Prayer Works Morning Devotion: September 8, 2025

Thus Says The Lord-Who God Says He Is, His Commandments and Promises

1 Samuel 16:1,6,7 How Long Will You Mourn For Saul, Seeing I Have Rejected Him From Reinging Over Israel? "

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A very good morning, a very good morning to you everybody. I hope you had a wonderful night. You are well rested and ready for another exciting week. Let us go to the Lord in prayer. This is the day the Lord is met. We will rejoice and be glad in it. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law.  

We are crucified with Christ, nevertheless we live. Not yet us, but Christ lives by faith in us. We believe that Jesus came and died on the cross. So, we now have the abundant life and the victory that he provides.  

Therefore, no weapon formed against us just prosper. We are more than conquerors because of his great love. Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. And we can do all things through Christ who strengthened us as the redeemed of the Lord, we say so. Brothers and sisters, Amen and Amen.  

Brothers and sisters, we are today in 1st Samuel 16. And when I read this scripture, then I'm going to read a lot of other scriptures in order to support what we are going to say. So, we are in 1 Samuel 16-1, then 67.  

Now the Lord said to Samuel, how long will you mourn for Saul? Now, remember who Saul is? King Saul was the first king that was anointed to be king of Israel by the prophet Samuel. Even though God did not have him in his mind as the king, but he says, since you want a king, I'll give you the king that you want.  

But now this same man is dead now. So, God is speaking to the same prophet who anointed the king. And you say, how long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. 

I'm sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemites, for I have provided myself, I have provided myself a king among his sons. So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, surely the Lord's anointed is before him.  

But the Lord said to Samuel, do not look at the appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. Why has the Lord refused Eliab? For the Lord does not see as man sees.  

For man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. Again, the Lord does not see, the way man sees, because he is not looking at the outward appearance which is what we see but he is looking at the heart which is the intentions the intent of a human being. 

Now brothers and sisters I want to read these few scriptures to you. Psalms 51:10, it says, create in me a clean heart. So, God has to create a clean heart in you, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.  

This is a prayer for inner purification and spiritual renewal in us. Then Ezekiel chapter number 36:26 says this, and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 

The prophecy speaks of a radical divine of the human heart. Matthew 5:8 says, blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Jeremiah 17:19, it says, the heart, your heart, is deceitful above all things.  

Think about what your heart does. It says, it is deceitful above all things and desperately seek who can understand it? So, this scripture here is kind of speaking of the inherent sinful nature and the deceptive nature of the human heart.  

And when you think about the human heart, when you think about the human heart, it's one of the most dangerous things in all of humanity. The human heart is desperately seek, as the scripture says, desperately seek.  

Now, when you really kind of think about that, you then have to realize and recognize that only we don't just think with our minds, we also think with our hearts. The heart is part of the soul, your emotions, your mind is the heart is part of the soul.  

And that is the true essence of what God created. What God created and breathed into man and the heart became alive is the true essence of who you are. And then the scripture says, because of our sinful nature, the heart is very deceitful. 

It is the wellspring the scripture says guard your heart for it is the wellspring of all evil. I want you to think about that guard your heart because it is the wellspring of evil in other words we conjure up evil from the heart. 

So which means not it means that we don't just think with our brain is designed to solve problems. We see things and we solve problems but your heart thinks and imagine.  

That's where faith resides. Thinks and imagines because it is connected with God. It is the true essence of who you are that comes from God. It is the mind. So, when the scripture says, let this mind that was in Christ be also in you. 

In other words, it's simply saying, Let the heart that Christ had for people, for humanity, for life, let that also be in you, which connote that we think with our hearts. So now, Samuel is having a conversation with God, and God says, right now you are mourning.  

And Samuel is not mourning through his head, he's mourning through his heart. So, he says, how long are you going to continue doing this? Put some oil in your horn and go anoint a king that is after me, after my own, that I have chosen for myself go anoint that.  

