The Chair

Leslie Weatherhead tells the story of an old Scot who was ill. When his minister came to call, he noticed a chair pulled close to the bed and said, "Well Donald, I see I'm not your first visitor of the day."

The old man looked up, puzzled, then followed his minister's gaze to the chair.

"Ah," he said. "Let me tell you about that chair. many hyears ago, i was finding it difficult to pray. One day I shared my problem with my pastor, and he told me not to worry about kneeling or placing myself in some pious posture. Instead he said, 'just sit down, put a chair opposite you, and imagine Jesus sitting in it. Just talk to Him as you would a friend.'" Donald concluded, "That's what I've been doing ever since."

The next day the old man's daughter called their minister to report that her father had died. "I had just gone to lie down for an hour or two, because he seemed to be sleeping comfortably. When I came back, he had passed away." she paused. "he hadn't moved . . . except that his hand was on the empty chair beside his bed."

The minister smiled to himself. "That isn't so strange," he replied. "I understand."

--Tim Hansel, Dancin' Toward the Dawn (Quoted from James S. Hewitt, Illustrations Unlimited).

Patience

"Beg the Lord your God to show us what to do and where to go." (Jeremiah 42:3)

"Ten days later, the Lord gave his reply to Jeremiah." (Jeremiah 42:7).

The people asked the prophet Jeremiah to seek the Lord on their behalf that they might know what to do.  They had a grave situation in front of them and their lives hung in the balance.  "Beg the Lord your God to show us what to do and where to go."  What I find interesting is that the answer to their prayer did not arrive for ten days.  How often do we pray and then wait ten days (or however long is necessary) to get an answer from God?  I'm afraid that we give up long before we get a response.  We might not wait two days, much less 10, for a response before we guess and do what is best in our judgment.  I wonder how many mistakes I have made simply because I was not willing to patiently wait for God's answer to my prayer. 

Today if you need God's intervention or God's guidance, give Him time.  He is at work and His time is the right time.

Destruction

"Destruction is certain for those who say that evil is good and good is evil; that dark is light and light is dark; that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter." (Isaiah 5:20)
We live in period of time where our culture is rapidly redefining truth.  It's happening at a staggering pace.  Life is being devalued, marriage is being redefined, virtue is vanishing, and sin is esteemed.  What is the logical outcome? The Bible insists it will be destruction! 

And we see destruction all around us.  We see destruction in Waco with 9 dead and hundreds arrested as bike gangs clash.  We see destruction in Baltimore as crowds riot and loot, burning cars and buildings.  We even see it in Granbury as an unsupervised 3 year old tragically drowns in the lake.  Yesterday, I was shocked to see on Facebook that a man I was acquainted with in Windsor, Colorado, had been shot while riding his bike.  It's just tragic.

"If my people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14)
I think it's time to pray . . .

"Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, 'You are the Son of God!'" (Mark 3:11)

Jesus' authority was such that even the demons would acknowledge Him.  That had to be quite a sight--Jesus walking down the street and demon-possessed people falling down before Him.  That got me thinking this morning.  If the demons submitted to Jesus' power 2000 years ago, then of course they still do.  That means that the closer I am to Jesus--the less trouble the demons can cause.

I have been teaching for many years that the way to overcome addictive sin in our lives is by worshiping God.  When we focus on our sin and shortcomings and with hands clenched determine never to sin again--well, we tend to keep on sinning. The secret, it seems to me, is to focus on God--His power, His character, His holiness.  When we live in the presence of God through worship and prayer, the demons flee.

Let's walk close to Jesus today through prayer and worship and watch those demons fall down before Him.

Prayer-Singing

"Sing to Him a new song." (Psalm 33:3)

I've found six references to singing a new song in Psalms and two references in Revelation.  That's a total of eight times that the Bible talks about singing a new song to God.  I guess it shouldn't surprise us that a creative God who created the universe with all of it's diversity and complexity would enjoy our creative worship.  I take these verses to mean that God really likes it when you and I start making up songs to sing.  I'm sure He likes the old songs too but there is something special about a unique and creative expression from our heart sung to God.

Let me suggest that you try it today.  While you are out and about, driving or walking, or wherever you may find yourself, sing a prayer to the Father.  It doesn't have to be in tune, or a melodic masterpiece.  Just sing from the heart, the louder the better.  Sing of your love for God.  Sing of His greatness.  Sing thanksgiving or sing the scriptures.  Maybe sing about your needs or sing about the desires of your heart.    Sing a new song--sing your new song!

