We hear your heart and we join with you in seeking the Lord for focus, discipline, consistency and self control, and we thank you for sharing these desires so openly with us.
We rejoice that you want to pray consistently morning and night and throughout the day and to be consistent in reading the Word morning and night. This is the very pattern God honors. We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to pray without ceasing and in Psalm 55:17 evening, morning, and at noon we will cry out. The psalmist says in Psalm 1:2 his delight is in Yahweh's law and on his law he meditates day and night, and in Joshua 1:8 this book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night. We encourage you to set specific times and keep them as holy appointments with the Lord, even short prayers and a few verses read faithfully are better than large goals kept inconsistently, and the Lord will strengthen you as you remain faithful.
We also hear your desire for discipline and self control in your goals, training, reading and caring for your health. This is a godly desire. Self control is a fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23, and we are told in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self control. In 1 Corinthians 9:27 Paul says I beat my body and bring it into submission, showing that discipline is training our flesh to serve the Spirit. We pray that you will commit your works to Yahweh and your plans will be established as in Proverbs 16:3, and that you will delight yourself in Yahweh so He will give you the desires of your heart as in Psalm 37:4, as your desires are shaped to His will.
We want to speak with love and truth about the request for a money miracle through lottery tickets. We understand your need is real, you cannot work due to a physical disability, you cannot get loans because of bad credit and you have wisely decided not to pursue loans, for Romans 13:8 tells us to owe no one anything except to love one another. It is true that all money belongs to God as you said, for Psalm 24:1 says the earth is Yahweh's with its fullness. Yet the method by which we seek provision matters to God. The lottery is a form of gambling, seeking gain by chance rather than by trusting God's provision and stewardship. Scripture warns in Proverbs 13:11 wealth gained dishonestly dwindles, but he who gathers by labor increases, and in Proverbs 28:20 a faithful man is rich with blessings but one who is eager to be rich will not go unpunished. In 1 Timothy 6:10 the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. We cannot in good conscience agree with you for a lottery win, because we believe God does not call His children to pursue chance or greed but to trust Him. Instead we do agree with you for a true miracle of provision in God's way, for He has promised in Philippians 4:19 my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus, and in Matthew 6:33 seek first God's Kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well. We also encourage you to be content while you wait, as Hebrews 13:5 says be content with what you have for he has said I will in no way leave you, I will in no way forsake you. God can provide through unexpected means, through His people, through open doors for work that fits your ability if it is His will to heal or to make a way, and He can sustain you even in hardship.
We noticed your request gives glory to God but does not mention the name of Jesus Christ, and we must gently address this because it is central to our faith. It is only by the name of Jesus that we have access to God and it is only by Him that we are saved. Jesus said in John 14:6 I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me, and in Acts 4:12 there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men by which we must be saved. If we pray or seek blessing apart from Jesus, we have no mediator. We encourage you to place your full trust in Jesus Christ, believing that He died for your sins and rose again, and to come to the Father in His name, for Romans 10:9 says if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
So we pray together now.
Father in heaven, we come before You in the name of Jesus Christ Your Son. We lift up our brother before You and ask for Your grace to grow in focus, discipline, consistency and self control. Fill him with Your Holy Spirit so that this fruit may abound in his life. Give him strength to pray morning and night and throughout the day, and hunger to read Your Word faithfully morning and night, that Your Word would be a lamp to his feet and a light to his path as in Psalm 119:105. Guide his goals, his training, his health, and help him to steward his body as Your temple. Provide for his financial needs according to Your riches in glory, not by chance but by Your loving hand, and give him contentment and peace as he trusts You. If it is Your will, touch his body and bring healing where there is disability, and open doors for provision that honor You. Draw him closer to Jesus, that he may know the full assurance of salvation and pray with confidence through Christ. We ask this in the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
We encourage you to continue steadfastly, keep your eyes on Christ, remain faithful in the small things each day, and trust that God sees your needs and will provide in His perfect time and way.
