How To Love Your Enemies

by Ray Pritchard

You never know what will grab someone’s heart.

Mosab Hassan Yousef grew up as a Muslim. From an early age, he studied the Quran, memorized its teachings, said the daily prayers, and followed the way of Islam as faithfully as he could. In that respect, he was like many other young men growing up in Palestinian towns in the West Bank, with one important exception.

His father was one of the founders of Hamas, the militant terrorist organization.

You wouldn’t think he would be a likely candidate for conversion, but the ways of God are beyond human explanation. In his book Son of Hamas (Tyndale, 2010), Yousef tells how he met a man who gave him a New Testament. Because of his interest in religious matters, he decided to read it to see for himself what it said. Naturally he started with Matthew. Soon he encountered the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). There he got his first unfiltered exposure to the pure teachings of Jesus.

It blew him away.

When we interviewed Yousef on American Family Radio, he told us the same story he writes in the book. He couldn’t get away from the revolutionary nature of Jesus’ teaching. One particular point stayed in his mind. Matthew 5:43-45 says,

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.”

 

“I was thunderstruck!” he said. This was the message he had been looking for. Soon he became a Christian. Three words so captured his heart he simply couldn’t get away from them.

Love your enemies-don’t hate them.

Love your enemies-don’t despise them.

Love your enemies-don’t kill them.

On the radio he told us, “All the other religions say, ‘Love your friends’ or ‘Love your neighbor,’ but only Jesus says, ‘Love your enemies.’”

So easy to say, so hard to do. This may be the most difficult command Jesus ever gave. Even when we read it in the Bible, it is extremely difficult to believe Jesus meant what He said.

If you’ve got an honest-to-goodness enemy,

If you’ve got someone who doesn’t like you,

If you have so-called friends who attacked you,

If you know people who have hurt your loved ones,

Loving your enemies may not be at the top of your list.

There are a lot of other things we would like to do to our enemies, like getting even or making them suffer like we have suffered. It’s even harder when your enemies have attacked your children or your grandchildren or your spouse.

Who Are My Enemies?

That leads to a very practical question: Who are my enemies? In the broadest sense, an enemy is anyone who turns against me. Jesus is not talking about enemies on the other side of the world. He is talking about personal enemies who tend to be much closer to home. In fact, home is the first place to look for our enemies. Jesus said, “A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household” (Matthew 10:36). He mentions three close relationships that can go sour:

A father and his son,

A mother and her daughter,

A mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law.

We can easily extrapolate from that list to other close relationships, including the husband-wife relationship and relations with grandparents, uncles, aunts, and other more distant relatives. These are the people we go home to every day or interact with on more or less a regular basis. Every week we work with or go to school with people who may dislike us. We may even come to church and see people we would rather not see. Many of our enemies are found in our immediate sphere of influence. If this teaching of Jesus about loving our enemies is going to work, it must work first in the relationships closest to us. You have to learn to deal with the people closest to you before you can impact the world around you.

Most of us have encountered some enemies along the way. Friends come and go, but enemies accumulate. Nothing seems more natural than to hate those who have hurt us deeply. Yet Jesus said, “Love your enemies.” How can we do this?

Unhappy in Babylon

We can find some help from a story tucked away in Jeremiah 29. Here's the background. The year was 597 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his mighty army had come once again to the gates of Jerusalem. They had come once before, in 605 B.C. That’s when they took Daniel and his friends into exile in Babylon. Now eight years later, they have come to Jerusalem to take another group of Jews into exile. It was a humiliating experience for the people of God. It was also a punishment from the Lord because of their rebellion. In a true sense, they got what was coming to them--70 years in captivity in a foreign land, ruled by pagans who did not worship God.

Not all the Jews were taken to Babylon. Jeremiah was one of those who were left behind. Chapter 29 records a letter he sent from Jerusalem to the exiles in Babylon in order to encourage them. God's message is unexpected: "Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper" (v. 7). God's word is very simple: I put you in Babylon for a purpose. Although I know you are humiliated, discouraged, and angry, do not despair. Pray for the prosperity of Babylon.

Read that last phrase of verse 7 very carefully: "If it prospers, you too will prosper." Here is a message from God for all of us. Many who read these words find themselves caught in a bad situation at work, or at school, or at home. Someone has hurt you deeply and it's all you can do not to strike back. With all your energy, you barely hold back the bitterness. Some of it sloshes over the top now and then. You couldn't pray for your enemies if your life depended on it. But God says to do it anyway. That's the whole point of Jeremiah 29:7.

Shalom, the Hebrew word for peace, is used three times in this verse. Besides peace, it means blessing, wholeness, completeness, the absence of conflict, prosperity. Here is the shocking fact—at least it would have been shocking to the Jewish exiles. God ties their blessing to the blessing of the Babylonians. This seems counterintuitive since the exiles were God's people and the Babylonians were pagans. He is really saying they were better off in Babylon, and Babylon is better off because they were there. Said another way, we can summarize this verse this way:

You need Babylon!

Babylon needs you!

Immediately one can imagine any number of objections the Jews might have raised:

"These people are pagans."
"They invaded our land."
"They destroyed our city."
"They burned down the temple we built to worship God."
"They’re vile people—killers and rapists."

"Why would I want to pray for them? They don't deserve it."

It was all true. The Babylonians were not nice people. You really can't be a nice barbaric killer. There is no such category. To spread their kingdom, the Babylonians acted ruthlessly against anyone who dared to oppose them. Life was cheap, death was easy, and torture a means of sending a message to future foes.

God says to his discouraged people, "I know you don't like it in Babylon, but that doesn't matter. You're going to be here for a while so settle down and make the best of it. Don't treat the Babylonians as they treated you. Seek to bless and be a blessing. Pray for the Babylonians. They certainly need the prayers. And you, my people, need to pray. As you pray, I will bless them. And in blessing them, you too will be blessed."

The World vs. God

Nothing seems more natural than to hate those who have mistreated us. But here we learn a better way. After I had preached on this topic, a man said to me, "Everything the world says about human relationships is wrong!"

The world says, “Get even.”
God says, “Seek the good of those who have harmed you.”

The world says, “Get angry.”
God says, “Pray for them.”

The world says, “Don't waste time loving bad people.”
God says, “Love them anyway.”

We need to pray for our enemies, and they need our prayers.

If we don't pray for our enemies, who will?
If we don't pray for our enemies, how will they ever change?
If we don't pray for our enemies, how will we ever be free from bitterness?

Every time we are faced with people who mistreat us, we have three options:

1) We can hate them with total hatred. That accomplishes nothing.
2) We can struggle to hold back our anger. That will emotionally exhaust us.
3) We can pray for God to bless them. That opens the door for God to bless us as well.

“Love your enemies.” Easy to say, hard to do.

What does it mean to love the people who have ruined everything you hold dear?
How do you pray for someone you despise?
How do you seek the good of people you wish were dead?
Why would you seek their prosperity after what they did to you?

How Are We to Love Our Enemies?

Here are seven suggestions that will move us in the right direction.

1) Greet Them

We often overlook this simple step. One part of loving our enemies is greeting them graciously when we see them. Sometimes instead of turning the other cheek, we turn away so we won’t have to say hello to someone who has hurt us. Some of us have been quite adept at looking the other way, ducking into a room, crossing the street, or even using Caller ID to keep from greeting people we don’t like. But if we only greet our friends, what benefit is that? Do not even sinners greet each other? One part of loving your enemies is to greet them instead of avoiding them. Smile, shake hands, and say hello to your enemies. It’s a good first step.

2) Disarm Them

That’s what you do when you turn the other cheek or go the second mile. You disarm them by doing the very thing they least expect. You do it by speaking well of them when no one expects it. General Robert E. Lee was once asked his opinion of a fellow officer who was widely known as one of Lee’s greatest detractors. The general responded that he thought the man a very fine officer. “But General,” his questioner replied, quite perplexed, “I guess you don’t know what he’s been saying about you.”  “Oh, yes I do,” replied Lee. “But I was asked my opinion of him, not his opinion of me.”

3) Do Good to Them

It’s fascinating that in Luke 6, when Jesus said, “Love your enemies” (verses 27,35), both times he immediately added, “Do good to them” so we wouldn’t miss the point. Doing good to your enemies means seeing beyond your pain and their meanness to their humanity. It means seeing them as people made in the image of God and understanding there is something twisted inside that causes them to do what they do. Doing good means doing what will promote their healing despite the way they have treated you. You make the first move. You send the e-mail. You pick up the phone. You make the contact. You bridge the gap. You set up the appointment.

But what if they don’t respond well? That doesn’t matter. We’re not in charge of how people respond to us. Make the first move and let the Lord take care of the results.

