Day(s) of Prayer...

Thursday May 7th marks the 64th annual National Day of Prayer. Christian's all over the country look to this day as a day to pray for our country and our leaders. While there are good reasons that a prayer emphasis such as this is beneficial, I wonder how many people in our churches ONLY pray for our country and leaders on this day… 

Though we were talking about overall spiritual health the children's message last week gave a great of the example of this -The lesson used the illustration that:

"An apple a week isn't going to cut it if you want to stay healthy, especially if you eat burgers and fries and pizza all the other days of the week. We need to eat several servings of fruits, vegetables, and other healthy choices daily.

The same is true of our spiritual health. It’s not enough to get a serving of God’s Word on Sundays. We need to read our Bibles daily. A little Bible every day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, will help us to grow healthy and strong in spirit. And when our spirit is as healthy as our bodies, there’s no limit to how God can use us."

Prayer is a key part of our spiritual health!

We shouldn't ONLY pray once a week, when we need something, or are in crisis. Prayer should be a way of life not a knee jerk response.

Paul’s command in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing,” can be confusing. Obviously, it cannot mean we are to be in a head-bowed, eyes-closed posture all day long. Paul is not referring to non-stop talking, but rather an attitude of God-consciousness and God-surrender that we carry with us all the time. Every waking moment is to be lived in an awareness that God is with us and that He is actively involved and engaged in our thoughts and actions.

For believers, prayer should really should be akin to breathing! You don’t have to think to breathe we are created to breathe, the atmosphere exerts pressure on our lungs and essentially forces us to breathe – in the same way when we are born again, we enter into a spiritual atmosphere where God’s presence and grace exert pressure, or influence, on our lives! Prayer is the normal response to that pressure!

Unfortunately, many believers figuratively hold their spiritual breathe for extended periods of time thinking that they only need occasional gulps of God to allow them to survive. But when we do that we are submitting to sinful desires… The truth of the matter is we must continually be in the presence of God, “without ceasing” to be fully functional…

When we live out this calling in our lives it means that we are not just praying for ourselves, not just praying for a sick or a lost family member or friend, but that we are praying for God’s presence. Praying that his will would be done not just in our life but also in the life of our nation, in the lives of our leaders, in the lives of our Pastors… Praying that God would open (all) our hearts to receive his presence today…

I love the way John Piper used the image that prayer is a wartime walkie-talkie, not a domestic intercom. It exists for advancing the mission, not for calling the butler to turn up the thermostat. Not that God is opposed to practical, nitty-gritty daily prayers. He simply wants all of them to relate to the mission of your life—that his name be glorified, that people live for fruitful ministry.

Don’t just pray on May 7^th this year but pray daily, pray without ceasing, live in constant communion with the Lord! 

Thought of the Day

The word "believe" is used 270 times in the HCSB - 236 of those are found in 21 of the 27 New Testament books, in the Gospel of John the word "believe" is used 85 times (nearly double the next closest of 43 times in the book of Acts). Why is this important?  

At the end of his gospel John writes: 

"30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples that are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may believe Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in His name."

The reason we have the Gospel of John today was so that we might believe, but belief in what?  If you claim to truly believe what is it that you believe? Can you easily express it or explain it? Where do you draw your faith? I love the way the Apostles Creed sums up what we are called to believe: 

"I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen."

While this was written by man for the most part it echoes scriptures and provides a base for us to expound upon. Today I would challenge you examine your beliefs! Examine your hearts! Do you really believe in God or do you merely believe in the concept of God?

Dios te Bendiga!