I was in Bluffton IN for the weekend. It was a blessing. Saturday night I saw a documentary on the war in Uganda, and how the rebels are abducting children at a young age and brainwashing them to fight by exposing them to extreme violence. The situation needs lots of prayer.For more on what you can do go to Invisible Children.
On Sunday afternoon we had a bible study on prayer. It was very convicting for me. The challenge that the speaker started out with was this: "If you can't spend 1 to 2 hours praying without repetition, falling asleep, or getting bored, then you don't properly understand the role prayer has in a Christian's life." Then he expounded on Scriptures that show the power and necessity of prayer in a believers life.
During the Bible Study it became apparent that there was a lot about prayer that I didn't have the proper perspective on. I praise God for His continued sanctification!
5 comments:
I listened to a speaker once that challenged everyone there to spend an hour each day praying. At first it sounded impossible, but once you get started, and you find alot of things to pray for. Really, you would be surprised at all the things you can pray for. And you also learn to keep your eyes and ears open for new things and people to pray for. Its also amazing how much closer to God you can grow when you spend that much time talking to Him.
Wasn't that heart wrenching?!?! That's the same thing I posted on a while back!
Luke,
This is a very good point. How much time do we actually spend praying? It is indicative of our spiritual vitality.
That is not to say that we should emphasize "time spent" too much. Incidental details of our prayers may not always be equivalent. Communication happens in so many different ways, but the key point is: it has to happen, and reguarly at that. The reality is, if we have a relationship with God, we will want to spend time communicating with Him.
When Elders of the ACCN (your sister church) meet, one particular brother organizes a prayer vigil (24hours for a couple of days_. There are 1/2 hour slots throughout the whole time that people can sign up for.
This is a wonderful experience to participate in. But it makes me think--why does it seem so hard to regularly commit to longer time slots like that (1/2 hour or 1hr or more)?
Is it that I don't have pressing needs?
Is it that I don't think so highly of my Lord?
Is it because I'm worshiping something/someone else?
Good food for thought!
Mark: One thing that the speaker emphasized was that we shouldn't pray out of guilt. If we properly understand the power of prayer they will not need any other motivation.
a good friend of mine is in Uganda right now. He works for food for the hungary. If anyone would like to pray for Uganda missions/needs, email me and I'll send you some specefic requests from him.
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