Prayer

My First Thought


Excerpt from A Diary of Private Prayer, by John Baillie

Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of You, let my first impulse be to worship You, let my first speech be Your name, let my first action be to kneel before You in prayer.

For Your perfect wisdom and perfect goodness,
For the love with which You love mankind
For the love with which You love me
For the great and mysterious opportunity of my life
For the indwelling of Your Spirit in my heart
For the sevenfold gifts of Your Spirit
I praise and worship You, O Lord.

Yet let me not, when this morning prayer is said, think my worship ended and spend the day in forgetfulness of You. Rather from these moments of quietness let light go forth, and joy, and power, that will remain with me through all the hours of the day;

Keeping me chaste in thought
Temperate and truthful in speech
Keeping me faithful and diligent in my work
Keeping me humble in my estimation of myself
Keeping me honorable and generous in my dealings with others
Keeping me loyal to every hallowed memory of the past
Keeping me mindful of my eternal destiny as a child of Yours,
Through Jesus Christ my Lord, Amen

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

Praying the Scripture

Papyrus scroll of Isiah 33,1-24
“But in coming to the Lord by means of “praying the Scripture,” you do not read quickly; you read very slowly. You do not move from one passage to another, not until you have sensed the very heart of what you have read. You may then want to take that portion of Scripture that has touched you and turn it into prayer.” Madame Guyon (1648-1717) From, Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ

I am a fast reader, and in a way that’s good because I know I have to forcibly slow myself down in order to get what God wants me to get from reading His Word. It helps greatly to start with prayer, prayer for God to open my heart and mind to what I may have missed before. Ever missed something totally in a verse that you know you have read many times before? It happened to me this morning.

It was in the portion of Scripture where Mary pours the expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet and then Judas complains that it was a waste of money and they should have sold it and given the money to the poor. Yeah, right. He was skimming from the till, that’s why he was concerned! But as I read the whole Chapter, I thought how the whole scene was so surreal. Here was Jesus at the home of Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead not too long before.

And then I read what I had missed all the other times……”Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well,for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him.” John 12:9,10

I don’t know about you but I can’t imagine what Lazarus was thinking. No doubt he was still in a state of incredulity at being alive again after hopping out of a dark tomb bound hand and foot. Now here he was enjoying fellowship and a good dinner with friends only to have his very life threatened. They wanted to kill what Jesus had brought to life!

I thought of how sometimes I want to bring to life what Jesus wants to kill in my life….worry, fear, stress, anxiety or maybe mistakes that I have made I want to remind Him of.

What in your life are you trying to resurrect today that Jesus has already taken to the Cross? He has already forgotten it!….having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. Colossians 2:14

Fire in the Desert

“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Matthew 4:1”

The desert is merciless. The sun cracks the dirt into hard baked clay, and in the winter when the sun goes down, the temperature drops alarmingly fast. Only the strongest survive. But the devil didn’t count on the Holy Spirit being there with Jesus for those forty days. He couldn’t lose! God’s fire was with Him.

“For the first 30 years of His life, Jesus led a good “Christian” life, he went to church and made furniture, then the Holy Spirit came.” Pastor Gary Kinnaman, speaking at City of Grace church this past weekend. Yes, then the Holy Spirit came and all hell broke loose. Satan was ticked! “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through the whole countryside.” Luke 4:14 The first time He got up to preach in His hometown, he made the crowd furious and they tried to throw Him off a cliff. Luke 4:28-29

No doubt about it, the Holy Spirit may get you in trouble. Look what happened to the disciples after the day of Pentecost! They went from hiding out behind locked doors to preaching on the street corners, facing off demons, and healing the sick!

Has the Holy Spirit ever led you to do something you never thought you could do? Even something that seemed to make no sense at the time? Called you out of your safe place? He will do that. Sometimes I would like God to be very predictable and manageable. I would like Him to just let me be comfortable. I love safety and comfort. But I need to remember those times when I did let go and say, “Yes, I will do that.” And I do remember, He never left my side.

