"Let my prayers come before thee; incline thine ear..."
Psalms 88:2
Effective praying is exclusive praying. It results by accepting no man-made substitute and by placing your request before the only one who will respond to you.
The Scripture reveals God is inclined to incline his ear, like a loving father reaches down to draw a crying child to his face. Effective praying seeks the comforting embrace of The Father more than the answer to a prayer.
Prayer is more about getting with God than getting an answer. Prayer is not a race to get what you want. It is a race to embrace His face.
When I was a small boy, I always loved to rub my face against the fresh shaven face of my Dad. At 66 years of age, I can still remember the smell of the "Old Spice" Dad would splash on his face. If I raced to embrace him early in the morning, some of his after shave would rub off on me, and linger through the day. Today, Dad is in Heaven, but his fragrance remains.
The Father inclines His ear to hear you. Linger in the aroma of His Presence. He is the answer to your prayers.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Father
“Father, glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You.”
John 17:1
In The Prayer of Jesus, The Son addressed Holy God, as Father. When Jesus responded to His disciples’ request, “Lord, teach us to pray,” (Luke 11:1), He offered them the same gracious, and intimate access to His Father. He said, “Pray, then, in this way, “Our Father, who is in Heaven.” (Matthew 6:9)
When Jesus established The Constitution of The Kingdom, He introduced the standards for citizenship, “poor in spirit.” (Matthew 5:3). He described those who were not spiritually arrogant, but humbled themselves, rather than being full of themselves.
When the arrogant disciples of Jesus needed an object lesson of this kind of humility, a child-like trust in the authority and jurisdiction of The Father, The Son reached out for the hand of a little one, and said, “Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of Heaven. Whoever humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 18: 3-4)
The Prayer of Jesus begins with The Son, humbling Himself in The Presence of The Father. It ends with The Son interceding before The Father for His disciples to be filled with His love. They needed to be full of Jesus, not themselves. His disciples still do. Jesus still intercedes for them to experience, “I in them.” Thank you, Jesus.
When contemporary disciples start complicating prayer, or become satisfied with being educated about prayer, they stop coming into The Presence of The Father. Instead of turning into humble children, seeking His direction, protection, and correction, they become rebellious children who start delaying, and stop praying.
Reading about prayer, talking about prayer, singing about prayer, and preaching about prayer must lead to more praying. Anything less is a delay in intimacy with The Father.
“Unless you are converted” should encourage every prayerless disciple that personal, private prayer is the way a rebellious child is able to turn their prideful and prayeless heart into a humble and prayerful heart. Two things break The Father’s heart, rebellion and repentance. Prayerful children are humble children who turn around at the slightest call of The Father, and run to Him, in the name of The Son.
There is nothing like The Presence of The Father. Jesus longed for The Father’s Presence, and found His way to Him, early in the day, during the day, late at night, throughout the night, in public places, and on prolonged, private retreats. Jesus saturated Himself with The Father’s Presence, by yielding His will to The Father’s will. His disciples should do no less.
Recently, I asked my 92 year-old father, Don Miller, “What is the one thing you would want people to know about prayer, if it was the last thing you could share with them?” He said, “Follow Jesus. It just isn’t any more complicated than that. Don’t complicate prayer. Jesus cannot be explained. He must be experienced.” Nuff said.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Joy
“But now, I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, so that they may have My joy, made full in themselves.”
John 17:13
Jesus prayed for His disciples to be full of His joy. Those who choose to be full of themselves will never know the fullness of the joy of Jesus in themselves.
Joy is a confidence, and a calm that fills the heart of a believer with gladness, and spills out of them and onto others, even in the midst of the chaos and confusion of the world. To the world, this gladness looks like madness. To The Father, this calmness is a sign of His children’s faithfulness. They trust in His Word, and His Presence to see them through the storms of life, come what may.
“I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” V.14
The disciples trusted in God’s Word, and shared the same citizenship with their Savior. They were living in the world that made less and less sense to them, because it was no longer their home. Their homing beacon had been changed by the faith that came to them by hearing the word of God, and by embracing fellowship with His Son.