GROWTH

Each morning, I am guided in my time of  prayer through a simple system that I developed years ago.  I have posted about that before in a blog entitled, "How to Be Heard in Heaven".  Like all systems, it is simply a tool to use and the way that I use it has continued to evolve through the years.  I invite you to use it and to make it your own in whatever way works best for you in terms of developing intimate times with the Savior each day.

Today I am focused on growth.  To the best of my ability I want to be in a state of prayer throughout the day, developing a desire to grow in these six specific ways.  I will be speaking verbal prayers.  I will be acting on opportunities that the Father may place before me today to grow in one or more of these areas.  As often as I think of it, I will be in my heart rehearsing, "God, grow my _______", putting one of the six areas in the blank or at times speaking all six, or even other areas that the Spirit may impress upon me.  After all, the point is to grow into His likeness--not just the one that I can imagine.  Here are the six areas that I'm aware of in which I need to grow today.

GODLINESS:  Father, I want to be a more perfect reflection of your Son--in every way.  Make me and mold me--break me--refine me--heal me.  Keep working until others can see Jesus in me.

RESOURCES:  Lord, I want to be a faithful steward with the things that you have given to me.  It's your stuff--not mine.  Show me today how to grow in my giving.  Bless me with more so that I can bless more!

OBEDIENCE:  Spirit, give me a sensitive heart to your leading today.  Bring to my mind every instance of hesitation that I might learn to obey immediately.  Show me my failures in the moment that they happen that I might learn from my mistakes.

WISDOM:  God, you have said that if I will ask, then you will pour out your wisdom liberally.  I'm asking.  Fill me with your wisdom that I might understand your ways and cooperate with your ideas.  I don't want to miss it.  Teach me in an obvious way today.

TALENT:  Jesus, you are perfect in everything that you do.  You have gifted me and you have resourced me.  Sharpen my skills today that I might be of more use to you in your work.  I want to be the best teacher, the best pastor, the best counselor that I possibly can be.  Perfect the gifts that you have placed upon me.

HUMILITY:  Lord, I know that you cannot use me effectively if I am proud and arrogant.  Continue to take me to the broken places in my heart until I am completely dependent upon you with no self-will remaining.  You bring down the proud and you raise up the humble.  Accomplish your purpose in me.

The Church that Prays Together . . .

One of the best things about Grace River is that she is a church who prays a whole lot!  We believe that God changes things when we pray.  Stuff happens when we pray!  Over the past few months we have seen at least two miracles as individuals have been completely healed of diseases and injuries.  Our purpose statement is, "Grace River is a safe place where anyone can come as they are and find hope and healing for their hurts, habits, and hang-ups".  Physical healing is certainly exciting to see--but so is emotional healing, and of course spiritual healing.  Our God is a God who heals us!  This picture is a picture that can be taken just about every time that we get together.  We pray a lot!  We're seeing God answer...

How to be Heard in Heaven

"Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

It's such a small simple verse and yet it can seem virtually impossible to accomplish. Just how does one "pray without ceasing"? This question drove a young monk to consider how his menial tasks in the monastary such as cooking and washing dishes could become worship and the opportunity to be present with God. If God is always present--and he promises that he is--then how can we become conscious of the fact and live in that reality? Brother Andrew's thoughts are contained in a short book entitled, "The Practice of the Presence of God". This book along with two others are excellent and have shaped my views on how to pray without ceasing. In addition to "The Practice of the Presence of God", I would recommend "The Hour that Changes the World" by Dick Eastman and "Prayer: Finding the Hearts True Home" by Richard Foster. More than any others these three books have formed my views on prayer.

Let me also suggest four streams in which it is helpful to pray:

#1--Passionately. If anything is worth doing--it is worth doing with all of our heart. To pray passionately means to pray with emotion and feeling. It is to feel the despair within the heart of the one for which we may be praying encouragement. It is to feel and then to pray from that feeling. We pray healing for the one suffering from cancer by imagining what it must be like to have cancer. Of course this is much harder than merely reciting a list of needs to God which is why we hardly ever do it--and perhaps why our prayers are often so ineffective.

#2--Relationaly. This week I saw a devotional by author John Eldridge that noted the different metaphors that describe our potential relationships with God. He lists six:

--Potter & Clay: Not much communication here--just breaking and molding.

--Shepherd & Sheep: Some communication happens but sheep aren't capable of much.

--Master & Servant: This is where most of us spend our lives--just trying to please the master--doing what we're told.

--Father & Child: I like this one. Pretty intimate. We can tell our dad all of our stuff and curl up in his lap and rest.