4) Refuse to Speak Evil of Them

That’s what Jesus meant when he said, “Bless those who curse you” (Luke 6:28). It means you choose not to think evil thoughts, and you refuse to speak evil words against those who have wronged you. Proverbs has a great deal to say about the power of words. “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit” (Proverbs 18:21). Every time we open our mouth, life or death comes out. I am increasingly impressed with this thought: Forgiveness in many cases is not possible because we will not stop talking. As long as we talk over and over again about how others have hurt us, we will never find the strength to forgive. At some point, we have to stop talking and start forgiving. Here is the simple truth:

You can criticize the Babylonians, or
You can pray for them.

But you can't do both at the same time.

I once knew a man whose wife had been repeatedly and publicly criticized for something she had written. When I asked how she was handling it, he said, “She has taken a vow of silence.” She would not speak to her critics because nothing she said would satisfy them, and she would not speak of her critics for the good of her own soul.

Perhaps some of us need to take a vow of silence so we can let go of bitterness and get on with life.

5) Thank God for Them

If you believe in the sovereignty of God, you must believe your enemies are sent to you by God’s design and with God’s approval. If Satan could not tempt Job without God’s permission, and if Satan could not sift Peter without Jesus’ permission, your enemies could not torment you without God’s permission.

I believe God places in your life every person you need for your spiritual growth. He’ll send a Saul, a David, an Esau, a Daniel, an Absalom, an Esther, a Judas, a Barnabas, and a Timothy. God uses each one to teach you something and to make you more like Jesus.

Behind your enemy stands the hand of God. God would never permit it if he did not intend to bring something good out of it. You should take a picture of your enemy, stick it on your refrigerator door, and thank God for your enemy every time you look at the picture.

6) Pray for Them

When German pastor Martin Niemoller was arrested by the Nazis in World War II, he prayed daily from his prison cell for his captors. Other prisoners asked why he prayed for those who were his enemies. “Do you know anyone who needs your prayers more than your enemies?” he replied. But what if you hate the person you are praying for? Tell that to the Lord. He won’t be surprised. Then say something like this, “Lord, I hate this person, but you already know that. I ask you to love this person through me because I can’t do it in my own power. I ask you for a love I don’t have and can’t begin to produce.” God will not turn you away when you come with an honest heart, admitting you need his love to flow through you.

7) Ask God to Bless Them

Here’s a simple way to do that. When faced with someone who has mistreated you, ask God to do for them what you want God to do for you. Seek the blessing for them you want God to do for you. Think of it this way: The greater the hurt, the greater the potential blessing that will come when we forgive from the heart and by God’s grace bless those who curse us.

A woman wrote me to say she realized she needed to forgive her husband who left her for another woman after many years of marriage. She found out he had been having an affair for the previous year. To make matters worse, she discovered that some of her friends not only knew about the affair, they were aiding her husband and helping him cover up his infidelity. When she wrote to me, she said she realized she had never truly forgiven those friends for what they had done. Here is her story:

Today I wrote to four people the Lord brought to my mind that I needed to pray for, ask for a blessing for them, and I felt the drive to write to them and tell them I had asked God for them to receive a blessing from God. At first it was the hardest thing I had done in sooooooo long, but then as I started writing the quick message telling them after hearing a sermon (didn't say on what) that I was writing to tell them I'd asked God to give them a special blessing. Three of the four people have claimed to be Christians, but they all contributed to my ex's infidelity and adultery. Yet, after writing the emails, I felt better and more at peace. 

This is a good example because she did not mention their sin. She simply wrote to say she was praying for them to receive a blessing from the Lord. How did they respond to those notes? I don’t know and it doesn’t matter. She did what she needed to do, and it set her free.

Let me offer one final word: Your enemy is a gift from God to you. To say that is not to excuse evil or to condone mistreatment. It does not cancel the need for punishment when a crime has been committed. It is to say exactly what Joseph meant when he said to his brothers, “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20). Our enemies humble us, they keep us on our knees, they reveal our weakness, and they expose our desperate need for God. Just as David needed King Saul to pursue him, to persecute him and repeatedly attempt to kill him, we need the enemies God sends to us. If we didn’t need them, he wouldn’t send them. Therefore, we thank God who knows best, and we love our enemies the best way we can. Often God raises up an enemy to see if we really want to be like Jesus. He will keep our enemies alive and well as long as we need them.

Jesus had enemies. They killed him. He loved them anyway. Do you want to be like Jesus?

“I would rather die than hate you”

In 1957 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. preached on “Loving Your Enemies” at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. As he came to the end of his sermon, he said there is a little tree planted on a little hill and on that tree hangs the most influential person who ever came into this world. In the cross of Christ, the love of God has broken through into human history. Now we know what love looks like in a world filled with hatred, distrust, bitterness, pain, mistreatment and abuse. As the hymn writer said,

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

It is a message from God that love is the only way. It’s the only way to heaven, and it’s the only way to live on earth. If we believe in Jesus at all, we must say to our enemies, “I love you. I would rather die than hate you.”

Mosab Hassan Yousef is right.
Only Jesus says, “Love your enemies.”
Now it’s time for us to do it.

Heavenly Father, some of us desperately need this message right now. We’re all going to need it soon because we live in a broken world. Give us grace to love our enemies. We’ll never do this without you. We say in the words of an ancient prayer, “Where there is hatred, let us sow love.”  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Going Deeper

1.       Who are the enemies in your life?
2.       Which is harder for you—to speak to your enemies or to pray for your enemies?3
3.       Read Luke 6:27-36. Why did Jesus tell us to turn the other cheek?
4.       Name someone who is a good role model of showing love to difficult people.
5.       What steps do you need to take to love your enemies?

“Prayer is not everything but everything is by prayer.” So said Ray Ortlund. All Christians would agree with that statement. No matter what our background, instinctively we know prayer is central to the Christian life.

We all know we ought to pray.

We all feel we should pray more than we do.

Life can change so quickly. The phone rings and a voice says, "I've got bad news." It could be anything:

            A failed exam.

            The test came back positive.

            Your granddaughter is sick.

            Your son goes to jail for drunk driving.

            The company doesn't need you anymore.

            "I'm being sued."
            A friendship suddenly ends.

            Suicide.

You discover another woman or another man.

Time stops. Life will never be the same again. How will you find the strength to go on? You try to pray, but the words won’t come. How do you pray when life blows up? We can find an answer in 1 Thessalonians 3:10-13.

Paul knew the Thessalonians were near the breaking point, and that’s why he sent Timothy to check on them. When Timothy came back with a good report that the believers were standing firm under pressure, Paul’s joy knew no bounds. He was encouraged (v. 7), the news was like a new lease on life to him (v. 8), and he couldn’t stop thanking God for them (v. 9). That brings us to Paul’s prayer in verses 10-13. Here is an excellent way to pray for those going through a hard time. It’s worth pondering because every week we’re asked to pray for people in difficulty. Very rarely does anyone say, “Things are going great. Pray for me.”

Here are three ways to pray when life blows up. First, you should pray for . . .

Faith Without Holes

“Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith” (v. 10).

Note these four facts about the way Paul prayed:

1. His prayer was constant.

Paul says he prayed day and night. When was the last time you lost sleep because you were praying? I remember Len Hoppe often talked about how God would wake him up in the middle of the night to pray. Has that ever happened to you?

2. His prayer was earnest.

Paul uses a very unusual expression that has the idea of going above and beyond all normal measures. You might translate it with the phrase “super abundantly.” Prayer must be earnest to be effective. Weak, shallow, half-hearted prayers produce weak, shallow, half-hearted results. God says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). James 5:16 reminds us that “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (NKJV). So what is a “fervent” prayer? The Greek means something like “boiling.” It has nothing to do with your posture, whether you are sitting or standing or lying down, and it doesn’t matter whether your eyes are open or closed. A boiling prayer has nothing to do with how loud you pray or how many words you use. It’s not about folding your hands or waving them above your head.

So what’s a boiling prayer? Let me put it this way. When they take your four-year-old granddaughter away for life-saving surgery, no one will have to tell you what to do. You will pray a boiling prayer right there in the waiting room at the hospital. You may not utter any audible words, but your heart will pray a boiling prayer

I remember hearing a preacher say that when his wife was in a terrible automobile accident, he was so overcome that all he could do was cry out, “Oh God! Oh Jesus!” Looking back, he said it felt like that was the first time in his life he had really prayed.

When anything becomes life or death to you, you’ll pray an earnest, fervent, boiling prayer, and it won’t matter how long or how short you pray.

Paul cared so much for these young Thessalonian believers that he couldn’t help but pray earnestly for them. We should do the same for the people we love.

3. His prayer was practical.

He said he was praying “that we may see you again.” Do you pray about your everyday affairs?  If you are a salesman, you should pray about your appointments. If you are a doctor, you should pray for your patients. If you are a teacher, you should pray for your students. If you work in an office, you should pray for your fellow workers. Nothing is too small to bring to God’s attention. If it matters to you, it matters to him.

