Seeking God for a Breakthrough

Over 23,000 homes and individuals in our church family are now praying daily for themselves, for our church, and for you – 3 times a day. Since almost half of these people signed up after our first week, we're going to extend this prayer emphasis through the first week of January. I can't think of a better way to begin the new year than by welcoming it with prayer.

Below I have created a simple guide for you to use the next seven days that combines listening to God's Word and responding in prayer. I hope you find it helpful.

A Journey in Seeking God

INSTRUCTIONS FOR YOUR NEXT SEVEN DAYS:

Each day, read these promises from God's Word and LISTEN to what God promises to you before you talk to him in prayer. Take the time to slowly think about what they mean. This will strengthen your faith. Romans 10:17 says Faith comes from listening to the word of God.

DAY 1: Your loving Father in heaven wants to meet your needs so ask Him in prayer for a breakthrough:
Up until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Now ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete!
John 16:24

If you, being imperfect and sinful, know how to give good gifts to your own children, how much more will your perfect Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Matthew 7:11

Every good and perfect gift in your life is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly light, and he shines forever, never changing like a shifting shadow.
James 1:17

DAY 2: If you are humble and sincerely seek to know God, He will draw you closer to Him and you will begin to develop a strong and satisfying friendship with God.

I love those who love me, and those who seek me will find me. Proverbs 8:17

You will find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:13

Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you.' James 4:8
Jesus said, "My Father gives me everyone who comes to me, and I never turn away anyone who comes to me!"
John 6:37

DAY 3: To build a friendship with God you must believe that he knows and wants what's best for your life. Then you can worship Him out of gratitude.

Friendship with God is reserved for those who reverence him. With them alone he shares the secrets of his promises.
Psalm 25:14

Be still, and know that I am God! I will be exalted in the whole earth.
Psalm 46:10

Without faith it is impossible to please God. So anyone who comes to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6

God says, Only by returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and trust you will find the strength you need.
Isaiah 30:15

DAY 4: It isn't the size of your faith that causes breakthroughs in your life, rather it is WHO you place your faith in, that makes the impossible possible. A small faith placed in a big God will see big results. Don't focus on your small faith, or even your problem. Instead focus on God's greatness.

Jesus said, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.
Matthew 17:20

I pray that you will begin to understand how incredibly great God's power is to help those who believe him. It is that same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead.
Ephesians 1:19-20

Glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us, is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes! Ephesians 3:20

DAY 5: It is wise and helpful to listen to what God has to say to you first (in his Word) before you say something to God. This is why you should read or listen to a portion of the Bible at the start of your prayer times.
Jesus has even made promises about this habit: Jesus promised, "If you make yourself at home in me and my Words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask me for will be given to you.
John 15:7

Jesus also promised, If you continue in my word, then you are truly my disciple. Then you shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free! John 8:31-32

Faith comes from listening to the word of God.
Romans 10:13

DAY 6: Gratitude is the breakthrough attitude. God tells us that we should always make our requests with thanksgiving – in the spirit of gratitude for what God is already done for us. And, when you thank God in advance for the answers to your prayers, that is an expression of faith.

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God whatever you need but always ask for it with thanksgiving, asking him with a thankful heart for all he's done. If you do this, you'll experience God's peace which is far more powerful than we can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and emotions at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus. Then fix your thoughts on things that are true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable, and fill your mind with thoughts that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you have learned from me and God will be with you.
Philippians 4:6-8 

Now take a few minutes to practice these four things God tells us to do in this passage:

1.  Don't worry about anything! Instead of worrying, focus my attention on God. Let him speak to me in his Word before I speak to him.
2. Pray about everything!
3. Thank God in all things!
4. Stay focused on the right things!

               
DAY 7: It is time to start praying for breakthroughs in the lives of others in our Saddleback family. Over 23,000 have signed up to pray 3 times a day in seeking God. What should you pray for others? Pray what you would want others to pray for you! God always blesses people who are a blessing to others.

