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Tag: disciple (Page 19 of 34)

What’s Your Why?

March 2, 2023 / / 0 Comments

If you’re a parent, or you remember your childhood at all, you likely have a love-hate relationship with the word why. While this is a question I have asked more times that I can even count, it’s a question that I couldn’t stand receiving from my children.

So to be totally honest, I don’t have a problem with the word why, it’s generally the tone in which it is spoken that’s of great disturbance to me. The word is normally said through a sigh or a whining voice. It normally comes with the word but preceding it. This is the kind of why that I really can’t stand!

There is another why that I believe is really important. Many years ago a friend told me the importance of knowing your reason why. He said – if your reason why isn’t strong enough, you’ll always find a reason why not. So very simple of a thought but it explains so much that’s wrong in our world and culture right now.

This is why our New Year’s resolutions don’t typically last. Our why is too weak. I’ve seen this far too often. She wants to lose some weight to fit into her wedding dress. It works for a time but she quickly loses steam. Her why was too short sighted. He wants to stash away a few extra dollars for a rainy day but can’t seem to get any traction. His why was far too broad.

You see the why must be greater than any excuse or why not we can come up with or we’ll lose. This is why our attempts at the new year body don’t generally make it beyond February. We don’t have a good long range picture or reason to keep driving us forward.

What’s your why?

Ok so here’s a warning. I’m going to get a little “churchy” on you for a second. Don’t tune out just yet though. This is a bible example to help drive our point home.

There’s a passage in the latter portion of the Bible that is generally answered wrong. It is in one of Peter’s letters and he says always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks you for the reason for the hope that is in you.

Did you get it? What’s your why?

We generally read that verse and say our hope is in Jesus. And while this is correct, it’s answering a question that wasn’t asked. He didn’t say where is your hope. He said why is your hope there. This is a big difference.

Knowing your reason why is really important. Have you ever seen someone go through a really bad time in life and waffle in their faith? I don’t mean they were late for work or overslept kind of bad time. I mean lost their spouse or their house burned down in a freak accident kind of bad day. In these types of situations our why is tested tremendously.

What’s your why?

So often when we go through these really challenging moments in life, we default to asking things like where is God or how could he let this happen to me. We then wonder if it’s all worth it. I’ve been there. I know how this goes.

But what’s your why keeps you from falling off the deep end when trouble and struggle and hardship arise. When we know the reason for the hope that we have, we’ll be able to see that there’s a bigger picture at play here. We’ll be able to get through some of the hardship and struggle and pain because we know something that we can’t see is just around the corner.

Ok back to that summer swimsuit body or wedding ready figure. If this is as far as you can see, then when the wedding is over or summer is past you’re likely going to fall off the wagon. But if you have a big enough reason why to drive you, then even when the event is over you’ll still have a habit and lifestyle that will continue.

I’ve been asked why I get up at 4:30 in the morning to go to the gym. I used to do it to be able to lift a certain amount of weight. But then I met that goal and it was tempting to let things slide. Now the reason is much bigger than bench pressing 350lbs or running a certain distance in a set timeframe. It’s about overall health, wellness, mental clarity, stress management, being around to see my kids get married, meet my grandkids, manage my property, take care of my family. These are reasons why that will far outlast my ability to lift certain amounts of weight or run a set speed.

What is your why? When you can answer this with a big enough and strong enough reason, then you’ll be able to stop every excuse from flooding into your mind.

Know the reason why and soon you’ll have a lifestyle that matches the desire of your heart today.

Come Back

February 23, 2023 / / 0 Comments

This week we celebrate a different kind of holiday in the church. We call it Ash Wednesday. Yeah it’s the day when you see people with those funny little dirt smudges on their foreheads. Some of us pastors are not good at art it seems! But the idea behind ashes on foreheads might seem weird to some people. So what’s it all about?

There’s a section in the bible written by a man named Joel. He’s one of the oldest recorded prophets in the Bible. He wrote super early in the life of the Israelite people. But his writing followed a pretty typical model for the prophets. Illustration and Warning were the two typical themes of the prophets. They’d write to show how a certain thing happening was an illustration of how they’ve wandered from who they were supposed to be. Then it would also serve as a warning that without correction, things were going to get drastically worse.