--Friends: This is a bit farther along in the relationship model. Friends share their lives.

--Bridegroom & Bride: Intimacy! Lovers! This where we can really learn to pray.

We can pray in each of these six metaphors but I think that you can see how communication would be different in each of the six depending on the relational intimacy. Where are you? Where would you like to be?

#3--Aggressively. Jesus tells us to "Ask", "Seek", and "Knock" in Matthew 7:7-11. Prayer is the stuff of asking--nothing more and nothing less. Do it aggressively!

#4--Yes! We need to learn to pray in agreement with all that God is saying to us. It is impossible to say, "No Lord!".

So, how do we pray without ceasing? I want to share with a very simple tool that I have been using for years in my attempt to pray without ceasing. I have a collection of colored beads that I carry on a keychain. Each bead represents a unique type of prayer. As often as I touch the beads on the keychain, I am reminded to pray. I pray the prayer represented by whatever bead I happen to touch. I have done this in many different ways. I have beads in my pocket. I have beads on my desk. I have beads in my car. I simply pull a bead from the collection and whatever the bead represents that's what I do. I would be happy to send you a set of these "prayer beads" if you would like them. You need only ask.

I include eleven types of prayer represented by eleven colors in these prayer beads:

GOLD: Worship. I think of the streets of gold in heaven and I'm drawn to worship God for who He is.

GREEN: Growth. I think of green grass that is healthy and growing. The green bead reminds me to pray that God would grow me four primary ways: Godliness, Relationships, Obedience, and Wisdom.

RED: Love. I think of red valentines with this bead. One of the most important aspects of prayer for me is simply rest in his love. I close my eyes if possible, relax, and attempt to feel and receive the love of God.

BLACK: Meditation. Much of what happens in my life can seem dark and meaningless. And yet I know that everything has a purpose. With this bead, I am reminded to ask the Father to reveal to me what he is doing in my life through the maze of seemingly unconnected circumstances. I am asking God to lift the darkness and to reveal to me the purpose of all that is happening in my life.

PURPLE: Intercession. Purple represents priestly royalty and reminds me that I am to do the work of a priest--the work of intercession. When I draw this bead, I want to become aware of everyone around me and to begin praying for their needs.

WHITE: Confession. The white bead represents purity--something that I can only find in Christ. This is a reminder to confess my known sins and to ask the Father to make me aware of everything else that falls short of his glory.

ORANGE: Sing. You may want to do this one quietly. I believe that God loves to hear his children sing. I often make up songs--simply singing my prayer. If you are able then sing out with all of your might making known the content of your heart.

BLUE: Deliverance. There are more prayers for deliverance in the Bible than any other prayer. The blue bead reminds me that I need to be lifted out of the deep waters. I need rescue all the time. Jesus taught us to pray in his model prayer, "Deliver us from evil".

SILVER: Petition. The silver bead reminds me to pray for everything that I might need--silver, gold, whatever. I use an acrostic here to guide this prayer. B-ody (the physical), L-abor (whatever I do), E-motions (whatever I feel), S-ocial relationships (whoever I know), and S-pirituality (who I am).

CLEAR: Holy Spirit. I am a leaky cup and I need constant refilling. This bead reminds me to pray for the constant filling of the Holy Spirit who empowers me.

YELLOW: Thanksgiving. We can never say "thanks" enough for all of the things that God does for us. Yellow reminds me of a bright sunshiny day for which I am truly thankful.

The purpose of this tool is to allow us to be reminded of the presence of God. It is not an idol and it is not magic. It is a symbolic reminder of our need to be in constant communication with God. Find a way to use it that allows you to grow in your faith. Change it, develop it, even learn to pray without it. Again, if you would like a set of these beads, let me know and I will drop a set in the mail for you.

Pray without ceasing!

Quiet Time: August 16, 2009

I find myself in a season of my life when I am needing to hear from God more than ever. I have deeply offended a person who means a great deal to me. My time with the Father this morning was centered on this person, my choices--both good and bad, and the steps forward that I should be taking.

From Judges I read, "For the Lord took pity on his people, who were burdened by oppression and suffering" (Judges 2:18). Simply put, God is a God who shows mercy to those who are broken. I am encouraged that my God does not throw us away but that he embraces us in our weakness and sorrow.

My prayer began this morning with a prayer for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. I have asked that God would remove anything that is offensive to Him and that I would be made holy by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will guide me into all truth and will also convict me of all faults. The Spirit will reveal to me each step that I am to take. May I today be saturated with the Holy Spirit.