Jesus gave us The Golden Rule: So whatever you would want people to do [or pray] for you, that is what you should do [and pray] for them!  Matthew 7:12

It was after Job had prayed for his friends, that the Lord restored Job's fortune and gave him success again. In fact, God gave Job twice as much as he had owned before he lost it all.
Job 42:10

Anyone who generously blesses others will himself be blessed, and whoever helps others will be helped.
Proverbs 11:25

I'll be praying for you all this week, and let's all be praying for each other! If you have a breakthrough in any area, please share your story with the rest of us at saddleback.com/yourstory so we can all celebrate it with you! Click HERE to tell us your breakthrough story.

May God bless you as you grow closer to Him! 

Pastor Rick

Day 1 of Seeking God for a Breakthrough

It's NOT too late!

Over 15,000 individuals in our Saddleback Church family committed to investing 5 minutes a day — 3 times a day — in a conversation with God, between now and Christmas Eve.

We're going to develop four powerful habits from Philippians 4:6–8 that can cause a breakthrough wherever you need it:

Worrying about nothing! By worshiping instead of worrying.

Praying about everything! By using tools we'll email you every day.

Thanking God in all things! Gratitude is the breakthrough attitude.

Focusing on true things! By reading and listening to God's Word.

If you missed last weekend's message where I explained this in detail, you'll want watch it online here: Praying & Fasting for a Breakthrough.

We're going to help you do this, and everyone in our church will be praying for YOU! That's what families do! They pray for each other. Can you imagine that your brothers and sisters in our Saddleback Family have signed up to pray for YOU almost every minute of the next 34 days? Imagine the breakthroughs that will happen to you if you fully participate.

WE'RE STARTING TODAY WITH A FAST!

At the bottom of this letter is a GUIDE TO FASTING that I want you to read right now. It will explain why our entire church is fasting and how to do it.

Each day in your 5 minutes:

Morning:  READ my short DAILY HOPE DEVOTIONAL that I will email you. Let God speak to you first through his Word, then speak to God in prayer. Click HERE to sign up to receive your daily email.

Afternoon: Pray using the prayer instructions I gave you in the weekend message: Praying & Fasting for a Breakthrough.

Evening: LISTEN to Pastor Tom and Pastor Buddy share a short audio DRIVETIME DEVOTIONAL before you pray in the evening. Click HERE to access DriveTime Devotions.

If you want to begin your fast now, download my fasting guide below:

Get your own personal guide to prayer and fasting from Pastor Rick. You'll learn why fasting is important and the different ways you can fast.

Day 4 of Seeking God for a Breakthrough

I'm already hearing amazing stories of breakthrough from some of the 18,000 people in our church that are participating in 34 Days of Seeking God for a Breakthrough. I'll share some this weekend. People are praying for YOUR breakthrough!

Since today is Thanksgiving, I want to focus on the benefits of thanking God in prayer. Numerous studies have proven 3 powerful benefits:

• First, gratitude is the healthiest human emotion. The more you choose to be grateful in life instead of grumbling, the healthier and happier you will be. This is a proven, medical fact.

• Second, gratitude is the breakthrough attitude. Every time you express thanks to God or others, your brain becomes more creative. You begin to see possibilities and solutions to problems you thought were unsolvable. The more grateful you are, the more breakthroughs you'll have.

• Third, gratitude unleashes God's supernatural power on your behalf. This weekend, I'll show you how gratitude is essential to mountain-moving faith. God has promised to bless you when you pray with thanksgiving.  (Phil. 4:6-8, Mark 11:24)

(PERSONALLY, I've learned that even in my darkest, most painful days when I didn't feel like being thankful, that I could always find something to be thankful for . . . and when I express that gratitude, God shows up, strengthens me with his presence, and creates a breakthrough that I'd never be able to accomplish on my own. I've experienced this hundreds of times.)

THANKSGIVING DAY

Sadly, very little thanksgiving to God happens on Thanksgiving Day. The day has become a day of food, football, friends, movies, and now early Christmas shopping. Even the prayer before the Thanksgiving meal is short and rushed because we don't want the food to get cold!

IF YOU'RE PRAYING FOR A BREAKTHROUGH, THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT DAY!

Use your three prayer times to do 3 things:

1.  EXPRESS YOUR THANKS TO GOD BY WRITING OUT A THANK YOU LIST.

In your first 5-minute time with God, write down as many things you can think of that you are grateful for. Then read your list quietly to God as your prayer! You might also encourage everyone in your family to do this and let each person read some of their list at your dinner table.

