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This morning brought me to thinking about my prayer life, again. In a recent post I pondered and tried to wrap my head around addressing the Lord in prayer and making prayer time more than using His name just as a pronouncement to begin a laundry list of physical ailments, money concerns, etc.
Today, I would like to address those prayer concerns that deal with everyday life that we all come up with. Of course God cares about them and He wants us to talk to Him about those them. However, in our culture, I think we are missing the boat (for the most part) when it comes to these things. Having been in prayer groups all across the country, I think I can confidently say that as a whole, we don't generally pray for the character of the people in those situations. {Which makes the HUGE assumption that we are praying for others and that we are offering to others personal prayer requests that have to do with our own lives. But that is another post for another time} The following is a list of character qualities, in no particular order, which are cobbled together from three different places (Galatians 5 , 2 Peter 1, Romans 12), combining certain words when repeated: "Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control, Moral Excellence, Knowledge, Perseverance, Godliness, Humility, Hope, Wisdom, Abhorring Evil, Diligence, Fervent Spirit, Servitude, Rejoicing, Devotion to Prayer, Giving, Hospitality, Blessing Persecutors, Empathy, Unity, Being Teachable, Overcoming evil with good." It excites me to see how invigorating my prayer life becomes when character becomes the focus. When we pray for people's character, certain things happen:
 Why do you think it is, that sometimes we need to be reminded of the encouragement that once so emboldened our hearts? My wonderful wife did this for me last night... allow me to explain.
When we decided to leave our post in Pennsylvania for a position in Ohio, there was going to be a month of time where I wouldn't be working. The Lord really impressed upon me that this would be a great time of sabbatical for me. In college ministry, you never truly get a break and we had been at it for over 10 years. Those four weeks were going to be a time of rest and research for me, and they were. Now, if you know anything of our story, we are in a place where the position that I had accepted fell through days before it was to begin and once again, I am searching for where the Holy Spirit would lead us next. No doubt, this has been a trying time and emotions have run the gamut, but through it all God is sovereign. Last night, I was feeling somewhat worn out over the whole, "being in limbo" thing when my fantastically insightful wife shot me a little reminder. "You just need to remember that you're still on sabbatical." It is amazing to me how so little a thing to say, to be reminded of, can have such a big impact emotionally. Pastors and ministers look forward to this time that they get to rest, read, and serve. May I honor the rest of us by being deligent with my time. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:23-25 NASB) I can once again see my time as not simply spinning my wheels with no apparent purpose. Rather, I can focus on the present and what I am doing with today. And may Jesus Christ be glorified with what I do with the days He gives me. Encourage someone today. Give it meaning as well as feeling. Remind them of the purpose that is set before them and help fan the flame of a fervent spirit. Lately, I have been studying the life of David through the books of 1&2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, and Psalms. Today I was struck by David's prayer (2 Samuel 7:18-29 & 1 Chronicles 17:16-27) in response to God declaring His covenant with David and his household.
Notice that any self-centered terminology in David's prayer quickly fades away after the first verse! No I's or My's; he even goes so far as to start talking about himself in the third-person, like some narrator who can only describe a scene that unfolds before him. We get a glimpse of David's complete humility before God in this moment, especially with how he uses the word "servant" over and over again to refer to himself. The whole thing reads as a list of David's recognition of God's attributes and actions; and he glorifies God for them all. Now, I don't know how your prayer life works, but can we say that we do this sort of praying often? Or is it more self-centered, using I's and My's to list off concerns, rather than giving God glory? Is the name of the Lord used only as an announcement that the prayer request is coming next or as some sort of invocation to process the request (Lord, bless me in...; God, heal me of...)? Surely, our God cares about these things. However, we should strive to be more God-centered in our prayer life, acknowledging Him for all His awesomeness and greatness in our lives, reflecting an attitude of servanthood that is dedicated to emptying ourselves of selfish motives and doing what the Spirit commands us to do. Allow me to challenge you to start praying more often like David did here in 2 Samuel 7 & 1 Chronicles 17. See how you can glorify Him in your prayer life, using His name in more ways than simple pronouncement. See if you can start thinking of yourself coming humbly before Him in utter servanthood, ready to be commanded to serve the One True Living God. I was just thinking that the book I just finished was going to be one of the top five that I recommend to people, when it occurred to me... what are my "Top 5" devotional-type books that I would suggest that everyone read? So, without further ado:  Number 5: Spiritual Disciplines by Donald Whitney This is a great primer on what all of us are called to do in the Christian life. If you are looking to develop your character and faith beyond simply praying and reading your Bible, this is a great resource.  Number 4: Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels Regardless of any opinions you might have about Willow Creek, this book is inspirational about getting out of the constant Christian bubble that so many of us fall into so easily. Think differently about how you can reach the world and the community in which you live.  Number 3: Radical by David Platt Start thinking exponentially about how God wants you to serve. Simply stated challenges that will hopefully stir you to action in bigger, more global ways than you are used to acting on.  Number 2: Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren This is a great devotional for those who are needing revitalization in their spiritual walk with the Lord. Spend time with the Creator of the Universe and figure out what He wants of you in your life right now.  Number 1: Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders This book is great for every believer to read through, even if they aren't in a place of leadership. Superb Biblical principles about interpersonal dynamics. If you are a person who knows other people, you will find this book very insightful. After thinking through all the options, I recognize that these all have to do with having an active faith (Honorable mention goes to Master Plan of Evangelism by Coleman which just got bumped out of the top five when Platt moved in). Each are short and easy to read, but the real challenge isn't in the reading; it's in the follow through. Let me challenge you to pick up any of these books, read through one of them by the end of the month, and act on what you learn. Let me know how it is going in the comments down below.
