A reflection of my message today at NRN GRAVITY

Today at NRN we celebrated Southern Gospel Sunday.  As I prayed about the worship I sensed a leading from the Lord that there should be a time of preaching the Word of God.  On Saturday evening I sensed clarity about my message.  Here is a reflection of the message I have prepared for today:

In the film, Gravity, Sandra Bullock portrays character Dr. Ryan Stone: A medical engineer and Mission Specialist on her first mission in space. Her character, Ryan Stone, finds herself in a desperate situation, stranded all alone in outer space. She is almost certainly about to die. She knows she needs help beyond herself. But she doesn't know how to ask for it.  Stone, has been emotionally adrift since her 4-year-old daughter died in an accidental fall. This is a turning point in the film:

 

She says, "No one will mourn for me. No one will pray for my soul... I’ve never prayed... Nobody has taught me how..."
When I watched this clip I wondered: "How many people could say the same thing?" More and more people in our world are like Ryan Stone. There are more people who, when asked "What religion are you?" always check "none of the above."

A 2008 Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life report found that about half the unaffiliated surveyed said they believed in some kind of life after death — including 18 percent of the atheists and 35 percent of agnostics. About 40 percent of the unaffiliated believe in heaven — including 12 percent of the atheists and 18 percent of agnostics. And on the BIG question, 30 percent of the unaffiliated said they were pretty sure there was no God. 

Too many people don't have a strategy - a plan, a pathway - for prayer.

Just in case no one ever taught you how to pray, here's a simple method. If you can remember P.R.A.Y. then you can learn how to pray.

P – praise. Praise Christ for something good that happened in your life today.

I will proclaim the name of the LORD. Oh, praise the greatness of our God!                                                                 Deut. 32:3

 I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise…                  2 Samuel 22:4

Praise be to the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.                                                     1 Peter 1:3

R – repent. Repent of something wrong that you did today. Tell Jesus you're sorry for your sin and that you will seek His help not to live that way anymore.

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.                           Acts 3:19

A – ask. Ask the Lord for something good and godly that you desire.

”Ask, and it will be given to you seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.                                                                       Matthew 7:7  

And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”                                                                                            Matthew 21:22 

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.                                         Mark 11:24 

Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.    John 14:13-14 

Y – yield. Submit yourself and commit yourself to do the will of God for your life. Put Christ in the driver's seat of your life. Make Him Lord all.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.                                       1 John 1:9

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.                                                                       Romans 6:23


Commit yourself to pray this way and you will be approaching God in dependence and humility. And if you are ever all alone and stranded in outer space (or somewhere on this planet), you can effectively access God.