4. His prayer was purposeful.

Paul had a particular goal in mind.  He wanted to supply what was lacking in their faith. The word “supply” was used for mending torn nets and setting broken bones. He used the same word in Galatians 6:1 for restoring sinning saints and in Ephesians 4:12 for equipping all the saints for the work of ministry. It’s what an equipment manager does before the start of a football game. He makes sure the players have their helmets because if they go into the game without a helmet, they are going to get clobbered in the head.

So here’s the prayer: “O God, my brothers and sisters are in a great spiritual battle. I pray they will be fully equipped for whatever they might face. Grant them strong faith—with no holes!—so they can stand and fight victoriously no matter how hot the battle may be.”

We pass on to the second way to pray when life blows up.

Love Without Limits

“May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you” (v. 12).

Love is the supreme grace. You can never have too much of it. You can never have enough of it. Paul is saying, “I pray God will make you an overflowing fountain of love.” He is praying they might become “Super Lovers.”

Many years ago this song was made popular by Diana Ross and Dionne Warwick:

What the world needs now is love, sweet love
It's the only thing that there's just too little of
What the world needs now is love, sweet love
No, not just for some but for everyone

I’ve had occasion to think about that over the long, hot summer months that brought such turmoil to cities across America. We happen to live in Dallas. Not in a suburb, but in the city itself, not far from White Rock Lake on the east side of the city. Many times I’ve taken a bike ride along the Santa Fe Trail to downtown, ridden Main Street through Deep Ellum, and then on Main Street down to Lamar in the heart of the city. That’s where I head north on Lamar to Houston, where I turn right and ride past American Airlines Center where the Dallas Mavericks play basketball. I catch the Katy Trail, then cross North Central Expressway, and start winding my way back home. I mention that because I’ve ridden my bike many times at the intersection of Main Street and Lamar where the shooting took place on July 7^th that ended with five Dallas police officers killed and nine others wounded.

That tragedy shook our city and made headlines across America. The morning after the shooting, Dallas police officer Bryan Woodard posted a video on Facebook (viewed over 7 million times) that urged people to pray for peace. Near the end, he repeated a phrase that has gone around the world: “I refuse to see hate live while love dies.”

That strikes me as a truly Christian point of view. If we know the Lord, then love must be our rule of life, even when people around us have given in to anger and hatred. We discover a lot about ourselves when we are tired, discouraged, angry and afraid. I don’t mean to suggest that increasing and overflowing in love is easy. It isn’t, especially in trying times. But it is precisely at this point that what we believe about the gospel gets put to the test. If someone asks me to give the answer to the problems that plague our world, I don’t know the political answers or the legal answers, but I do know the gospel answer. We are all sinners in desperate need of the grace of God. The ground is level at the foot of the cross because God doesn’t play favorites. We’re all in the same boat, and the boat is going down. If God doesn’t do something, we’re all going to drown.

But God has done something!

In the cross of Christ, the love of God has broken through to rescue us, to heal us, to forgive us, and to make us a community of brothers and sisters who show the world that reconciliation and healing is possible. I know we’re far from that reality today, but if we believe what the Bible says, then we must believe real change is possible, not only on a personal basis but also on a community basis.

When the church is united, God is glorified and the world is amazed. In a world filled with so much killing, so much pain, so many broken hearts and so many fractured lives, a truly united church will be irresistibly attractive to many hurting people. But it’s easier to talk about this than to put it into practice. We’re all pretty good at liking people like us. But lots of people aren’t like us, and they aren’t very easy to like either. How can we apply this truth? I have two suggestions:

A) Pray for unity. Pray for the Holy Spirit to bring unity in the larger body of Christ. Pray for a deeper unity in your congregation. Ask God to reveal and remove any wrong attitudes that hinder the work of his Spirit in your midst.

B) Ask yourself a hard question: “Am I willing for God to change me?” It’s a lot easier to think others need to change. “My kids are driving me nuts. Change them, Lord!” “My husband ignores me. Change him, Lord!” “My wife is getting on my nerves, and my boss is a jerk. Change them both, Lord!” Perhaps we should all pray this simple Chinese prayer: “O Lord, change the world. Begin, I pray Thee, with me.” As the old spiritual says, “It’s me, it’s me, O Lord, standing in the need of prayer.” Before we ask God to change anyone else, we’d better look in the mirror.

Let’s pray for ourselves and for each other that our love might increase and overflow, not only to our friends but to those we don’t know and even to those who may not like us very much.

There is yet a third way to pray when life blows up. Pray for . . .

Strength Without Flaws

“May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones” (v. 13).

The word “strengthen” means to buttress something, like the famous “flying buttresses” of cathedrals in the Middle Ages. If you are going to stand strong in the time of trial, your heart must have a strong foundation, one free of cracks, flaws, and weak areas. Nothing reveals the true condition of the heart like difficulty, setbacks, opposition, and hardship. Most of us can be strong while the sun is shining and life is good, but when the thunder clouds of trouble rumble overhead, all the inner flaws are likely to be revealed. Whatever is in the heart must come out eventually. If there is anger in the heart, it will eventually come out. If there is greed or lust, it too will come out. And if there is love and kindness and forgiveness and mercy, that will also be revealed. Nowhere will your heart be on clearer display than in the trials of life.

God uses our trials to say to the watching world: “Here is what a real Christian looks like!” He has been battered and bruised by life, his face is streaked with tears, the days are hard and the nights are long, but here—yes, here!!! —right here, this is what a Christian looks like. Is he always victorious? No. Is he always triumphant? No. Does he sometimes have doubts? Yes. But here he stands, a supernatural creation of the grace of God. Take a look, world. He is not perfect, but he is a child of God.

Here, then, is a prayer to pray when life blows up. Pray for . . .

Faith without holes,

Love without limits,

Strength without flaws.

Think about this for a moment. You are where you are today because somebody prayed for you.

Somebody prayed, and you came to Christ.

Somebody prayed, and you found a job.

Somebody prayed, and you were healed.

Somebody prayed, and you were rescued in the middle of the night.

Somebody prayed, and your marriage was saved.

Somebody prayed, and you said no to temptation.

Somebody prayed, and you didn’t give up.

Somebody prayed, and you made the right decision.

Somebody prayed, and you experienced God’s power.

No one knows how much sin and sorrow we’ve been saved from because somebody prayed for us.

What is the application? Pray! Pray, pray, and keep on praying. Do for others what others have done for you. When we can serve people in no other way, we can pray for them. By prayer we cast a pebble of faith into a lake of hope. Though the pebble sinks, the ripples go on and on and on. We’ll never know the difference our prayers have made until we get to heaven.

I close with the question Jesus asked in Luke 18:8, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” As we move closer to the Last Days and the end of the world as we know it, anxiety will rise, tumult will increase, nerves will fray, society itself will be shaken to the core, troubles will mount, and it will seem as if the world is spinning out of control. What should we do to hold on to our faith?

We should pray. 
Earnestly, fervently, repeatedly, unitedly, persistently.

If you believe Jesus is coming back . . . pray, pray, and keep on praying. 

When the Son of Man comes . . .

Will he find faith in your church?
Will he find faith in your family?
Will he find faith in your heart?

Lord Jesus, grant that we might not be discouraged even a little bit by the things that happen around us. We want to pray and to pray more than we do. We ask for “praying grace” so when the Son of Man comes, he will find faith on the earth made manifest in our prayers. Amen.

Christ’s Care for Campuses

John 13:12-17 – “So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you?  You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.”  NAS

Greetings Washers of Feet,

I pray that this past week has been filled with a flood of prayer for our nation and for the schools in your neighborhood and zip code. Remember that this upcoming Sunday, September 18^th, is Pray for Schools Sunday www.prayforschools.us. Gathering your neighbors to pray for your neighborhood schools is a good way to begin conversations of how you can pray regularly and work together to support your schools.

We will continue to follow Jesus’ example of humble, loving care by focusing this week on building relationships and meeting the needs at your neighborhood schools.

It is essential that you build relationships by being present and having a presence on campus. If you are a parent of a student you will have numerous opportunities where you are expected to attend meetings and events. It is vital that you attend and volunteer for opportunities to serve at the school; it not only sets the example for your children that school is important but it also keeps you informed and builds trust and appreciation between you and the school staff and teachers. If you are not a parent you can go meet with the principal and other staff as a concerned neighbor who wants to help. It is important to listen to the needs that the principal, staff and teachers express before you express any ideas you might have about their needs. It is also imperative that you do not volunteer or commit to any project that you cannot sustain or complete. Schools need volunteers to help with special events, monthly or even weekly in the office, library, media center, in classrooms and after school. You can also volunteer for days by cleaning, painting and doing other tasks. Many of us may not have the time to volunteer weekly, but there are many ways that we can show the love of Jesus.

