Beginning a Life-Style of Prayer

 

          Learning to pray is an important part of any Christian's life.  Prayer is a vital aspect of our walk with the Lord.  Sometimes we view prayer as . . . that thing we do when life gets tough.  But, we are called to pray daily, even continually, in all circumstances.  We are called to live a life-style of prayer.

          Often people think that they must use memorized prayers or special words or language . . . all the Thee's and Thou's . . . think Shakespearean or King James-ish "churchy" language.  Some also worry about the proper posture . . . hands raised, on their knees, face down, hands folded, head bowed, eyes closed, etc.  It's not so much about the words you say or the physical posture you take, rather it's more about the condition and the "posture" of your heart.

          When it comes to learning how to pray, I think of two events in particular from Jesus' life.

          The first is in Luke 18:9-14.  Jesus tells a story of two men at the temple.  The first is very religious, self-righteous and prideful, praying to God . . . going on and on about all the good things that he does in life – basically thinking that if he’s good enough, then God will accept him.  The second man stands at a distance and is unwilling to even lift his eyes to heaven as he prays.  Instead he beats his chest and prays, “O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.”  That’s it . . . simple, short, but so powerful.  Jesus says that the humble sinner went home justified before God, not the other man.

 

          As we come before God in prayer, it begins here . . . in humble acknowledgement of our sin and our need for God’s mercy, grace, and forgiveness.  We are sinful – God is holy.  Even our righteous deeds are like filthy rages to Him.  God says through the prophet Isaiah that He looks to those who are humble and repentant in spirit [Isaiah 66:2].  This is what the attitude of our heart must be as we come before a holy God in prayer.

 

          The second example is when the followers of Jesus ask Him to teach them to pray [Luke 11:1-4].  I’m sure you know this . . . the Lord’s Prayer.  It’s also found in Matthew 6:9-13.  This example is also very simple (it’s funny how we tend to make things so overly complicated).  Jesus begins with a humble statement about God:  Our Father in heaven, your name is holy.  He then prays for some specifics:  God’s will to be done, daily provision, forgiveness, and deliverance from temptation.  This is a great model for us.  No need for flowery language or special words or memorized prayers – just simple heartfelt expressions to God.

 

 

". . . pray about everything. Tell God what you need,

and thank him for all he has done." [Philippians 4:6; NLT]

 

 

Here’s an acronym that many people use for prayer (it’s a good beginning point and not original with me):  A.C.T.S. – Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.

Adoration – praise God for who He is . . . like Jesus did as he began in his prayer:  Our Father in Heaven, holy is your name.  Speak of His greatness, His majesty, His glory.  Proclaim that He alone is worthy to be praised.  The Book of Psalms would be a great place to find some more examples.

Confession – it’s that idea of humble acknowledgment of your need for God’s forgiveness.  “O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.”

Thanksgiving – there is so much to be thankful for!  Express those things to God.

Supplication – this is a “churchy” word that simply means making requests of God.  Like Jesus did.  Pray for God’s will to be done in your life and in your family.  Pray for God’s provision and protection.  Bring your needs to Him.

A.C.T.S. – It’s an easy outline to remember and a great way to begin the discipline of prayer.

          It's important to remember also that when we come to God, we do so through Jesus Christ.  Jesus himself said that no one comes to the Father except through him [John 14:1-6].  Scripture also tells us that there is but one mediator between God and man . . . and that is Jesus Christ [I Timothy 2:5].  This is true when we come to God for anything, whether that is salvation, forgiveness, or even in daily prayer.  We come to God through Jesus Christ.  Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we can now have access to God through Him.  And, we can "approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" [Hebrews 4:16].

 

 

 

Worship Minister, Gateway Christian Church - www.gcch3.com

The Church in Jerusalem

A message I preached during a series in the Book of Acts:

Here is the Introduction:

 

"By modern standards they may have been naïve, but perhaps because of their simplicity, perhaps because of their readiness simply to believe, to obey, to give, to suffer, and, if necessary, to die, . . . the Spirit of God found that he could work in them and through them so powerfully that in Acts 17:6 (KJV) it is declared that they were turning the world upside down!"

 

Here is Lesson #1:  Obedience Outweighs Opinion

 

"When culture stands in opposition to the ways of God, the people of God must stand in opposition to the ways of culture. The 1st Century Church was constrained by God’s commands above the Law of man. We, now – in the 21st Century - are compelled to obey God rather than man."

 

 

Here is Lesson #2:  Prayer Precedes Power

 

"Before we will ever move in the power of the Holy Spirit

we must spend time in the presence of our Holy God."