“I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. “ V. 15
Jesus did not pray for His disciples to escape from the evil of the world, but to be protected from the evil one in it. Satan is a liar, and his aim in life is to steal, kill and destroy. He steals the joy of every believer who buys into his lies. He lies about the meaning, and questions the authority of the Word of God. He destroys the prayer life of believers, because he knows this is their source of their strength.
“The one concern of the Devil is to keep the saints from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray.” Samuel Chadwick
The joy of the Christian life is not a by-product of worldly entertainment, but a result of the filling of The Spirit of Christ. Entertainment has become the world’s substitute for joy. Drinking from the world of entertainment never satisfies a raging thirst for joy.
Sensual, sarcastic, and shocking entertainment must continually push the edge of the envelope of decency because what once tickled a sense of humor inevitably wears thin. The more the same punchline is used to get a laugh out of the audience, the less power it has. Comedians are often the most neurotic and joyless of people. They live for the approval of a fickle audience, and become prisoners of their own success, trapped in the desert of encore anxiety. When the laughter dies their lives have little meaning.
Joy on the other hand is the capacity to rise above trials, tests, and tears with a triumphal spirit. Joy does not come from tapping into a continuous stream of entertainment. The source of joy is the Spirit of Christ. Believers who yield their lives to His Presence will produce His fruit, the character of Christ.
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23
Jesus interceded for His disciples to be filled with His joy, not a man-made imitation marked by slap-happy giddiness. Love is the driving force behind the joy of Jesus. Knowing the love of The Father brings confidence, and raises the level of calm in the midst of the storm. The Spirit releases joy into the heart of the believer whether they are suffocated by the mundane, or overwhelmed by the insane crises of life.
Though the storm rages on, it is possible for joy to fill a wave-tossed disciple. This kind of joy comes at the point of their total dependence upon, and absolute surrender to the one who holds the whole world in His hands. Joy filled disciples don’t abandon the ship. They surrender themselves to The Captain.
"When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don't throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer." - Corrie Ten Boom
Joy faces every trial, every test and every triumph with the same kind of confidence. The Spirit’s still small voice is heard within the deepest recesses of the believer’s heart saying softly, “This too will pass.”
Joy is an overflow. It is not just an outward expression of an inward feeling. Joy is an overflow of a filling, not a feeling. The filling of The Spirit cannot be contained or hidden by those who are filled with the character of Christ.
To the faithless, gladness may appear to be madness. To the faithful, joy is calmness not madness. Praying reduces the urge to panic in the face of an enduring crisis or a cantankerous person. Joy reflects the glory of The Father, by looking into His Son’s eyes in the midst of the storm. Prayer warriors refuse to panic until Jesus does. Like the old song says, “Turn You Eyes Upon Jesus.”
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Quote
"We have no basis to believe that we can come casually and sprightly to the Lord Jesus and say, 'I have come for some help, Lord Jesus. I understand that you are the Savior, so I am going to believe and be saved, and then I am going to turn away and think about other matters of lordship and allegiance and obedience at some time in the future.' I warn you, you will not get help from Him in that way, for the Lord will not save those whom He cannot command."
A. W. Tozer
My collection of this man's quotes is labeled, "Tasers from Tozer."
A daily dose of Tozer is like a double espresso for the soul. He jump starts my day, and reignites my desire to...
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Influence
"So Absalom stole away the hearts of the men of Israel."
2 Sam. 15:6
Years of deep rooted bitterness in Absalom's heart bore the toxic fruit of strong rebellion against King David.
The "spirit of Absalom" is rebellion against God's chosen authority. It is ignited by a real or perceived offense, but it is fueled and driven by the evil one who cannot stand for God's man to stand in his way.
Absalom abused his position, as the King's son, and took possession of the affections of the people. He exercised authority that only God has the right to give, by undermining his father in the eyes of the people.
Blowing out his father's candle not only made him look brighter in the eyes of the people. It also ignited a civil war.
The spirit of Absalom is still with us, and is at the heart of most church conflicts. Pray for your heart to be purified from toxic thoughts. They not only poison you. They influence others.
NOTE TO SELF: It is hard to hate someone you pray for. It is not impossible, just hard. Make it hard to hate.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Listener
"The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous." Proverbs 15:29
The 'wicked" does not refer to a Broadway musical. It describes someone who is guilty of actively engaging in criminal behavior, without remorse or repentance.