Here's a start. I'm thankful for our family we call Saddleback:

... for our forgiveness from every fault and failure

... for our freedom that we enjoy in America

... for our future that we'll share forever in heaven.

Tell the Lord how thankful you really are! (Psalm 118:1)

2. EXPRESS YOUR THANKS TO GOD BY READING PSALM 107 BEFORE PRAYING IN YOUR SECOND TIME WITH GOD.

Psalm 107 is a song of thanks to God for transforming our lives. David compares life without God to wandering in a desert, being locked in dark jail cell, being sick and needing healing, and several other metaphors.

Here's an excerpt:

Psalm 107:1-8,14-22, 43 (Message)

OH THANK GOD! He's so good! His love never runs out! All of you who have been set free by God, tell the world! Tell how he freed you from oppression . . . Some of you wandered for years in the desert, half-starved and parched with thirst, staggering and stumbling, on the brink of exhaustion. Then, in your desperate condition, you called out to God, and he got you out in the nick of time; He put your feet on a wonderful road that took you straight to a good place to live. So thank God for his marvelous love, and for his miraculous mercy to his children that he loves. God led you out of your dark, dark cell, and he broke open your jail and led you out. So thank God for his marvelous love that frees you. For others he shattered the heavy jailhouse doors, and he snapped the prison bars like matchsticks!  Others of you were sick because you'd lived a bad life, and your bodies felt the effects of your sin and you couldn't stand the sight of food. You were so miserable you thought you'd be better off dead. Then you called out to God in your desperate condition, and God got you out. He spoke the word that healed you, that pulled you back from the brink of death. So thank God for his marvelous love, and give an offering as a thanksgiving sacrifice. Then tell the world what he's done for you . . . If you are really wise, you'll think this over. It's time you appreciated God's deep love for you.

A PRAYER YOU CAN READ WITH YOUR MEAL

Thank you, God, for this food we are about to eat. When there are so many people in the world without these blessings, we don't want to take your goodness for granted. You have blessed us so much this past year, even in difficult times.  And thank you for blessings that we have not even been aware of.

Thank you God that you are always good. Thank you that your love never quits. And thank you that you never give up on us. Thank you that you are patient with us, because of your great love.

Thank you for all the times that you saved us from defeat, or disaster, or even death, and we didn't even know how close we were to losing it all.

Thank you that we can call out to you, any time, day or night. Thank you that we don't have to pray with great-sounding words. All we have to do is to be honest and sincere in talking to you. And thank you that when we are in pain or when we don't even know what to pray, we can simply cry out, "Help us Lord!" and you come to our rescue.

Thank you Lord, that you provide for us . . . that you protect us . . . that you guide us . . . you help us . . . that you save us . . . you comfort us . . . and that you give us wisdom when we ask for it. Most of all, thank you for coming to earth to die for us to pay for our sins and secure our future in heaven.

Thank you that your presence is always with us, even when we don't feel it, and thank you for promising to never leave us or abandon us. God, you are good, and you are gracious, and you deserve ALL our gratitude and praise.

So today, we all want to say "Thank you God!" We humbly pray this in Jesus' name, Amen."

3. EXPRESS YOUR THANKS TO GOD BY PREPARING TO GIVE AN OFFERING BACK TO HIM.

Thanks and giving go together. God says we prove our thanks by our giving. In Deuteronomy 16:10, God tells us, Celebrate the Harvest Festival, in order to thank and honor God, by bringing him a thanksgiving offering in proportion to how many blessings God has given to you in the past year.

You can honor God with your Thanksgiving offering by giving online at saddleback.com/give, by mailing it in, or by bringing it with you to the worship service this weekend.

My offering to you is my sacrifice of thanksgiving. (Psalm 116:17)

I thank God for YOU & I'm praying for you!

Pastor Rick's Daily Hope provides a daily dose of encouragement. These devotionals are an easy way to help you take time each day to focus on God, be inspired, and grow in your faith.

DriveTime Devotions takes you through the Bible in short, 10-minute audio segments. Download the DriveTime app to your mobile device or listen online.