 

 

Here is Lesson #3:  Reproof Requires Response

 

When reproof or conviction is brought into someone’s life, there is always a response.  We typically respond in one of three ways (or some weird combination):

Apathy – we ignore it and go on living as before

Anger – we lash out at the messenger
Attrition – we respond in sorrow and repentance

 

 

 

 

I enjoyed this message.  It was a challenge for me as I prepared and I hope that it challenges, encourages, and convicts us to move beyond "church" as usual and begin to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

 

 

Worship Minister, Gateway Christian Church - www.gcch3.com

Church . . . it's not what you think



"Heaven is my throne and Earth is my footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for me?" ~ Isaiah 66:1

 

"The Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands" ~ Acts 7:48

 

I often hear people declare to their children as they zip down the hallway . . . "Stop running!  You're in Church" - which I suppose is appropriate if there are several other folks in the hallway and you don't want them to run into someone.

 

I've also heard folks say something like:  "Don't use that language . . . you're in church" or "Don't tell lies . . . you're in church" or "Don't [you fill in the blank] . . . you're in church."  What confuses me is the line "you're in church" . . . as if being in "church" makes all the difference.

 

Funny how we confuse the church building with being The Church.  We have some major misconceptions going on here.

 

I recently read an short post from Ransomed Heart Ministries about The Church that REALLY resonated with me.

 

Here's what it said:

 

Church is not a building. Church is not an event that takes place on Sundays. I know, it's how we think of it. "I go to First Baptist."   "We are members of St. Luke's."   "Is it time to go to church?"

Much to our surprise, that is not how the Bible uses the term. Not at all. When the Scripture talks about church, it means community. The little fellowships of the heart that are outposts of the kingdom. A shared life. They worship together, eat together, pray for one another, go on quests together. They hang out together, in each other's homes.

When Peter is sprung from prison, "he went to the house of Mary the mother of John . . . where many people had gathered and were praying" (Acts 12:12).

Anytime an army goes to war or an expedition takes to the field, it breaks down into little platoons and squads. And every chronicle of war or quest will tell you that the men and women who fought so bravely fought for each other. That's where the acts of heroism and sacrifice take place, because that's where the devotion is. You simply can't be devoted to a mass of people; devotion takes place in small units, just like a family.

We have stopped short of being an organization; we are an organism instead, a living and spontaneous association of individuals who know one another intimately, care for each other deeply, and feel a kind of respect for one another that makes rules and bylaws unnecessary. A group is the right size, I would guess, when each member can pray for every other member, individually and by name.

This is the wisdom of Brother Andrew, who smuggled Bibles into communist countries for decades. It's the model, frankly, of the church in nearly every country, but the U.S.

Now, I'm not suggesting you don't do whatever it is you do on Sunday mornings. I'm simply helping you accept reality—that whatever else you do, you must have a small fellowship to walk with you and fight with you and bandage your wounds. This is essential. [from Ransomed Heart Ministries]

Some excellent thoughts here!  It's the reason being plugged into a small group is SO essential . . . regardless of the attendance of the worship gathering you are a part of . . . mega, large, medium, small . . . it's all about true community/fellowship in Christ with others - walking with one another through the ups and downs of this life. 

Yes, the 1st Century church was a large body of believers . . . THOUSANDS.  There was exponential growth from the second chapter of Acts onward, but these believers met consistently from house to house in small groups to strengthen, encourage, support, and "be there" for one another.  You simply can't do that in a mass of nameless faces.



Worship Minister, Gateway Christian Church - www.gcch3.com

In Church, but not In Christ

          In his book, not a fan, Kyle Idleman tells of his encounter with a father after one of his speaking events.  The man came with tears in his eyes and began to tell the story of his prodigal daughter, how she went to college and totally turned her back on her belief in God.  When he was finished, he didn’t ask why she was doing this or what had gone wrong.  He wasn’t looking for an explanation.  Instead, with one sentence he put his finger on what he thought happened.  Here’s what he said . . . “We raised her in Church, but we didn’t raise her in Christ.” [not a fan, p.83]

 

          As a father of four of the most amazing children in the entire world (from my perspective of course) . . . this hit hard somewhere deep in my heart:  raised in church, but not in Christ.  You see, I’m not only a father, but I’m also a minister serving in a local Church.  So, my children are “churched” in every way possible.  Since I work at the Church, the only time they might not have attended a gathering is if they truly are ill . . . otherwise they are being raised in the church.

 

          Being raised in the Church is not in and of itself a bad thing.  But in the midst of having a faithful commitment to the Church (the Body of Christ), I must ask myself the question:  “Are my children also being raised up in Christ?”

 

          You see, if they are being raise up in the church only, the focus is not on relationship, but on religious ritual.  Faith is not an essential part of who they are, but simply one more thing to do on their religious check list.  They “look right” and maybe even “act right” on the outside (at least on Sundays), but there is no inner-life transformation taking place.  They will learn to keep all the rules, but they’ll never experience the relationship.  They will feel guilty for the wrong things they do, but will somehow miss God’s amazing grace.

 

Church Involvement is not Enough

 

          Often, parents have the misconception that as long as we keep our kids involved in church activities . . . that’s all they need in regard to spiritual development.  Think about that.  How much time does that give your children when it comes to their spiritual growth in Christ?  Only an hour or two per week . . . at most.  They spend 6-7 hour PER DAY in school having their minds developed academically – that’s 30-35 hours per week!  No wonder most of our children are biblically illiterate.  Sadly they are only following in the steps of their parents.  As I consider these things, I’m drawn to Judges 2:10 which says, “. . . there arose another generation . . . who did not know the Lord . . . .”