A quick glimpse into the book of Joel would be helpful. So he’s writing when things aren’t going well for the Israelites. Actually life is pretty crappy. The economy is tanking. Leaders are lying. They can’t trust their politicians. Recession is looming. Division is everywhere. People are hated simply because they look, act or think differently. I know this is a hard situation to even imagine. Sure glad we don’t know anything about this kind of trouble. (Immense sarcasm intended)

So the book starts with a recap of what’s going on. You see while the regular worldly trouble is lurking around there’s another issue sweeping across the land. Locusts. Lots and lots of locusts. ICK! If you know anything about locusts you know that they can be pretty destructive. And you rarely see just one of them. They come in swarms. Thousands. Hundreds of thousands at once. They lay eggs in the ground. The babies emerge and chomp on anything living. When they get strong enough to jump, they reach for food higher up. Then come the wings and soon there’s nothing out of their reach. It’s awful. Nothing is left the way it was.

If the troubles they were facing weren’t bad enough, the locusts would pretty much make the land unlivable. Ok to really understand the importance of the locusts we need to see how God functions in two different, yet similar, ways. I call them his passive and active judgment or anger.

The trouble they were facing with political upheaval and economic mess and division was all part of what is called the passive anger of God. This can be seen as the natural result of the choices we make. Kind of like speeding and getting a ticket, it’s the natural result and you really can’t be mad about it because you knew it could happen.

Now back to the Israelites for a minute. All the mess they were facing was a result of their lack of focus on God. They pulled away from God and then things started to unravel. Instead of drawing near to God again, they blamed him for their trouble and tried to fix it themselves. This only made things worse than before. Enter locusts.

When the passive anger of God is allowed to run its course, the next step is the active anger of God. This is the scary one. You see since the people kept pulling further and further away from God and tried to fix things themselves, God helped them go even further away. He sent the locusts to make their problems that much worse. But the intent wasn’t to kill them or destroy them. It was to wake them up. You see there was mercy in the locusts. The point was that the locusts would make life so hard that they would turn and finally ask God for help.

So what about the ashes you ask? It’s kind of like locusts. The ashes are a reminder that the good and healthy and vibrant parts of life struggle and die. Ashes were a symbol of mourning and death and devastation. Ashes were a reminder that all things living will be pulverized and die. The ashes we use on Ash Wednesday to put the little smudge on your foreheads are actually burned up, pulverized palm branches from last year’s Palm Sunday service.

That means that the ashes are a reminder of God’s mercy. There’s mercy in the ashes. It’s God’s way of saying come back! I want you back with me where life is best for you and where you can thrive like never before.

I have to be honest I would much rather have God put a few ashes on my forehead than send a swarm of locusts to eat my garden! Maybe you missed the service on Ash Wednesday. There’s always next year! But in reality it’s not the ashes or the service it’s what happens in our hearts. You can turn back to God without the ashes and without the locusts and without the calamity. So how about it? Are you ready to come back?

Build A Boat

January 23, 2023 / / 0 Comments

This week is about faith. When everything around you seems to be going in one direction, but you see God moving. God calls you to have faith. It’s like building a boat when it’s not even raining.

Can you imagine being Noah from the Bible? Think about it for a minute. No rain. No large body of water near by. No real prediction of a storm in the meteorological forecast. But you’re supposed to build a boat. What do you do?

The passers by all laugh and point and call you names. Your friends look at you like you’re crazy. What in the world is this man doing? What do you do?

When the world is spiraling in fear and hatred seems to be all the world cares about. But you know there’s a different message. You know there’s a message of love and hope and peace. What do you do?

Today’s Music Monday song says that you build a boat! When the sun is shining and everything looks great, build the darn boat already.

I don’t know what God has laid on your heart or the things holding you back from making the first cut on that board. But I want to encourage you to build the boat. The rain will come. The promise will be fulfilled. You have what it takes. And just like Noah, you’re not building alone. You might have to look a little but you’re not alone.

So grab the tools and get your supplies, it’s time to build a boat.

Same God

January 9, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Have you ever just sat and contemplated the wonder of how big God must be? I mean for those of us who believe in God as Father, Jesus as Savior and Spirit as Comforter, there’s a hugeness to God that is really hard to get our minds around. But not only the idea that God is so big but also that he has so much on His plate that how in the world could he handle my tiny problems?