Tomorrow, I will post my more intellectual devotionals that I would recommend to folks. They'll be the ones that are longer, more drawn out, and you might need a dictionary and the internet alongside to help you understand exactly the train of thought the author is going on and on about.  So, this morning I woke up and said to myself, "Self, it's a good day to run." And that is precisely what I did (so very Forrest Gump of me, I know). 10 miles and just under 2 hours later, I was collapsing on the couch for the rest of the morning until lunch.
I took this photo of where I ran today. That's it. Looks sort of like a middle-school art project on perspective. Just a straight piece of pavement that doesn't turn or bend in the slightest, with no perceivable end in sight. Now, I find running kind of a bore to begin with and I could expound on my complaints on the straightness of it all, the lack of any view other than trees on one side and corn fields on the other, the lack of other human beings sweating it out on the trail with me, etc. And those were my initial reactions. However, very quickly I chose to look at this from a more positive "perspective." It was straight. No need to worry about getting lost or making some wrong turn. It was in the middle of farm land. No need to worry about shady areas of town. It was lonely. No need to worry about showing my ugly sweaty body pounding the pavement. It also made for a great opportunity to get to the end of myself and get alone with God. Solitude is often something we tend to forget about in our daily lives, especially with all the distractions now actively vying for our attention. Now don't get me wrong; if you know me, you know I am an extrovert by nature and get strength from being with people. And solitude focused on brooding over yourself is no good either. But to spend time utterly uninterrupted with the Lord, glorifying Him in who He is and what He has, is, and will do in your life is time well spent. Joy in the Lord in its rawest sense. Solitude uniquely does this in a way that normal quiet times can't. I'm a big fan of silence and solitude, the longer the better. Let me encourage you to get out there and go get lonely with God.  I love memory verses like this one from Paul's closing in 1 Thessalonians 5:22. It's short and to the point. "abstain from every form of evil." It's the second half of a thought that starts out with "hold fast to that which is good;" which I am a big proponent of as well, and we will get to that in a second.
Often people get wrapped up in the thought of the gray areas of life, the line of questioning that brings people to ponder, "What is evil really? Isn't it a concept that we have made up for ourselves?" or, "Really, in this scenario, from this point of view, this questionable action is acceptable." Some Christians I have met have actually fallen for this line of thinking and have become handcuffed in their faith, unable to live in a maximal righteous manner. They instead, unwittingly, have decided to live from situation to situation, trying to figure out what minimal standard they can get away with and still call themselves good. This makes me truly saddened. In this age where we focus on a loving God and of "faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love," (1 Corinthians 13:13), we have forgotten an important concept. Along with being called to love, we are also called to hate. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good (Romans 12:9)! Along with 1 Thess 5:21-22 and other places in the Bible, we begin to learn that we ARE created in such a way as to be able to distinguish between good and evil. Let's not allow ourselves the opportunity to become flabby minded; unwilling to choose a side between the two, all because some speaker somewhere provided a scenario of some Christian caught between the two choices of some serious ethical dilema that fell far outside the scope of everyday life. In 1 Thessalonians 5:22, the word I find the most intriguing is- form. "abstain from every form of evil." This word also has a footnote that it could also be "apperance" which elaborates the idea even more fully for me. Like I noted in my last blog, I can get a little fixated on time. In Ephesians 5:15-16 we learn that if you are wise, you will use your time appropriately. And I want to be counted among the wise. It's easy to fill up our days with doing stuff. Are we going to choose the types of things that leave no doubt in people's minds that we are Christian? Will our actions drive people to the gospel and ultimately the glory of the Lord? As Christians, we should be choosing to spend our time on things that are obviously good, and not on things that are questionably evil. Ephesians 5:15-16 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. Romans 12:9 Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.  Time. At a certain level, I can be obsessed with it. How it is spent, the potential for things to do with it, how much has passed, how much can things in the future can get done in it, etc. And other things as well... is God bound by it or not and the ramifications that has on personal theology, when it comes to an end what will it be like, etc.
How we spend our time is what I feel most drawn to lately. Maybe because I have an abundance of it. Let me say from experience, given too much time to do nothing is NOT a good thing. It becomes very easy to wallow a day away. When you think about it, without some self-discipline, killing a week of time is relatively easy. And once you learn how to kill a week of time, two weeks in a row isn't difficult either. Then, before you know it, you are staring down the barrel of a month of wasted time. That my friends, is the bottom of a barrel you don't want to be sitting on. There comes this shame along with it that says, "You should do more with yourself." And frankly, it's true. You should. Then you get into this self-sufficiency routine that makes you think at least you are accomplishing something. But what is easy to forget, is that along with getting certain things done for one-self, you should be open to allowing the Holy Spirit to interupt our plans. God gives us time to minister to others (as well as do some disciplines that further our own walk). Carla recently blogged about what we have been reading in Radical by David Platt- teaching others what we learn in our times with the Lord. When was the last time you shared what you are learning with someone you know? Carla and I both have stories that pertain to our quiet times that seemingly had no impact for ourselves personally, but a day or two later someone has come along needing to hear the very thing we read about. God has given me quite the abundance of time. Part of what I am learning is to be consistent with several different things in my life (such as writing, excersize, etc.). But more importantly, I am preparing my heart for when I am a pastor somewhere. Time is a precious comodity and pastors tend to quickly have very full schedules. The lesson I am hoping becomes engrained by that time, is to allow the Holy Spirit dictate my schedule. To be flexible in a way that allows me to ebb and flow with my time and the disciplines of life and still have enough foresight to see the truly important... the needs of other people. |
Jason RitzServing through love and laughter is a great way to live. Categories
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