The school year always begins with students and teachers needing school supplies. I even know of several school districts that require teachers to bring their own toilet paper. Please check with your local school or teachers in your neighborhood to find out what they need. As cooler weather approaches there is always a need for jackets, coats, gloves and hats. You can gather these items in your neighborhood, church, and or by asking your neighborhood businesses to be a collection sight. A critical need is food; every week, thousands of children who qualify for the free lunch program, go home on Friday and do not get to eat a decent meal until they come back to school on Monday. Our church partners with other churches in our community in a ministry we call, “Backpack Love.” A coordinator can divide the work by having a volunteer for each school and a volunteer for each participating church. Realize that the Christians in your neighborhood attend several different churches; this is a perfect way to bring churches together to serve and share the love of Jesus in unity. Each church that surrounds a school can commit to filling a certain number of backpacks with food EVERY week during the school year; this is why it is important to have several churches work together – you need to be able to sustain this project for the entire school year. Our backpacks are filled to feed a family of 5, and may include a combination of the following items: oatmeal packets, granola/breakfast-type bars, cans of spaghetti sauce and a boxes of noodles, mac & cheese, potatoes or instant mashed potatoes, canned chicken, vegetables, and fruit, rice, beans, individual bags of snacks and other non-perishables.

Schools are asked how many students they have on free lunch programs and how many are in a critical need for food assistance over the weekend. A volunteer at each church is in charge of collecting food items, organizing backpack packing nights each month and delivering filled backpacks and picking up returned empty packs each week. It sounds like a lot of work, but many hands make work light. Students who eat regularly show an increase in health and academic success.

When I say that we want every school to receive prayer, care and have the gospel shared on campus, I mean EVERY campus. I want to encourage you to help celebrate the campuses that are covered and help us connect those that are not by going to www.everyschool.com. There you will find resources and register your commitment to that campus by adopting it in prayer, care and share opportunities. Dr. Tony Evans has also been leading an amazing adopt-a-school initiative, teaching on how churches and neighborhoods can show the love of Jesus to the local schools. You can find more information and inspiration at http://churchadoptaschool.org.

 Pray for the schools and ask Jesus to show you how you can show His love as you listen and learn about the needs of your neighborhood schools. I will expand on our prayer-care-share opportunities on campus in next week’s blog by sharing about prayer and faith clubs on campuses.

I challenge you to show Christ’s care on every campus, from Pre-K through colleges and universities in your zip code and prompt other people in different zip codes to care for their schools, so that every campus is consistently cared for by the end of the year 2020.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

For more ideas on prayer-care-share for schools, visit our Pre-K -12th grade action plan under the Strength Conditioning page at www.LOVE2020.com.

Gathering With Your Neighbors

2 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” ESV

Greetings Neighbors! I have been praying for you as you have been praying up and down your streets and throughout your zip codes. I pray that you have met some new neighbors and have had the opportunity to show and share your love and faith in Jesus. I also pray that you have met some neighbors who are church-attending Christ-followers and have begun building a friendship and fellowship with them that includes sharing some ideas of how to build a prayer-care-share HUB in your neighborhood for celebrations as well as catastrophes.

Your neighborhood is a great place to build unity in the body of Christ. Jesus prayed that we would be one; gathered under the wings of His affection and authority, that we would glorify Him as He sanctifies us in the truth of His Word. I pray that your neighborhood is filled with people who attend many different churches and your relationships bring those churches together to worship and serve throughout the year.

One significant way that you can gather churches together to pray and worship is through a simulcast.  These events are usually hosted by a well-known Christian Pastor or leader and enable you to pray, worship and hear the message God has given to them without you having to travel to another city. The simulcast removes the speculation that you might be trying to promote your church or Pastor and brings a neutral but trusted and beloved speaker or speakers to share information and inspiration. Your neighbors can discuss and unite around the application of the message and pray for transformation throughout your community.

 I am very excited about the upcoming simulcast called, The Gathering 2016, that will be held on September 21.  The Gathering is the Body of Christ coming together 1 day to unite across racial, denominational and generational lines, lifting up the name of Jesus and taking responsibility for the condition of our nation. No personality, denomination or organization will be promoted. The Gathering has one purpose: to unite the Body of Christ in America – all believers, regardless of race, age, or denomination – in prayer for forgiveness, wisdom, and provision for our nation.

I want to encourage you to “gather” your neighbors together often; build your friendships with bar-b-ques and other activities and be sure to invite your neighbors who are not Christ-followers. This solemn assembly simulcast is a great, non-threating way to gather your neighbors to pray, as we are Kingdom citizens first and foremost; we are living in America, in whichever state you are in, in a certain city and finally your particular zip code or subdivision – all of which are in need of prayer and God’s forgiveness, wisdom, and provision. Gathering people of various churches builds a community in unity and delights our Lord. I want to encourage you to find out more about this significant simulcast opportunity at thegathering2016.com.

I challenge you to gather every “neighbor” in your zip code in the love of Jesus by the end of the year 2020.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

For more ideas on gathering your neighbors, visit our Coaching Corner at LOVE2020.com.

                                                                                                                                                        Sept. 1 2016

While Paul’s instructions are to pray for “those in authority” (1 Timothy 2:1-2), and he specifies praying for “kings” the obvious application is anyone who is in any position of authority over us – President, Congress, Supreme Court, Governor, Senators & Representatives, County, Parish and Local Officials, and Law Enforcement Officers. The benefit of such prayer is that through their wise rule, and under their protection, we might have “a quiet and peaceable life.” Christians are to be peaceful and orderly; and ask of the rulers, that they may not be harassed in the enjoyment of their rights. In the Old Testament the Jews were commanded, and forced, to pray for their heathen rulers (Ezra 6:10; Jer 29:7). Later, the Jews, by Augustus’ order, offered a lamb daily for the Roman emperor. The Jews reached a point where they wanted no more of this. All they wanted from those in authority is what we want: protection that allows us the freedom to live in peace, not just with our fellow-man, but with our enemies, and rescue when we get in trouble. To this end, we pray “for those in authority.” Paul confirms, “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.” (I Timothy 1:3).

Leaders in the Body of Christ are called, among other things, to be lifeguards. Watching is the key function of a prophet or intercessor. Rescuing is a priority for the evangelist. Guarding is elementary for the pastor.Warning is a main component of teaching. Vision is essential for the apostle. Believers in the Kingdom of God are expected to be on guard, or more specifically: to keep watch.
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My pastor runs a waterskiing ministry at the lake near his church in the summertime. On days when he is alone, the kids know that if he is out on the water training someone, no one swims until he gets back to the dock. 

Continue Reading Here: 

http://www.HisInscriptions.com/blog/be-a-spiritual-lifeguard

2 Corinthians 9:10-15 Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all, while they also, by prayer on your behalf, yearn for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! NAS

I am so moved and motivated by these words of Paul to the Christ-followers in Corinth, as he assures them that God will guide, provide and be glorified in the Kingdom work He calls them (and us) to do. He supplies all that is needed; His Word, His Son, His Spirit, His wisdom, and He gives each of us the experience and education we need to do exactly what He designed us to do. Even more amazing is the multiplication factor; He did all of this to bless you AND so that you could meet the needs of other people. Loving neighbors cause others to give Jesus the thanks and glory; and when you do this, your blessings are not depleted but rather completed as you sow what God has supplied. Through us, Jesus produces thanks to the Father and increases the harvest.

In my last blog I gave you a first step resource, Pray4EveryHome.com and challenged you to start raising your “heart-rate” by prayer walking your neighborhood and pausing to talk with your neighbors along the way. These talks are a great way to learn how to pray for people and find out what their needs are. If your neighborhood is more than a street long, you may have already figured out that it would be helpful to have several people covering your neighborhood or even zip code in prayer. You can either recruit other Christian neighbors to pray up and down their street, or you can recruit people at your church to prayer walk their neighborhoods. Of course the best answer is to implement BOTH options. The Pray4EveryHome.com website can be used to adopt an entire area around a church and keep track of every neighbor being prayed over.

In addition to prayer, there is also the opportunity to provide care by meeting needs when illness, hardships or tragedy strikes. As you develop an adoption plan for your neighborhood or zip code, begin to develop a communication strategy. It may be as simple as a social media page or as well planned out as a prayer-care-share hub that plans and prepares for opportunities and tragedies. Opportunities may be a Fall Festival, concert, fair, Christmas caroling/party, or any event that draws a crowd together. Tragedies may touch one home or an entire community, and the relationships that you have built as loving Christian neighbors will open doors of trust in good times and bad. We have seen time and time again on the news, where church buildings become a command center for first responders, collection spots for donations, distribution hubs for care and resources or even shelters for both the rescued and the rescuer.