You know I think this is something that’s pretty cool about the way we understand God in the church where I serve. He’s mighty and majestic and powerful and massive and other worldly. He’s king and savior and creator and Father and all the things for the entire world (then and now). But he’s also that for me today.

There’s a personal nature to God that is something pretty significant. He’s in my corner. He’s for you. He’s in the muck and mire of your crappy day and throwing parties on your good day. He cares about your divorce or your raise. He’s just as present with you today as he has been with anyone, ever!

This week we pause to worship on this Monday morning and reflect that the God we worship is the same God that showed up in mighty ways for Abraham and Moses, Mary and Ruth, Joseph and Paul. He’s the same God who’s been present throughout history. The God of creation is the God present when you are struggling to make it through the day. The God who healed the sick is the same one sitting by your side when you get the cancer diagnosis. The God who raised Lazarus from the dead is the same one standing by your side in your mourning.

The same God is right here with us. The same power, majesty, might, love, presence. All of it. Just as real as it was for the men and women of the Bible, he’s right here and real for you and me today.

As you begin this week, pause and reflect on the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

A New Thing Is Coming

December 21, 2022 / / 0 Comments

A new year typically brings all sorts of new things. We try that new diet that we’ve read is all the rave. We venture back into the gym for a new routine of workouts. We try on those new running shoes to give the treadmill a try. There’s all sorts of things we pick up at the start of a new year in hopes of forming a healthy trend or habit. We even start reading new books or start bible reading plans or change our sleep routines.

I’m not one to make New Year’s Resolutions for many reason. The biggest reason is that all too often these New Year New You kind of goals end up being broken in just a few short weeks! Being a workout enthusiast it’s easy to see how fast people stop coming to the gym so soon after the near year starts. But this year might be a little different.

No I’m not going to set some unrealistic expectation or goal for the year. I’m not going on a diet. And for goodness sake, I’m not training for a marathon. I am however going to start something new.

As 2022 came to an end, I made the intentional decision to restructure my workload. I had to say no to a couple of things so that I could say yes to a couple more. One of my passions has always been to work with churches and pastors and leaders to help them see the world through a new set of lenses. In an effort to do that, I went through the John Maxwell leadership training program, worked on getting a coaching certificate, and built an array of resources that have helped me understand a variety of challenges that ministry leaders and non profits face.

A new thing will hit the blog and my calendar in 2023. I’ll be working on intentional resources to help congregations see their community with different lenses. I’ll be working on materials for congregations to use to help create an intentional strategy to move people to a deeper level of commitment and engagement in the life of the church.

I’m super excited to see how this move will allow me to better come alongside churches, leaders, and followers of Jesus to help them take strides in living the Kingdom life today! Stay tuned…

One Way With Many Entrances

November 16, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Now this is going to be a bit hard for some of you to handle and I get that. I know that my way of thinking and approaching life isn’t for everyone. And that’s a good thing actually! So a word of caution for those of you who can’t or won’t digest the whole article before forming an opinion, I’m going to encourage you to simply close the article and move on. 

Alright, if you’re still with me, here we go. The Bible says that Jesus is the only way to heaven. And I firmly believe that. So let’s get that straight right out the gate. I do think that the narrower the path and the more clear cut the direction, the better off we humans are! Knowing that Jesus is the only one who is capable of setting us up for salvation is pretty great if you think about it. You don’t have to wonder if you’ve done enough. You don’t have to question if you have the right attendance at church or have said the right prayer enough times. It’s done. Finished. Complete. No more to be added by you! Pretty cool right? 

While I will not argue with Jesus being the only way to heaven, I often get the impression that there are some people who think they have some kind of special sauce when it comes to connecting people to Jesus. There is only one way to heaven, but there isn’t only one way to Jesus. Trigger a flurry of emotions because it sounds like I’m bashing the church or challenging your way of thinking. 

Perhaps I am challenging your way of thinking. Maybe I am coming at this a little strong. But from my perspective it seems as if we’ve put the wrong thing in the most important place in the bus as the church. I’ve seen this far too often in the over 20 years I’ve served as a pastor. The church thinks that the world needs us in order to know salvation. 

