PRAY WITHOUT CEASING

A few weeks ago (in March) I had a dream about the urgency of prayer in our church, followed by several confirming words, dreams and visions from others in the body. It was a real wake-up call to make sure that prayer had its proper place in the church, drawing us not to religious practice, but deeply into intimacy with Jesus.

The problem was busyness! We all get busy, we all have too much to do, but the truth is that we don't stop and pray because we have time, we pray because we need the power of the Hoy Sprit for living. We pray because we need direction from our heavenly Father. We pray because we need the mercy of Jesus. We do not pray because we must (as in law) we pray because we must (as in our deepest need to be whole).

Here we are now, about one month out form that first urgent call to pray. Since that time I have certainly changed my prayer routine, made more room in my schedule throughout lent and I have committed to keep that space for the Lord. I have heard from several people that they needed that call to action as well, and who have reoriented their lives to be more intentional in relationship with God. We have also seen a renewed interest in our prayer meeting, which we moved to Tuesdays at noon.

At the same time, I also see that the dire warning has passed and there is a tendency to let the urgent fade into the background of normalcy. It is easy to let complacency creep back in and for us to begin doing everything in our own strength. It is all too easy to let our stomach decide that we need to eat now before we pray. To let urgency demand we skip prayer meeting to spend time catching up on work. To let TV take the place of intimacy not only with God but also with those whom we live.

Most of us have expressed some level of concern for our nation in recent months both during the election and afterwards. Some have taken to political posting, arguing, and letting fear control their view of life. Others have buried their heads in the sand or on pinterest posts to avoid the ugliness of political debate. Yet the truth is that what we are talking about when we speak of the civility of a society, its manners, it social decorum, its moral underpinnings, and the issues of justice in a society is that the real need is for revival. For people to be transformed. We cannot transform a society except one heart at a time being transformed by the love of God in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. The need in our land is less about making America great again, and making America good again, as in good like God is good, as in intentionally becoming more and more like Jesus Christ.

So one month later my real reason for writing is wondering, what will it take to bring us to our knees in prayer? What will convince us that our deepest need is for God? Politics do not change the world, they only reflect the condition of the hearts of those who vote and those who lead. Laws do not change people, God proved that on day one when Adam and Eve chose rebellion over relationship with God and broke his laws bring about sin and death. The Law of the Old Testament did not save us, that was Jesus who died on the cross because we were guilty of violating the Law. More laws will not make our society better or more free, or more moral. Putting the ten commandments on court house lawns will not change our society unless we first write them on our hearts.

Our deepest need is not for social transformation but personal transformation. Pray without ceasing is not a rule, but a way of life that takes me into the presence of God to know his heart, to know his will, and to empower me to do his good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Three Choices

In 2 Samuel 24 we read about the Prophet Gad who came to David at the height of his reign in Israel. Although Israel was enjoying prosperity, and were probably their most religious, the people of God behaved badly, and God used David to chasten the nation, at which point David let his anger override his better judgment, and soon both David and Israel were under judgment. Gad told David that he had three choices (verse 13): three years of famine, three months of being pursued by his (David's) enemies, or three days of pestilence. None of the options were very palatable. That's why it is called judgment. 
The goal of judgment is not punishment but repentance; to turn back to the Lord and seek his face. David's very wise answer, after a great deal of prayer was, verse 14, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.” The three days of pestilence that followed was very severe, but when the three days ended so did the pestilence. Then David built an altar and offered up sacrifice and plead for himself and for his people to be forgiven, and the plague was averted. There was a great deal of loss over those three days but David knew that if they landed in the hands of men they may never recover, but if they landed in the hands of God and repented that they would recover, when they turned to God, and he would give them mercy.  

In this election cycle (2016) I have seen and heard many express their dismay at our choices for President. They fear the bombastic behavior of Trump and his reality show campaign. They distrust Hillary and believe that everything will be up for sale to the highest bidder. And when they look at Johnson, not only do they not believe he has a chance, but they question his ability, his policies, and feel that there is no significant difference in his policies from the other two. He equally lacks credibility, and moral authority, as much as the other two. What is an American to do? Do we vote on party lines? Do we vote for the lesser of two evils? Do we lodge a protest vote? Do we stay home and refuse to participate in a system that seems to be rigged, and that increasingly does not represent the people? 

Or does it? 

In this chapter of our society, as we rail against our political fiasco, and question how, out of 330 Million people, we could end up with this handful of people to choose from, maybe its time to take stock of how we got here? Look at what a mess our society seems to be in: The racial strife, the political climate is hateful, and we must guard our every word for fear that someone MIGHT be offended, not because they actually care about each other, but out of fear of becoming the next target on social media. Our society has become so ready to vilify anyone and everyone. So then, our reflection needs to be, have we reaped what we have sown? Who would want to lead this mess? It looks like some kind of disturbing reality show. 

Enter our three choices for President: One doesn't even really have a chance, the other two, well one of them will be our next president. I have heard all the arguments about what each one will do. I'll be honest, I don't believe either of them. Today, my prayer is like that of King David in 2 Samuel 24.14 “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.”    

If you're not a Christian than this post is probably of little value to you, but to every Christian, my plea is to consider that we are under judgment, reaping what we have sown as a nation. It is time for us to lay down our agendas, our political ideologies, and pray. Pray for mercy, and to fall into the hands of God, rather than the hands of men.