Oct. 14, 2025
CTN TV Episode 17 The Secret Place of Prayer Part 2
CTN TV Episode 17 The Secret Place of Prayer Part 2
For more teachings and content from Margie on prayer and intercession, follow her on Facebook and Instagram - @MargieFleurantMinistries Follow Margie's Podcast on the Charisma Podcast Network: https://www.charismapodcastnetwork.com/show/thepurposeproject Check out Margie's books and other audio content at margiefleurant.org/store
WEBVTT
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.819
You pray it and he can answer it. The effectual
00:00:02.819 --> 00:00:07.280
fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
00:00:07.419 --> 00:00:10.460
God will put the prayer in your heart to pray
00:00:10.460 --> 00:00:13.060
so that he can answer it. It goes into the hearts
00:00:13.060 --> 00:00:15.839
of the people, doesn't return void, it produces
00:00:15.839 --> 00:00:19.219
results. Hello my friends, welcome to Prayer
00:00:19.219 --> 00:00:22.579
and Purpose. I'm your host, Margie Florent. Now
00:00:22.579 --> 00:00:25.640
in this teaching, we're going to dive in deeper.
00:00:26.440 --> 00:00:31.079
And I'm going to teach you exactly how to develop
00:00:31.079 --> 00:00:34.780
intimacy with God, with your creator, with the
00:00:34.780 --> 00:00:38.420
Lord Jesus Christ. I'm a very hands -on teacher
00:00:38.420 --> 00:00:41.479
in this regard. I'm going to teach you some practical
00:00:41.479 --> 00:00:44.880
steps, some practical ways that you can enter
00:00:44.880 --> 00:00:49.170
into the presence of God, which... On the inside
00:00:49.170 --> 00:00:52.189
of each and every one of us, we all crave and
00:00:52.189 --> 00:00:56.390
we all desire to be intimate and to be close
00:00:56.390 --> 00:00:59.450
with him. The Bible says, David said, My God,
00:00:59.530 --> 00:01:02.469
you are my God. Early I will seek you. My flesh
00:01:02.469 --> 00:01:05.730
longs for you. I thirst for you in a dry and
00:01:05.730 --> 00:01:09.390
thirsty land. So our hearts crave God. Our hearts
00:01:09.390 --> 00:01:12.790
want God. Our hearts desire to know him. But
00:01:12.790 --> 00:01:18.109
there are ways whereby we can learn how to put
00:01:18.109 --> 00:01:21.430
that into action. So we're going to talk today
00:01:21.430 --> 00:01:24.549
about how to know God for yourself. And I'm going
00:01:24.549 --> 00:01:27.870
to give you some very practical steps. With that
00:01:27.870 --> 00:01:30.790
in mind, let's go ahead and begin reading at
00:01:30.790 --> 00:01:34.969
Mark chapter four. Now, Jesus is speaking to
00:01:34.969 --> 00:01:38.810
the crowds and he's. teaching the crowds in parables
00:01:38.810 --> 00:01:41.930
and and there's a bunch of people gathering around
00:01:41.930 --> 00:01:45.609
and it says and with many such parables he spoke
00:01:45.609 --> 00:01:49.890
the word to them the crowds as they were able
00:01:49.890 --> 00:01:52.769
to hear it in other words he could only go so
00:01:52.769 --> 00:01:56.049
far with them he could only teach them so much
00:01:56.049 --> 00:02:00.170
but then it goes on to say in verse 34 but but
00:02:00.170 --> 00:02:05.150
without a parable he did speak to them meaning
00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:10.319
his disciples without a parable. He did not speak
00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:15.699
to them, his disciples. And when they were alone,
00:02:16.259 --> 00:02:20.379
I want you to hone in on that word alone. And
00:02:20.379 --> 00:02:25.620
when they were alone, he explained or another
00:02:25.620 --> 00:02:30.939
translation says he expounded all things to his
00:02:30.939 --> 00:02:34.430
disciples. So in other words, he was only. able
00:02:34.430 --> 00:02:38.409
to go so far with the crowds that reminds me
00:02:38.409 --> 00:02:42.250
so much of our public assembly our public services
00:02:42.250 --> 00:02:45.159
when we all gather together and we to continue
00:02:45.159 --> 00:02:48.120
to gather together the bible says forsake not
00:02:48.120 --> 00:02:51.419
the assembling of yourselves together as a manner
00:02:51.419 --> 00:02:54.699
of some is but we should do it more especially
00:02:54.699 --> 00:02:57.479
as we see the day approaching and it's good to
00:02:57.479 --> 00:02:59.919
gather together it's good to go to bible study
00:02:59.919 --> 00:03:03.740
it's good to go to small groups and and services
00:03:03.740 --> 00:03:09.020
and seminars but there is more to our walk with
00:03:09.020 --> 00:03:13.840
god other than just the public gathering. And
00:03:13.840 --> 00:03:16.259
I think that this scripture speaks into that.
00:03:16.740 --> 00:03:21.699
It says that Jesus spoke to the crowds as they
00:03:21.699 --> 00:03:25.439
were able to hear it or understand it or able
00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:29.240
to receive what he had to say. He was limited.
00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:33.039
But when we came to his disciples, the people
00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:36.800
that were closest to him, the Bible says when
00:03:36.800 --> 00:03:42.840
they were alone, He expounded or he explained
00:03:42.840 --> 00:03:49.520
all things to his disciples. So this is secret
00:03:49.520 --> 00:03:53.120
closet prayer. Let's go over and let's read what
00:03:53.120 --> 00:03:55.680
Matthew 6 says, what Jesus said about prayer,
00:03:55.879 --> 00:03:59.460
secret prayer. It says in Matthew 6, verse 5.
00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:04.229
And when you pray. You shall not be like the
00:04:04.229 --> 00:04:07.490
hypocrites are or the pretenders, for they love
00:04:07.490 --> 00:04:10.830
to pray standing in the synagogues and in the
00:04:10.830 --> 00:04:13.870
corners of the streets that they may be seen
00:04:13.870 --> 00:04:18.009
of men. Assuredly, they have their reward. But
00:04:18.009 --> 00:04:23.189
he says, but you, me, you and I, when we pray,
00:04:23.370 --> 00:04:27.769
let's go into our room. And when you have shut
00:04:27.769 --> 00:04:31.959
the door, pray to your father. who is in the
00:04:31.959 --> 00:04:37.279
secret place and your father who sees in secret
00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:41.939
will reward you openly. So this is the call to
00:04:41.939 --> 00:04:45.720
secret prayer. This is a call for you and I to
00:04:45.720 --> 00:04:50.439
spend time alone in the presence of God and whereby
00:04:50.439 --> 00:04:54.279
we can get to know him in a greater way and in
00:04:54.279 --> 00:04:58.259
a greater measure on another level. So he says
00:04:58.259 --> 00:05:00.759
here, when you pray, go into your room. That
00:05:00.759 --> 00:05:05.160
word room, it's also translated closet. And it
00:05:05.160 --> 00:05:10.879
denotes in the Greek a secret chamber, a place
00:05:10.879 --> 00:05:13.660
where it's just you and God. And the scripture
00:05:13.660 --> 00:05:18.180
says, and when you do that, your father, he sees
00:05:18.180 --> 00:05:21.480
what you're doing. He sees what you're doing
00:05:21.480 --> 00:05:26.620
in secret. And he will reward you openly. So
00:05:26.620 --> 00:05:30.160
we're talking about time alone with God, where
00:05:30.160 --> 00:05:33.899
it's just you and God, where we are getting to
00:05:33.899 --> 00:05:38.879
know God for ourselves. And I don't know about
00:05:38.879 --> 00:05:42.939
you, but for me, that is super exciting. Now,
00:05:42.959 --> 00:05:46.579
I heard somebody say one time, this person said,
00:05:46.779 --> 00:05:49.579
you know, prayer is just boring. Well, I mean,
00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:52.420
that's fair, because when you're new to prayer,
00:05:52.839 --> 00:05:55.339
or you've neglected your prayer life or you're
00:05:55.339 --> 00:05:58.000
like in have a lot of things going on in your
00:05:58.000 --> 00:06:00.360
life when you try to enter into the place of
00:06:00.360 --> 00:06:02.699
prayer you try to go into your closet you try
00:06:02.699 --> 00:06:05.800
to to spend time in the presence of god if we're
00:06:05.800 --> 00:06:10.060
not focused and if we're not intentional it literally
00:06:10.060 --> 00:06:15.519
can become boring so i get it but i'm going to
00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:19.480
teach you how to come out of that place lethargy
00:06:19.480 --> 00:06:24.060
and come into a place whereby prayers no longer
00:06:24.060 --> 00:06:28.100
boring prayer is fun we said this before you've
00:06:28.100 --> 00:06:30.660
heard me say it prayer goes from sacrifice to
00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:35.480
a joy from a desire to a discipline and then
00:06:35.480 --> 00:06:38.720
to a delight Your prayer time and your time along
00:06:38.720 --> 00:06:42.279
with Jesus can come to a place where you're so
00:06:42.279 --> 00:06:46.040
connected with him that when you leave that place
00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:49.019
of prayer, you not only leave with an awareness
00:06:49.019 --> 00:06:52.279
of his presence, but you leave that place of
00:06:52.279 --> 00:06:54.939
prayer with a connection with the secret thing
00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:56.879
in your heart that you've connected with the
00:06:56.879 --> 00:07:00.920
God of the universe. And when you walked away
00:07:00.920 --> 00:07:06.319
from that place of prayer, there is also a. an
00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:10.139
awareness that you can't wait to get back into
00:07:10.139 --> 00:07:13.160
your prayer life prayer closet that is because
00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:19.459
you crave the presence of god okay so the lord
00:07:19.459 --> 00:07:22.560
said to me one time he wanted me to write this
00:07:22.560 --> 00:07:25.480
book it's called encounter god through prayer
00:07:25.480 --> 00:07:29.340
and you can get this book on my website margieflorent
00:07:29.340 --> 00:07:32.300
.org, or you can get this book on Amazon. And
00:07:32.300 --> 00:07:34.899
this particular book goes from nuts to bolts.