Love covers a multitude of wounds; in communities where people are living a prayer-care-share lifestyle there are stronger racial relations, lower crime, increased academic success, businesses flourish and the community attends and protects the church that has lovingly served and stood by them. Church buildings that once stood blocks apart are connected by hearts and homes impacted by members of multiple churches in the name and for the glory of Jesus. In his book, “Neighborhood Initiative and the Love of God” Lynn Cory explains how the Kingdom work that God does in us and through us in our neighborhoods will help cultivate unity between churches within that community. Jesus is glorified when we ARE the Church; when His love flows out of the church building and floods the streets of our neighborhoods. We will discuss many ways to bring the Church together in future blogs. Remember, we are creating a model of love that can be carried out every day along the way; and expanding your mission field one step at a time. This step is to adopt your neighborhood/zip code and cultivate prayer on every street.

I challenge you to touch every “neighbor” in your zip code with the love of Jesus by the end of the year 2020.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

For more ideas, check out the Love2020.com interview with the writers of “Next Door As It Is In Heaven: Living out God’s Kingdom In Your Neighborhood.”

8/25/16

The school bells ring every fall for many of our grandchildren. One of my granddaughters started mid-August while the others start after Labor Day. The beginning of the school year can be a stressful experience for grandchildren with new teachers, new classmates, especially if they are going to a new school setting. They may have to adjust to new teachers, coaches, bus drivers, car pools, and other new situations.  

Our grandchildren are growing up and being educated in a time of global uncertainty, with peer pressures and temptations that we never experienced in our youth. We, as grandparents can help provide a hedge of protection for them, so they may be able to resist the temptations and deceptions they encounter, and experience, peace, joy, and success, as they navigate their world hostile to the truth.

Pray for Protection

Satan is trying to steal our children away from walking with God. Jesus says, “The thief’s purpose is to steal, kill and destroy. My purpose is to give life in all its fullness.” (John 10:10 NLT) However, grandparents have the opportunity to pray for their protection from Satan and his demons, covering them with the armour of God and for them to experience the fullness of the Lord in their lives.

When we long for those hugs and kisses, and when we think of how much we miss our grandchildren, it is a good time to say a prayer for their physical, emotional and spiritual protection.

Send a Back to School Note

For the last few of years, I have sent my grandchildren in school a Back to school note telling them that we will be praying for them as they start a new school year. They may be facing frightening or uncomfortable situations, as they attend new schools, have new teachers, and make new friends. A note of encouragement from their grandparents may give them the confidence they need as they go back to school.

Grandma Sets her Alarm

I heard of a grandmother in Texas who sets the alarm on her cell phone each day at the time each of her grandchildren are going to school to remind her to pray for them.

Pray for the Adult Influences on your Grandchildren

Have you thought about praying for the many adults who influence your grandchildren? Are the adults involved in your grandchildren’s lives good role models?

Adults who have influence on your grandchildren may be their other grandparents, teachers, principal, coaches, carpool or bus driver, Sunday school teacher, children’s director, pastor, youth leaders, neighbors, scout leaders, extra-curricular activity teachers, doctors, etc.  Many other adult influences indirectly affect our grandchildren, such as their elected and appointed officials, (local, state and federal), TV programs, electronic games, musicians, textbook authors, media, fashion designers, etc.        

Ask your grandchild for their teacher’s name, if possible, meet their teacher and others involved in their lives so you know for whom you are praying. It makes praying more personable if you have an opportunity to tell them you are praying for them.  

In case you missed this offer a couple of weeks ago I am offering it again. I would love to send you a free Back to School E-book to help you intentionally pray for your grandchildren as they go back to school. Sign up (on the right side of page) for my blog updates and never miss a post on my website. Then I will send you a free download of “Suggestions to Pray for Grandchildren in School” (preschool thru college) and the “31 Scriptures to Pray for Children” as a bonus along with the E-book.

If you are already a subscriber, just send me an email requesting the Back to School E-book wit the bonus.  Leve a comment on my website or send me an email to:lpenner@christiangrandparenting.net

Prayer for your grandchildren

Dear Lord, I pray my grandchildren will:

Desire to do their very best. Respect their teachers.

Choose friends, who will have a positive influence.

Recognize the deception of worldly thinking.

Eyes blinded to the temptations they face.

Have a balanced view of their beauty, charm, and strength.

Learn to be responsible for their actions and behavior. 

I pray the adult influences of my grandchild

will always speak the truth, model lives of integrity to the children.

Transport the children safely and looking out for the child’s best interest.

I pray they will make the children feel safe,

protecting them from verbal, emotional and physical abuse.

I pray they will be an encourager to the children.

Live blameless lives and do what is right.

Speak the truth with a sincere heart.

In Jesus’ name, Amen

By Lillian Penner, National Prayer Coordinator, Christian Grandparenting Network, lpenner@christiangrandparenting.net

Matthew 22:37-39 - Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” NIV  

From the time that Jesus expanded His audience’s definition of their “Neighbor,” millions of people have traveled across town or across the globe to administer care and share the Gospel. It is a vital part of obeying the Great Commission to “go into all the world” to make disciples; the problem is that sometimes we pass by those in greatest need as we drive out of our neighborhood and head to the airport to fly to our “mission field.” Neil Cox, the coordinator for our LOVE2020 Community Development and Justice sphere, often reminds me that everyone begins and ends their day at home; and the homes you pass on your way to and from work, school and church are filled with our neighbors who need prayer, care and to have the Gospel shared with them also. Jesus never intended for us to exclude our next door neighbor, just expand our hearts and reach to love more “neighbors.”

One of the greatest tools for praying for my neighbors was introduced to me by Chris Cooper. The Pray4EveryHome.com website prompts people to sign up with their zip code and then sends the names and address of your neighbors each day with a specific prayer prompt to get you started. It is an effective way to BEGIN praying for your neighbors by name. I encourage you to prayer walk your street, possibly your whole subdivision each day or a few days a week, but instead of being focused on getting exercise, go for a walk with the purpose of meeting a new neighbor or striking up a conversation with a neighbor you met recently to have a deeper conversation. Go visit the 5-10 houses to the left and right of your home; get to know them, their needs, where they go to church and through these conversations you will learn how to pray for them, what care you could give and based on your conversations, when to share the gospel with them. Think of it as raising your "heart-rate" by exercising Christ's love in your neighborhood.

I will introduce and explain the actions steps of LOVE2020 in each blog; slowly expanding your mission field with a variety of possibilities and resources that will help enable you to live a prayer, care, share lifestyle. I have been reading through the four gospels and I noticed that each story, lesson, conversation and miracle happened while Jesus was walking, traveling, sitting by the shore, going from one place to another. In other words, Jesus ministered every day, along the way. Jesus got up early while it was still dark to pray, He conversed with His Father and then set out to minister to those who crossed His path that day as He was on His way somewhere. That is exactly how a prayer, care, share lifestyle happens! Love begins at home; with your family and your neighbors…your next door neighbors. I challenge you to touch every “neighbor” with the love of Jesus by the end of the year 2020.

Love is a verb…let’s get moving!

    Kathy B.

For more ideas, check out the prayer, care, share strategy for the Community Development/Justice, and the Neighboring spheres in the “Strength Conditioning” section of LOVE2020.com.

I would like to share this Free Back to School E-book with you, giving you resources to pray effectively for your grandchildren as they go back to school. 

Some of our grandchildren will soon be going back to school in August and September, some are excited to be back in school, and however, some are anxious because of the unknown.

The beginning of the school year can be a stressful experience for children from preschool thru college. New teachers and staff, new classmates, new dorm roommates and unfamiliarity in a new school setting can leave children and youth vulnerable to all kinds of negative influences.

 Our grandchildren are growing up and being educated in a time of global uncertainty, with peer pressures and temptations that we never experienced in our youth. We, as grandparents can help provide a hedge of protection for them, so they may be able to resist the temptations and deceptions they encounter, and experience, peace, joy, and success, as they navigate their world hostile to the truth.

 Call to Action 

This Back to School Free E-book will encourage you and give you effective ways to intentionally pray such as Suggestions to Pray for School Children (Preschool thru college). The responses for the E-book was overwhelming last year, get your E-book soon.

I would love to send you this free E-book to help you intentionally pray for your grandchildren as they go back to school. Sign up (on the right side of page) for my blog updates and never miss a post on my website. Then I will send you a free download of “Suggestions to Pray for Grandchildren in School” (preschool thru college) and the “31 Scriptures to Pray for Children” as a bonus along with the E-book. If you are already a subscriber, just send me an email requesting the Back to School E-book with the bonus.  Leave a comment on my website or send me an email to:lpenner@christiangrandparenting.net

Lillian Penner,

National Prayer Coordinator,

Christian Grandparenting Network.

Don’t forget to make National Grandparent’s Day

A Day of Prayer on September 11 as your grandchildren

 go Back to School.

We should never feel paralyzed from praying simply because we're not sure if we can word a prayer "correctly."  Jesus gave us an excellent model of prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) that we will do well to both pray, and study in depth!

