Answered Prayer: The Power Of Praying With Faith by Pastor Fred Price

Pastor Frederick K.C. Price is a veteran pastor who's been around since the 80's. I grew up watching many of his sermons on his nationally-televised broadcast, which still comes on today. He founded Crenshaw Christian Center in Los Angeles, which is now the FaithDome and has a 22,000+ church membership. This blog is going to be my analysis of the book. Many Christians struggle with their prayer commitment and wrestle with a proper prayer attitude and posture. Through reading this book, Pastor Price has debunked traditional prayer teaching that says: Sometimes God says yes, no, and wait. Some Christians pray the wrong prayer and expect God to cover for them. This book shows how God responds to faith and why it's critical for Christians to understand how to pray in faith and not doubt, ignorance or presumption. My favorite chapter in this book is Use The Right Tool. Just like a mechanic needs the right tools for repairs, Christians also need the right tools for prayer. In other words, different kinds of prayer require different tools. Many Christians aren't aware that there are several different kinds of prayer discussed in the Bible, and if the tools/rules from one prayer type are used in place of another, your prayers will not work. In short, different prayers require different tools. So many Christians wonder why their prayers go unanswered. Much of the reason is because they pray incorrect prayers using the wrong tools. This book has changed my prayer life.

Praying For What's Yours

As Christians, we're all guilty of praying like this: Lord, bless me with financial provision, good health and joy. Why do some Christians pray for what's already theirs? Two reasons come to mind: 1. God wants to hear our voice, and 2. Lack of faith. While it's true that God knows what his children need before they ask, he wants us to bring our requests to him. This is so he can spend time with us. Don't some Christians think God gets upset when we treat him like a genie? I've been guilty of treating God like a genie from time to time, asking him to grant MY requests without considering the fact that he just wants to hear his children's voice. I think some Christians treat God like a genie because God delights in answering the prayers of his righteous children. They can come to God with everything and they're guaranteed a "Yes" answer to their prayers. The answer may(not) be immediate, but they know their answer will be Yes. The 2nd reason is lack of faith, which is where the majority of Christians' prayers fall into the category. Some Christians pray for what's already theirs because they don't believe God will do what he says, so they think by bombarding God with basic prayers, they'll have a better chance of getting them answered. In other words, their lack of faith prevents them from guaranteeing that God will respond in favor to their request(s). I've made a commitment to change my prayer life to one of thanks, thanking God for granting me what's already mine.

Becoming A Target

Everyone is a target in some fashion. Some people are targets because they take a stand for right, others are a target because they're into illegal activity. When you become a target for standing up for righteousness, you're tired of ratchet behavior and your want to see an end to it. Depending on your state of mind, you may(not) be able to withstand the backlash. When foolishness is used to running amok, of course there will be backlash because no one's used to being checked for their foolery, so they will resist until one of two things happen: 1. They change their ways or 2. You give up because the backlash is too strong. When you're a target, people throw darts. Nobody knows what you don't reveal. You can't hit what you can't see. The best way to avoid being a target is by keeping your business to yourself. By flying under the radar, no one can use your information against you. Anyone who's into target shooting will tell you the same thing: You can't hit what you don't see. If someone can't see your business, how can they throw darts? They can't.

I've Got Some Tea

If a friend's always coming to you with some tea they heard about you, cut them off because they're playing both sides. A true rider will have your back and tell you how they stood up for you when the other person threw shade. Someone playing both sides will keke with the other person, then tell you "I'm not saying no names, but someone's talking down" We've all been there before. I don't care how long you've known them, cut it short before it gets major! Any so-called "friend who's comfortable enough to listen to gossip is no friend at all. These are the same "friends" that will smile in your face; you're too valuable to keep toxic people in your corner. True friends should never get comfortable in gossiping about you.