00:07:35.060 --> 00:07:37.819
I teach what I'm going to be teaching you today
00:07:37.819 --> 00:07:40.740
in this book. So if you want to know more about
00:07:40.740 --> 00:07:43.620
how to develop your alone time with God, I would
00:07:43.620 --> 00:07:47.860
encourage you to get this book. But I wrote this
00:07:47.860 --> 00:07:51.040
book because the Lord said to me, you know what,
00:07:51.060 --> 00:07:54.560
Margie? He said, many desire to draw near to
00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:58.639
me and get close to me. He said, but many of
00:07:58.639 --> 00:08:04.060
my people just don't know how. And I want you
00:08:04.060 --> 00:08:08.040
to teach them how to pray. And, you know, that's
00:08:08.040 --> 00:08:10.319
the same thing that the disciples said to Jesus
00:08:10.319 --> 00:08:13.480
when they came to Jesus, when they came to Jesus,
00:08:13.620 --> 00:08:16.819
they watched Jesus and they watched his lifestyle
00:08:16.819 --> 00:08:21.060
and they watched that he was. always a man who
00:08:21.060 --> 00:08:25.339
operated in the wisdom and revelation and discernment.
00:08:25.339 --> 00:08:27.879
He operated in the power of God, demonstration
00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:32.159
of God. And they noticed that he was a man who
00:08:32.159 --> 00:08:35.019
would at times leave where he was and go up into
00:08:35.019 --> 00:08:37.460
a mountain and disappear, or he'd go out into
00:08:37.460 --> 00:08:41.419
a desert place. And I believe the disciples realized
00:08:41.419 --> 00:08:47.240
that the secret to Jesus's success was his power.
00:08:47.799 --> 00:08:52.000
prayer life his time alone with his heavenly
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:54.679
father and so they came to jesus one day and
00:08:54.679 --> 00:08:58.440
they said lord teach us to pray and we know the
00:08:58.440 --> 00:09:01.379
very famous you know prayer the you know the
00:09:01.379 --> 00:09:04.240
our father he goes on to teach them about the
00:09:04.240 --> 00:09:06.399
the heart of the father and so on and so forth
00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:09.240
but that's what we're doing we are teaching you
00:09:09.240 --> 00:09:14.679
how to pray so before we get into it i want to
00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:18.909
just ask you a question What is your personal
00:09:18.909 --> 00:09:24.330
motivation for learning how to pray and developing
00:09:24.330 --> 00:09:28.970
your secret time with God? What is your motivation?
00:09:29.110 --> 00:09:31.419
I just want you to think about that for just
00:09:31.419 --> 00:09:34.639
a second, because that motivation is what's going
00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:39.740
to drive you, so to speak, into the presence
00:09:39.740 --> 00:09:42.639
of God so that when some things come your way,
00:09:42.720 --> 00:09:46.440
distractions and cares and tasks in this earthly
00:09:46.440 --> 00:09:49.240
realm, when they try to stop us from praying,
00:09:49.480 --> 00:09:52.039
you're going to need that motivation to rise
00:09:52.039 --> 00:09:54.820
up on the inside of you. Would you like me to
00:09:54.820 --> 00:09:58.320
tell you my motivation for secret prayer? My
00:09:58.320 --> 00:10:02.460
personal motivation. came from watching Kenneth
00:10:02.460 --> 00:10:06.600
E. Hagin. And I knew and I could see that he
00:10:06.600 --> 00:10:09.120
had intimacy with God, that he knew the voice
00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:12.600
of God, that he operated in the flow and the
00:10:12.600 --> 00:10:16.059
rhythm of the Holy Spirit. But he also said something
00:10:16.059 --> 00:10:23.080
that changed my life. He said, Jesus is more
00:10:23.080 --> 00:10:27.759
real to me than my wife laying next to me in
00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:31.480
the bed. And I thought to myself, Jesus is more
00:10:31.480 --> 00:10:35.299
real to him than his wife laying next to him
00:10:35.299 --> 00:10:39.500
in the bed. In other words, Jesus, who he couldn't
00:10:39.500 --> 00:10:43.820
see, was more real to him than what he could
00:10:43.820 --> 00:10:47.519
see in this natural realm. And that's my motivation
00:10:47.519 --> 00:10:51.360
for prayer. I want to know Jesus like that. I
00:10:51.360 --> 00:10:54.299
want to have a friendship with that. Like that.
00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:59.139
You've heard me say before that Moses, the Bible
00:10:59.139 --> 00:11:02.600
says, The Lord spoke to Moses face to face as
00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:05.200
a man would speak to a friend. And I would say
00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.480
to myself, well, if Moses spoke to you face to
00:11:07.480 --> 00:11:10.980
face as a man would speak to a friend, how much
00:11:10.980 --> 00:11:14.600
more under the New Testament, where we are washed
00:11:14.600 --> 00:11:17.360
in the blood, where the righteousness of God
00:11:17.360 --> 00:11:22.279
in Christ Jesus, can we as believers go boldly
00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:26.080
to the throne of grace and obtain mercy and grace
00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:29.179
in our time of need? and have that kind of intimacy
00:11:29.179 --> 00:11:32.519
with our Father face to face. If Moses had it,
00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:37.299
how much more can you and I have this type of
00:11:37.299 --> 00:11:41.200
intimacy and closeness with our Heavenly Father?
00:11:41.639 --> 00:11:45.019
As a matter of fact, my friends, we have it better
00:11:45.019 --> 00:11:47.759
than Adam and Eve. You know how it was with Adam
00:11:47.759 --> 00:11:50.679
and Eve. the bible says that god would come down
00:11:50.679 --> 00:11:53.039
in the cool of the day and he would talk with
00:11:53.039 --> 00:11:56.019
adam and he would talk with eve so adam and eve
00:11:56.019 --> 00:11:59.360
would wait for god to come down to in order for
00:11:59.360 --> 00:12:02.639
god to fellowship with him and them with him
00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:05.879
well we have it better than adam and eve because
00:12:05.879 --> 00:12:10.220
we don't have to wait for god to come down we
00:12:10.220 --> 00:12:13.919
can draw boldly to the throne of god we can pray
00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:19.720
to god anytime any place Because we are the house
00:12:19.720 --> 00:12:23.860
of prayer. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:27.179
Jesus said, I'll never leave you. I'll never
00:12:27.179 --> 00:12:31.440
forsake you. I'm with you always. So it's up
00:12:31.440 --> 00:12:36.639
to us to draw near to God and for him to draw
00:12:36.639 --> 00:12:39.759
near to us. So my motivation is friendship with
00:12:39.759 --> 00:12:45.350
God. I love the scripture that Moses was a prophet.
00:12:45.470 --> 00:12:48.889
He knew God face to face. That was his legacy
00:12:48.889 --> 00:12:53.049
that he left. That's another motivation. What
00:12:53.049 --> 00:12:56.029
do you want your legacy to be? I would like my
00:12:56.029 --> 00:13:00.350
legacy to be that Margie Florent was a woman,
00:13:00.389 --> 00:13:04.029
not just in ministry and preaching and teaching,
00:13:04.169 --> 00:13:08.590
but a woman who knew God face to face. I think
00:13:08.590 --> 00:13:11.240
that's the greatest legacy. that we can have
00:13:11.240 --> 00:13:15.720
i personally often think of when i leave my body
00:13:15.720 --> 00:13:19.240
and i go to heaven i personally think so often
00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:23.799
about how when i stand before my jesus i don't
00:13:23.799 --> 00:13:26.840
want to stand before a perfect stranger I want
00:13:26.840 --> 00:13:29.639
to at least have a knowledge of the essence of
00:13:29.639 --> 00:13:33.820
Jesus, who he is, what his heart beats like,
00:13:34.240 --> 00:13:37.700
you know, just an understanding of his love.
00:13:38.100 --> 00:13:40.860
So that's my motivation. I want you to think
00:13:40.860 --> 00:13:43.720
about what would be your motivation for getting
00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:47.460
to know Jesus in a more personal and intimate
00:13:47.460 --> 00:13:52.240
way. Revelations 3 .20 says, Here I am, Jesus
00:13:52.240 --> 00:13:56.480
said, I stand at the door and I knock. If anyone
00:13:56.480 --> 00:14:00.179
hears my voice and opens the door, I will come
00:14:00.179 --> 00:14:03.679
in and eat with that person and they with me.
00:14:03.960 --> 00:14:07.559
This symbolizes the eating together symbolizes
00:14:07.559 --> 00:14:11.340
in biblical culture. It represents fellowship.