The Scottish poet Robert Burns said it this way: 

“Would some power give us the gift
To see ourselves as others see us!”

It’s a gift most of us need to receive more often. We all want to believe the best about ourselves. That’s natural, and it’s even healthy. But it’s also healthy to have someone hold the mirror in front of your face and say, “This is what you really look like.” It can be a very instructive experience.

Spiritual progress begins when we see ourselves as God sees us. It’s one thing when a friend says, “This is what you look like.” It’s another thing for God to utter those words. We can sometimes fool even our closest friends, but it’s impossible to fool the Lord. Hebrews 4:13 says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” He knows what we say behind closed doors, the secret thoughts no one else can hear, the hidden motives, the buried ambition, and all the twists and turns of our sinful nature. He doesn’t have to uncover our thoughts; he already knows them.

This is a sermon about revival. Let’s start with the word itself. You revive something when you bring it back to life. You can’t revive something that has never been alive in the first place. That’s why revival is different from evangelism. Evangelism is preaching the gospel to the lost that they might be saved. Revival awakens the saved from a state of spiritual slumber. When God sends revival, the church wakes up. Or to give a more formal definition, revival is the sovereign act of God, whereby he calls his backsliding people to repentance, faith, and new obedience to him.

I grew up in a church tradition that emphasized “revival meetings,” usually week-long gatherings where a visiting minister would challenge us spiritually. I can remember sitting with rapt attention as Angel Martinez preached night after night at the church where I grew up. That was at least 50 years ago. Probably the greatest move of God I’ve been part of happened during a youth revival in May 1970. Lives were changed forever by the decisions made that weekend. I say that so you’ll know I’m not speaking against “revival meetings.” Not at all. They can be greatly used of God. I simply point out that revival is a sovereign move of God that can’t be scheduled in advance.

Our text comes from 2 Chronicles 7:14, which is perhaps the most famous verse on revival in the Bible:

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

In the preceding verses the Lord lays out certain hard times that might come to the people of God. There might be a drought or a plague of locusts or an outbreak of disease in the land. 1 Kings 8 adds other times, such a crushing military defeat, or famine or blight or cities under siege by the enemy, or being sent into captivity. This verse is meant for God’s people whenever there is trouble in the land. The promise always applies, but in desperate times we need to pay close attention to verses like this.

2 Chronicles 7:14 was written for such a time as this. Let’s consider what it says under three headings.

I. The Subjects of Revival

“If my people, who are called by my name” (v. 14a).

These two phrases tell us this verse is limited to those who know the Lord. In this political season, when clergy of all stripes rush to support their preferred candidates, it’s important to remember 2 Chronicles 7:14 was not written to the Democrats or the Republicans. This is not a blanket invitation that applies to anyone, anywhere, at any time. God limits this invitation to those who are “his people.” This is not, for instance, a verse that applies to the Hindus. Nor does it apply to mankind in general. This promise applies to those who know Jesus and to no one else. To be called by the name of the Lord means you have called upon the name of the Lord to be saved (Romans 10:13).

II. The Conditions for Revival

“Will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways” (v. 14b).

Here are the four conditions for revival:

#1: Humility

What exactly is humility? Although many answers might be given, perhaps the simplest is that humility means seeing my true condition before God. After all, pride is simply taking credit for things that I’m not really responsible for. When we start feeling too puffed up about ourselves, we need to remember 1 Corinthians 4:7, “What do you have that you did not receive?” The answer is nothing. Not even Bill Gates can say, “I did this by myself.” To be sure, it took courage and ingenuity and commitment and perseverance to build Microsoft. Mr. Gates sits atop a multi-billion-dollar empire that didn’t happen by chance. Give that man all the credit he deserves. The same applies to every other successful man or woman in any field of endeavor. Kudos to anyone who has “made it” to the top. But just remember this. The strength to do the task, the intelligence to put together the plan, the skill to bring all the parts together, the courage to make it happen—all of it comes directly from God. It is true that between the richest man and the poorest man there is a great gulf in terms of worldly possessions. But on one point—the only one that counts—there is no difference. Both are alike the recipients of the grace of God. Neither man has anything to boast about. When we understand that, it changes the way we look at life, it changes the way we evaluate ourselves, and it changes the way we treat other people. If we are wise, it also changes our view of worldly success. We won’t base our self-image on our net worth when we believe God isn’t impressed with our bank account. We’ll have time for people because we understand we are all created by the same God.

#2: Prayer

What sort of prayer is the Lord talking about? It is the sincere prayer of a person who realizes his true condition. When I understand everything I have comes as a gift from God, my prayers will be filled with gratitude, love and praise. I will cry out to God, confessing how far short I fall of his divine standards. And every day I will remember the words of Jesus, “Without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

# 3: Seeking God’s Face

The phrase “seek my face” is a familiar one in the Old Testament. It has to do with the direction of my life. It is very similar to the fourth beatitude: “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6). To seek God’s face is to hunger for a closer walk with him. Many of us know little of this because we fill our stomachs with spiritual junk food that never satisfies but keeps us from seeking nutritious food. The question is, what are you hungry for right now? Those who are hungry to know God seek one thing; those who are hungry for a career seek something else. What you are hungry for determines what you seek.

# 4: Turning from our Wicked Ways

At some point things have to change. We must repent. To repent means you turn from your wicked ways. You used to cheat on your wife, but now you don’t. You used to be lazy, but now you aren’t. You used to fill your mind with bitterness, but now you don’t. Once you were angry most of the day, but now you have turned away from anger. Once you were sloppy on the job when the boss wasn’t watching, but not anymore. Once you lived in lust for that which God has forbidden you to have, but not anymore. Once you lived to party on the weekends, but that life is part of your past. Whatever your wicked ways are, revival means turning from those ways to the ways that Please God. It means a definite break with the past and a deliberate change of direction.

If you think about it, these four conditions form a kind of progression:

You will never pray with any fervency until you see your true condition before God.
You will never seek God’s face until you begin to get serious about prayer.
You will never turn from your wicked ways until God becomes all-important in your life.

Humility leads to prayer. Prayer leads to seeking God’s face. Seeking God’s face leads to turning from our wicked ways.

III. The Results of Revival

“Then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (v. 14c).

We need to think carefully about this because it’s easy to turn 2 Chronicles 7:14 into a formula for revival. Certainly the verse lays out a plan for us to follow. The word “then” encourages us to believe our crying to God will never be in vain.

Our tears are not in vain.
Our prayers are not in vain.
Our burden is not in vain.
|Our sadness is not in vain.
Our desperation is not in vain.

Perhaps we can say it this way. When we are so dissatisfied with the status quo that we cry out to God for help, the answer will indeed come from heaven and things will begin to change. We must not limit God as to the how and the when. He is still the sovereign God who does whatever pleases him (Psalm 115:3). We must not dictate to the Lord about how the answer from heaven will come. He will answer in his own time, in his own way, according to his own will. But we have this assurance:

He will hear.
He will forgive.
He will heal.

If we do our part, though it will seem very incomplete, God will certainly do his. If we humble ourselves, and if we pray, and if we seek his face, and if we turn from our wicked ways, knowing all the while that we still fall short, God will move from heaven to come to our aid.

Politics is Not the Answer

This verse gives me hope because we seem to be in a bad state today. I cannot remember a time when America was more divided than we are at this moment. As a nation, we have turned away from the Lord. How will we ever find our way back to God?

The answer won’t come from the White House.
Politics will not save us.
Putting another justice on the Supreme Court won’t heal our land.

I say that in full recognition that it matters greatly how we vote because it matters who sits in the White House and makes those judicial appointments. We have to vote. I’m all for speaking out and taking a stand.

But when all is said and done, our greatest need is not political; our greatest need is spiritual. We need another great awakening in our land. Perhaps it will come in our day. I certainly hope so. Perhaps we will see another Layman’s Prayer Movement sweep our nation. I’m certainly encouraged by the thousands who have come to the various state capitals to pray with Franklin Graham. I’m very glad about the hundreds of thousands who came to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. for the “Together 2016” event. Later this year a number of ministries are planning different events to call the church to prayer. I urge you to get involved in praying with others for revival. Across the nation churches have come together to pray in response to the shootings that have taken place. This is all to the good.

Praying in the Last Days

Let me add one final thought. I believe we are living in the last days before the coming of the Lord. It certainly seems like the “terrible times” of 2 Timothy 3:1 have come true in our generation. I don’t have any secret information about the date of the Lord’s return. I’m simply giving my observation on the basis of what the Bible says about the last days.

What if Jesus is coming soon? What difference should that make to us? Can we still expect a move of God in the last days of human history? With all my heart, I believe the answer is yes. Take a quick look at Luke 18:1-8, which we call the Parable of the Persistent Widow. Most of us know the story about the judge who gave the widow what she wanted because she wore him out by coming back again and again. It’s an easy-to-grasp lesson on the importance of persistence when we pray. That much is obvious. But here’s the kicker. Jesus ends the story this way: “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). Where did that come from? This isn’t a parable about the second coming. It’s about prayer. But Jesus applies it to the situation on the earth when he returns.