Dr. Phil: Homeschool vs. Public School

I watched Dr. Phil and the topic of discussion is Homeschool vs. Public School. The wives are for homeschool and the husbands are pro-public school. Pro-public school advocates are like: Kids need the socialization, and pro homeschool advocates are like: Public schools have too many issues. Let me say this: People talk about socialization, socialization like it's the be all, end all of school. That's the problem, a lot of kids socialize too much instead of focusing on their schoolwork, and usually their grades prove me right. The older someone gets, the less socialization they should need. For me, I socialize when I need to and that's that. There are times where I mingle, and times when I fall back. For parents who choose to homeschool, kids can get the social skills needed by being around likeminded students: book & academic clubs, neighborhood events, recreation leagues, etc. Public school isn't the only place kids can learn social skills. Or if parents want to send their child to traditional school, they can do charter schools or private schools where they'll be around likeminded kids who love to learn. Public schools have too much of a balance, where kids don't want to be there and cause trouble for other students, and studious kids. In short, I see why some parents homeschool.

Here's a couple responses that reinforce both sides of this debate:

Destiny: Charter schools and private schools don't automatically mean that the kids that attend are there because they want to learn. The majority of them are there because their parents force them to be there. I agree that public school isn't the only way for kids to learn social skills. If you are going to home school the parents need to ensure that the kids are involved in social activities. Social skills are important whether you believe it or not and how will you learn those skills if you spend all your time at home with your parents. Keeping them away from everything cripples them. My mom home schooled my sister for years and my little brother for some years and my little sister and I for a little bit but she had enough sense to make sure we weren't shut out from the world.

Me: A good majority of private school and charter school students are serious about their education, more so in the private school setting. Otherwise, why go to a private school and throw away a good education? That's silly. Everything you stated is what I've reinforced about homeschool: Kids do need to be involved in social activities so they can get those social skills they need. Your mom had the balance down of homeschool and socialization. I do agree that some parents take it overboard.

Destiny: It's important because it teaches you how to interact with different people. That's quite difficult when most of your life is spent interacting with your parents and siblings only. This right here is why my mother set up activities for us to teach us how to deal with different people. I know a woman that home schools her kids(they are 14 and 16 and have never seen a public school) but they are very involved with other kids and because of that they are well rounded kids.

You Are Sentenced to A Life Of Being Alone

I have one question: Why do some people feel a single person is missing out on a relationship? You know what I'm talking about. Some people throw shade at single folks by pressuring them into relationships by saying "You're going to grow old & alone". Looking at the state of relationships,  most singles enjoy their solitude. Think about it, you don't have to deal with someone's annoying personality & vice versa, no compromise, no accountability, etc. A lot of folks do not want to give up their peace for learning to love another person, and especially if the giver doesn't feel the love back. That's my issue with relationships; sometimes, one person feels like they're doing all the giving while the other person isn't returning the love back. Even if someone meets the "right" person, there's no guarantees of an easy relationship. 
You'll still go through bad times, and you have to be patient enough to love your spouse even if you may not feel the love back. Nobody should want to deal with that. I will say this: Salute to everyone who can love their spouse even if they're not feeling the love back, you're better than me because I was raised on reciprocation: Someone does for me, I return the favor, or vice versa. I see why some people say relationships are a full-time job, don't apply if you can't handle the responsibility. It's true, relationships are work because they require maturity, selflessness and compromise. You have to be willing to work through the rough times with your spouse. Everyone isn't cut out for that, and that's ok. I respect some people's honesty enough to state that they don't want to love someone at their worst. At least they're honest with themselves, which is more than I can say for most.

There Is No I In Team

Today's blog message is There Is No I In Team. Where did this topic come from? I posted an article on my Facebook page that dealt with an entire football team being suspended in Utah for cyber bullying, and disrespecting teachers. Some parents were not happy at all because they felt the entire team shouldn't have been punished because a few teammates chose to do wrong. I've said this time and time again, and I continue to be proven right: One person can mess it up for everyone. It may not be fair, but life isn't. This Utah high school football coach is teaching these young men about accountability. If you see some of your fellow teammates do wrong, hold them accountable or you're just as guilty as they are. I salute this coach for caring more about the boys' character than winning football games. It's about time coaches take a stand for what's right rather than co-signing their team's foolishness because they care more about winning.

I do see why some parents are upset at the suspension of the entire football team because a majority of those students weren't a part of the misbehavior, so why should they have to pay for the foolishness of their teammates? That's not fair to them. It goes back to what I said before: One person's misbehavior can affect the entire team because many times, the coach is going to come down on the entire team instead of the perpetrators. In short, I salute what this coach is doing and there's a need for more coaches like him that value character over wins.