When we value something so much that we want everyone to be a part of it, we can easily make it to be the most important thing when it’s just not. Now before you come unhinged here I am going to be very clear and probably a little more blunt than some would like. Just so there is no question, yes I am saying that the institutional church and corporate worship are not the most important thing in the life of the follower of Jesus. They are very important but they’re not the most important thing in life. 

Think of it this way. Jesus very much is the only way to heaven. But the local church is not the only way to Jesus. We can argue whether this local expression of church is better than another local expression of church, but that’s not the point. The point is – can someone access knowledge of salvation without connecting to a local expression of the church? Short answer: yes absolutely they can and often do. 

I’m a picture guy, so indulge me for a minute. Consider a freeway system as a mental picture. A large freeway with on ramps all over the place. Now this analogy will break down because that’s what analogies do, but stick with me for a little bit. I live outside of Columbus, OH and often travel to Cleveland. There is one major freeway that connects these two bigger cities. Let’s pretend that freeway as the only way to Cleveland. Now that same freeway that connects Columbus to Cleveland has many entry points. We call those on ramps. That means that even though this one major freeway connects Columbus to Cleveland, you don’t have to get on the freeway in Columbus in order to make it to Cleveland. You can enter in Sunbury, Mt. Gilead, Mansfield, or Ashland to name a few.

It’s the same with Jesus and Salvation. Jesus is the only road that will take us to salvation. Nothing else will get us there. But there are multiple ramps that will get us onto the roadway of Jesus. The local church is one major ramp that leads many to a place where they can get to know Jesus and understand salvation. But there are many people in the world who will never set foot in an institutional church who we’ll see in eternity. 

Church is massively important to the ongoing growth of the follower of Jesus. But it’s not the only way that someone can come to know and grow in Jesus. The challenge of the local church is to find creative ways, in addition to Sunday morning worship, that they can use to connect their community to the one way road of Jesus that leads to salvation. 

So there you have it, there is one way to heaven but there’s not just one way to Jesus. 

A Different Way To Worship

November 14, 2022 / / 0 Comments

I should probably start this post by admitting that I tend to live outside the box in a lot of areas. I do things different than some would like. Not everyone will agree with me and that’s ok. Not everyone will like what I have to say and again, you’re welcome to your opinion. If your skin is thin and can’t handle a little challenge, then you’re welcome to stop reading and close this page.

As a pastor, part of my job is to lead worship. What I call worship is the time we spend together as a church family or congregation. We sing songs, read Bible readings, pray, encourage one another, and share life experiences in an effort to grow stronger in our lives as followers of Jesus. I’m writing this from my over 20 years of experience as a pastor. I truly value the many differences we have in the way we go about worshiping but even in our differences I feel something is lacking.

l recently preached a message about worship from the perspective of Psalm 98. I’ve included the message in the YouTube link below. But the point of this post is to summarize the key points of the message. I would argue that worship has three points for us to check off. I refer to them as looking, lifting and surrendering.

Looking

When we begin our time together in worship we start by looking up. This is a recognition that all of our time together finds its meaning from God. We look up to the God who created all things, sent His son to save all of mankind, and now lives in the world through His people. We look up because we are looking to the one who saved us. According to Psalm 98, we look to God for has already worked our salvation. Even in the middle of the Old Testament, even before Jesus was born the writer to the Psalms says that Looking up is great but it’s often where many of us stop in our time together. But worship is about more than just on looking even if it’s at the God of all.

Lifting

When we fully encounter God in this moment we are then left with an option. We can let that be the end of our worship or we can lift up in praise to God. Worship has two key points that are like a good dance. God is the lead. He’s the primary actor in worship and we are called to faithfully respond. After hearing, seeing and experiencing all that God has done for us, we lift up praise to him. And this is where I feel we miss something pretty key.

The way we praise is often restricted. It feels as if we have some sort of fear over how someone else will react to the way in which we praise. But worship is not about our neighbor’s reaction, it’s a recognition of our salvation. So why do we let what someone else might think change how we worship?

Ok so hear me out. I think humankind was built for worship. I think we worship all the time and probably don’t even realize it. Some worship food with a simple yum that’s delicious after a meal. Others worship their favorite sports team as they gather in the stadium. Others worship while they watch the sunrise or the sunset. Still others worship their career or family or friends. We all worship something, someone, all the time. Our worship has degrees. We don’t bow down to the perfectly cooked burger but we sure to make a big deal out of the pregame rituals for our favorite team! You see worship is all around us.

