Richard Roberts
There was a time in my life and ministry when God poured these words into me: “Seek Me first. Quit talking to Me about all these things. I already know about the things. Talk to Me about Me. Praise Me, worship Me, seek Me, seek My kingdom, My glory, My righteousness. And then as you do that, all these things will be added to you” (see Matthew 6:33).
So I changed, and it totally revolutionized my prayer life. I quit saying, “Gimme, gimme, gimme. God, do this. God, do that.” I just went into praise and worship.
Each morning I’ve made it a point to “Put on the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness (Isaiah 61:3), to lift up my voice to the Lord and to pray and sing in the spirit and with the understanding” (1 Corinthians 14:15). I’ve learned to magnify the Lord.
Before I begin my day, I pray in tongues, lifting my hands in praise. I put on my spiritual armor — taking my helmet of salvation (protecting my mind), putting on my breastplate of righteousness (protecting my heart in which, I believe), girding my loins about with truth (which really is soul winning in its most beautiful form), put on my gospel shoes to walk over the devil’s roughest territory with the sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God), and then I take my shield of faith so I’ll be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked one.
As I do these things, I get direction. And although hell may be breaking loose all around me, I can walk right through it, and I don’t have to stop. My wife says I am an oblivious person. Well, I am oblivious to the things that I should be, because I made up my mind that I’m going to seek God first — His kingdom, His glory, His righteousness. And when you do that, the Holy Spirit begins to speak to you. You do things that are unusual, and the world doesn’t understand them. Your family may not understand them. But if you will hold fast to what God has told you to do, you’ll see Him work.