our full dependence on Him, until we have no alt with anybody in this world because we've forgiven them to the degree He's forgiven us and until we've asked Him to protect us from temptation. So to close this service, I thought this would be perfect for homecoming. I want you to think about this question. God, I want you to do what? And I'm going to invite you here in a moment. We're going to stand.

We did this last week. And I want everybody, if you are physically able, I want us to flood the altar down front and I want us to pray for whatever our blank says and I want you to pray it through this lens. Heavenly Father, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Father, give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins just as we should forgive everybody else and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. You see, so often we pray, God, I want you to do this but we don't pray any of those other things. Perhaps that's the model prayer. That's how we should come to God. That's the posture that we should come to God.

And I want to invite you here in a moment. We're going to stand. I want you to come down. I want you to pray for your blank and I want you to pray the Lord's Prayer about whatever it is you have up here.

Would you stand with me? I'm going to ask Renee to come and she's going to play and Patty. And listen, here's what I want you to do.

We did this last week. God, I want you to do blank. Whatever it is, right now, here in this moment, I want you to come forward.

Right now, don't wait for the music to play. I want you to fill this altar and I don't know what it is that you're praying for. It could be big. It could be a family member who is off the deep end and there is nothing more you can do. It could be your marriage. It could be healing. It could be direction.

It could be whatever. But here's what I'm asking you to do. I want you to put Jesus, Lord's Prayer. I want you, I want that to be the way that you pray. I want you to commit.

God, I'm not going to get up. I'm going to pray without ceasing. I'm going to pray each and every day exactly the way you tell me to pray from Matthew chapter 6. And as I pray for my blank, I'm going to remember you're my Father. Praise God. I'm going to remember that I'm nothing without you.

I'm fully dependent on you. Father, I'm not going to pray for grace. I'm also going to extend grace and God, lead me not into temptation.

I'll give you a few minutes to pray and then I'll close us here in a moment. Father, I love you. God, we praise you today. God, we glorify and we magnify your name. God, we want to lift you up. You're our creator.

You're our sustainer. God, we are absolutely nothing without you and when we come here today, God, I want to ask for forgiveness from this pastor of the times that I've approached you and I've forgotten who I was really talking to. God, I've demanded you to do so many things in my life and I've forgotten sometimes to stop and just say, God, you are so good to me.

You're so gracious to me. You're so merciful to me, Father and I thank you for that. God, I want you to do some great and mighty things but Father, I want more than anything.

I want your will to be done and God, I'm calling on heaven to come down here on this earth. Father, I believe you still want to do these things. God, I believe in the same way that you've saved people in the past, God, you want to continue to save. In the same way that you've called people into ministry, Father, I believe you still want to do that.

I believe you're still calling. The same way that I've seen you heal people and do an amazing miracle, God, in the Bible. God, you can do that today and God, we're praying on behalf.

Like, Father, I've seen you restore people's homes. God, we're calling on that. God, we know that nobody is too far from your reach. God, there's families down here that are praying for loved ones. God, to recognize that they are nothing without you and to be saved, God, they're so far from you. God, we know that you can reach them wherever they are, God, and I'm begging you to do that.

God, we're calling on you to do that. We believe it and we're claiming it and God, I pray that you would just continue to have your hand on our ministry. We love you, for it's in your name we pray, amen. I want you to remain standing and I thought it would be good to close our service with singing this. I know we're going long and I apologize.

It's homecoming, though, and listen, it's okay to go a little long every now and then on homecoming and there's food waiting for us, but listen, I thought it would be good for us, the last thing we can do before Pastor Bailey comes, I want us to declare God's goodness. Do you believe he's been good to you? Listen, we used to say this a lot, God is good and all the time. Listen, he's been so good to us. We don't deserve it, but he's been good to us and he's bestowed his mercy and grace on us and I thought it would be good for us in closing. Let's declare that today. It's not always been easy for you, but I'm telling you, he's been good to you. Let's sing this song together. I love you, Lord Oh, your mercy never fails me All my days I've been held in your hands From the moment that I wake up until I lay my head I will sing of the goodness of God And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God I love your voice You have led me through the fire In darkest night you are close like no other I've known you as a father I've known you as a friend And I have lived in the goodness of God And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God It's running after, it's running after me Your goodness is running after, it's running after me With my life laid down, I'm surrendered now I give you everything Your goodness is running after, it's running after me Your goodness is running after, it's running after me Your goodness is running after, it's running after me With my life laid down, I'm surrendered now I give you everything Your goodness is running after, it's running after me And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God