Lord, help me to be open to what you might ask me to do. Give me the strength to say yes and not cave in to fear. For I know You will never leave me……Has the Holy Spirit led you into the desert? If so and you need prayer, please leave a comment and I will be happy to pray for you.

Some days……

This was my day yesterday….Mary Engelbreit captures it perfectly with this image!

I left a five dollar bill on the lunch counter after dropping the snack I bought…..luckily someone turned it in to the cashier. Then after work I started to water the roses and forgot the hose was running. For an hour. Someone came to the door and said, “Your neighbor must have left the water running because it is flooded all the way to the clubhouse.” I ran out, ready to check the neighbor’s hose and remembered it was mine. I hung around in back pretending to shut off their water, and I noticed the car wasn’t leaving. As I sheepishly came around front she said, “Oh, was it YOURS???” I wanted to tell her to go home and mind her own business, but I smiled and thanked her. It was just that kind of day!

This is what I needed to tell myself this morning on the way to work!

I was grousing about things, little things….which is kind of unusual for me because I usually feel like this, for the most part.

Then I thought about this little boy that is still missing in Oregon, and his poor parents, the Dad is an Intel employee like me…..all of a sudden my little complaints vanished into vapor….I prayed for them the rest of the way to work. I can’t begin to imagine the agony of what they’re going through. Our world is going on, but theirs has stopped.

National Day of Prayer

Not just today, but everyday people are praying. You don’t hear about it on the news, but it is happening, all across our land. You don’t hear about churches going out into the community feeding the homeless, finding them shelter, hitting the streets with the Good News, taking care of orphans and widows. They are the hands and feet of Jesus, living in the Spirit following His lead sometimes at great personal sacrifice. There are those of us who enter the daily trenches, praying under our breath all the while, living out our faith to others, being a light in the darkness, doing the best we can. And there are those raising children at home, making hard choices, doing the right thing when nobody sees. There are the persecuted Christians being martyred all over the world for their faith, you don’t hear about them either. Still they pray, still they meet, adding members daily. There are those in the land of shadows, helping people with AIDs die, educating their children so they might have half a chance. Here in America we can still worship without fear, and I pray it will always be so……Join me in prayer for our country today.

Secret Places of the Heart

Mount Angel Abbey, St. Benedict, Oregon
The basic response of the soul to the Light is internal adoration and joy, thanksgiving and worship, self surrender and listening. The secret places of the heart cease to be our noisy workshop. They become a holy sanctuary of adoration and self-oblation, where we are kept in perfect peace if our minds be stayed on Him who has found us in the inward springs of our life. And in the brief intervals of over-powering visitation we are able to carry the sanctuary frame of mind out into the world, into it’s turmoil and fitfulness. Powerfully are the springs of our will moved to an abandon if singing love toward God; powerfully are we moved to a new and overcoming love toward time-blinded men and all creation.

Thomas Kelly 1893-1941 (Excerpt from A Testament of Devotion)

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:7-10

Crumbs under the table…..


Today on the way to work I was trying to pray but my brain was scrambled. I couldn’t seem to take one thought and hold it captive for even a moment. My mind felt like a superhighway…..it humbled me, I felt bad for not being able to clear my mind enough to talk to God. I thought of my petty worries. I thought of all the other people who are carrying unbelievable loads, of missionaries endangering their lives to share the Gospel. I felt unworthy to bring Him my pitiful load. I thought of the Greek woman who came to Jesus asking for healing for her daughter.

“Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
“First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” Mark 7:24-29

“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “but even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.”

Because of her tenacious faith He answered her prayer, even though she wasn’t one of the “chosen.” Though Jesus seems at first to be brushing her off, even admonishing her for her boldness, He really isn’t; and she ends up being rewarded for her bold move. He looked in her heart and saw humility. She knew she wasn’t worthy, but she knew that He had something she needed and she had faith enough to ask for it.