I think the more we know the one we’re worshiping the more intense our worship becomes. Imagine going to a football game to watch a team you’ve never heard of, in stadium you never seen. You probably wouldn’t go head over heals as they take the field. It’s just not the way it works. But if a Buckeye fan walks into the Shoe and hears the band taking to the tunnel, marching across the field, sees the team come crashing through the end zone – that fan will erupt in joyous accolades! I know I do.

But what about worship? We seem content to let worship be so sterile and so somber that it’s devoid of life. From the invocation to the benediction, from the opening song set to the sending message we are in the midst of people who are worshiping the same God. When we look up and take in all that God has done, we really can’t help but explode into some volcano of praise. Instead in our institutional worship settings it’s almost as if we suffer from some form of constipated praise. Refusing to let the praise come forth.

Maybe it’s a hand raised. Maybe it’s an amen in the middle of the message. Maybe it’s closed eyes and a head bowed low in recognition that we’re not worthy of His presence but grateful for it! I’m not saying there’s one way to worship that’s better than another, actually just the opposite.

Worship is about recognizing the goodness, mercy and grace of God. We look up in awe of all He’s done. Then if we truly encounter a God that big and that mighty, then we sure as hell ought to raise our voices and our hands and throw caution to the wind as we give Him the praise he’s due.

Surrender

As we close this out, I want to say a couple words about worship as surrender. When we recognize the goodness of God, lift up our praises to Him, we must also take a moment and set our agendas aside. It’s about surrender. Worship is the recognition that we are not God. He died to save us, without our help. He rose to grant us eternal life, with a word from us. We return in praise for all He’s done then we surrender. We lay our pride aside to follow His will for our lives.

If our worship is lacking any of these parts, regardless of how they look, are we really worshiping a God as great as we think?

An Ongoing Conversation

November 10, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Over the past several posts we’ve tackled the topic of prayer. We looked at reasons we don’t pray. Why those reasons don’t really hold water as a legitimate argument. And why prayer is so important. The point of this post will be to hopefully show how simple prayer really is when we get right down to it.

We’ve dabbled in this a little in previous topics but here the goal is to get into some practical ways that prayer can be part of the everyday life of a follower of Jesus. So let’s jump right in!

The Obvious

So the most obvious times for prayer are before meals and at bedtime. And to be totally honest most of these prayers are pretty canned. We love to use the ones that everyone says all the time. The most popular are the Come Lord Jesus prayer before meals and at night time we gravitate toward the Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep prayer. These are the most widely used prayers by so many people. But are they too easy?

Some people have a problem with these simple prayers. Some say they demean the power of prayer or lessen its value. But I love the power of an oversimplified prayer! It makes prayer super accessible to children. When we gravitate toward these prayers, that I call canned prayers, we allow our minds to have something to fall back on as we age. I’ve had the honor of being near people in some of their darkest moments. I’ve sat by the bedside of faithful men and women as they’ve moved into their final moments. It’s wonderful to see how in these moments, it is the simplest of prayers that fall out of our mouths. It’s these easy phrases and commonly echoed thoughts that our minds recall in these hard times.

The Big Prayer

There’s a prayer that almost everyone knows. We might not say it daily but we pretty much all know it and could likely repeat it if needed. We call it the Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father. It’s the prayer in which Jesus taught his disciples how to pray. But contrary to popular belief it’s not a prayer we necessarily have to pray.

The purpose of the Lord’s Prayer is that Jesus gave his followers a simple model or formula for prayer. In this daddy of all prayers, we see some pretty simple things we can put into our prayer lives as well. From the relational starting point (Our Father) to the recognition of his power and position (who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name) this prayer stands as a wonderful example of keeping God where he deserves to be kept and being mindful of his love and care for us (give us this day our daily bread).

I strongly encourage everyone to know the Lord’s Prayer. You should even be able to recite it. But I don’t think that this should necessarily be your go to prayer. I think you should take this prayer for what it was intended: a caution for those making prayer a show and a model for the simplicity of prayer.

A Simple Approach

The memorized prayers that we’ve mentioned already are great and they each have their place, but if this is our sole focus in prayer we miss the spontaneity and conversational nature of prayer. Is prayer an event in which we participate or a lifestyle that we live? The simple answer should be yes!