"He heareth" reminds us that God gives heed to our need. As our loving Father, He not only hears our prayers, but He understands and responds to the cries of His children.
The "righteous" does not refer to perfect people, just forgiven people who actively embrace The Presence of God. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus pointed out praying, giving and fasting as signs of righteous people. His emphasis was on their motive for doing these things. Those motivated by being noticed by others would miss God every time.
NOTE TO SELF: Your faintest prayer reaches the ear of God, and invites Him to lean down and lift you up with His strong hands. Whatever He has led you to, He will lead your through. Embrace His Presence. He is listening to you.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Key
"I have greatly longed of late for a broken heart, & to lie low before God." Jonathan Edwards, American pastor and leader of the First Great Awakening
Edward's blast from the past reveals to us the key to Awakening, a broken heart.
"It is amazing what God can do with a broken heart when your give Him all the pieces."
Samuel Chadwick
God's children must personally and corporately put out a welcome mat, by praying for His Holy Spirit to do in our hearts the one thing only God can do. He alone heals a broken heart and brings Spiritual Awakening.
The disciples came to Jesus, and spoke the four wisest words of their lives, "Lord, teach us to pray." Jesus responded with what has become known as The Lord's Prayer.
Jesus taught His disciples to pray to The Father, and to call out to Him alone to "deliver us from evil." Matthew 6:13
God is The Deliverer. Expect and accept no man-made substitute. Only God can mend a broken world, and He does it one broken heart at a time.
Put your broken pieces into His hands. Go to church and gather with broken people just like you. Listen to God's word as it is poured out by a broken-hearted preacher. The next Great Awakening begins with your next prayer and your first step towards Jesus.
NOTE TO SELF: If you desire to be more like Jesus, pray for your pastor. Jesus does. You should too. Have you prayed for your pastor today? He needs it & you need the practice.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Superintendent
At the 2007 General Council of the Assemblies of God, during his final message as General Superintendent Thomas E. Trask preached,
"What many churches are offering America is a new religion that guarantees no hell and requires no holiness. It's a limp spineless Christianity that does not confront sin for fear of being judgmental. It's an impotent gospel that tells people everything is okay."
Brother Trask warned of five dangers threatening the effectiveness of churches:
1. Situational ethics in which Biblical absolutes are rejected.
2. Falling prey to cultural seduction.
3. Cultural accommodation, in which churches are distorting Scriptures on issues ranging from abortion to social drinking.
4. Inclusive salvation-a view that everybody goes to heaven and no one goes to hell.
5. Passionless pulpits-preachers that make sure no one in the pew is upset at the sermon material.
Note to self: You have more in common with the AOG than you may want to admit. Don't lose your voice.
In 2016 many churches aren't in danger of speaking in tongues, but they are dangerously close to losing their voice.
God help us to TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Imperfect
"David became greater & greater, for the Lord of hosts was w him...David realized that the Lord established him king of Israel & that He had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel." 2 Sam. 5:10,12
David was an imperfect, God called man. When he forgot who called him, and where he came from, he lost sight of where he was going. Don't we all.
Bad leaders live to do wrong. Good leaders avoid doing what is wrong. Great leaders know God has placed them where they are to make a difference in the lives of other, not to make a name for themselves.
NOTE TO SELF: Do you live to make a name for yourself or do you desire to make a difference? Prayerlessness feeds your pride, but prayerfulness yields humility. Prayer changes people, and prayerful people are used by God to change things. Make a difference.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Preacher
"Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially they who labor in the word and doctrine." 1 Timothy 5:17
Double honor includes paying preachers and praying for them. Paying without praying leads to ineptitude on the part of preachers. Praying without paying leads to pious ingratitude on the part of the people.
Pray for preachers this morning. They need it, and you will benfefit from it.
God blesses His people with the kind of preachers they pray for. Prayerless people usually get the kind of preacher they deserve, and never appreciate the preacher they have.
Talking about preachers has the power to cut them down to size, or to puff them up in your own eyes. Praying for them has the power to lift up their arms in the relentless battle against evil.
Are you lifting up or cutting down your preacher?
When God's people pray for preachers, their prayers catch the wind of Heaven & God delivers His direction, protection and correction to His preachers.
Note to self: Pray for preachers. They need it. You need the practice.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!