God's Word in Prayer

In preparing for preaching this Sunday, I have been struck by the critical importance to use of God's Word in sharing the Gospel and prayer.  Before he was filled with the Holy Spirit, I cannot immediately recall a single time when Peter quoted from scripture.  Yet during Peter's sermon on the Day of Pentecost, when he preached to the people after the lame beggar was healed at the temple, when he addressed the religious leaders while on trial, and in prayer afterward he quoted scripture!  The Holy Spirit not only brought passages to remembrance, but caused the disciples to rightly divide the Word of truth.  They were able to bring the truth of God's Word upon any situation with the accuracy of a skilled sniper.  It was the Spirit who caused their words to engage and persuade hearts with power.  When they prayed God answered, and the earth quaked as God moved in power among them to boldly proclaim His Word.

Consider this quote from R.A. Torrey's book How to Obtain Fullness of Power (pages 11-12) concerning the power of God's Word and its relation to faith and prayer:

Faith must have a foundation; it cannot float in thin air.  It is disheartening to see men told to believe when they are not given anything to believe in.

Not only saving faith comes through the Word of God, prevailing faith in prayer does, as well.  Suppose I read Mark 11:24:  "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them."  I used to say, "The way to get anything I want is to believe I am going to get it."  I would kneel down and pray, trying to believe, but I did not get the things that I asked for.  I had no real faith.

Real faith must have a guarantee.  Before I can truly believe I am to receive what I ask for, I must have a definite promise from God's Word, or a definite leading of the Holy Spirit, to rest my faith on.  What, then, should we do?

We go into God's presence with the thing we desire.  Next, we ask ourselves this question:  is there any promise in God's Word regarding what we desire?  We look into the Word of God and find the promise.  Then all we have to do is to present that promise to God.  For example, we say, "Heavenly Father, we desire the Holy Spirit.  You say in Your Word, 'If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?'  And again in Acts 2:39, that 'the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.'  I have been called; I am saved; and here in your Word is your promise.  So please fill me now with the Holy Spirit."

We then take 1 John 5:14-15 and say, "Father, this is the confidence I have in You, that, if I ask anything according to Your will - and I know that this is according to Your will - You hear me, and, if I know that You hear me, I know that I have the petition that I have asked of You."

Then we stand on God's promise and say, "It is mine," and it will be.  The only way to have a faith that prevails in prayer is to study your Bible, know the promises, and present them to God when you pray.  George Mueller, one of the Church's mightiest men of prayer, always prepared for prayer by studying the Word."

How the neglect of reading, studying, and praying God's Word saps us of spiritual strength!  There is a old saying I will adapt for our context:  "Seven days without the Word makes one weak."  Puns aside, it would be truer said that prayer or any action without God's Word or the leading of the Holy Spirit is wasted effort, and lack of results reveals we do not ask aright.  God, please forgive me for all presumptuous prayers which are not according to your Word!  Help me through the Holy Spirit's power to rightly divide the Word of truth and bring it to bear upon all circumstances of life.  Teach me how to pray!

A Conversation with God

A man stared into the clouds as they morphed into puffy shapes overhead.  The air was damp and heavy.  Thunder could be heard afar off as an occasional raindrop the size of a grape whizzed and smacked the ground.  The stored heat in the asphalt from the sun evaporated the spot in moments, though the aroma of summer rain continued to grow.  The man knew God was up above.  He stood transfixed in the middle of the street, trying to see a break in the clouds.

"There is a dark cloud over this country, Father," the man said slowly.  "There is also a cloud over your church.  We struggle to see.  I know you can part the seas...won't you part the clouds that hang over my soul as well?"

The clouds continued to billow and change.  Sometimes a spot of blue shone brightly through the where the clouds were wispy thin.  There was no thunder, no crack of lightning.  Only the sound of the wind in the trees and pattering of rain could be heard.  The man waited for a while, no need to rush.  God would speak when it was time.

"We need your wind to blow upon us so we might be moved, LORD.  We need your Spirit to fill us.  We need the refreshment you have promised, for you have said that times of refreshment would come," the man continued.  "How can we live for you unless you help us?"

The sky became more dark and ominous.  Yet scattered through the heavens vibrant blue peeked with sharp contrast against the charcoal puffs.  Then God's still small voice said to the man's heart, "You may have clouds overhead, but you still have Light.  I make the light shine.  Be still and know that I am God."  The man listened and stood there for a while, thinking about the truth of what God said.

The man was happy because God spoke to him.  He knew the clouds were only a small layer blocking his view of the clear sky.  There is a place above the clouds that is always clear and bright.  Because the man lived on the earth sometimes clouds made the sky dark during the day.  But every day God makes His light shine, even if all the man could see were clouds.  God is good to do that, the man thought.  He prayed.  God, make my life shine bright for your glory under these dark clouds so people will know how awesome you are.  He was thankful to have a conversation with God and told Him so.

No beam of light, no voices of angels, no quivery feelings inside.  Just a still small voice.  And you know what?  It was just what the man needed. 

It's Worth It!