00:14:11.399 --> 00:14:15.919
And here it is again. Friendship. God desires
00:14:15.919 --> 00:14:21.039
communion with us. He desires what the Bible
00:14:21.039 --> 00:14:25.730
calls Konania, which is fellowship. which implies
00:14:25.730 --> 00:14:30.330
a deep relational connection with him, not just
00:14:30.330 --> 00:14:33.809
formality or distance. And it brings me back
00:14:33.809 --> 00:14:36.710
to what we talked about a couple of broadcasts
00:14:36.710 --> 00:14:40.509
ago. When God came to Adam and Eve, he said to
00:14:40.509 --> 00:14:43.470
Adam and Eve after the fall, he said, where are
00:14:43.470 --> 00:14:48.190
you? He knew where they were physically. But
00:14:48.190 --> 00:14:53.039
that word means. Where are you in your connection
00:14:53.039 --> 00:14:56.139
with me? What happened? There's been a break
00:14:56.139 --> 00:14:59.019
here. Where are you? That closeness that we once
00:14:59.019 --> 00:15:02.899
had is broken. So I have a question for you.
00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:06.779
Where are you? Have you ever heard God say to
00:15:06.779 --> 00:15:09.480
you, where are you? You hear him calling you.
00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:12.480
You hear, you know, your heart being drawn to
00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:14.799
him. But we're so distracted and we're so busy.
00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:17.809
Well, let's come to him. Let's come back to the
00:15:17.809 --> 00:15:20.509
heart of the father. Let's come back. Let's draw
00:15:20.509 --> 00:15:25.490
near to God and he will draw near onto us. As
00:15:25.490 --> 00:15:30.110
a matter of fact, he will restore to you all
00:15:30.110 --> 00:15:32.649
the years that the locusts and the canker worm
00:15:32.649 --> 00:15:35.169
have eaten, the times that we've missed it, the
00:15:35.169 --> 00:15:37.850
times that we were distracted. He will restore
00:15:37.850 --> 00:15:42.230
it. And I believe super abundantly above all,
00:15:42.389 --> 00:15:47.350
you could ask hope. dream or desire. Okay. Before
00:15:47.350 --> 00:15:49.289
we go any further, we're going to go ahead and
00:15:49.289 --> 00:15:51.889
take a break here and I will see you when we
00:15:51.889 --> 00:15:56.250
come back. This is my book decision time. Everyone
00:15:56.250 --> 00:15:59.970
should read this book, especially those of you
00:15:59.970 --> 00:16:04.009
who are in a crossroads in your life. You don't
00:16:04.009 --> 00:16:06.190
know what to do. You don't know how God is leading
00:16:06.190 --> 00:16:10.429
you. This is the book where you reach a place
00:16:10.429 --> 00:16:14.820
where you say, Lord, not my will, your will be
00:16:14.820 --> 00:16:18.320
done in my life. I also include in this book,
00:16:18.440 --> 00:16:21.039
how to hear the voice of God, which is important
00:16:21.039 --> 00:16:23.539
when you're making decisions. If you go to my
00:16:23.539 --> 00:16:27.179
website at margieflaurent .org, you will see
00:16:27.179 --> 00:16:30.580
that this book is available to you. So we've
00:16:30.580 --> 00:16:34.139
been talking about secret closet prayer and the
00:16:34.139 --> 00:16:37.799
fact that it's important for us to get to know
00:16:37.799 --> 00:16:41.750
God. for ourselves and nobody can take that from
00:16:41.750 --> 00:16:45.370
you. I was speaking in a prison in Ocala, Florida,
00:16:45.490 --> 00:16:48.649
and in these prisons, they tell you where to
00:16:48.649 --> 00:16:50.889
go, what to do, when to get up, when to go to
00:16:50.889 --> 00:16:54.269
bed. They are completely controlled. And when
00:16:54.269 --> 00:16:56.210
I was speaking in this prison, the Lord said
00:16:56.210 --> 00:16:59.700
to me, You tell these women and these men. that
00:16:59.700 --> 00:17:03.220
nobody can keep them from closeness and intimacy
00:17:03.220 --> 00:17:07.799
with me. Nobody can control what goes on on the
00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:11.440
inside of their hearts. You see, my friends,
00:17:11.500 --> 00:17:17.539
you and I are as close to God as we want to be.
00:17:17.700 --> 00:17:21.000
We just need to stir it up. We just need to discipline
00:17:21.000 --> 00:17:24.599
ourselves. We just need to make room for God,
00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:29.230
okay? So let's dive into our teaching. Secret
00:17:29.230 --> 00:17:37.710
closet prayer requires faith. Requires faith.
00:17:38.089 --> 00:17:42.349
We don't pray because we feel like it. We don't
00:17:42.349 --> 00:17:45.690
pray because we feel God all the time in our
00:17:45.690 --> 00:17:50.329
prayer closet. No, we pray because we know that
00:17:50.329 --> 00:17:54.809
by faith, he is in the room with us. By faith,
00:17:54.869 --> 00:17:59.259
he is with us. By faith, his eyes are upon us,
00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:03.559
the Bible says, and his ears are open to our
00:18:03.559 --> 00:18:07.680
prayers. We know by faith that the effectual
00:18:07.680 --> 00:18:11.200
fervent prayer of a righteous man are being heard
00:18:11.200 --> 00:18:15.980
and they are availing much. So in practicing
00:18:15.980 --> 00:18:20.740
secret prayer, my friends, we have to have faith.
00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:26.279
The Bible says in John 20, 29. Jesus' words to
00:18:26.279 --> 00:18:29.819
Thomas after his resurrection. It says in the
00:18:29.819 --> 00:18:33.099
scripture, blessed are those who believe and
00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:39.819
have not seen. Thomas believed because he physically
00:18:39.819 --> 00:18:45.400
saw Jesus. He didn't have faith. But those of
00:18:45.400 --> 00:18:47.900
us under the New Testament, he's risen from the
00:18:47.900 --> 00:18:50.200
dead. He's alive forevermore. He's seated at
00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:53.140
the right hand of God the Father. We must believe
00:18:53.140 --> 00:18:56.920
that he is when we come to God. Okay? Whether
00:18:56.920 --> 00:19:00.900
we see him physically with our eyes or not. And
00:19:00.900 --> 00:19:05.779
it requires faith. And the scripture says, blessed
00:19:05.779 --> 00:19:10.259
are us when we believe. And we have not seen.
00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:14.740
OK, now Hebrews 11, 6, I already quoted it. It
00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:16.779
says here in this verse, without faith, it is
00:19:16.779 --> 00:19:21.299
impossible to please him. So again, here, secret
00:19:21.299 --> 00:19:25.319
prayer requires faith. For he that comes to God
00:19:25.319 --> 00:19:29.240
must believe that he is and he is a rewarder
00:19:29.240 --> 00:19:33.819
of those who diligently seek him. OK. Let me
00:19:33.819 --> 00:19:36.960
just tell you a story about feelings versus manifested
00:19:36.960 --> 00:19:40.759
presence. How important it is for us not to be
00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:43.759
led by our feelings, but when we enter into the
00:19:43.759 --> 00:19:47.640
presence of God, walking by faith. I had been
00:19:47.640 --> 00:19:52.599
seeking God week after week after week after
00:19:52.599 --> 00:19:56.039
week. after week going into my prayer closet
00:19:56.039 --> 00:19:59.480
shutting the door and i'd spend time in the presence
00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:02.599
of god i'd pray in the holy ghost i'd pray the
00:20:02.599 --> 00:20:05.000
word things were going to be teaching not only
00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:07.200
in this broadcast but in the next one and maybe
00:20:07.200 --> 00:20:10.339
the one after that as well and i was seeking
00:20:10.339 --> 00:20:13.920
god and praying to him and i honestly didn't
00:20:13.920 --> 00:20:17.039
really feel anything i just knew that by faith
00:20:17.039 --> 00:20:20.319
he's here I can't see him with my physical eyes,
00:20:20.420 --> 00:20:23.619
but I know he's here. And I just walked by faith,
00:20:23.720 --> 00:20:27.440
not by sight. And I was praying and praying and
00:20:27.440 --> 00:20:30.720
praying. And I put the kids on the bus and they'd
00:20:30.720 --> 00:20:33.079
come home after my prayer time. And I went about
00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:37.019
my day. And one day, it was a very special day.
00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:42.480
I put the kids on the bus and I went back into.
00:20:43.680 --> 00:20:47.059
my prayer closet, which happened to be my office
00:20:47.059 --> 00:20:50.359
at the time. And the minute I opened the door,
00:20:50.579 --> 00:20:55.420
I was encountered with the presence of God. It
00:20:55.420 --> 00:20:58.740
was like he just fell on me. I didn't open up
00:20:58.740 --> 00:21:02.079
my mouth. I didn't say anything. But I knew that
00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:06.579
the minute I walked into that room, I was hit
00:21:06.579 --> 00:21:09.819
with the presence of God. And the Lord spoke
00:21:09.819 --> 00:21:12.960
to me face to face as a man would speak to a
00:21:12.960 --> 00:21:16.339
friend. I didn't see him, but that time I felt
00:21:16.339 --> 00:21:19.799
him. And I took out my journal and he began to
00:21:19.799 --> 00:21:22.859
speak to me about my life. And one thing he said
00:21:22.859 --> 00:21:25.079
to me, I'll never forget it. He said, I have
00:21:25.079 --> 00:21:28.000
watched over you and preserved you even unto
00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:30.539
this present hour. And I just began to write
00:21:30.539 --> 00:21:33.500
in my journal all the things that he was saying
00:21:33.500 --> 00:21:36.200
to me in that moment. You see, my friends, prayer
00:21:36.200 --> 00:21:39.920
is communication. It's not just us always talking
00:21:39.920 --> 00:21:45.779
to him and verbalizing our request to him or
00:21:45.779 --> 00:21:48.279
our intercessions to him or giving some thanks.
