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Pray First – Develop a Prayer Reflex

Mar 26, 2024 | Prayer

Whether you encounter good or bad, pray first to our almighty and loving God!I want to continue talking about putting God first. You can find links to the other parts of this series at the end of this post.

Today’s post focuses on putting God first by developing a “prayer reflex.” A reflex is “an automatic action that your body does in response to something.” When the doctor taps your knee with a small hammer, you don’t think about kicking your leg; it happens automatically.

In similar fashion, a “prayer reflex” is when we automatically pray first to God when something, either negative or positive, happens to us. Prayer should be our first response, not an afterthought.

If something negative happens, we put God first by automatically calling on Him for help, direction, strength, or whatever we need to handle the problem. For example, if you lose your job, instead of worrying, your prayer reflex should immediately kick in and prompt you to pray first and ask God to help you find another job. Philippians 4:6 tells us, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

If something positive happens, we should not take the credit for ourselves or consider what happened to be luck or chance. Instead, let us put God first by automatically offering thanksgiving to Him for His blessings, protection, and power. For instance, if you take a physical exam and the doctor tells you everything looks good, your prayer reflex should immediately kick in and you should pray first to thank God for your health and strength. Psalm 107:1 says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” So whether we encounter good or bad, let our first response be a prayer of petition, praise, or thanksgiving to our almighty and loving God!

What is your first response when something, either good or bad, happens to you? Tell me about it in the comments.

Links to the other parts in this series:

Take Time to Pray

Mar 12, 2024 | Prayer

If God is first in our lives, we should take time to pray to Him every day.Earlier in this series on putting God first, I talked about the importance of spending time with God in two areas: Bible study and prayer. I discussed Bible study in previous posts. If you missed any of those posts, see the links below. Today, I want to talk about prayer.

I don’t think I need to tell you that you should pray because you already know that. But, despite our good intentions, we sometimes neglect prayer because we allow other things to distract us or have higher priority. If God is first in our lives, we should make a commitment to spend time with Him in prayer every day. We demonstrate that prayer is important to us when we make time to do it. If we don’t make time to pray, then we must ask ourselves if prayer is really important to us. (more…)

Obey God’s Word

Feb 27, 2024 | God's Word

After we have read and believed God's Word, we should then obey God's Word. Obedience to God's Word is proof that we believe what we read.I want to continue talking about putting God first. You can find links to the other parts of this series at the end of this post.

In previous posts, I encouraged us to read and meditate on God’s Word daily. Then, I stated that we must sincerely believe what we have read. Now we come to where the rubber meets the road: we must live according to God’s Word. In Matthew 4:4, Jesus said, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Our obedience to the Word of God is proof that we believe it. When we obey God’s Word, we are putting God first because we are placing more importance on doing what God wants and less importance on doing what we want. (more…)

Believe God’s Word

Feb 13, 2024 | God's Word

After we have read and meditated on God's Word, the next thing we must do is believe God's Word.I want to continue talking about putting God first. You can find links to the other parts of this series at the end of this post. In my earlier post, I said one way we can show God He is first in our lives is by making the time to read and meditate on the Bible daily.

After we have read and meditated on God’s Word, the next thing we must do is believe it. Prioritizing God above everything else includes what we believe. We must believe what God says over what our friends, society, and the Internet tell us.
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Delight in God’s Word

Jan 30, 2024 | God's Word

If we love the Lord, we will delight in His Word and enjoy spending time reading it.In my previous post (click here to read it: https://joeyaperry.com/put-god-first/), I talked about putting God first. If God is first in our lives, we will make time to do the things that are important to Him and which strengthen our relationship with Him. Two disciplines that will enhance our relationship with God are Bible study and prayer. Today’s post focuses on Bible study. Joshua 1:8 tells us, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” (more…)

Put God First!

Jan 16, 2024 | Commitment

One way we can express our gratitude to God is by making a commitment to put God first in our lives.Happy New Year! God has brought us into a new year and for that, we should be thankful! One way we can express our gratitude to God is by making a commitment to put Him first in our lives. Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
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Christ: God’s Love Letter

Dec 21, 2023 | Praising God

God's love for us was demonstrated when He sent Jesus Christ into the world.Before social media, text messages, and emails, if you wanted to tell that special someone how you felt about them, you might have sent a hand-written love letter.

In a way, that’s what happened at Christmas, where we celebrate the birth of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. When God sent Christ to be born into the world, it was like Him sending a love letter to mankind. John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Christ is God’s love letter because it is through Christ that God demonstrates His love for us by forgiving our sins and offering us eternal life. (more…)

Thank God Every Day

Nov 29, 2023 | Praising God

We should thank God every day, not just on Thanksgiving Day or during a specific time of year.The United States has declared the fourth Thursday of November to be “Thanksgiving Day.” This day is a time when we can identify and celebrate the things in our lives for which we are grateful.

But when we think about the goodness of God and all He has done for us, we will quickly realize that God blesses us too much to limit our gratitude to Him to a single day or time of year. Ephesians 5:20 says, “Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (more…)

God Is Light in the Darkness!

Nov 29, 2023 | Trusting God

God is light, no matter how dark the situation. Through His power He gives us hope, strength, peace, guidance, and direction.This is the last part of my discussion of the following lyrics from the song, “Way Maker,” originally written by award-winning gospel singer Osinachi Kalu Okoro Egbu (known professionally as Sinach): “You are / Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper / Light in the darkness / My God, that is who You are.” Links to the other parts of this series are at the end of this post.

Today I want to talk about God being light in the darkness. Psalm 18:28 (ESV) says, “For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.” (more…)

God Is a Promise Keeper!

Nov 7, 2023 | Trusting God

We can always trust God to do what He said because He is a promise keeper!I want to continue discussing the following lyrics from the song, “Way Maker,” originally written by award-winning gospel singer Osinachi Kalu Okoro Egbu (known professionally as Sinach): “You are / Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper / Light in the darkness / My God, that is who You are.” Links to the other posts of this series are at the end of this post.

Today I want to talk about God being a promise keeper. God not only makes promises, but He keeps them. Numbers 23:19 states, “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” This verse asks two rhetorical questions which basically tell us that God does what He says and He fulfills His promises. (more…)