Daily Devotion June 11

June 11: Matthew 6:5-7

KJV Key Verse: Matthew 6:6
6 But thou, when thou prayest , enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly

Devotion:
When Christ was giving instruction to the disciples about how to act in public toward God His instruction centred on making sure they gave their hearts and glory to God and not to show off in front of other people. So many times in our lives we do things to try and impress others rather than doing them to impress God. Can God be impressed? Yes He can, but not in a glory giving way but rather in respecting us for doing the right thing when He knows our lives.

If we are willing to praise God then we should not have to make a big song and dance about it each time we want to lift up our prayers. God will listen to us even when we lock ourselves in a dark room to pray to Him. God is going to hear our prayers when they come silently from our hearts and not via the church PA system to everyone can hear them. God is listening to your heart and not necessarily your use of the English language (or whatever other language you pray to Him with!)

I love to lift up my prayers at all times during the day – when I am sitting in traffic or driving down the highways, when I am almost asleep in bed to when I am dancing around in front of children trying to get them to sing to God! I believe God is listening to us all the time and He will reward us according to our hearts and our actions. But when our hearts and actions are turned toward impressing others, why should God be listening?

If we want God to answer we have to be sure we lift up our prayers to Him, then He can answer according to His goodness and His mercy. But if we lift up our prayers to other people then are we not already getting all we can earn from them? Are we not already impressing others – that is all the reward we should expect from them! Speak to God. Speak directly to Him. Ask things in Jesus’ name, but ask God…

Points to Ponder:
Do the direction of your prayers and heart agree?

Is God the focus of your prayers?