I was rewarded this morning too. He took my scrap offerings of faith and blessed them. God lifted the clouds from my mind and I was able to pray…..It started with honesty. To the One who knows all my weaknesses and blesses me anyway.

An Orderly Quietness


Prayer begins, not in asking, but in a silent self-preparation. We should not rush into the Presence; the church of private devotion should be entered through the vestibule in an orderly quietness. This comes best as a by-product of a mind focused on God. We say to ourselves, “His light fill the world. It fills this room.” Thus we meditate.

The next step is an act of faith, on which Jesus laid the constant stress: “All things, whatsoever ye ask in prayer, believing, ye shall recieve.” In this initial silence of prayer we say to ourselves that whatever we ask “in the nature of Christ” is ours, granted only our earnestness in prayer and life. Always prayer is prefaced by an act of faith. We take counsel with our certitudes, not with our doubts and fears. George A. Buttrick “Prayer”

As with any muscle faith has to be exercised. What am I believing God for today? Have peace, safety, security become my idols–things that have to some degree replaced God in my life? How much faith do I really need when I know exactly how much money will show up in my bank account every 2 weeks like clockwork? The early church depended on God and each other for their every need.

And yet, I have known times of stress and heartache when each day started on my knees in desperation. And God heard everytime…..When times are good, I thank Him, always keeping in my heart a remembrance of those other times when He got me though, will get me through again.

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Philippians 4:12

Thy Kingdom Come…..


As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. Matthew 3:16

As I was meditating on the Lord’s prayer this morning, I was thinking about what it means to bring God’s kingdom to earth. When Jesus prayed in Matthew 6 verse 10 “your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” what did he really mean? How can we bring heaven down to earth? What I came up with is love. We simply can’t love properly without the Holy Spirit. Jesus knew that. When he left he knew we would be hopelessly inadequate to do His work without help. Big help. God sized help.

I think about why it is so hard for us, even Christians, to love each other. We let our differences, our self, our past, old hurts, and everything else get in the way. But the Holy Spirit moves all that aside when we give Him room to work. He makes it possible for us to truly love each other, and not just put up a fake pretense of it, really love each other. That’s the kind the world needs to see. Real genuine love….the world sees enough of the other kind, and it doesn’t last. True love comes from God and has the power to change lives. Change eternity.

When we really start to love each another the way Jesus did, it can’t help but spill out into the world. Rend the Heavens and come down Holy Spirit! Give us cooperative hearts that let you work within us so we can see more of Heaven here on earth.

And….

Lord, let me have a prayerful heart in dealing with people so that I may love them with Your love. Amen

“This, then, is how you should pray:
” ‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:15

Heart Searching


“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.” 2 Cor. 13: 5,6 NIV

I wonder…..is my prayer time genuinely reflecting on God or on myself and what I can get out of it? Has my offering become something self-made, something I have constructed for my own purpose? Just a good habit? Maybe this evaluation is part of the purpose of prayer, part of the process, part of the “working out of our salvation” that Paul talks about. It is good to reflect, in fact, the Bible says to do this: “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.” 2 Cor. 13: 5,6 NIV

What is the motive behind my actions? My prayer? That is what God sees, not just the words I use. Sometimes we need to go back, check our motives and start again. This is the beauty of what prayer is. Chance after chance to come and sit at His feet again. Jesus taught us….there are two things we have to do; “To ask with right motives and to ask for what aligns with His will……” 1 John 5:4,James 4:3

So I go back out and start again, with an open heart; hoping I can find the courage to walk out into the world and let Him change me, to hear and obey what He whispers during the praying. He is infinitely patient with us and is always ready to listen.

Lord, may I pray with my eyes and heart open to Your Word, for this is where I find the perfect reflection of You. Though the heart can be misleading, Your Word never is.

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12