Today we are finishing up our discussion about the F.L.A.C.T.S. of life. If we can just get a hold of these things, I know our prayer lives will be revolutionized. I am believing that this year many of us are going to see it happen as we await the day!
The F.L.A.C.T.S. as we have stated before are just an intentional way of approaching God through:
Faith with a
Listening spirit
Adoring God before everything else
Confessing both the strengths and weaknesses of our situation
Thanking Him for His move in our lives as we recognize it and finally
Supplicating with the Lord in regards to the things HE wants to give us.
Today of course we are going to talk about supplication. Supplication is that part of prayer that most of us define as prayer. It is the requesting part of prayer: The “God heal Aunt Joan” prayer, the “God I need a $1000.00 to pay the mortgage!” prayer, the “God protect the missionary in New Guinea” prayer.
I find people fall into one of two extremes when it comes to supplication. Either we don’t pray for things at all or the only thing we do when we pray is ask for stuff. The Apostle Paul helps us to strike a thoughtful balance with his admonition in Philippians Chapter 4
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” Phil 4: 6 NLT
Here Paul gives us 4 practical helps when it comes to supplication:
1. Don’t worry. Pray in your prayer time. Give it into the hands of Jesus and then get your mind off it. Go to a movie. Host a game night. Go to church. But don’t wallow in the request. You’ll only get in God’s way.
2. Pray about everything. Practice daily giving every area of your life into God’s hands through prayer. Pray about something in every arena of your life every day. And keep a list of what you are praying. Cross things off the list as they get answered. It’s a great faith builder.
3. Be honest about needs. Don’t try to do anything without praying about it first. It’s not like HE doesn’t know. God sometimes just waits for permission to help.
4. Thank him in advance of the answer for the answer!
Which area of the F.L.A.C.T.S. are you working on today?
Reinventing the We'll 
Thanks, Pastor J
Very interesting series. I have learned much and had much reminded to me. Grateful you chose to share this with us.
I find it easier to ‘supplicate and wait’ when the subject of my prayer is not a major life issue.
Praying I will allow Him to work in His timing … I don’t want what He doesn’t want for me.
Blessings
ann
It is true Ann. The closer to our heart a need is the harder it is to let it go. This kind of supplication often sends me into travail a deep painful time of prayer that involves coming to a place of trusting God with my “treasure” and releasing it into His hands. Sometimes this is a long process and I find many times the need is not met until I walk this road.
as I walk out under the stars at night I especially Adore God before everything else… It is so magnificent to see His handiwork before me that this is the first thing to fall from my heart… His praise, my gratefulness! And then I just lay all the people I have met or come upon all day before His throne of Grace believing Him for the miracles they need in their lives and that they would see Him as He is and worship Him…in beauty and in truth…
I enjoyed your thoughts on this post!
Thanks fisherlady! This is a beautiful picture of prayer you related. I am at peace just reading it!
Thanks, Pastor J for sharing this message. The part I have to work on the most is supplication. I have to constantly remind myself that I need to give it ALL and I mean it ALL to Him if I expect Him to help me in every area of my life. Since starting the 21 days of fasting and prayer I have surrendered every area of my life to Him and in this time my faith has been increased so much. I can’t measure it even if there was a meter to measure it. It is hard to explain what my spirit is experiencing, all I can say is WOW!!! God is so good. There is nothing He can’t do.
Thank you for this powerful testimony Debby! I am blessed to see how God is working in your life!
You have me thinking about not getting in God’s way. 🙂 Thanks so much for teaching us about prayer! Loved this! And really impacted by the idea of using social networking to praise Him. 🙂
A-men Deb. I look forward to hearing the testimonies that come from this!
Amen wonderful comments! Just The F.L.A.C.T.S. this is really good I’m glad to finally be enjoying what you’re doing to honor our Father. Pastor I tell ya I get so down sometimes it seems as if my answers are not coming LOL! Yea it’s that they’re not coming like I want or soon enough,yep Pat needs prayer LOL!
Love you Pastor 😀
Love you too sister…and I am with you in that. So often I find that I have to go through a releasing process before He can ever answer my prayers. His move is contingent on my really being able to say “Not my will but thine”. For me at least that sometimes is a long process. I will be praying for you.
Wonderful reminder of the power and necessity of prayer … Another thing I add – I let go of my expectations of HOW God is going to answer. He always answers His children, but in what is truly best. If we are holding onto how we think the prayer should be answered we are neglecting to seek and walk in His will and fully trust Him.
Rachel
A-men Rachel! Often our first desire is not His. We have to spend time “listening” over our requests. Through His Word and still small voice He eventually reveals His plan to us in our circumstances! 🙂
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You are a wonderful teacher, and I commend your work in the Lord. The Lord’s blessings be with you always. He will never leave us, nor forsake us.
Thank you so much! This is truly a season of reaping rewards for me. I appreciate this gift! I am truly blessed!
This has been an excellent series on prayer. Thanks.
I am reminded of the time when I was earnest in prayer for something a number of years ago and God brought me to a well known verse – Phil 4:6 “Let your requests be made known unto God” – and the words ‘UNTO GOD” jumped out at me.
I thought how foolish that was – to whom else would you pray? Surely the “unto God” was unnecessary! Then my loving Father made me realise that while I had been praying to Him, in my mind I was working out HOW He would answer. While I wasn’t trying to tell Him how, I was NOT completely handing it over to Him, was I? When I took my hands (and mind) off and left it with Him, He answered – beyond my expectations and much better than I could have thought myself.
So good! Sometimes prayer is more about getting us out of the way so God can move according to His will than it is about us getting Him to move!