00:21:48.480 --> 00:21:51.619
It's also where God comes down and he speaks
00:21:51.619 --> 00:21:55.349
to us. And in that moment, the Lord just began
00:21:55.349 --> 00:21:58.250
to speak to me about my life and about my future
00:21:58.250 --> 00:22:01.849
and just about some very private, personal things
00:22:01.849 --> 00:22:05.109
that I wrote in my journal. Now, that was a feeling.
00:22:05.549 --> 00:22:09.769
God came. The presence of God manifested. But
00:22:09.769 --> 00:22:13.329
it's not always like that. That's why, my friends,
00:22:13.390 --> 00:22:15.890
it's very important that you stir yourself up.
00:22:16.069 --> 00:22:19.670
Get into the presence of God. Walk by faith and
00:22:19.670 --> 00:22:23.609
not by sight. Spend time with him. and i promise
00:22:23.609 --> 00:22:28.289
you he will encounter you the bible says draw
00:22:28.289 --> 00:22:32.990
near to god and he will draw near to you because
00:22:32.990 --> 00:22:36.569
he he knows the motivation of your heart he knows
00:22:36.569 --> 00:22:39.450
the intention of your heart and he knows okay
00:22:40.089 --> 00:22:42.670
He or she is going to be seeking me at such and
00:22:42.670 --> 00:22:45.509
such a time, and I'm going to meet them where
00:22:45.509 --> 00:22:48.309
they are. Whether you feel him or whether you
00:22:48.309 --> 00:22:51.750
don't, he is there. The Bible says, I'll never
00:22:51.750 --> 00:22:57.029
leave you. I will never forsake you. You can
00:22:57.029 --> 00:23:01.390
trust God that he is true to his promises. And
00:23:01.390 --> 00:23:04.769
you don't realize it, and I didn't realize it,
00:23:04.869 --> 00:23:07.990
that when I spend time in the presence of God,
00:23:08.130 --> 00:23:12.269
I am being changed. literally changed, changed,
00:23:12.289 --> 00:23:15.029
the Bible says, from glory to glory to glory.
00:23:15.170 --> 00:23:18.009
You don't see it right away. You don't feel it
00:23:18.009 --> 00:23:20.910
right away. But as you go along in your walk
00:23:20.910 --> 00:23:23.750
with God, you will see that the times that you
00:23:23.750 --> 00:23:27.329
spend with him, you are being transformed and
00:23:27.329 --> 00:23:30.950
changed into the same image from glory to glory.
00:23:31.069 --> 00:23:34.950
You see, my friends, you become what you behold.
00:23:36.049 --> 00:23:41.230
And when you behold him. As in a mirror, you
00:23:41.230 --> 00:23:43.230
are being changed. You are being transformed.
00:23:43.410 --> 00:23:46.029
Well, I don't feel like I'm being changed. Trust
00:23:46.029 --> 00:23:50.430
me. The word of God is true. If he said you are
00:23:50.430 --> 00:23:56.710
being changed, you are being changed. Okay? Now,
00:23:56.750 --> 00:23:58.869
before we close, we have a few more minutes.
00:23:59.289 --> 00:24:04.170
We're talking about secret closet prayer. It's
00:24:04.170 --> 00:24:08.170
important that we make closet prayer a habit.
00:24:09.000 --> 00:24:13.539
habit everyone say a habit the practice of secret
00:24:13.539 --> 00:24:20.000
prayer is developed through time practice and
00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:25.000
patience just like any new habit think about
00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:27.119
the habits that you want to change in your life
00:24:27.119 --> 00:24:31.259
that are bad it takes time it takes patience
00:24:31.259 --> 00:24:34.720
it takes commitment and you're going to mess
00:24:34.720 --> 00:24:36.740
up one day, and then you're going to take a hold
00:24:36.740 --> 00:24:39.859
of it the next day. It just takes a commitment.
00:24:40.480 --> 00:24:46.319
In general, it takes 21 to 28 days to develop
00:24:46.319 --> 00:24:52.559
a new habit. Aristotle once said, we are what
00:24:52.559 --> 00:24:57.319
we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act,
00:24:57.339 --> 00:25:02.839
but a habit. Mike Murdoch once said, habit is
00:25:02.839 --> 00:25:08.480
a gift anything you do twice becomes easier god
00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:12.980
uses habit to stabilize your life daniel prayed
00:25:12.980 --> 00:25:17.099
three times a day david prayed seven times a
00:25:17.099 --> 00:25:22.720
day jesus as was his custom went into the synagogue
00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:28.799
if i see what you do daily i can predict your
00:25:28.799 --> 00:25:32.440
future so we must make secret prayer and our
00:25:32.440 --> 00:25:37.119
time with god a habit we must make it a priority
00:25:37.119 --> 00:25:39.920
in our life you know what i like to say to people
00:25:39.920 --> 00:25:43.980
put it in your calendar we're going to get into
00:25:43.980 --> 00:25:47.680
this later but put it into your calendar find
00:25:47.680 --> 00:25:51.339
a time that works for you and put it in your
00:25:51.339 --> 00:25:55.420
calendar and make that your time alone with god
00:25:55.420 --> 00:25:58.920
and don't let anything take you from his presence
00:25:58.920 --> 00:26:02.789
it has to be A priority of our day, like we said
00:26:02.789 --> 00:26:05.630
in our last broadcast, if we are going to survive
00:26:05.630 --> 00:26:08.089
in the times and the seasons that we are in.
00:26:08.410 --> 00:26:14.490
Okay? James 4 says, draw near to God and he will
00:26:14.490 --> 00:26:18.970
draw near to you. You are as close to God as
00:26:18.970 --> 00:26:23.309
you want to be. We said there are levels of intimacy
00:26:23.309 --> 00:26:27.769
with God. All of us, as with unveiled faces.
00:26:28.829 --> 00:26:32.250
continue to behold as in a mirror the glory of
00:26:32.250 --> 00:26:37.349
the lord are constantly being transformed into
00:26:37.349 --> 00:26:42.670
his very own image in ever increasing splendor
00:26:42.670 --> 00:26:46.490
and from one degree of glory to another for this
00:26:46.490 --> 00:26:52.049
comes from the lord who is the spirit john 6
00:26:52.049 --> 00:26:56.690
37 says all whom my father gives to me will come
00:26:56.690 --> 00:27:01.990
to me and any Anyone who comes to me, I will
00:27:01.990 --> 00:27:04.910
most certainly not cast out. Amplified says,
00:27:05.069 --> 00:27:08.789
I will never, no, never reject one of them who
00:27:08.789 --> 00:27:12.430
comes to me. So when you make a decision that
00:27:12.430 --> 00:27:14.690
you're going to develop the habit of secret prayer,
00:27:14.970 --> 00:27:19.109
just know that when you go to God, there's not
00:27:19.109 --> 00:27:21.970
anything you possibly could have done that will
00:27:21.970 --> 00:27:26.009
ever keep him from rejecting you. Not anything.
00:27:26.130 --> 00:27:28.829
And if you have sinned, well, the Bible says
00:27:28.829 --> 00:27:33.430
he is faithful and just to forgive you of your
00:27:33.430 --> 00:27:36.849
sin and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
00:27:36.890 --> 00:27:39.970
Now, before I close, I just want to give you
00:27:39.970 --> 00:27:43.230
some more practical things. Before you get started
00:27:43.230 --> 00:27:46.329
in your intimacy with God in the secret place,
00:27:46.630 --> 00:27:50.869
purchase a Bible. I would encourage you to purchase
00:27:50.869 --> 00:27:54.680
a physical Bible, one you can understand. If
00:27:54.680 --> 00:27:57.759
you're doing this for the first time, go to the
00:27:57.759 --> 00:28:01.420
store or go online and buy a brand new journal.
00:28:01.960 --> 00:28:05.539
Number three, become familiar with BibleGateway
00:28:05.539 --> 00:28:09.440
.com or download a Bible app into your phone
00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:11.599
because you're going to need it. Because God
00:28:11.599 --> 00:28:14.460
is going to begin to speak to you and you're
00:28:14.460 --> 00:28:18.329
going to want to know what he is saying. And
00:28:18.329 --> 00:28:21.130
in our next broadcast, I'm going to teach you
00:28:21.130 --> 00:28:25.150
how to develop closet secret prayer. So we'll
00:28:25.150 --> 00:28:28.410
see you next time. Thank you so much for tuning
00:28:28.410 --> 00:28:30.910
in to today's podcast. It has been such a joy
00:28:30.910 --> 00:28:32.970
sharing this time with you. For more inspiration
00:28:32.970 --> 00:28:35.390
and resources on today's topic, please visit
00:28:35.390 --> 00:28:37.670
our website at margiefloran .org.