Luke's Gospel reveals the story of when Jesus sent his disciples into Jerusalem to prepare for the Passover. They are told to follow the man with a pitcher of water and that, "He will take you upstairs to a large room that is alread set up" (Luke 22:12). I am encouraged that God already has a plan for me. I simply need to follow His direction to the room that is already set up.

My second prayer is the prayer of petition--praying for myself. I am asking God to bless me: Body, Labor, Emotions, Social Relationships, and Spiritual growth.

God gave me this promise from Psalm 92: "But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted into the Lord's own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green" (Psalm 92:12-14). It's always encouraging to know that God is not through with me. He will cause me to flourish, to produce fruit, and to remain vital. And though I am not "Godly" in my actions--I stand declared "Godly" through the actions of Christ on the cross.

My third prayer is the prayer of intercession and, of course, I spent the entire time praying for the person that I have offended. I have a large rock in my office that represents the judgement that I might be tempted to throw at myself or others. I carried that rock around with me this morning as I prayed and I wept for my friend. I prayed that I might feel their pain and that I might be able to pray for their healing through the passion of that pain.

I finished my time with the Father with a time of thanksgiving. I am thanking God for the pain and I am thanking God for the restoration that will occur. I am thanking God for His promises and I am thanking God for his love.

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High. It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your faithfulness in the evening" (Psalm 92:1-2).

Let There Be Light...

On the first day of this new year (last Thursday), I studied the work of God's creation found in Genesis 1. The thought occurred to me that perhaps the work of creation could be applied to my own work week. And so, this week I am making that application.

For the first day of creation (my Monday) I am using "light" as a metaphor for knowledge and understanding. I will attempt to spend the day learning. I don't believe in coincidence and so I will be looking for God's fingerprints and listening for God's still small voice in every detail of the day's activities. Every person I meet and everything I read will be considered a message from God.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was empty, a formless mass cloaked in darkness. And the Spirit of God was hovering over its surface. Then God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light'" (Genesis 1:1-3, NLT). May God do His work of creation, beginning in my heart this morning, and extending into my whole day. May the Holy Spirit hover over my darkness, my emptiness, my formlessness. "Let there be light!"

It has been my habit for several years to take a name for God (there are many lists available) and to meditate on that name as a portion of my prayer of praise. Uniquely enough the name for God today (sequentially from my list) is "He Who Reveals His Thoughts to Man" (Amos 4:13). "Let there be light!"

Those of you who know me well are also aware of a prayer system that I use that assigns different types of prayer to eleven bead--each bearing a different color. The first bead that I pulled this morning was the black bead which symbolizes darkness and my need for understanding. The black bead calls me into prayer and meditation by asking God for understanding about all that is presently occurring in my life (the known and unknown). It's a chance to ask God about decisions that I need to make and then to wait and listen for the answer. The second bead that I pulled was--you can perhaps guess--yep--the black bead again. "Let there be light!"

While I was writing these thoughts into my journal a little bit earlier, a particularly relevant song began to play on my sound system. Again, those who know me, know that I have music playing all day long in my office. The song was, "Open the Eyes of My Heart" I couldn't help but laugh out loud at the gracious goodness of our Lord's affirmation. "Let there be light!"

Pray for Our New President...

I thought a word of encouragement might be appropriate this morning. Some of you may perhaps be recovering from the election results with a bit of despair in your heart. Rest assured that our God is still on His throne and He is working His plan to bring the nations to Christ. Now that we have voted, I can share with you that voting is NOT the most important thing that we can do. According to God's instructions that He has personally given to us, the most important thing that we can do to influence our government is to pray! Most of the biblical writers did not know the privilege of voting for their leader. They got what they got! However, they knew that our God is a God of transformation. He is absolutely capable of using anyone to accomplish His purposes and the less likely the individual--the greater the miracle! Just take a quick look in the mirror if you need an example.

This from the Father's desk: "For the Lord's sake, respect all human authority--whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed" (1 Peter 2:13). "I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleased God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth" (1 Timothy 2:1-4). Two words express our anticipated conduct in regards to our new leaders: RESPECT and PRAYER.

Perhaps this prayer from Psalm 72 would be an appropriate place to begin. I have paraphrased the prayer to make it appropriately personal for our situation.

