prayer

We finished the 28 days of prayer. Will you keep praying?

Jesus told an interesting parable in our Bible passage for today. A widow is seeking justice, but an unjust judge won’t give it. But she is persistent, constantly going to the judge over and over again until the judge finally relents.

This parable can be challenging for us, because Jesus seems to be putting God in the role of being an unjust judge. In a sense He is, but His point isn’t that God is unjust. Luke, or more precisely, the Luke inspired by the Holy Spirit, seems to understand that people will struggle with this, so he tells us Jesus’ point up front.

“And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.”

And, just in case we still aren’t sure, Jesus tells us plainly after the parable,

“And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.”

No, God is not unjust.

Parables usually have one primary message. This one is that we should be persistent in our prayers and not lose hope.

Prayer is an incredible gift from God. He invites us sinful creatures to come before the throne of Holy, almighty Creator to talk with Him, praise Him, present our requests to Him. In addition, prayer changes our heart.

Persistent prayer changes us even more.

I was talking to a pastor a few weeks ago and he told a story of a time several years ago when, during their service, they had a time of prayer and sang the song, “Breathe”. In the song has a chorus that says repeatedly,

“I’m desperate for You.”

This pastor said he looked out as his congregation and they weren’t desperate! After the song, the service ended, and they all casually walked out talking and joking with each other. The song was just a song and the words, just words.

Persistent prayer is our response to being desperate for God. We need Him. There’s nothing we can do ourselves. Maybe it’s a sickness, maybe finances, maybe the salvation of a loved one, maybe our sin has put us in a seemingly hopeless situation…we know we can’t fix the problem. Only God can fix it.

So, we pray.

Like the widow in the parable, we bang on God’s door day after day, hour after hour, desperately begging for God to act.

However, there is a difference between God and the judge in the parable. God is just. Jesus’ explanation after the parable changes the attitude of our desperate and persistent prayers. We pray repeated, desperately, and boldly to God BECAUSE we know He is just.

That’s a big difference. We can persistently pray not only for whatever it is that we need, but in trust pray that God’s will would be done. Maybe the just and loving answer God will give is, “No”, and He will give us peace and understanding about His answer.

Whatever the prayer, whatever God’s answer, let’s keep praying. Let’s daily and hourly bring our praise and our petitions to God in faith, trusting that He is good and just and we are in good hands. Keep praying and don’t lose heart.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

You give us the wonderful gift of prayer. Keep us steadfast in our prayer. Help us to always pray no matter the situation. As we have need, Lord, help us to pray persistently without losing hope, always knowing that You are good and just and will answer our prayers as our good Heavenly Father.

Amen

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.

When you look at the world around you, what do you see?

It’s easy to see problems.

It’s easy to see…

• division
• confusion
• hostility toward the church
• and indifference to the Gospel

But what does Jesus see?

Right before these verses, Matthew tells us that Jesus saw the crowds and

“had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus does not see an inconvenience. He sees a harvest. A harvest is something ready. Something prepared. Something waiting to be gathered in.

And then Jesus says something surprising.

He doesn’t tell His disciples first to “go.” He tells them to pray.

“Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers.”

The mission of the church does not begin with strategy. It begins with prayer.

God is the Lord of the harvest. The people belong to Him. The timing belongs to Him. The growth belongs to Him.

And yet, He invites us to ask.

We pray for pastors, teachers, missionaries, and church workers. We pray that God would raise up faithful men and women to serve in our congregation and beyond. We pray for boldness to speak the truth in love.

Right now, there is a shortage of pastors, teachers, and youth workers in the church. We need more church workers. But we should also notice something else.

When you pray for workers, you may find that God is preparing you.

Jesus told the disciples to pray that the Lord would send laborers into the harvest and the next thing we see in Matthew is Jesus sending the disciples. Sometimes the laborer God sends is the one who is praying.

For some of you, that may mean becoming a pastor, deaconess, teacher, or youth minister. However, these are not the only ones sent into the harvest. In fact, the members of the church congregations tend to be more “in the fields” and have more opportunity to bring in the harvest.

All Christians are Christ’s disciples and all have been sent, including you.

You may not preach a sermon. You may not go overseas. But you may have a conversation. You may invite someone to church. You may show mercy to a neighbor. You may speak Christ into someone’s confusion.

The harvest is plentiful.

Jesus still has compassion.

And He still tells us to pray.

So, let’s do that. Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

You are the Lord of the harvest. Have compassion on our community and draw many to faith in Christ. Raise up faithful workers for Your church, and prepare my heart to serve where You send me.

Amen

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.

Have you ever prayed for yourself?

Of course you have.

Have you ever prayed for your family? Your friends? Your church?

Jesus has.

In John 17, on the night before His crucifixion, Jesus prays. He prays for His disciples. But then He does something remarkable. He prays for people who aren’t even there yet.

He prays for those who “will believe.”

That’s you!

Before He went to the cross, Jesus was praying for you. And what does He ask for?

Unity.

“That they may all be one.”

Unity is not uniformity. Jesus is not asking that we all have the same personalities, preferences, or opinions about every minor thing. In fact, God gives a variety of Spiritual gifts for the benefit of the church. Rather, He prays that we would be united in Him. United in faith. United in truth. United in love.

Why?

“So that the world may believe.”

Our unity in Christ is a witness to the world.

Division, bitterness, and constant conflict harm that witness. They distract from Christ. They make the church look like just another fractured group fighting for power.