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.819
You pray it and he can answer it. The effectual
00:00:02.819 --> 00:00:07.280
fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
00:00:07.419 --> 00:00:10.460
God will put the prayer in your heart to pray
00:00:10.460 --> 00:00:13.060
so that he can answer it. It goes into the hearts
00:00:13.060 --> 00:00:15.839
of the people, doesn't return void, it produces
00:00:15.839 --> 00:00:19.219
results. Hello my friends, welcome to Prayer
00:00:19.219 --> 00:00:22.579
and Purpose. I'm your host, Margie Florent. Now
00:00:22.579 --> 00:00:25.640
in this teaching, we're going to dive in deeper.
00:00:26.440 --> 00:00:31.079
And I'm going to teach you exactly how to develop
00:00:31.079 --> 00:00:34.780
intimacy with God, with your creator, with the
00:00:34.780 --> 00:00:38.420
Lord Jesus Christ. I'm a very hands -on teacher
00:00:38.420 --> 00:00:41.479
in this regard. I'm going to teach you some practical
00:00:41.479 --> 00:00:44.880
steps, some practical ways that you can enter
00:00:44.880 --> 00:00:49.170
into the presence of God, which... On the inside
00:00:49.170 --> 00:00:52.189
of each and every one of us, we all crave and
00:00:52.189 --> 00:00:56.390
we all desire to be intimate and to be close
00:00:56.390 --> 00:00:59.450
with him. The Bible says, David said, My God,
00:00:59.530 --> 00:01:02.469
you are my God. Early I will seek you. My flesh
00:01:02.469 --> 00:01:05.730
longs for you. I thirst for you in a dry and
00:01:05.730 --> 00:01:09.390
thirsty land. So our hearts crave God. Our hearts
00:01:09.390 --> 00:01:12.790
want God. Our hearts desire to know him. But
00:01:12.790 --> 00:01:18.109
there are ways whereby we can learn how to put
00:01:18.109 --> 00:01:21.430
that into action. So we're going to talk today
00:01:21.430 --> 00:01:24.549
about how to know God for yourself. And I'm going
00:01:24.549 --> 00:01:27.870
to give you some very practical steps. With that
00:01:27.870 --> 00:01:30.790
in mind, let's go ahead and begin reading at
00:01:30.790 --> 00:01:34.969
Mark chapter four. Now, Jesus is speaking to
00:01:34.969 --> 00:01:38.810
the crowds and he's. teaching the crowds in parables
00:01:38.810 --> 00:01:41.930
and and there's a bunch of people gathering around
00:01:41.930 --> 00:01:45.609
and it says and with many such parables he spoke
00:01:45.609 --> 00:01:49.890
the word to them the crowds as they were able
00:01:49.890 --> 00:01:52.769
to hear it in other words he could only go so
00:01:52.769 --> 00:01:56.049
far with them he could only teach them so much
00:01:56.049 --> 00:02:00.170
but then it goes on to say in verse 34 but but
00:02:00.170 --> 00:02:05.150
without a parable he did speak to them meaning
00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:10.319
his disciples without a parable. He did not speak
00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:15.699
to them, his disciples. And when they were alone,
00:02:16.259 --> 00:02:20.379
I want you to hone in on that word alone. And
00:02:20.379 --> 00:02:25.620
when they were alone, he explained or another
00:02:25.620 --> 00:02:30.939
translation says he expounded all things to his
00:02:30.939 --> 00:02:34.430
disciples. So in other words, he was only. able
00:02:34.430 --> 00:02:38.409
to go so far with the crowds that reminds me
00:02:38.409 --> 00:02:42.250
so much of our public assembly our public services
00:02:42.250 --> 00:02:45.159
when we all gather together and we to continue
00:02:45.159 --> 00:02:48.120
to gather together the bible says forsake not
00:02:48.120 --> 00:02:51.419
the assembling of yourselves together as a manner
00:02:51.419 --> 00:02:54.699
of some is but we should do it more especially
00:02:54.699 --> 00:02:57.479
as we see the day approaching and it's good to
00:02:57.479 --> 00:02:59.919
gather together it's good to go to bible study
00:02:59.919 --> 00:03:03.740
it's good to go to small groups and and services
00:03:03.740 --> 00:03:09.020
and seminars but there is more to our walk with
00:03:09.020 --> 00:03:13.840
god other than just the public gathering. And
00:03:13.840 --> 00:03:16.259
I think that this scripture speaks into that.
00:03:16.740 --> 00:03:21.699
It says that Jesus spoke to the crowds as they
00:03:21.699 --> 00:03:25.439
were able to hear it or understand it or able
00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:29.240
to receive what he had to say. He was limited.
00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:33.039
But when we came to his disciples, the people
00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:36.800
that were closest to him, the Bible says when
00:03:36.800 --> 00:03:42.840
they were alone, He expounded or he explained
00:03:42.840 --> 00:03:49.520
all things to his disciples. So this is secret
00:03:49.520 --> 00:03:53.120
closet prayer. Let's go over and let's read what
00:03:53.120 --> 00:03:55.680
Matthew 6 says, what Jesus said about prayer,
00:03:55.879 --> 00:03:59.460
secret prayer. It says in Matthew 6, verse 5.
00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:04.229
And when you pray. You shall not be like the
00:04:04.229 --> 00:04:07.490
hypocrites are or the pretenders, for they love
00:04:07.490 --> 00:04:10.830
to pray standing in the synagogues and in the
00:04:10.830 --> 00:04:13.870
corners of the streets that they may be seen
00:04:13.870 --> 00:04:18.009
of men. Assuredly, they have their reward. But
00:04:18.009 --> 00:04:23.189
he says, but you, me, you and I, when we pray,
00:04:23.370 --> 00:04:27.769
let's go into our room. And when you have shut
00:04:27.769 --> 00:04:31.959
the door, pray to your father. who is in the
00:04:31.959 --> 00:04:37.279
secret place and your father who sees in secret
00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:41.939
will reward you openly. So this is the call to
00:04:41.939 --> 00:04:45.720
secret prayer. This is a call for you and I to
00:04:45.720 --> 00:04:50.439
spend time alone in the presence of God and whereby
00:04:50.439 --> 00:04:54.279
we can get to know him in a greater way and in
00:04:54.279 --> 00:04:58.259
a greater measure on another level. So he says
00:04:58.259 --> 00:05:00.759
here, when you pray, go into your room. That
00:05:00.759 --> 00:05:05.160
word room, it's also translated closet. And it
00:05:05.160 --> 00:05:10.879
denotes in the Greek a secret chamber, a place
00:05:10.879 --> 00:05:13.660
where it's just you and God. And the scripture
00:05:13.660 --> 00:05:18.180
says, and when you do that, your father, he sees
00:05:18.180 --> 00:05:21.480
what you're doing. He sees what you're doing
00:05:21.480 --> 00:05:26.620
in secret. And he will reward you openly. So
00:05:26.620 --> 00:05:30.160
we're talking about time alone with God, where
00:05:30.160 --> 00:05:33.899
it's just you and God, where we are getting to
00:05:33.899 --> 00:05:38.879
know God for ourselves. And I don't know about
00:05:38.879 --> 00:05:42.939
you, but for me, that is super exciting. Now,
00:05:42.959 --> 00:05:46.579
I heard somebody say one time, this person said,
00:05:46.779 --> 00:05:49.579
you know, prayer is just boring. Well, I mean,
00:05:49.600 --> 00:05:52.420
that's fair, because when you're new to prayer,
00:05:52.839 --> 00:05:55.339
or you've neglected your prayer life or you're
00:05:55.339 --> 00:05:58.000
like in have a lot of things going on in your
00:05:58.000 --> 00:06:00.360
life when you try to enter into the place of
00:06:00.360 --> 00:06:02.699
prayer you try to go into your closet you try
00:06:02.699 --> 00:06:05.800
to to spend time in the presence of god if we're
00:06:05.800 --> 00:06:10.060
not focused and if we're not intentional it literally
00:06:10.060 --> 00:06:15.519
can become boring so i get it but i'm going to
00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:19.480
teach you how to come out of that place lethargy
00:06:19.480 --> 00:06:24.060
and come into a place whereby prayers no longer
00:06:24.060 --> 00:06:28.100
boring prayer is fun we said this before you've
00:06:28.100 --> 00:06:30.660
heard me say it prayer goes from sacrifice to
00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:35.480
a joy from a desire to a discipline and then
00:06:35.480 --> 00:06:38.720
to a delight Your prayer time and your time along
00:06:38.720 --> 00:06:42.279
with Jesus can come to a place where you're so
00:06:42.279 --> 00:06:46.040
connected with him that when you leave that place
00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:49.019
of prayer, you not only leave with an awareness
00:06:49.019 --> 00:06:52.279
of his presence, but you leave that place of
00:06:52.279 --> 00:06:54.939
prayer with a connection with the secret thing
00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:56.879
in your heart that you've connected with the
00:06:56.879 --> 00:07:00.920
God of the universe. And when you walked away
00:07:00.920 --> 00:07:06.319
from that place of prayer, there is also a. an
00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:10.139
awareness that you can't wait to get back into
00:07:10.139 --> 00:07:13.160
your prayer life prayer closet that is because
00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:19.459
you crave the presence of god okay so the lord
00:07:19.459 --> 00:07:22.560
said to me one time he wanted me to write this
00:07:22.560 --> 00:07:25.480
book it's called encounter god through prayer
00:07:25.480 --> 00:07:29.340
and you can get this book on my website margieflorent
00:07:29.340 --> 00:07:32.300
.org, or you can get this book on Amazon. And
00:07:32.300 --> 00:07:34.899
this particular book goes from nuts to bolts.