What’s up with that?

We need to read this against the larger New Testament teaching that in the last days there will be a huge turning away from the Lord. It is sometimes called the “apostasy” or the “falling away.” You can read about it in Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21 and 2 Thessalonians 2. As we rush headlong toward the return of Christ, we should expect to see exactly what is happening today:

False Christs.
Spiritual counterfeits.
Christians compromising their faith.
Pastors turning away from the truth.
Spiritual leaders who mislead the flock of God.

As the foundations of society crumble beneath us, we will see this happening more and more. All these things are just the “beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24:8).

We ought to read Luke 18:9 in light of those passages. In a world where truth has become entirely subjective, where feelings trump biblical commands, where we reinterpret the Bible to justify our sin, Jesus’ poignant question takes on a deeper meaning:

When the Son of Man comes…

Will he find faith in your church?
Will he find faith in your family?
Will he find faith in your heart?

While going through my files, I found the notes from the final sermon I preached at the first church I pastored after seminary. On that parting Sunday I told the people, “I have some prayers I have prayed for a long time.” I listed a number of requests I had brought before the Lord. My notes say I had just talked with someone whose marriage was in trouble because of an enslaving habit. They were in despair and needed a place to live. No name is written down, and I can honestly say that 33 years later, I have no idea who I was praying for back then. But I added this…

“Not all my prayers have been answered… yet!!!”

As we journey along through life, there will always be some prayers that haven’t been answered yet. Will we give up or will we keep praying? That’s what Jesus means when he asks, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Will he find anyone still believing or will everyone turn away?
Will he find faithful believers who still pray as the world self-destructs?

We can make sure the answer is yes. We can do our part by praying persistently, unitedly, fervently, joyfully, and faithfully. I believe those end-time prayers will have great power with the Lord because they are offered in the face of persecution, ridicule, and rising unbelief.

God will not let those prayers go to waste.

Start by Looking in the Mirror

So where does revival begin? The answer is always the same. It begins with you and it begins with me. It’s one thing to talk about what stands between our nation and revival or between my church and revival. It’s always easier to confess someone else’s sins. Ask God what stands between you and a new experience of his power and blessing. If you ask in sincerity, God will surely answer.

Do we have to stay the way we are? The answer is, “No, but." We have to start by understanding “the way we are.” Once we see that, the possibility of genuine change and real spiritual growth is open to us. So I end where I began. Revival is not far away when we see ourselves as God sees us. It’s easy to say, “America needs to get right with God” or “My neighbor needs changing” or “My church needs revival.” Those statements can become excuses for evading our own responsibility.

The call of Christ is always personal. He calls us one by one to follow him. Perhaps we should repeat the Chinese prayer that goes this way: “O Lord, change the world. Begin, I pray thee, with me.” Revival begins with the person you see when you look in the mirror. Start there and by God’s grace revival will begin inside your own heart. 

HEALING IN THE CHURCH

What part should healing play in the church? I believe the Bible is clear on this matter. James 5:14,15 gives specific advice.

"Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well, the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven."

I don't want to deal here with how we are to pray for the sick. Different churches and denominations certainly pray for healing in different ways. But I want to deal with the theological foundations for healing in the church.

I will begin with the Power of Prayer.

There is no question that the Bible teaches the power of prayer. There are certainly more important things to pray for than physical healing. But if we pray for our needs they will include health and healing. I have terminal cancer. And I am always pleased with people who will pray for me. Several years ago I told one of my doctors I had been alive much longer than they had been willing to suggest because people were praying for me. He looked at me thoughtfully and then said, "That's right."

For many years I visited people in the hospital as a pastor. For the first twenty or so of those years I had the feeling that doctors were uncomfortable with me being there. Then something changed. Suddenly doctors started asking if I would step into intensive care units before they were admitting family members. What happened? The American Medical Journal published a study that showed a significantly higher rate of healing in patients who were being prayed for. Medical literature is replete with evidence for the effects of prayer. God has given that power to us.

However, I also need to point out the Humility of Faith.

God does not always answer prayer the way we expect. And while most of us know of dramatic examples of healing, we have also prayed for people who did not get well. I think this may be the main reason many of us are reluctant to pray formally and somewhat publicly over someone who is sick. Will I be embarrassed if God does not heal this person immediately? And there is of course the concern that the Name of God might be dishonored if I pray for healing when He has something else in mind. I am thankful that we can trust God to protect us from harmful prayers we might pray. I trust God to give me what I would have prayed for if I knew everything He sees. If I know that, surely I can trust God when He does not heal the way I want Him to heal. We can trust the outcome to God.

And we need to see healing as commensurate with the Compassion of Our Lord.

The early church saw compassion for the sick as the natural expression of faith in Christ. In his book, The Rise of Christianity, Rodney Stark points out that one of the major factors in the upstart Christian faith supplanting the dominant, pervasive, and enforced paganism in the Roman Empire was the terrible plagues that swept the country. While the pagans were casting former loved ones out into the dirt to keep from contracting the deadly disease, Christians risked their lives to minister to them. Many gladly died showing Christ's love to others. Stark quotes from letters written by the Emperor, Julian, to pagan priests, saying "Not only do the impious* Christians minister to their own sick, they minister to ours as well." A pagan had a better chance of surviving a plague if he lived near a believer.

Finally, we pray for healing to bring about the Witness of Praise.

We honor God simply by praying to Him for others, believers and unbelievers alike. And we share His glory by telling people what God has done. Healing prayer becomes a springboard for talking to people about things that are more important and enduring than physical healing. It is a fact that all physical healing is temporary. It is also important for us to know that all illness is temporary for believers. 1 Corinthians 13 says that is also true of knowledge and prophecy. And like the foolishness of preaching, God may use it powerfully to bring forth His kingdom on the earth. 

http://daveswatch.com/

http://watchinginprayer.blogspot.com/

http://thinkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/

Introducing Prayer Boot Camps from Claude V King on Vimeo.

The response to War Room indicates that God is calling His people to prayer, and God’s people are responding with a hunger to learn to pray more effectively and strategically. Developed by Claude King, Prayer Boot Camp is a flexible prayer training experience to provide basic training in prayer and to introduce the weapons of our spiritual warfare. It is not just learning about prayer. It is learning to pray by praying together. The content is based on The Battle Plan for Prayer by Stephen and Alex Kendrick, developers of War Room.

The Prayer Boot Camp utilizes a learning map that guides learning and prayer experiences based on content from The Battle Plan for Prayer.

I’ve developed the learning map, a leader guide, reproducible handouts, a script, and an optional PowerPoint file leaders can use to customize and conduct a Prayer Boot Camp for their groups, churches, ministries, or communities. All the instructions and files you need can be downloaded at on the bottom of this page.

At this link you will find three file folders. You can open each folder to see the contents. You may download entire folders, or you may download only those files and folders you check mark.

At the local vigil for the victims of the mass shooting in Orlando Sunday, Rev. RL Gundy conceded that finding forgiveness in the face of such hatred was challenging. "How do I look you in the face and say, 'Love your enemy?'” he wondered.

I know where RL is coming from....There is much to say, there are so many larger forces at work but it just doesn’t seem appropriate now. If we would pray more and speak out less, we would find ourselves on the side of good. If we would be love more, talk love less, we would find ourselves on the side of good. If we would pray for our enemies, we would find ourselves on the side of good. If we would not condemn those who do not live like us, we would find ourselves on the side of good.

It is my hope and prayer that the church would lead with genuine humility, compassion and an openness to LGBT people rather than a religious lead-with-justice approach…. Because the most justice can exact from us is respect.

When justice is conveyed through religious culture mindset, it doesn’t even get that much from us; it gets our rejection with a not surprising “thanks, but no thanks” response. This is something the legalists never acknowledge, allowing them to heap further judgment upon those who do not “obey the law.” This enables them to artificially shift the blame from themselves to those they have victimized.

The whole lead-with-justice system fails, even in its best efforts. God certainly does not want our rejection, and even our respect is not enough. God wants our love. And only mercy begets love.

If God did not begin with mercy, God would not be God–Whose nature is love, love from which amazing grace flows to “the sinner” who is any and all of us. As we learn from the story of Hosea, mercy doesn't deny justice, it only precedes and then goes beyond it.

The ultimate sign that mercy supersedes justice is the Cross. In eternal paradox, God “absorbs” the justice and “extends” the mercy–both in Christ -- the Just One who died self-sacrificially for the unjust. We, the justified body of Christ, the Church, must do likewise, as we seek to “act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly” and integrate the whole counsel of scripture into our prayer, care, share lifestyle. 