So, when Samuel goes, he encounters Eliab. And when he encounters Eliab, he is surely that's the guy. Why? Because the man was tall, he looked like a king, he looked the part, he was great. But God then says, nah, I rejected him.  

So, I want you to imagine this. Eliab is just doing whatever he is doing. Unbeknownst to him, God has rejected him because of his heart, because how do we know this because Samuel says God then says to Samuel I have I have rejected him. 

Because I'm not looking at his stature, I'm looking at his heart the intentions that he has in his heart, so now when you really think about that scripture you then realize that the way we are living as human beings.  

What God is actually seeing in all of humanity is the true essence of what he created and breathed into us. In other words, he is judging his spirit that is in us and the intent and the deceitful intent our hearts carry in how we do things.  

So, you then really kind of look at this concept and realize that the issue of God in your heart is so important because that is what God is looking at. That's why the scripture says, if a man says in your heart, right, says that's what God sees, not your mind, your heart.  

That's what he sees, because there is thoughts and intentions that come out of your heart. Now, if you really actually study the anatomy of human beings, you realize all the neurons in your body, they go through the heart.  

Everything that's in your body, neurons and it all goes back to your heart because it is pumping the blood that is giving life to every neuron in your body.  

Which means that you are sensitive with your hands, but truly speaking, your hands are an extension of your heart because the neurons are not coming from your brain, they're coming from your heart.  

The heart actually gives oxygen to the brain without the heart giving oxygen to the brain, you're pretty much dead. Because the brain helps the body to function and to move, but the heart is the epicenter where all decisions are made.  

So, you then understand how important the human heart is, your heart. And I'm not talking about the blood, the heart that pumps blood, that's part of it. But really, we're talking about the emotions and the will that flows from the heart. That's what God judges.  

That's what he sees, that's what his eye is on. So when He says the eye is on the sparrow is watching over us, He's not watching your mind, He's watching your heart. That's why Jesus says you don't have to sin by doing anything.  

You can actually sin in your heart. Because that's what God judges, that's what He sees. So, when you read the true essence of this scripture, what you are actually getting is this idea that this human heart is so important. 

And it's what God sees and when God makes His decisions, He's not making them based on what your mind thinks, but rather what your heart thinks. So, which means that in our effort, in our effort of living right, we have to guard this heart.  

Because that's what God is looking at every single day, your heart. Not what you have logically conceived in your brain, but it's looking at your heart. Because that's the true essence of us that came from Him.  

So let us really desire to guard our hearts, because that's what God is looking at. It's amazing when you think about the story and the journey of the children of Israelites, that all the decisions they made. 

They were making them based on what they were feeling in the moment, not what they were thinking. Because when you think about their journey from Egypt up to now, they are making every decision based on what they are seeing.  

Pharaoh is coming for us, then they would feel in their heart what they needed to do. And for us, it should be the other way. We have to think with our heart, then use our minds to interpret what God is saying.  

That's why you always hear me say that when God speaks to us, He does not speak to your mind, He speaks to the soul. Your mind has to come now and interpret what the soul has heard, so which means the way you hear it from God is through the heart. 

Because that's what He is looking at. He's looking at your heart and He has put in it ears to hear from Him, but then we logically have to interpret what He is saying so that we can do the things that we do.  

So, which means we're here with the heart. That's why the scripture says, guard it. Because at the essence of it, it is deceitful. That's the nature of it. In other words, when Adam and Eve sinned, what was contaminated was not their mind, it was their heart. That heart that at the very true core essence, it is deceitful. 

So, brothers and sisters, as we go out through this day today, I want you to really kind of measure and think about your heart and the things that comes out of it, what flows out of it. Because what flows out of it is the true essence of who you are.  

Not the outward appearance that we see, but what God sees and that we don't see. That's who you are. Intent, intention is so important. You shall love thy God with all your heart, soul. It's part of that.  

So in other words, the way you think in your heart, that's the way, that's what you should use to love God. So let us consider our hearts today as we go throughout this day and just kind of think about how we carry these hearts.  