 

Be Intentional in the Home

 

          As parents, we must be intentional about the spiritual development of our children teaching them the truth of God’s word and the importance of living in relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  Helping them realize that being raised in Christ is not a weekly ritual, but a daily walk.

          Use Deuteronomy 6:6-7 as a template for your family:  “These words . . . shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children . . . talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.”  Basically . . . we are to saturate our lives with the things of God.  Our relationship with God is to be top priority.

          Unfortunately, this is not the pattern I see within the Body of Christ.  We elevate education and sports (or some other extra-curricular activity) to the highest priority and the things of God get relegated to a ritualistic observance on Sunday . . . and maybe Wednesday.  Oh, we wouldn’t say that, but our actions betray our words.  My challenge is to take a step back and evaluate your family’s priority.  Look at what you do as a family.  What do you spend the most time doing?  By your actions . . . What is the highest priority?  Be intentional as you raise up your children in Christ.

 

Live it out – Be a Living Example

 

          As you know . . . actions speak louder than words and our children are masters at recognizing hypocrisy.  We must be a living example of God’s love to our children.  We must daily walk in relationship with the Lord and live that out before our children.  They need to see your faith in action.  None of this:  “Do as I say not as I do” rubbish.  If we make our faith simply a ritualistic observance – a religious obligation – our children will be quick to recognize the insincerity of our faith and will adopt that same attitude.  It is critical that we live out our faith following the ways of Jesus daily in relationship with him:  dying to self, living in Him and for Him, serving and loving those around us, being a living example to our children AND to the world around us of God’s unfailing love.



Worship Minister, Gateway Christian Church - www.gcch3.com

Let Freedom Ring

BANG!

As a kid, July 4th was just about the greatest day (aside from Christmas and my birthday of course).  What other day are you allowed - and even encouraged - to play with fire and blow stuff up?  I loved it!  Fire-crackers were my favorite  - blowing up army men, hot-wheels, houses made from twigs and leaves, pincher-bugs . . . .  Yes, pincher-bugs.  They were the most fun! (you can imagine . . . those pincers were just right for holding fire-crackers).

 

It is for freedom that Christ set us free

At the time, I really didn't care too much about the true reason for the celebration.  As we get older, we realize that there is much more important things to celebrate than fire and explosives (although I still find those things to be great fun!).

 

Freedom is not free.  It is gained by GREAT sacrifice.  We show reverence and demonstrate respect for those who have gone before us and given sacrificially to secure the freedoms that we have as Americans.  We honor those who are currently serving to maintain that freedom.  We live in the land of the free BECAUSE it is the home of the brave.

 

------------------------------------------

 

SPIRITUAL FREEDOM

 

Every year around this time, I can't help but think about the freedom that we have in Christ . . . and wonder . . . are we as zealous about our spiritual freedom as we are our political freedom?

 

It is for Freedom that Christ Set us Free [Galatians 5:1].  Freedom is something that we receive . . . Christ is the one who brings true freedom.

 

How do you view the idea of freedom and how does that relate to the freedom followers of God have in Christ?

 

Secular-Worldview:  Freedom = Independence . . . Leaving the nest; going to college; living on your own – out from under the rules and regulations of your parents.  No one to tell you what do; where to go; monitor your time on the phone; give a curfew – you’re FREE!  INDEPENDENT!

 

It's the "freedom" that the younger son was seeking in Luke 15.  No more restrictions.  Give me what's coming to me and I will strike out on my own and live like a wish to live.

 

The world’s perspective is selfish in nature.  I’m free to do what I want, when I want, how I want and you can’t make a judgment on whether or not I should because I’M FREE!  In this worldly view of freedom, moral truth is exchanged for immoral tolerance.

 

If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed

 

Biblical-Worldview:  Freedom = Dependence . . . One of the great ironies of the Christian faith:  we have been redeemed from our slavery, our bondage, to sin, so that we can become the bond-slave of Christ!

 

We are free to be a slave of Christ!  Through our freedom in Christ we bind ourselves to the moral truth of God’s Word.  That’s why Jesus said in John 8:32 that when you know the truth; the truth will set you free.

 

In John 8:31-36 we learn that we were enslaved to sin (vs. 34) and we are set free by Jesus who is the Truth (vs. 36).  Notice verses 31 & 32 . . . What is it that sets us free?  TRUTH; and through what is TRUTH revealed?  THE WORD; and if we continue in THE WORD, we will know the TRUTH and it will set us FREE.

 

So, we celebrate the freedom we have as Americans, but even if that freedom is taken away, we will still be FREE in Christ . . . For if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed!

 

 

Worship Minister, Gateway Christian Church - www.gcch3.com