But too often we reverse it by asking the sinner to “absorb” justice as a pre-requisite to the extending of mercy. This is simply not the way of God. Instead, in Christ we see the primacy of mercy, offered to us all in ways that derives justice in the process.

That's why the church is the place in our society where the fullness of God’s ways should be displayed. Ministries of justice and mercy strengthen the reach of the Great Commission insofar as we live and teach the whole counsel of scripture. Those who are called to evangelism must not neglect that full counsel any more than those who are called to feed the orphan and the widow. And conversely, we cannot truly love our neighbors as ourselves without offering them the Good News of Christ’s redemption, so that God’s love and forgiveness may extend everywhere–and do so in ways that are continually new and surprising.

Radical? Yes. Risky? Clearly. Mandatory? Absolutely. Because the work of justice is the restoration of God’s true image in the world, made known in the one true Image, Jesus Christ. So, when Jesus commands us to love our neighbor and to love the enemy, he’s training us in overcoming the split between my self and your self. What you do to another, you do to yourself. What you do to the neighbor, you do to Christ. As Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.”

Scripture says it is with loving kindness that God drew us to himself. That kindness is the balance to justice and it is something that God accomplishes and that we are to emulate in our pursuit of unity with our neighbor, with the enemy, and with God. This creates a missional unity within the body of Christ. For as stated in the Lausanne Covenant: “When people receive Christ they are born again into his kingdom and must seek not only to exhibit but also to spread its righteousness in the midst of an unrighteous world.”

The Christian Grandparenting Network (CGN) recognizes the desperate moral and spiritual climate our grandchildren must navigate in a world hostile to truth. Satan has launched an aggressive attack on all fronts using media, technology, education, social influences and political pressures to desensitize and cloud the boundaries of truth and righteousness that hold nations and families together. Perhaps at no other time in our history is a call to prayer more urgently required than it is today.

Therefore, CGN is proclaiming September 11, 2016 as a National Grandparent’s Day of Prayer.

As a grandparent, God has entrusted you with a sacred responsibility to impress upon another generation the message of God’s faithfulness, grace, and to stand in the gap on their behalf through prayer and the power of Christ living through you. Assuming this responsibility means taking seriously the effectiveness of prayer to keep their hearts and minds from falling captive to the enemy’s deception. You are engaged in a spiritual battle requiring spiritual weapons.

On Sunday, September 11, 2016, Christian grandparents everywhere will be asked to stand in the gap together for our grandchildren just as Esther stood in the gap for her people in a desperate time. Together we will link arms with other grandparents in prayer for the sake of the next generations.

If you are interested in serving as an event organizer for the Grandparent's Day of Prayer in your church, the RESOURCE section on our website provides the necessary tools and resources to help you organize and implement a Grandparent’s Day of Prayer event at your church, school or neighbourhoods. Our hope is that thousands of churches will participate in the Grandparent's Day of Prayer. That will require people like you willing to step forward and make it happen.

If you are not interested in being a volunteer, then we invite you to join our Million Praying Grandparents who will be participating to pray on their own or with a small group. Our Lord taught that where two or three are gathered in His name, he is there is their midst. There is always something extraordinary and powerful about a group of people gathering to pray. I encourage you to participate with a group of grandparents during this time of prayer if possible. Sign up, to join the Million Praying Grandparent movement and we will keep you informed about events in your area and pass on to you suggestions and ideas for strengthening your prayer life.

Whether as a Volunteer or joining the Million Praying Grandparents movement, we need YOU to make the Grandparent’s Day of Prayer a reality in your church and community by getting the word out to everyone you can.

Click on www.grandparentsdayofprayer.com for more information

We look forward to linking arms with all of you on September 11, 2016 as we stand in the gap through prayer for our grandchildren, our families, our churches and our nation.

May God bless you and find you faithful.

Cavin T. Harper, CGN Executive Director and
Lillian A. Penner, CGN National Prayer Coordinator

A Praying Life is the most practical training on prayer possible, yet it is rooted in biblical theology. 
I highly recommend it.
- Rev. Tim Keller, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, NY 

To pray or to plan?

The short answer is YES!

When it comes down to doing life in today's rushed world, I think we can all agree that the better you plan, the better off you are.

But what does that have to do with doing all of life through prayer?

Everything! Where do you think Jesus got his plans for the day? Since he was always looking to his Father, the plans for the day or the week had to come from his prayer times in the early morning.

I have found this to be particularly liberating. Pray and let the plan(s) flow from your time with your Father.

Here are some practical tips I have picked up through the years.

1. One of my favorite prayer cards is simply labeled: "Myself: my commitment to God". The Scripture I use is Proverbs 16:3, "Commit your work to the Lord and your plans will be established." (See how the Bible promises that the plan(s) will flow from the commitment?)

2. On the same card, I ask for wisdom. The Father loves it when we do this. It shows we see him for who he is and that pleases him. In fact, according to James 1, he loves to give wisdom when we ask for it.

3. After committing our way (our day, our year, or our project) to the Lord and asking for wisdom, watch how the plans will come together. Something may come to you right then while you are praying. Or, you may pick up wisdom for your plan in a conversation with a friend, in a Bible passage you are reading, or in a sermon. One can never predict how the Spirit is going to weave the tapestry of the story.

4. Once you have a plan down on paper, set about to faithfully execute it. Sometimes, faithful execution is the hardest part. But this is all part of the prayer story you are in. Note the areas where you need repentance and pray for help. Note things you learn and jot them down as you go through the plan. Note areas where it occurs to you that you need more obedience from your heart. Personally, I find it is in this part that I ask for more and more faith. Your prayer card(s) will help you here.

5. Be adaptable. It's okay to adjust the plan as long as you are praying about it and seeking the Spirit's lead. Remember, in being adaptable to changing circumstances, you are fully engaging the story of what the Spirit is doing IN you, not just through you.

6. Enjoy the fruit! Yes, don't forget to enjoy the whole story as much as possible. You have committed your work unto the Lord and he is blessing because he loves it! Love it with him.

7. Lastly, every so often, just look at the card and recall the story. You cannot help but thank God. That is genuine and often robust worship.

Don't forget our Father loves to put you in situations where you are in over your head. You have the plan, but you don't have the expertise or the money or the personnel or....well, you get the picture.

He is watching and listening to see if you will just sit there and worry or if you will excitedly ask big things of him. Ask away, thinking all the while, "I can't wait to see what the Father is going to do with this."

Happy praying!

Bob Allums
Director of seeJesus Seminars: A Praying Life

P.S. Have you ever thought about hosting a Praying Life seminar? There are still dates available this fall! Contact us for the details.

Most of us are aware that the Bible calls us to pray for those who have authority over us in government. But let me suggest that we need to pray quite as much for spiritual leaders whom God has raised up to touch our lives and strengthen His church. Many of you are already praying, hopefully daily, for your pastor, your Bible study teacher or that person who has a great influence in your life.

Beyond praying for those whom we know personally are some who teach and inspire us. Many of these influence entire nations and much of the world. It is crucial to pray for their spiritual, moral and even physical protection. You know that the enemy is bombarding them in every way he can think of. You can easily imagine how many people would be harmed if they fell into sin, heresy and public disgrace. And who knows what God might do through them because you are praying.

I pray every day for Eric Metaxis. I know my prayer is part of God using him. There are other writers with not nearly so public personas that I pray for. I once shared Christ with someone by getting them to read Vienna Prelude, by Bodie and Brock Thoene. I pray for them and their powerful novels. My wife and I read Phillip Yancey's Disappointment With God, years ago when our daughter was critically ill. My wife was reading in the night in our daughter's hospital room tears streaming down her cheeks as God ministered to her. A nurse came running into the room wondering why Marsha was crying.

"Oh, I'm just reading this book." She held it up. The nurse charged her not to read it any more in the hospital room in the night. God used that book in our lives in those days.

Do you pray for Franklin Graham? Are you praying for his son, William? I also continue to pray for another of Billy Graham’s grandsons, Tullian Tchividjian, after all that has befallen him. I am sure much of it is his own fault. Who knows how God might restore him. And I still pray for Billy in these final years of his life.

I think we need to pray daily for Tim Keller with his emphasis on the gospel touching all of life. I pray with him and with Redeemer Presbyterian in Manhattan as they desire the number of believers in New York to triple in the next ten years. We need to pray for Ravi Zacharias and the ministry of his team members in more than a dozen countries across the world. Ravi will be on hundreds of university campuses this year. 

I often discover some new preacher to pray for, maybe one that I should have been praying for all along. I just added Chip Ingram and David Jeremiah to my daily prayer list. I can't wait to see who God calls to my attention next. God may use me to pray for a Luther, a Wesley, another C.S. Lewis or an Elijah for these days. My prayers could become vital support for the two witnesses that stand before all the earth in Revelation 11. Whom will God use you to pray for to further His kingdom on the earth?