00:07:35.060 --> 00:07:37.819
I teach what I'm going to be teaching you today
00:07:37.819 --> 00:07:40.740
in this book. So if you want to know more about
00:07:40.740 --> 00:07:43.620
how to develop your alone time with God, I would
00:07:43.620 --> 00:07:47.860
encourage you to get this book. But I wrote this
00:07:47.860 --> 00:07:51.040
book because the Lord said to me, you know what,
00:07:51.060 --> 00:07:54.560
Margie? He said, many desire to draw near to
00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:58.639
me and get close to me. He said, but many of
00:07:58.639 --> 00:08:04.060
my people just don't know how. And I want you
00:08:04.060 --> 00:08:08.040
to teach them how to pray. And, you know, that's
00:08:08.040 --> 00:08:10.319
the same thing that the disciples said to Jesus
00:08:10.319 --> 00:08:13.480
when they came to Jesus, when they came to Jesus,
00:08:13.620 --> 00:08:16.819
they watched Jesus and they watched his lifestyle
00:08:16.819 --> 00:08:21.060
and they watched that he was. always a man who
00:08:21.060 --> 00:08:25.339
operated in the wisdom and revelation and discernment.
00:08:25.339 --> 00:08:27.879
He operated in the power of God, demonstration
00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:32.159
of God. And they noticed that he was a man who
00:08:32.159 --> 00:08:35.019
would at times leave where he was and go up into
00:08:35.019 --> 00:08:37.460
a mountain and disappear, or he'd go out into
00:08:37.460 --> 00:08:41.419
a desert place. And I believe the disciples realized
00:08:41.419 --> 00:08:47.240
that the secret to Jesus's success was his power.
00:08:47.799 --> 00:08:52.000
prayer life his time alone with his heavenly
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:54.679
father and so they came to jesus one day and
00:08:54.679 --> 00:08:58.440
they said lord teach us to pray and we know the
00:08:58.440 --> 00:09:01.379
very famous you know prayer the you know the
00:09:01.379 --> 00:09:04.240
our father he goes on to teach them about the
00:09:04.240 --> 00:09:06.399
the heart of the father and so on and so forth
00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:09.240
but that's what we're doing we are teaching you
00:09:09.240 --> 00:09:14.679
how to pray so before we get into it i want to
00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:18.909
just ask you a question What is your personal
00:09:18.909 --> 00:09:24.330
motivation for learning how to pray and developing
00:09:24.330 --> 00:09:28.970
your secret time with God? What is your motivation?
00:09:29.110 --> 00:09:31.419
I just want you to think about that for just
00:09:31.419 --> 00:09:34.639
a second, because that motivation is what's going
00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:39.740
to drive you, so to speak, into the presence
00:09:39.740 --> 00:09:42.639
of God so that when some things come your way,
00:09:42.720 --> 00:09:46.440
distractions and cares and tasks in this earthly
00:09:46.440 --> 00:09:49.240
realm, when they try to stop us from praying,
00:09:49.480 --> 00:09:52.039
you're going to need that motivation to rise
00:09:52.039 --> 00:09:54.820
up on the inside of you. Would you like me to
00:09:54.820 --> 00:09:58.320
tell you my motivation for secret prayer? My
00:09:58.320 --> 00:10:02.460
personal motivation. came from watching Kenneth
00:10:02.460 --> 00:10:06.600
E. Hagin. And I knew and I could see that he
00:10:06.600 --> 00:10:09.120
had intimacy with God, that he knew the voice
00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:12.600
of God, that he operated in the flow and the
00:10:12.600 --> 00:10:16.059
rhythm of the Holy Spirit. But he also said something
00:10:16.059 --> 00:10:23.080
that changed my life. He said, Jesus is more
00:10:23.080 --> 00:10:27.759
real to me than my wife laying next to me in
00:10:27.759 --> 00:10:31.480
the bed. And I thought to myself, Jesus is more
00:10:31.480 --> 00:10:35.299
real to him than his wife laying next to him
00:10:35.299 --> 00:10:39.500
in the bed. In other words, Jesus, who he couldn't
00:10:39.500 --> 00:10:43.820
see, was more real to him than what he could
00:10:43.820 --> 00:10:47.519
see in this natural realm. And that's my motivation
00:10:47.519 --> 00:10:51.360
for prayer. I want to know Jesus like that. I
00:10:51.360 --> 00:10:54.299
want to have a friendship with that. Like that.
00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:59.139
You've heard me say before that Moses, the Bible
00:10:59.139 --> 00:11:02.600
says, The Lord spoke to Moses face to face as
00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:05.200
a man would speak to a friend. And I would say
00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.480
to myself, well, if Moses spoke to you face to
00:11:07.480 --> 00:11:10.980
face as a man would speak to a friend, how much
00:11:10.980 --> 00:11:14.600
more under the New Testament, where we are washed
00:11:14.600 --> 00:11:17.360
in the blood, where the righteousness of God
00:11:17.360 --> 00:11:22.279
in Christ Jesus, can we as believers go boldly
00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:26.080
to the throne of grace and obtain mercy and grace
00:11:26.080 --> 00:11:29.179
in our time of need? and have that kind of intimacy
00:11:29.179 --> 00:11:32.519
with our Father face to face. If Moses had it,
00:11:32.600 --> 00:11:37.299
how much more can you and I have this type of
00:11:37.299 --> 00:11:41.200
intimacy and closeness with our Heavenly Father?
00:11:41.639 --> 00:11:45.019
As a matter of fact, my friends, we have it better
00:11:45.019 --> 00:11:47.759
than Adam and Eve. You know how it was with Adam
00:11:47.759 --> 00:11:50.679
and Eve. the bible says that god would come down
00:11:50.679 --> 00:11:53.039
in the cool of the day and he would talk with
00:11:53.039 --> 00:11:56.019
adam and he would talk with eve so adam and eve
00:11:56.019 --> 00:11:59.360
would wait for god to come down to in order for
00:11:59.360 --> 00:12:02.639
god to fellowship with him and them with him
00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:05.879
well we have it better than adam and eve because
00:12:05.879 --> 00:12:10.220
we don't have to wait for god to come down we
00:12:10.220 --> 00:12:13.919
can draw boldly to the throne of god we can pray
00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:19.720
to god anytime any place Because we are the house
00:12:19.720 --> 00:12:23.860
of prayer. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:27.179
Jesus said, I'll never leave you. I'll never
00:12:27.179 --> 00:12:31.440
forsake you. I'm with you always. So it's up
00:12:31.440 --> 00:12:36.639
to us to draw near to God and for him to draw
00:12:36.639 --> 00:12:39.759
near to us. So my motivation is friendship with
00:12:39.759 --> 00:12:45.350
God. I love the scripture that Moses was a prophet.
00:12:45.470 --> 00:12:48.889
He knew God face to face. That was his legacy
00:12:48.889 --> 00:12:53.049
that he left. That's another motivation. What
00:12:53.049 --> 00:12:56.029
do you want your legacy to be? I would like my
00:12:56.029 --> 00:13:00.350
legacy to be that Margie Florent was a woman,
00:13:00.389 --> 00:13:04.029
not just in ministry and preaching and teaching,
00:13:04.169 --> 00:13:08.590
but a woman who knew God face to face. I think
00:13:08.590 --> 00:13:11.240
that's the greatest legacy. that we can have
00:13:11.240 --> 00:13:15.720
i personally often think of when i leave my body
00:13:15.720 --> 00:13:19.240
and i go to heaven i personally think so often
00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:23.799
about how when i stand before my jesus i don't
00:13:23.799 --> 00:13:26.840
want to stand before a perfect stranger I want
00:13:26.840 --> 00:13:29.639
to at least have a knowledge of the essence of
00:13:29.639 --> 00:13:33.820
Jesus, who he is, what his heart beats like,
00:13:34.240 --> 00:13:37.700
you know, just an understanding of his love.
00:13:38.100 --> 00:13:40.860
So that's my motivation. I want you to think
00:13:40.860 --> 00:13:43.720
about what would be your motivation for getting
00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:47.460
to know Jesus in a more personal and intimate
00:13:47.460 --> 00:13:52.240
way. Revelations 3 .20 says, Here I am, Jesus
00:13:52.240 --> 00:13:56.480
said, I stand at the door and I knock. If anyone
00:13:56.480 --> 00:14:00.179
hears my voice and opens the door, I will come
00:14:00.179 --> 00:14:03.679
in and eat with that person and they with me.
00:14:03.960 --> 00:14:07.559
This symbolizes the eating together symbolizes
00:14:07.559 --> 00:14:11.340
in biblical culture. It represents fellowship.
