Tag Archives: Prayer

While I was talking to God…

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“And your Father who sees in secret will reward you..”
(Matthew 6:4 (ESV)

Oh, how sneaky Satan can be!

The last couple of weeks we have been reading through Matthew 6, the section of the sermon on the Mount when Jesus talks about hypocrisy in our acts of devotion.  Jesus warns us, not to stop doing acts of devotion like alms-giving, prayer, and fasting, but to be very careful that these acts are not done for the recognition and praise of man.  If you are performing for the applause of man, that that will be your sole reward.  However, if you are performing for the eyes of God, then your soul will be rewarded.

The problem is, this is a very tricky thing.  Satan, that “sneaky-sneaker” (a literal translation of “more crafty” in Genesis 3), likes to take the good things that God has given us and encourages us to abuse them.  You say you love the law, then Satan begins to make you a legalist, holding others to a standard that you could not even hope to attain.  You say you love the freedom that is given in Jesus Christ, then Satan tempts you to a lawlessness in which anything goes.  You say you love the traditional, long held beliefs of the Church, then Satan lures you into an inflexible orthodoxy that is all head and no heart.  Satan cannot offer you anything, he is not a creator; but he will always try to twist and pervert that which God has created so that we love the gift more than the giver.  You say you love the new contemporary movements within the Church, then Satan draws you into a shallow, vacuous, “experience” in which a lot of words are said but little is communicated.

I was thinking about this on my run this morning.  “Who am I running for?”  Well, I’m running for my family – I want to lose weight and stay healthy so that I can enjoy watching my kids (and, eventually, grandkids) grow and be successful; and enjoy a long life beside my loving wife.  But then vain-glory creeps in and I become obsessed with my weight and if I’m “looking better.”

I’m running for the goal of completing a marathon, and hopefully running several over the next few years.  I’ve wanted to do this since I was in High School, and I’m only now reaching the point where that seems possible.  But then, while running, I find I like to be noticed.  I see other runners and I pick up the pace a little.  I make subtle references  to my running(or in this article’s case, not so subtle), so that others will stop and say – “Good for him, he’s running.”

What a mess.

We do the same thing with our lives of devotion.  We like to say to people, “As I was spending time in prayer and devotion this morning…” as a way of demonstrating our excellent religious affections.  We put bumper stickers on our cars like (WWJD, and “God is my Co-Pilot) to make sure everyone knows that this is a Christian’s car.  We carry around Bibles stuffed with notes and highlighted through so that everyone knows we’re serious about our study – or we get new Bibles with all the footnotes and the genuine hand sewn leather cover so that others can see how you value God’s word.

Friends there is nothing wrong, in fact I encourage you, to pray and study God’s word every morning, to put as many bumper stickers on your car, to highlight, annotate, and study the Scriptures; against these things there are no laws.  But always keep your heart in check.  Make sure that your devotion is a time of sweet fellowship with the Lord; a time to hear His word for your life, and a time to offer thanksgiving and praise for His life.

Your life of devotion should be a lot like the time you spend with your spouse.  You share quiet moments together, working through the difficult times, encouraging each other and supporting one another, whispering words of love and adoration, developing a life-long relationship.  These are the moments shared between the two of you, never broadcast for others to see.  How inappropriate it would be for someone to say, “While I was whispering sweet nothings in my wife’s ear last night…”  But what the world does see are two people who are madly in love with each other, and who will be together until death does part them.

So it is with your devotion to God.  Let your acts of prayer, charity, and dedication be done in secret.  Let it be the quiet, intimate time with God that sustains you through the day.  Don’t broadcast it to the world.  Do this, and the world will see someone who lives in the love of God, and nothing, not even death, can separate us from that.

SDG

A Caucus Prayer

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“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses,
who trust in chariots because they are many
and in horsemen because they are very strong,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord!”
(Isaiah 31:1 (ESV))

Last night I had the privilege of opening our local Caucus meeting with prayer.  I knew this wasn’t an opportunity to preach a sermon, and I didn’t want to campaign for a particular candidate or cause – but there was something on my heart that needed to be said. 

I’ve heard it again and again, “This is the most important election our nation has faced!”  Really?!?  I’ll admit that this is an important election.  Our nation stands at a crossroads; financially, philosophically, politically.  The election of the next president will advance the nation one way or another.  But does the election of a president really have that much bearing on the future of our nation?  In the proper balance of powers, the executive office is just one of three, and our legislative and judicial branches are equally important in determining the direction of the country.

I think what frustrates me most, and what I wanted to communicate last night in my prayer, is that as a Christian, our sense of security and purpose in life should not at all depend upon who sits in the Oval Office, but rather, who is seated on the throne in heaven.  Our hopes and fears are not met in the perfect political candidate, but in the sinless Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.  Contrary to popular belief, America is not the Kingdom of God.  As Christians, we are called to be good citizens, and we may love and serve our nation patriotically.  But we possess dual citizenship.  For we are also citizens of a great Kingdom, a heavenly realm, with Christ as our Lord and Savior.

So I’ll say this from the onset, and it will bear repeating throughout this election cycle: It matters not who is elected, for God is on His throne, and all is right in Heaven.  Be active and informed citizens.  Cast an informed and faithful ballet.  But regardless of the outcome, do not let your hearts be troubled.

Here is the prayer from last night.

Sovereign and gracious God, you are the God of all nations, in your providence and wisdom you cause nations to rise and fall, in the light of your wisdom you guide us through times of abundance and times of want; we thank you for your guiding hand which has lead us in our pilgrimage, and for your graciousness that has blessed our land.  Keep us ever mindful of those in this world who do not share such blessing and live under tyrannical oppression; may your justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Almighty God, we thank you for our freedom – given in your grace, secured in your Son Jesus Christ, and defended by the generations who have gone before us – our freedom to gather in peaceful assembly tonight to choose delegates to represent us and to speak to the nation regarding the field of candidates in our upcoming presidential election.  Grant that those who are chosen tonight may be guided by your wisdom, and faithfully represent the people whom they serve.

We confess that too often we tend to trust in the strength of our candidates and elected officials rather than in your Almighty hand; our sense of security and provision depends on whether our political party is in power; and we forget that we depend on you for our daily bread.  Teach us to trust in you, and in you alone, for our safety, our security, our liberty, and our happiness in life.  Raise up for our nation men and women who, in humility and gratitude, will serve you as they serve this state and this nation.  We lift before you our president, and all who have been elected to serve this nation and state, that they may be led by the light of your wisdom, guided by your truth and justice, and that your providential hand may work your sovereign purpose in and through them. 

Gracious God, we thank you for your grace and mercy which has guided us through the manifold changes of this life; but most of all, for the love that we know in your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.  In all that we say, in all that we do, in all that we are, may we give you praise, glory, and honor, this day and forevermore.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Grace and peace be with you!

SDG