Prayer needs to be more than just a set of words for special occasions. It needs to be more than an emergency response to a bad day. Prayer should be a conversation that leads us through life. Here’s the approach I recommend in prayer. Again this is not a legalistic, must do it this way kind of thing. It’s just a suggestion for how it works best for me.

Start with a simple thank you. A friend of mine starts his morning prayer with the phrase Good morning Father. How cool is that! Get things started with a simple reminder that it’s good to be alive!

What do you need today? Then at some point in your day make sure to express your concerns or needs. The Lord today I need prayer is my go to for this one. I like to start my day with this kind of prayer so I have the rest of the day to watch for the answer to show up.

Random thoughts as they come to you. This is the best part of the simple approach. And honestly this is what brings prayer to life for me. It removes the structure and fear of prayer. When we just throw random thoughts and concerns at God throughout our day, it lowers our guard to the point where we can see God as the one who’s with us all the time.

This simple approach to prayer is designed to show that anyone can pray at anytime. You can do it while you’re driving down the freeway or stopped in traffic. You can pray this way at work or at home. You can have eloquent words or just random thoughts that make no coherent sense. You can have something specific you’re asking for or you can just talk about what’s on your mind. This is the heart and soul of prayer. It’s what makes prayer such an amazing and integral part of the life of the believer. If we could pray more like this, we’d quickly realize just how accessible God is and just how easy it is to do this thing we call praying.

So whether you pray the canned prayers or use the big daddy of prayer or just throw random thoughts at God, the point is to keep the connection alive.

Don’t Give Me Excuses

November 9, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Ok so that’s a little harsh and not very compassionate I get it. But to be fair, no one has ever accused me of being overly compassionate either. In all honesty many of the reasons we give for not doing something are less legitimate reasons and more excuses. I’m too tired. I’m too busy. I’m too this or that. Just about all of these things are simple excuses for not doing whatever is in front of us.

This post is about the reasons we give for not praying. Or to follow my less compassionate side – the lame excuses we give for not praying. Again the point is not to offend you but to open our collective eyes to the way we’ve tried to dumb down what it means to follow Jesus.

Here are some of the key reasons I hear for people not praying: it’s too personal, doesn’t he already know, I don’t even know what to say, and does it really even work? Ok so let’s look at these one at a time.

It’s too personal. I guess? Maybe? But if you’re talking to God, who knows everything about you anyway, can it really be too personal? Admittedly, this reason is mostly heard in response to someone not being willing to pray in public. For a person who thinks prayer is too personal to pray out loud I really want you to think about that for a minute. If your prayers are that personal, then why wouldn’t you want someone else to experience the closeness of that kind of relationship. So I understand the personal nature of prayer. I really do! I’ve had some prayers that I have prayed that I don’t include other people on. But in general prayer is a conversation with God about things God cares about! It doesn’t have to be overly personal all the time. Make it conversational.

Doesn’t he already know? Yep sure does! But I know much of what happens in my children’s lives and I still talk to them. I know that my wife probably emailed people about vacations and talked to a lot of people on social media through the day but we still find things to talk about regarding how our days went. Just because he knows doesn’t mean he doesn’t want you to tell him. Not praying because God already knows is a pretty weak excuse for not praying. I’m not even going to apologize for that one.

I don’t know what to say. Well, that’s a bunch of crap too! You can talk to the barista about the kind of coffee you like, your buddy about the score of the game, your friend about your favorite show you just binge watched. You can find something to talk to God about. Likely, you’re making it a bit too formal. Just have a conversation. Tell him what’s going on. What are you excited about? Afraid of? Looking forward to? Anxious about? All the things you would tell a friend or coworker, he wants to hear these things from you!

Does it even work? Well this is where things get fun. I love to have this conversation with people about prayer. Does prayer work? Well give it a try and find out. You won’t believe me regardless of what I tell you anyway! 😉 So try this little exercise. When you get up in the morning try to pray. A friend of mine introduced me to a way of praying that’s a lot like ordering at the drive-thru. You tell the little speaker thing what you want. Then you drive around and expect it to be there. Well, pray this way. Tell God what you need that day. Then get up and go on with your day just expecting it to be there. Caveat – don’t pray for anything you can touch. So no praying for a new car or a million dollars!