Again, you can look at these scriptures, Jeremiah 17:9, 1 Samuel 16:7, Psalms 5:1-10, Ezekiel 36 and 26, Matthew 5:8. Now, if you think about Matthew 5:8, it says, Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  

So how do you see God? When the way you think with your heart is pure. So, the purity of heart, purity of heart allows you to see God. The thoughts that comes out of your heart allows you to see that.  

Not your mind, your thoughts from your heart allows you to see God. Blessed are the pure in heart. So, a pure heart, his eyes to see God, Amen. So, I want to encourage you today as we examine our heights as we go through this day and just think about, you know, some of the things that flows out of our hearts.  

And those are the things that we need to bring to God. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. Think about that. Trust in the Lord, how do you trust something by knowing it, right? So trust in Him.  

How do you know something? With your heart. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding. So, in other words, when you look at that scripture, trust. Use your heart to see God and trust in Him.  

Don't lean to your mind, your ideology. Don't lean to that. Don't lean to what you see naturally. That's what he's saying in the scripture. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not into your own understanding.  

Use your heart to see God, but don't lean to your mind to see God. And then the scripture says he will guard your heart, right? Guard it. So brothers and sisters today, let's just commit to just examining ourselves as we go through the day.  

Think about the things that flows out of your heart and those are the things that we should bring to God and then you make our paths straight, Amen. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day.  

We thank you, Lord, for what you're doing through us and in us as we continue to commit these lives to you, we commit with an understanding that you are our strength you are the source of life. 

And we thank you with the way you do things that is diametrically opposed to how we do things, so we pray Lord that as we continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. 

Give us the tools that we need to fix or to submit the things in us that are unlike You, so that You can continue making our paths straight. We thank You for this community of believers. We thank You, Lord, for those who gather every morning to hear us on this prayer call.  

But God, may You continue to give us wisdom to speak what is coming so that we can constantly be ready for you. I thank you for every family represented here and I thank you Lord for all that you're doing in our lives and in their lives and our children's lives. 

Even as we release them every single day to school, we release them in faith that they will return home but above all else we pray, Lord, that may the Holy Spirit continue to guard their hearts as they interact with this world.  

Help us to teach them things that shall become sound doctrine, so that as they matriculate and continue to grow, that they will never depart from your presence. I thank you, Lord, for a hedge of protection around families around our children. Angels on assignment protecting every single one of us as we do what we do as we interact with different ones. 

Help us to be the light, help us to love, help us to give love because we have received it from you in abundance. I thank you Lord for where we are as a country because we know you are looking at our hearts.  

You see everything that is being conceived by every man in their heart. And in that we have hope and faith, knowing that there is nothing that is hidden from you. That every intention that we all have as human beings is right before your eyes. So, help us as we navigate these challenging times. 

I pray Lord for health, bodies knowing Lord that the food that we take and the food that we partake in this country most of it is not good but Father we're going to rely on you more than we can rely on this system because we understand that our lives comes from you. 

You are the source of every breath that we breathe, so I pray Lord that as we go throughout this day may we walk with an expectant heart and a clear understanding that you are watching over us. 

That you see us, you know what's flowing out of our hearts and if there's any ways that are not good before you. Help us so that we can be pure in hearts because we desire to see you.  

We pray for strength, wisdom, courage, determination to pursue that which is right. But above all else, give us Jesus. Now, as we go throughout this day, lead us not into temptation continue to deliver us from the evil one, for thine is thy kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever, Amen. 

Brothers and sisters, guard your hearts because God is looking at it. We don't want to be rejected because God looked at our hearts, right? Not our minds our hearts so let's make sure our intent our intentions are pure because we want to see God. 

May the Lord bless you, may the Lord bless your day, may you have faith that moves mountains that may God meet your needs and let's all have a wonderful, phenomenal Monday, and let's look forward to this week with great expectations. Love you guys, and we will see you tomorrow morning.