After church yesterday, a family took me down to "Sculpture By the Sea" at Bondi.  We ate fish and chips on the wind-swept knoll overlooking the water.  The sun was shining and the exhibition was "chockers" (full, packed) as we slowly shuffled down the path from Bondi beach to Tamarama.  I learned that every cove is a specific beach and is a different suburb.

Like most art exhibits, some displays were more impressive than others.  I'm pretty sure most of the time I don't "get" art.  I appreciate the skill, craftsmanship, and creativity these artists pour into their craft.  Some of the displays were large, others intricate, some labor intensive, and then there were ones just to shake your head at:  what the heck is that supposed to be or represent?  That is the product of six-month's work and ten thousands of dollars?  Only humans can waste their time so well.

But there is at least one thing in common between the "struggling artist" and the Christian:  the passion to pursue a goal other people do not understand, comprehend, or support.  While an artist works for self-expression, a Christian lives for Christ to express Himself through him.  I'm sure many people look at the lifestyle of a Christian and say, "All that trouble for what?  What's the point of believing in God and pursuing a "relationship" with someone you can't even see?"  Only someone who does not know God can think and speak like that!  God exists as true as Christ lived on earth, and His creative power is the inspiration for countless artists.  God is the original Artist, the Divine Creator who simply spoke the universe into existence.  While we make things out of what have already have been made, God did not even have a canvas.  God made His own clay by words alone, and then formed man and breathed into him a living soul.  God is beautiful and His handiwork exalts His name.

The labor, struggles, and difficulties we face in life may not be regarded by some men as worthwhile, but through the eyes of faith we see differently than the world sees.  2 Corinthians 4:16-18 reads:  "Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, ¹⁸ while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal."  Let us work faithfully for the praise of One, our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ.  His approval and glory ought to be our chief aim in all we do.

War Memorial

On Wednesday Mark and I visited the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.  I uploaded some of the pictures to my flickr account which can be accessed by following the link on the right panel of the blog.  In addition to a tranquil place of memorial, there is a museum which houses many replicas and actual uniforms, weapons, medals, planes, and stories from primarily the first and second world wars.  Although primarily Australian in focus, there is a unique international flair.  There are not only Australian relics, but many articles from Italian, German, and Japanese forces.  It emphasized the world-wide scale of the war and how great the impact was on all people.

As I perused weapons designed for maximum destruction of humans, armor, and equipment, I could not think of war in any romantic terms.  War is a terrible necessity sometimes brought upon a country or group of people.  It is a great tragedy that war comes at the immense cost of human life.  It is not only the man eviscerated or decapitated who personally experiences the pain of war.  He often left parents, brothers, sisters, a wife, and children behind.  War does, however, provide an opportunity for valor not displayed in times of peace.  In times of great conflict some men wilt and yet others blossom.  There was a painting and caption which commanded my attention.

 This is a painting by Dale Marsh (1940) depicting "Ordinary Seaman Edward Sheean, HMAS Armidale."  The caption reads:  "'Teddy' Sheean was a loader for an Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun on HMAS Armidale.  When the order to abandon ship was given, he made for the side, only to be hit twice by bullets of an attacking aircraft. 'None of us will ever know what made him do it,' wrote a shipmate after the event, 'but he went back to his gun, strapped himself in, and brought down a [Japanese] plane, still firing as he disappeared beneath the waves.'"  Here is the story of an ordinary man doing a most extraordinary thing.  His job was to load the gun, but when wounded he took it upon himself to strap himself in and fire upon the enemy.  He showed great courage even when faced with his own mortality.  Mr. Sheean took no thought for his own life, but gave himself willingly.

In war there are casualties.  People are maimed, disfigured, and carry with them injuries that will affect the rest of their lives on earth.  We are often insulated from the gritty horror of actual war and cannot comprehend the devastating emotional price paid by soldiers.  As Christians, we are part of a spiritual battle which threatens to destroy our resolve, drown us in temptation, and isolate us from accountability and fellowship.  When Christians stumble and fall into sin, instead of being moved to compassion with grace, other Christians often stand in judgment.  Can you imagine that if Seaman Sheean had survived the conflict he was given the "cold shoulder" by his mates because he didn't obey orders and abandon ship faster?  Ridiculous!  Sometimes people just need a hug!  Sadly we often stand in judgment of others when they face a divorce, fall prey to false teaching, commit suicide, or have views different from our own.  It is not for us to judge:  we ought to pray for compassion, grace, mercy, and truth exercised in love.  Christians experience pain too.  Sometimes there are injuries inflicted that we will carry for the rest of our earthly lives.  We will not "get over" certain things we have experienced:  but we can work through them.  We were never meant to dwell in the valley of the shadow of death, but pass through guided by the Good Shepherd.  Joy will come through our Savior as we walk in faith!

Our God promises times of refreshing by His grace.  How wonderful it is to dwell together with brethren in unity!  No man goes to war by himself, and God has not left us comfortless in the spiritual battle we find ourselves.  He has promised us the victory through Jesus Christ and has given us the Holy Spirit.  He has given us brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage, exhort, and travel with us through the hardships of this journey to everlasting glory.  The peace that God brings which passes understanding is just as real as the trouble life brings our way.  Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through Jesus!  Let us be valiant to love as Christ does, and always labor to edify one another faithfully.