Prayer too often falls to the bottom of the list.
Most Christians feel guilty for how little they pray and how often they allow prayer to be neglected in their daily lives. Not surprisingly, when Paul writes to local church, he says, put prayer first.
1 Timothy 2:1-2 says, First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
Put prayer first. Prayer should be put first, chronologically. We should pray before we do anything else. However, there is something even more important being affirmed here.
Prayer should be seen as “first of all.” Prayer should not merely come first, it should be considered first. Prayer is preeminent in rank and importance. Prayer is the most important thing we do, as individuals and as a local church.
There are dozens of reasons prayer is the most important thing we do. One reason is prayer expresses most clearly who we are—children of our heavenly Father who delight and depend on him each day.
OUR COUNTRY
There are many things we are told we should do for our country right now—vote, fight, speak up against injustice, and more. But, the Scriptures urge that “supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions.”
We are all burdened for our earthly country right now. It is suffering from an ongoing pandemic. It is battling widespread unemployment and a struggling economy. It is divided socially and politically in numerous areas. And it is facing a very important presidential election on November 3.
The most important thing we can do for our country right now is to pray.
OUR OPPORTUNITY
We are devoting the month of October to prayer.
Each Wednesday, we are urging you to fast your lunch break to pray for the following things:
October 7 // Revival
October 14 // Servant Leadership
October 21 // Peace & Justice
October 28 // Election
Each Wednesday, we will release a prayer guide to help you pray. Then, on the final Wednesday, October 28, we will gather together for a church-wide prayer meeting.
LAUREN’S TESTIMONY
Last week, Lauren Trew shared her amazing testimony with our church. It is extraordinary. Yet, there are elements that are all too common. Many know about Jesus, but don’t know Him. Read her story and be encouraged to hear of the many people who participated in Jesus’ work of knocking on the door of her heart–until the day when the Lord sovereignly reached down and opened her heart. What a Savior!
“A couple of weeks ago, Walt preached about how our calling “to be in fellowship with Jesus” doesn’t have anything to do with our seeking or our finding Him...that it is God’s invitation TO us. That brought to mind this verse: Revelation 3:20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” Since I am a very visual person, I love this image of Jesus standing at my door knocking and waiting patiently for me to hear Him, open the door, and let Him be in my life. The Lord brought so many people to knock on that door with Him before I finally opened it all the way. He is incredibly patient and kind.
I knew ABOUT Jesus from a young age, but I didn’t KNOW Jesus until I was an adult. One of my earliest memories of someone who loved Jesus is my Great- great Aunt Bessie...she talked and sang about Him a lot! She taught me Psalm 23 by having us say it together every time we would make her bed. Her sister, my great-grandmother Minnie also talked to me about Jesus and I know without a doubt these two spent some quality time praying for me through the years.
My parents participated in the “knocking” by taking our family to church giving me the opportunity to hear about Jesus. One of my favorite ways I got to experience the Lord was through choir. The Lord definitely reaches my heart through music! Since childhood I have had many Sunday school teachers, those choir leaders, and pastors who have poured God’s love into my life...knocking on that door with Him. I would come to the door, peer out the peephole, really like what I saw...a couple of times open the door a little bit and start to usher Him in... only to hold back. Not sure what it would mean...what I would have to give up to be one of “those” people ... “all in for Christ”. There was even a Christian rock concert at the high school one evening that helped Jesus knock on the door. I wanted to be part of what they were singing about. I wanted to really know that Jesus, so when they presented an invitation to “come down front and pray”, I walked that aisle and did it! And the next day, nothing changed. I still did what I wanted to do and said not nice words I wanted to say.
Fast forward a bunch of years (we only have so much time after all), Scott and I got married and had two beautiful daughters ...and everything was perfect. ;) GOING to church was very important to me. I loved the prayers, the ritual, the music! I didn’t mind the preaching, but the music...I really loved the words of the hymns. But words like “being saved” were weird to me. And I sure didn’t understand that I couldn’t do anything to make myself “right” with God. I just knew I felt guilty a lot. Many a Sunday I would sit there and make a deal with God, “Okay, this week, I will do {fill in the blank} and I won’t do . And for real, I will not say bad words”. I thought it was up to me and that this could only be bartered with the Lord on Sunday in a church building. And when I had already done that thing I wasn’t going to do and said words that could quite possibly make a sailor blush by Sunday afternoon, I shrugged my shoulders in defeat and resigned myself to wait until the following week to try to “get it right” with God again.
When we were transferred to Maryland, I was pretty sure my world as I knew it was coming to an end. It was. But in a way better way, than I could have imagined. One of our first Sundays in our new town, this verse was in the church bulletin: Matthew 28:20 “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” That was cut out and lived on our refrigerator for a very long time. Oh how I wanted to really experience the Lord’s presences WITH me. For the first time, I lived far away from family, these girls were adorable but they were babies and so needy and their Dad was away from home a lot with work, so I was lonely and didn’t have that many friends and our marriage was in a bad place. Fast forward another year and a half, my best friend Tiena who had moved to Maryland from Georgia at the same time as we did was being transferred with her husband’s job to Africa. My closest friend who I relied on was moving to another continent. This was bad news. Before she left, she offered (um, more like insisted) I go to the welcome class of her bible study with her. More Knocking. She had told me about this before, but I thought she was crazy spending so much time at that place. I was not happy about having to spend two hours at a BIBLE STUDY just to be with my friend before she moved away. I went to church on Sunday, why did I need to devote another day of the week to the Bible?!
We went that day. Tiena filled out mine, and my girls’ registration cards, because I wasn’t sure I wanted to commit to something like this. And that year, my first of intentional reading and studying God’s Word for myself, was when that I learned that I was a sinner. Oh, that’s why I felt guilty...I am. I learned that God is in control of all.the.things. Not me and it doesn’t do much good trying to cling to control. I learned that God was for me and He was for our marriage...it wasn’t up to me to make bargains and “fix” things. I learned that God didn’t just send His Son, Jesus to save the world, it is because of His great love for me that He gave His perfect Son Jesus to save me. Suddenly being “saved” didn’t sound weird anymore, it sounded beautiful and life giving. Loud knocking and by God’s amazing GRACE, I finally opened that door!! So that’s the story of how that year, the Lord not only saved our marriage, He changed my whole world and saved my life. Suddenly the prayers in church made more sense. The hymns were even more beautiful and special to me...and I realized that so many of them were actually words straight from the Bible! And I know I don’t need to make deals with God or wait until Sunday to talk to Him.
I wish I could say everything has been smooth sailing ever since, but you would know that was me sinning and not speaking the truth. But I can say that knowing I have a true best friend who knows me, ugly sins and all, who is indeed WITH me and FOR me to the end of the age, is the BEST news ever! To God be the glory, great things HE has done!”