Jan 16th 19 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Prayer Is a Two-Way Conversation

Are you getting alone with God each day to pray? When you do, are you not only talking to God, you’re also listening to Him speak to you? Prayer is a two-way conversation. It’s a time when we talk to God and He talks to us. A Two-Way Conversation Time and again scripture exhorts us to bring our requests to God in prayer. But we must remember that prayer is communion. It is a conversation.... read more

Jan 15th 19 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Get Alone With God: The Religion of the Closet

Do you have a gnawing ache to get alone with God? Do you, like Jesus, make it a habit to withdraw to a solitary place to pray? Getting alone with God to pray is what Jonathan Edwards calls the “religion of the closet.” The Religion of the Closet Jonathan Edwards writes, A true Christian doubtless delights in religious fellowship, and Christian conversation, and finds much to affect his heart... read more

Jan 24th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

A Moment of Refreshing: Enter In, Psalm 100

God has put one prayer on my heart for you today—that you will experience Him in prayer. That He will usher you into His courts and meet with you in a life-changing way! As you come before Him in prayer, may He cause you to sense His presence and see His face in a way you’ve not seen or felt on this fast. He did that for me last night in an overwhelming way through a worship song. I was at the... read more

Jan 18th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Drawing Near: Treasuring Communion (Part Two)

Do you find it difficult in this age of distractions to disconnect from everything in order to connect to God? How many times a week do you withdraw from other people in order to draw near to God? This includes tearing yourself away from your social media accounts, phone, text messages, emails, television, internet, movies, entertainment, work, and in-person contact with other people. When you do withdraw... read more

Jan 17th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Drawing Near: Treasuring Communion (Part One)

Have you struggled to make drawing near to God a priority? Even while doing without food in order to supposedly express your hunger for God? Has it been easier to do without food than it has been to pray? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you’re not alone. Don’t feel condemned. As I mentioned in a previous post, I’ve struggled in prayer, too. And I’m leading the... read more

Jan 12th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

An Outline for Repentance, Part 3: Sins of Commission

In the last post, we began taking the first step toward repentance—reflecting on our lives with prayerful self-examination. (If you missed Part One of this series on repentance, I recommend reading it prior to reading this post.) We prayed over a list of ten sins of omission, listening to God’s convicting voice regarding any unconfessed sin. In this post, we will pray through a list of sins... read more

Jan 10th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

An Outline for Repentance, Part 2: Sins of Omission

In the past two posts, we saw how vital it is that we repent of our sins. Today we begin the first step toward repentance—reflecting on our lives with prayerful self-examination, looking back over our past history and considering our actions and motives. (If you missed Part One of this post, I encourage you to read it before proceeding.) Our sins were committed one by one. And as much as possible,... read more

Jan 9th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Ascending the Hill of the Lord: An Outline for Repentance, Part 1

In yesterday’s post, we saw that sin can prevent God from hearing our prayers. If we want God to hear our plea as we fast, we must repent—confess our sins to Him, ask His forgiveness, and forsake our sin. I was going to write on another topic today, but I felt led to pause here. It’s critical that we let God give us clean hands and a pure heart, if we want to enter His presence with our... read more

Jan 8th 18 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Fasting Day 2: So That God Will Hear

It is a possibility that even though we’re fasting, God might not hear our plea.<?p> “Yikes!” you gasp. “You mean I could be miserable doing without my caffeine and comfort foods, and it could all be a waste? How is that even possible?” It can happen if we skip over the foundation of fasting—repentance. So before we go any further in our twenty-one days of... read more

Jan 22nd 17 Posted by Natalie Nichols

Praying for Government Leaders (3): A Guide to Praying for Your Country

The past two days, we’ve focused on praying for our government leaders. We’ve prayed for the president, and his cabinet. And we’ve prayed for local, state, and federal government leaders using a prayer guide with scriptural basis for each request. Today we’ll be praying for our country using the guide below. God cannot bless a nation that turns from Him. Doing what is right,... read more