"Give justice to our new president, O God, and righteousness to our new vice president. Help them judge your people in the right way; let the poor always be treated fairly. May the mountains yield prosperity for all, and may the hills be fruitful, because the president does what is right. Help him to defend the poor, to rescue the children of the needy--even the preborn, and to crush their oppressors. . . May his term be as refreshing as the springtime rains--like showers that water the earth. May all the godly flourish during his time as president. May there be abundant prosperity throughout the next four years. He will rescue the poor when they cry to him; he will help the oppressed, who have no one to defend them. He feels pity for the weak and the needy, and he will rescue them. He will save them from oppression and from violence, for their lives are precious to him. . . May the people always pray for him and bless him all day long. May there be abundant crops throughout the land, flourishing even on the mountaintops. May the fruit trees flourish as they do in Lebanon, sprouting up like grass in a field. May the president's name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun shines. May all nations be blessed through him and bring God praise" (Psalm 72:1-7, 12-17).

It's not enough to say the words--we must mean them! Let me encourage you to trust God enough to pray these blessings into President-elect Barak Obama's life. Keep praying until you believe it! Keep praying until you see it!

The Power of Praying People...

I've begun a new series of messages from Acts 12 entitiled, "How to Release the Power of God". It seems to me that there is a very real disconnect between most peoples' experiences and the revelation of Scripture. My church is committed to being a biblical church which means that we want to look more and more like the church as revealed in the book of Acts--which means that we would like for our church, among other things, to be marked by the miraculous. This new series of messages will cover Acts 12 in its entirety and will reveal five ingredients for releasing the power of God.

Ingredient 1: PRAYING PEOPLE

Read the amazing story of Peter's release from prison in Acts 12:1-17 and you will walk away with an understanding of just how powerful the prayer of God's people can actually be. The secret to Peter's release is revealed for all to see in Acts 12:5, "So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God." The passage further states that after Peter's miraculous release, "he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying" (Acts 12:12). Peter was released from prison directly because of the prayers of his friends in the church.

The Bible reveals five principles for effective corporate prayer:

Persistant Prayer: (Acts 12:5; Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). The biggest mistake that we can make in praying is to quit too early. Jesus clearly instructs to demonstrate our faith by praying without ceasing. Don't quit until you've heard from God.

Relational Prayer: (1 Corinthians 12:26). There is no effective prayer without loving care. We must come before God in the language of prayer which is love. Prayers are often meaningless because they are simply mindless repetition lacking passion.

Agreeing Prayer: (Matthew 18:19). It's not just a matter of agreeing with each other--it's a matter of agreeing with God. We must take the time to find out the heart of God as we pray so that we can pray with knowledge and not just a good guess or worse yet--just our opinion.

You and I Watching Prayer: (Isaiah 62:6-7). To watch is to pray with our eyes open--looking for the activity of God. It is to be aware of all that the enemy may be attempting and to pray against his schemes and pray for God's glory.

Spirit-led Prayer: (Ephesians 6:18). May we learn to let the Spirit of God pray through us. We need less words and more groanings of the Spirit. As you pray, invite the Spirit of God to pray through you. Ask for insights and emotions that would guide your prayer.

There is no doubt that the power of God will be released as God's people pray. We must ask Jesus, even as the disciples did, "Lord, teach us to pray".

Answered Prayer!

It shouldn't surprise me when God answers prayer and yet it still does. Let me tell you about the amazing answer to prayer that our church as seen in the last few months.

Cornerstone faced an extreme financial shortfall during the months of August and September. Our expenses exceeded our income by a little more than $10,000 during these two months. The little amount that we had in reserve was quickly used up and we would not be able to endure another month in the red. We had adopted a new "bigger and better" budget that we began operating under in September that only made matters look worse.

Our Trustees met early in October with a desperate need to do something to correct our negative cash flow. The usual suspect was named as the scapegoat to remedy our problem--"let's cut missions giving!" Thankfully, the remedy that was chosen was to seek the God of Heaven for relief. I asked the Trustees to pray...I asked the leadership to pray...I asked the church to pray!

Here is the result of our prayer. Budget income for the final quarter of 2006 was simply amazing! We saw a 35% increase over the previous quarter and a 38% increase over the same quarter one year ago. Our new larger budget for the months of September through December calls for $105,080 in income! Get this—budget giving for the same period of time totals $104,348.86! But it gets even better…in addition to record budget income we have also received an enormous amount of designated gifts. In the past three months we have received $5,781.00 for the building, $8,864.50 for missions, $5,735.24 in various love offerings, $1,134.00 for AWANA, and $1,500 for computer improvements. This has been an amazing three months financially for our church!

God has certainly opened the windows of heaven for us and has poured out an overflowing blessing (Malachi 3:10). May God alone be praised!