But when sinners forgiven by Jesus live in repentance, humility, and love toward one another, the world sees something different.

It sees Christ.

This doesn’t mean living out that unity is always easy. It isn’t. We are sinners. We misunderstand one another. We hurt one another. Sometimes we disagree strongly.

Unity is not maintained by pretending those things don’t exist. It is maintained the same way all Christian life is maintained — by repentance and forgiveness, by love, communication, and understanding.

Jesus prayed for our unity before He shed His blood to secure it.

Through His death and resurrection, He has made us one body. We don’t create unity. He does. We simply live in it.

So today, we can join Jesus in praying for our church. For patience with one another. For humility. For truth. For love. That we would be one in Christ, and that our unity would point others to Him. We can also pray for the church throughout the world, that we would be united in true Christian doctrine and support one another in the mission.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for making us one through Your Son. Forgive us for the ways we contribute to division. Help our church to be united in Christ — in truth and in love — so that others may see Jesus in us and believe.

Amen

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.

Is it easy for you to forgive?

The answer to that question probably depends on a few factors.

• Who has wronged me?
• What did the person do?

Forgiveness isn’t always easy, yet Jesus tells us to forgive.

One day, Peter came to Jesus and asked Him how many times he should forgive someone who sins against him. “Seven times?” Peter asked. Peter probably thought he was being overly generous to say seven times.

“Jesus will be really impressed with my suggestion.” Peter may have thought.

Jesus’ response probably surprised Peter.

“I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

Jesus shows us God’s attitude on forgiveness.

God’s forgiveness is beyond generous. He forgives over and over and over again. This isn’t a license to sin, it’s a great comfort because we are sinners.

In fact, Jesus forgave the very people who were murdering Him on the cross as they were doing it.

Did they deserve it? No. But Jesus still forgave.

Do we deserve God’s forgiveness? No. But Jesus still forgives.

In the end, Jesus grounds the forgiveness we give others in the gracious forgiveness we have received. Just as God forgives us over and over, so we can forgive others over and over. Just as God forgives us of even the most horrific sins, so we can forgive others of horrific sins. When we struggle to forgive, it’s helpful to remember how much and how often Jesus has forgiven you.

Forgiveness and a Change of Heart

Jesus, being God, is able to instantly forgive even the greatest sin and immediately relent from His anger and love the person. It’s not always that easy for us. 

Forgiveness is the intentional, grace-based decision to release a person from the debt of their sins against you, mirroring God’s mercy rather than seeking revenge. It’s not a feeling. Forgiveness is a choice of the will (an act) to obey God and show love to the person, but it is often made while feelings of hurt, anger, or pain still exist.

We can forgive and then seek God to help us deal with the hurt, anger, and pain, which may time a long time. We can forgive and then seek God for wisdom regarding boundaries in our relationship with the person. But forgiveness is the first step.

Forgiveness is release.

You are releasing the other person from a debt to you. You are also being released from the chains of bitterness and anger.

But also notice that Jesus prays for the Father to forgive the people. This can and should also be our prayer. Just as we have been undeservingly forgiven by God. So, we pray that the other person, by grace through faith, would be forgiven by God as well.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

It can be hard for me to forgive people. Yet, I know you have forgiven me of so much. Help me to forgive others as you have forgiven me. I especially ask you to help me forgive the following people whom I struggle to forgive, […]. As I forgive them, Lord, please heal me of the hurt and anger and give me wisdom to know what boundaries are appropriate.

Amen

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.

How quickly do you expect God to do what you pray for?

Good Friday is one of the most important days of the church year…when we remember Jesus’ death on the cross. Easter, of course, is another important day when we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection. But the Saturday in between?…

We wait.

Waiting isn’t easy.

Today, we expect to get everything fast.

• Amazon is shipping same-day now. Sometimes within hours.
• The new Boom Supersonic plane will eventually be flying people from New York to London in a little over 3.5 hrs flying at nearly 2x the speed of sound.
• In places with gigabit internet connections, you can download a 2hr HD movie in 25 seconds.

We want things fast.

When it takes too long, we tend to lose our patience. When I worked full-time in online marketing, the rule was that if a web page took longer than 5 seconds to load, people would start leaving. Now, a page is expected to load in about 1 second.

On the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter, we wait. In prayer, we often must wait, as well.

God isn’t Amazon or Boom Supersonic or an Internet provider. He doesn’t work on our timetable hoping to have a satisfied customer. He follows His own timing, knowing what we truly need, and we must wait.

I’ve spoken with people who told me that yesterday they prayed for xyz and God didn’t answer their prayer. God did answer their prayer, though. He always does. However, His answer may have been that they needed to wait.

Waiting is not easy, but it is for the best.

It reminds us that we are the created making requests of our creator. It also teaches us to trust God and His love and wisdom, both in how He answers our prayers and when He acts.

We know God’s will is good, His ways are wiser than ours, and He loves us. We can trust Him to always answer our prayers. We can also trust how and when He acts.

As for Micah, he was waiting for Israel to wake up to their evil ways and repent. He would be waiting decades and, ultimately, waiting over 700 years for the fulfillment of His salvation in Jesus Christ.

So, we can join Micah in saying that we will look to the Lord and wait for the God of our salvation, knowing He hears us and He will save us.

Heavenly Father,

It can be difficult to wait, but I know Your timing is better than mine. Help me to be patient and to wait on You.

Amen

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.