Just pray this simple prayer. Lord, today I need…

That’s it. It’s that simple. Lord acknowledges you’re not in control. Today sets the time frame on when you need this answered. I is what makes it personal. And need expresses the thing going on in your life that needs addressed. Then what you ask for is the thing you actually would benefit most from that day. Remember nothing tangible! So pray for peace, focus, productivity, joy filled heart, compassion, etc. These are the things you’ll benefit from most so pray for them. Then sit back and watch to see what God does in your life as a result of this kind of prayer. Then you can tell me if prayer works.

If you pray for things like this and watch as your day unfolds, I’m pretty sure you’ll quickly see how well prayer actually does work. Go ahead. Give it a try. I dare you.

Importance of Prayer

November 8, 2022 / / 0 Comments

In the last post, we discussed the idea of prayer. We looked at what it is and why some people who call themselves Jesus’ followers, don’t do the whole prayer thing. I’m not sure if any of the reasons I gave in that post resonate with you or if you have your own reason for not praying, but I think prayer is the most vital part of our lives as Christians that we can’t go without it.

So why is prayer so important? I mean I believe in Jesus and I read my Bible. Is prayer really necessary? Short answer is yes, without a doubt, for sure, unequivocally yes!

Prayer is the ongoing conversation we have with God. It happens at the dinner table or the bed side. It happens when we’re driving and when we’re struggling. We pray when we need something or when we have an unexpected celebration and don’t know where else to turn. Prayer is everywhere.

The wide receiver who scores the touchdown involuntarily points to the sky almost like he’s saying thank you. Sounds like a bit of a prayer to me. The young mom can’t get her child to stop crying so she just quietly whispers what am I supposed to do? Sure sounds like you’re talking to someone. Or the man who stumbles to the bathroom in the middle of the night only to have his little toe make contact with the bed post. His reply…well you know what that is and it sure sounds like he believes in a being that is able to send his bed post to hell. Like it or not that’s kind of a prayer.

Now I didn’t say that any of these are good, right or proper prayers – whatever that really means. I’m not saying that these prayers convey any level of saving faith. They’re just the basic format for communicating with someone outside yourself who you believe is able to address the situation you’re in at that very moment.

But if God already knows what’s on my heart and that I stubbed my toe or my child won’t stop crying, then why do I need to tell him? Am I going to change the outcome? Yes and no.

You’re not going to change God’s mind by wearing him down or anything. Prayer isn’t nagging God til he gives in. But it actually will change the scenario for you. Prayer will at a minimum change your perspective of the situation and allow you to see other options. Prayer is so very important. It’s found all over the place in the Bible. All of the key players in the Bible spend time in prayer, even Jesus does it! And if Jesus feels it important to pray, then it’s probably a good idea, right?

One of my favorite reasons to show why prayer is so important is to use the passage from Ephesians where Paul talks about the armor of God. You have the belt, breastplate, shield, sword, helmet and all the parts of the armor. Each of them correlate to an aspect of the life of the follower of Jesus from the Bible to faith to righteousness. But prayer is embedded in that almost as a throw away phrase that is easily missed. It’s right near the end of the section where Paul says to include prayer. I like to view prayer in this illustration like the chain mail that holds the whole armor set on the body. The breastplate has to have a place to hang as does the belt and sword. It’s like prayer is the webbing onto which all of our other spiritual practices have to fasten. If we don’t have prayer, then the rest of our spiritual lives are in danger of falling apart.

We don’t pray to change God’s mind but to shift our thinking. We don’t pray because God needs to know what’s going on, but because he wants us to know we can come to him. We don’t pray just for the big things or the key events that need special attention. We pray for the little things and for the seemingly insignificant moments in our lives because he’s in those as well.

Next week we’ll address the reasons we don’t pray and poke a few holes in them. Not in a mean or derogatory way but in a way that shows they don’t hold water. And hopefully get us to a place where we feel more comfortable praying and realize its necessity!

For now try seeing prayer as an ongoing conversation you have with God. Start before your feet hit the floor in the morning with something simple – Hey God, thanks for a good night sleep! Then go about your day popping little one liners back at God throughout your day. End with a quick Good night God. And you’ve done it. Pretty simple! Then watch how your perspective shifts throughout the day as you give little and big things back to God realizing how much he cares for you.

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