00:14:11.399 --> 00:14:15.919
And here it is again. Friendship. God desires
00:14:15.919 --> 00:14:21.039
communion with us. He desires what the Bible
00:14:21.039 --> 00:14:25.730
calls Konania, which is fellowship. which implies
00:14:25.730 --> 00:14:30.330
a deep relational connection with him, not just
00:14:30.330 --> 00:14:33.809
formality or distance. And it brings me back
00:14:33.809 --> 00:14:36.710
to what we talked about a couple of broadcasts
00:14:36.710 --> 00:14:40.509
ago. When God came to Adam and Eve, he said to
00:14:40.509 --> 00:14:43.470
Adam and Eve after the fall, he said, where are
00:14:43.470 --> 00:14:48.190
you? He knew where they were physically. But
00:14:48.190 --> 00:14:53.039
that word means. Where are you in your connection
00:14:53.039 --> 00:14:56.139
with me? What happened? There's been a break
00:14:56.139 --> 00:14:59.019
here. Where are you? That closeness that we once
00:14:59.019 --> 00:15:02.899
had is broken. So I have a question for you.
00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:06.779
Where are you? Have you ever heard God say to
00:15:06.779 --> 00:15:09.480
you, where are you? You hear him calling you.
00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:12.480
You hear, you know, your heart being drawn to
00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:14.799
him. But we're so distracted and we're so busy.
00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:17.809
Well, let's come to him. Let's come back to the
00:15:17.809 --> 00:15:20.509
heart of the father. Let's come back. Let's draw
00:15:20.509 --> 00:15:25.490
near to God and he will draw near onto us. As
00:15:25.490 --> 00:15:30.110
a matter of fact, he will restore to you all
00:15:30.110 --> 00:15:32.649
the years that the locusts and the canker worm
00:15:32.649 --> 00:15:35.169
have eaten, the times that we've missed it, the
00:15:35.169 --> 00:15:37.850
times that we were distracted. He will restore
00:15:37.850 --> 00:15:42.230
it. And I believe super abundantly above all,
00:15:42.389 --> 00:15:47.350
you could ask hope. dream or desire. Okay. Before
00:15:47.350 --> 00:15:49.289
we go any further, we're going to go ahead and
00:15:49.289 --> 00:15:51.889
take a break here and I will see you when we
00:15:51.889 --> 00:15:56.250
come back. This is my book decision time. Everyone
00:15:56.250 --> 00:15:59.970
should read this book, especially those of you
00:15:59.970 --> 00:16:04.009
who are in a crossroads in your life. You don't
00:16:04.009 --> 00:16:06.190
know what to do. You don't know how God is leading
00:16:06.190 --> 00:16:10.429
you. This is the book where you reach a place
00:16:10.429 --> 00:16:14.820
where you say, Lord, not my will, your will be
00:16:14.820 --> 00:16:18.320
done in my life. I also include in this book,
00:16:18.440 --> 00:16:21.039
how to hear the voice of God, which is important
00:16:21.039 --> 00:16:23.539
when you're making decisions. If you go to my
00:16:23.539 --> 00:16:27.179
website at margieflaurent .org, you will see
00:16:27.179 --> 00:16:30.580
that this book is available to you. So we've
00:16:30.580 --> 00:16:34.139
been talking about secret closet prayer and the
00:16:34.139 --> 00:16:37.799
fact that it's important for us to get to know
00:16:37.799 --> 00:16:41.750
God. for ourselves and nobody can take that from
00:16:41.750 --> 00:16:45.370
you. I was speaking in a prison in Ocala, Florida,
00:16:45.490 --> 00:16:48.649
and in these prisons, they tell you where to
00:16:48.649 --> 00:16:50.889
go, what to do, when to get up, when to go to
00:16:50.889 --> 00:16:54.269
bed. They are completely controlled. And when
00:16:54.269 --> 00:16:56.210
I was speaking in this prison, the Lord said
00:16:56.210 --> 00:16:59.700
to me, You tell these women and these men. that
00:16:59.700 --> 00:17:03.220
nobody can keep them from closeness and intimacy
00:17:03.220 --> 00:17:07.799
with me. Nobody can control what goes on on the
00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:11.440
inside of their hearts. You see, my friends,
00:17:11.500 --> 00:17:17.539
you and I are as close to God as we want to be.
00:17:17.700 --> 00:17:21.000
We just need to stir it up. We just need to discipline
00:17:21.000 --> 00:17:24.599
ourselves. We just need to make room for God,
00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:29.230
okay? So let's dive into our teaching. Secret
00:17:29.230 --> 00:17:37.710
closet prayer requires faith. Requires faith.
00:17:38.089 --> 00:17:42.349
We don't pray because we feel like it. We don't
00:17:42.349 --> 00:17:45.690
pray because we feel God all the time in our
00:17:45.690 --> 00:17:50.329
prayer closet. No, we pray because we know that
00:17:50.329 --> 00:17:54.809
by faith, he is in the room with us. By faith,
00:17:54.869 --> 00:17:59.259
he is with us. By faith, his eyes are upon us,
00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:03.559
the Bible says, and his ears are open to our
00:18:03.559 --> 00:18:07.680
prayers. We know by faith that the effectual
00:18:07.680 --> 00:18:11.200
fervent prayer of a righteous man are being heard
00:18:11.200 --> 00:18:15.980
and they are availing much. So in practicing
00:18:15.980 --> 00:18:20.740
secret prayer, my friends, we have to have faith.
00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:26.279
The Bible says in John 20, 29. Jesus' words to
00:18:26.279 --> 00:18:29.819
Thomas after his resurrection. It says in the
00:18:29.819 --> 00:18:33.099
scripture, blessed are those who believe and
00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:39.819
have not seen. Thomas believed because he physically
00:18:39.819 --> 00:18:45.400
saw Jesus. He didn't have faith. But those of
00:18:45.400 --> 00:18:47.900
us under the New Testament, he's risen from the
00:18:47.900 --> 00:18:50.200
dead. He's alive forevermore. He's seated at
00:18:50.200 --> 00:18:53.140
the right hand of God the Father. We must believe
00:18:53.140 --> 00:18:56.920
that he is when we come to God. Okay? Whether
00:18:56.920 --> 00:19:00.900
we see him physically with our eyes or not. And
00:19:00.900 --> 00:19:05.779
it requires faith. And the scripture says, blessed
00:19:05.779 --> 00:19:10.259
are us when we believe. And we have not seen.
00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:14.740
OK, now Hebrews 11, 6, I already quoted it. It
00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:16.779
says here in this verse, without faith, it is
00:19:16.779 --> 00:19:21.299
impossible to please him. So again, here, secret
00:19:21.299 --> 00:19:25.319
prayer requires faith. For he that comes to God
00:19:25.319 --> 00:19:29.240
must believe that he is and he is a rewarder
00:19:29.240 --> 00:19:33.819
of those who diligently seek him. OK. Let me
00:19:33.819 --> 00:19:36.960
just tell you a story about feelings versus manifested
00:19:36.960 --> 00:19:40.759
presence. How important it is for us not to be
00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:43.759
led by our feelings, but when we enter into the
00:19:43.759 --> 00:19:47.640
presence of God, walking by faith. I had been
00:19:47.640 --> 00:19:52.599
seeking God week after week after week after
00:19:52.599 --> 00:19:56.039
week. after week going into my prayer closet
00:19:56.039 --> 00:19:59.480
shutting the door and i'd spend time in the presence
00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:02.599
of god i'd pray in the holy ghost i'd pray the
00:20:02.599 --> 00:20:05.000
word things were going to be teaching not only
00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:07.200
in this broadcast but in the next one and maybe
00:20:07.200 --> 00:20:10.339
the one after that as well and i was seeking
00:20:10.339 --> 00:20:13.920
god and praying to him and i honestly didn't
00:20:13.920 --> 00:20:17.039
really feel anything i just knew that by faith
00:20:17.039 --> 00:20:20.319
he's here I can't see him with my physical eyes,
00:20:20.420 --> 00:20:23.619
but I know he's here. And I just walked by faith,
00:20:23.720 --> 00:20:27.440
not by sight. And I was praying and praying and
00:20:27.440 --> 00:20:30.720
praying. And I put the kids on the bus and they'd
00:20:30.720 --> 00:20:33.079
come home after my prayer time. And I went about
00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:37.019
my day. And one day, it was a very special day.
00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:42.480
I put the kids on the bus and I went back into.
00:20:43.680 --> 00:20:47.059
my prayer closet, which happened to be my office
00:20:47.059 --> 00:20:50.359
at the time. And the minute I opened the door,
00:20:50.579 --> 00:20:55.420
I was encountered with the presence of God. It
00:20:55.420 --> 00:20:58.740
was like he just fell on me. I didn't open up
00:20:58.740 --> 00:21:02.079
my mouth. I didn't say anything. But I knew that
00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:06.579
the minute I walked into that room, I was hit
00:21:06.579 --> 00:21:09.819
with the presence of God. And the Lord spoke
00:21:09.819 --> 00:21:12.960
to me face to face as a man would speak to a
00:21:12.960 --> 00:21:16.339
friend. I didn't see him, but that time I felt
00:21:16.339 --> 00:21:19.799
him. And I took out my journal and he began to
00:21:19.799 --> 00:21:22.859
speak to me about my life. And one thing he said
00:21:22.859 --> 00:21:25.079
to me, I'll never forget it. He said, I have
00:21:25.079 --> 00:21:28.000
watched over you and preserved you even unto
00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:30.539
this present hour. And I just began to write
00:21:30.539 --> 00:21:33.500
in my journal all the things that he was saying
00:21:33.500 --> 00:21:36.200
to me in that moment. You see, my friends, prayer
00:21:36.200 --> 00:21:39.920
is communication. It's not just us always talking
00:21:39.920 --> 00:21:45.779
to him and verbalizing our request to him or
00:21:45.779 --> 00:21:48.279
our intercessions to him or giving some thanks.
