Button

When you wear shirts in the morning, did you ever misplace the top button into a wrong hole? You see, when we misplace the top button wrong, no matter what we do, we will end up misplacing all the buttons downward. So, when we button up the shirt, it's very important that we start right.

And, do you realize what's the best way to start your day? Well, Jesus always started his day with God in prayer. Because Jesus knew that starting a day with God would give him strength to stay strong throughout the day. So, when you wake up in the morning, before you rush to eat breakfast or button up the shirt, open a short prayer to God. He will give you strength to stay strong for the day.

"Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray" (Mark 1:35, NLT). 

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1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, ~~~~

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12... 1000, 1001..." Do you know how many hairs do you have? Have you tried to count them? You see, counting the number of our hairs will take forever! But, the Bible says, God knows the exact number of hairs on our heads, even without counting. That means, God knows everything about us, even very small things. So, we don't need to worry about anything in this life. When we become worried, we can simply pray to God. He knows everything about us.

"And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid..." 
(Luke 12:7, NLT).

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Lion & Mosquito

Once there was a missionary in Africa. While he was travelling there, one day he found himself being chased by the ferocious lion! Desperate for help, the man ran as fast as he could to the point he ran out of breath and couldn't run any more. Gasping for breath, the man cried out, “God! Please Help Me!” Right then, the lion passed over him, chasing after the gazelle. “Oh, Thank you God,” the man prayed.

But, then at night, as the man tried to sleep in the tent, he was bothered by the mosquitoes. He tried to chase them away, but to no avail. So, the man ended up staying up all night through. Frustrated, the man began reading the Bible in the morning. Then, all of sudden, he heard God say to him, “You prayed to me yesterday when you were in a big trouble with the lion. But, why did you not pray to me, when you were annoyed by the mosquitoes?”

You see, in our lives, when we get into big troubles, we cry out to God. We say, “God, help us.” But, when things seem easy in our lives, we often forget to pray. But, do you realize God wants us to pray for both the big and small things? In fact, God wants us to pray for everything, not just for the big things.

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything..." (Philippians 4:6, NLT).

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Illustration from Billie Hanks, A Call to Joy: Discipler's Guide (International Evangelism Association), 202.

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Ear Phone

Have you seen earphones before? Have you used them before? You see, we use earphones, when we want to listen to music or something with no distraction. Earphone helps us shut off all distracting noises, so we can enjoy the music we like.

Do you realize sometimes that's what we exactly need to do, to listen to God? You see, when there are so many distracting noises around us, it becomes hard for us to focus on what God is telling us. So, we too need to wear God's earphone to shut off distracting noises and give him our undivided ears. So, what is God's earphone? Well, it's called "Prayer Phone."

Don't know what prayer phone is? Click here.

"I will listen to what God the LORD says..." (Psalm 85:8, NIV). 

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Drive Through

“Please give me a coke, one cheese burger, and two fries! And, Oh, one vanilla milkshake as well please!” These are words that our parents say when they go to drive through restaurants. By the way, when your parents ordered foods through drive though, have you ever wondered to yourself? “Man, I wonder if the people in the kitchen are preparing our meals! Because I cannot see them from here. So, I am not sure if they are working on our meals.” Did you ever think like that before? Probably not. The moment we tell our order, we know for sure that people in the kitchen are diligently preparing our delicious meals!

When you pray before, have you ever wondered to yourself? “Man! I wonder if God in heaven is going to answer my prayers! I do not see Him. So, I am not sure if He is acting to answer my prayers.” But, you know what? You do not need to worry about that. Because the Bible says the moment you start praying, God starts acting. So, never doubt whether God heard your prayer. He heard it, and He is acting on it. You just need to wait.

“The prayer of a righteous person works” (James 5:16, Paraphrase).

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Boiling

Have you seen your parents boil water on the gas oven? Do you remember how much time it took for the water in the pen to boil? You see, it takes some amount of time for the water in the pen to be heated before it starts boiling. Meanwhile, we just need to wait patiently.

Sometimes, we may wonder why God is not answering our prayers too quick. We may say, “I have been praying for this for a while, but God doesn't answer! What is wrong?” Well, in those times, we need to remember, just as it takes some time for the water to be heated up and starts boiling, it takes some time before God starts answering our prayers. You can trust that He knows the right time to answer your prayers. So, meanwhile, just wait patiently.

“LORD, I wait for you; you will answer, Lord my God” (Psalm 38:15, NIV).

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Prayer Phone

“HELLO?” That’s what we say, when we answer the phone. We use the phone whenever we want to be connected with our loved ones, when they are far away from us. It is a great way to chit chat with them.

But, what do we do, if we want to be connected with God? You see, God has given us a phone as well, so we can talk with Him. That phone is called “Prayer Phone.” Through prayer, we can talk to God about anything, because He loves to listen to us. Also, through prayer, we can even ask God for help for anything, because He loves to help us.  So, when was the last time, you have connected with God? It’s time to pick up the Prayer Phone!

“Pray without stopping” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). 

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