00:21:48.480 --> 00:21:51.619
It's also where God comes down and he speaks
00:21:51.619 --> 00:21:55.349
to us. And in that moment, the Lord just began
00:21:55.349 --> 00:21:58.250
to speak to me about my life and about my future
00:21:58.250 --> 00:22:01.849
and just about some very private, personal things
00:22:01.849 --> 00:22:05.109
that I wrote in my journal. Now, that was a feeling.
00:22:05.549 --> 00:22:09.769
God came. The presence of God manifested. But
00:22:09.769 --> 00:22:13.329
it's not always like that. That's why, my friends,
00:22:13.390 --> 00:22:15.890
it's very important that you stir yourself up.
00:22:16.069 --> 00:22:19.670
Get into the presence of God. Walk by faith and
00:22:19.670 --> 00:22:23.609
not by sight. Spend time with him. and i promise
00:22:23.609 --> 00:22:28.289
you he will encounter you the bible says draw
00:22:28.289 --> 00:22:32.990
near to god and he will draw near to you because
00:22:32.990 --> 00:22:36.569
he he knows the motivation of your heart he knows
00:22:36.569 --> 00:22:39.450
the intention of your heart and he knows okay
00:22:40.089 --> 00:22:42.670
He or she is going to be seeking me at such and
00:22:42.670 --> 00:22:45.509
such a time, and I'm going to meet them where
00:22:45.509 --> 00:22:48.309
they are. Whether you feel him or whether you
00:22:48.309 --> 00:22:51.750
don't, he is there. The Bible says, I'll never
00:22:51.750 --> 00:22:57.029
leave you. I will never forsake you. You can
00:22:57.029 --> 00:23:01.390
trust God that he is true to his promises. And
00:23:01.390 --> 00:23:04.769
you don't realize it, and I didn't realize it,
00:23:04.869 --> 00:23:07.990
that when I spend time in the presence of God,
00:23:08.130 --> 00:23:12.269
I am being changed. literally changed, changed,
00:23:12.289 --> 00:23:15.029
the Bible says, from glory to glory to glory.
00:23:15.170 --> 00:23:18.009
You don't see it right away. You don't feel it
00:23:18.009 --> 00:23:20.910
right away. But as you go along in your walk
00:23:20.910 --> 00:23:23.750
with God, you will see that the times that you
00:23:23.750 --> 00:23:27.329
spend with him, you are being transformed and
00:23:27.329 --> 00:23:30.950
changed into the same image from glory to glory.
00:23:31.069 --> 00:23:34.950
You see, my friends, you become what you behold.
00:23:36.049 --> 00:23:41.230
And when you behold him. As in a mirror, you
00:23:41.230 --> 00:23:43.230
are being changed. You are being transformed.
00:23:43.410 --> 00:23:46.029
Well, I don't feel like I'm being changed. Trust
00:23:46.029 --> 00:23:50.430
me. The word of God is true. If he said you are
00:23:50.430 --> 00:23:56.710
being changed, you are being changed. Okay? Now,
00:23:56.750 --> 00:23:58.869
before we close, we have a few more minutes.
00:23:59.289 --> 00:24:04.170
We're talking about secret closet prayer. It's
00:24:04.170 --> 00:24:08.170
important that we make closet prayer a habit.
00:24:09.000 --> 00:24:13.539
habit everyone say a habit the practice of secret
00:24:13.539 --> 00:24:20.000
prayer is developed through time practice and
00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:25.000
patience just like any new habit think about
00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:27.119
the habits that you want to change in your life
00:24:27.119 --> 00:24:31.259
that are bad it takes time it takes patience
00:24:31.259 --> 00:24:34.720
it takes commitment and you're going to mess
00:24:34.720 --> 00:24:36.740
up one day, and then you're going to take a hold
00:24:36.740 --> 00:24:39.859
of it the next day. It just takes a commitment.
00:24:40.480 --> 00:24:46.319
In general, it takes 21 to 28 days to develop
00:24:46.319 --> 00:24:52.559
a new habit. Aristotle once said, we are what
00:24:52.559 --> 00:24:57.319
we repeatedly do. Excellence then is not an act,
00:24:57.339 --> 00:25:02.839
but a habit. Mike Murdoch once said, habit is
00:25:02.839 --> 00:25:08.480
a gift anything you do twice becomes easier god
00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:12.980
uses habit to stabilize your life daniel prayed
00:25:12.980 --> 00:25:17.099
three times a day david prayed seven times a
00:25:17.099 --> 00:25:22.720
day jesus as was his custom went into the synagogue
00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:28.799
if i see what you do daily i can predict your
00:25:28.799 --> 00:25:32.440
future so we must make secret prayer and our
00:25:32.440 --> 00:25:37.119
time with god a habit we must make it a priority
00:25:37.119 --> 00:25:39.920
in our life you know what i like to say to people
00:25:39.920 --> 00:25:43.980
put it in your calendar we're going to get into
00:25:43.980 --> 00:25:47.680
this later but put it into your calendar find
00:25:47.680 --> 00:25:51.339
a time that works for you and put it in your
00:25:51.339 --> 00:25:55.420
calendar and make that your time alone with god
00:25:55.420 --> 00:25:58.920
and don't let anything take you from his presence
00:25:58.920 --> 00:26:02.789
it has to be A priority of our day, like we said
00:26:02.789 --> 00:26:05.630
in our last broadcast, if we are going to survive
00:26:05.630 --> 00:26:08.089
in the times and the seasons that we are in.
00:26:08.410 --> 00:26:14.490
Okay? James 4 says, draw near to God and he will
00:26:14.490 --> 00:26:18.970
draw near to you. You are as close to God as
00:26:18.970 --> 00:26:23.309
you want to be. We said there are levels of intimacy
00:26:23.309 --> 00:26:27.769
with God. All of us, as with unveiled faces.
00:26:28.829 --> 00:26:32.250
continue to behold as in a mirror the glory of
00:26:32.250 --> 00:26:37.349
the lord are constantly being transformed into
00:26:37.349 --> 00:26:42.670
his very own image in ever increasing splendor
00:26:42.670 --> 00:26:46.490
and from one degree of glory to another for this
00:26:46.490 --> 00:26:52.049
comes from the lord who is the spirit john 6
00:26:52.049 --> 00:26:56.690
37 says all whom my father gives to me will come
00:26:56.690 --> 00:27:01.990
to me and any Anyone who comes to me, I will
00:27:01.990 --> 00:27:04.910
most certainly not cast out. Amplified says,
00:27:05.069 --> 00:27:08.789
I will never, no, never reject one of them who
00:27:08.789 --> 00:27:12.430
comes to me. So when you make a decision that
00:27:12.430 --> 00:27:14.690
you're going to develop the habit of secret prayer,
00:27:14.970 --> 00:27:19.109
just know that when you go to God, there's not
00:27:19.109 --> 00:27:21.970
anything you possibly could have done that will
00:27:21.970 --> 00:27:26.009
ever keep him from rejecting you. Not anything.
00:27:26.130 --> 00:27:28.829
And if you have sinned, well, the Bible says
00:27:28.829 --> 00:27:33.430
he is faithful and just to forgive you of your
00:27:33.430 --> 00:27:36.849
sin and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
00:27:36.890 --> 00:27:39.970
Now, before I close, I just want to give you
00:27:39.970 --> 00:27:43.230
some more practical things. Before you get started
00:27:43.230 --> 00:27:46.329
in your intimacy with God in the secret place,
00:27:46.630 --> 00:27:50.869
purchase a Bible. I would encourage you to purchase
00:27:50.869 --> 00:27:54.680
a physical Bible, one you can understand. If
00:27:54.680 --> 00:27:57.759
you're doing this for the first time, go to the
00:27:57.759 --> 00:28:01.420
store or go online and buy a brand new journal.
00:28:01.960 --> 00:28:05.539
Number three, become familiar with BibleGateway
00:28:05.539 --> 00:28:09.440
.com or download a Bible app into your phone
00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:11.599
because you're going to need it. Because God
00:28:11.599 --> 00:28:14.460
is going to begin to speak to you and you're
00:28:14.460 --> 00:28:18.329
going to want to know what he is saying. And
00:28:18.329 --> 00:28:21.130
in our next broadcast, I'm going to teach you
00:28:21.130 --> 00:28:25.150
how to develop closet secret prayer. So we'll
00:28:25.150 --> 00:28:28.410
see you next time. Thank you so much for tuning
00:28:28.410 --> 00:28:30.910
in to today's podcast. It has been such a joy
00:28:30.910 --> 00:28:32.970
sharing this time with you. For more inspiration
00:28:32.970 --> 00:28:35.390
and resources on today's topic, please visit
00:28:35.390 --> 00:28:37.670
our website at margiefloran .org.