Pray - Week 3

 Last month we looked at some of the Psalms of Ascent, which were the psalms the people of Israel read and sang as they traveled to Jerusalem three times a year for worship.  One of those psalms reminded the people that unity was a blessing and that as they came together from a variety of places, unity wasn’t just going to happen, they had to work to make it happen.  Unity has been a theme that has come up several times recently and we approach it again today because one of the things that Paul prayed for was unity.  

This month we are looking at what Paul teaches us about prayer and in each teaching there is a similar format.  Paul says, 

I pray ______________ so that _________________.  

The first week, Paul prayed that we would know the power of God’s love so that Christ’s power might be part of life.  Knowing God’s power and love is with us, we should pray big, bold and specific prayers.  Last week, Paul prayed that we would be active in sharing our faith so that we might know every good thing we have in Christ.  This week we see that Paul prayed for unity so that as one, the church might glorify God.  

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.  Romans 15:5-7

Here is Paul’s prayer, may God give you the same attitude of mind toward each that Christ had.  In other words, be united in your love for God and your love for each other.  This is also what Jesus prayed for.  

My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us…  John 17:20-21

Jesus wanted us to be one just as God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one.  Jesus prayed we would be one.  Paul prayed that we would be one.  We need to take seriously the call to be one in Christ with all our brothers and sisters, not just one in Christ at Faith Church but one with fellow believers in our community, nation and around the world.  One reason we need to pray and work for unity is because Satan loves it, and Satan wins, when we are not one.  

If Satan can keep the body of Christ divided, then our witness of God and His love in the world is diminished.  The old saying is true, united we stand but divided we fall.  If the followers of Jesus around the world could unite, we would be the body of Christ in this world and as the body of Christ, nothing would be able to stand against us.  Divided, however, we not only tear apart the body of Christ, but we can’t share God’s love as effectively with the world.  

I had this before when we looked at unity, but let me say it again, unity does not mean uniformity.  Being one in Christ doesn’t mean we all have to worship the same way, serve the same way, be in mission the same and even believe everything the same way.  In many things, it is ok to disagree and have our likes and preferences.  It’s ok to like a certain style of worship.  It’s ok to feel more comfortable in a traditional service or a modern service.  It’s ok that some churches are much more expressive in worship and others are more contemplative.  It’s ok that some people really like small churches and others like large churches.  And as long as we can agree that Jesus is the son of God who died to take away our sin, forgives us, and leads us back into a relationship with God, it can also be ok to disagree on some minor points of theology.  

What’s not ok is to look down on others who think or worship differently, or to insist that our way is the only way, or the right way, or the best way.  Unity doesn’t mean uniformity, it means being willing to accept one another and love one another.  That’s what Paul says will help us be of one mind and voice, accept one another just as Christ accepted you.  

This tells us how we should accept one another - the way Christ accepted us.  I don’t know about you, but when Christ accepted me, I wasn’t perfect.  I didn’t have all the answers, I didn’t live a very faithful life, and at that time, I was a mess (At times I still am).  Despite all my failures and shortcomings, Christ accepted me and loved me and began a work in my life.  As Christians, we need to accept one another and love one another even if we don’t agree.  We have to accept one another and allow God to shape us and teach us what it means to be His one body in this world.  

To help bring about unity among churches, one attitude we need to guard against is seeing ourselves in competition with other churches and realize that we are all on the same team.  Other churches in our community aren’t our enemy, we are partners in the gospel.  We need to celebrate and lift up what others are doing and not be jealous of what others are doing or boastful about what we are doing.  In our own community, if we can show real support and love for other churches - we open the door for common ministry and together we are better able to lift up the name of Jesus.  While it’s not easy, maybe the first thing we can do is stop putting other churches down and start lifting them up in prayer.  

Let me share three more reasons why unity among God’s people is so important.  The first is - we need each other.  

Paul often used the analogy of the human body to talk about how we are all needed in the body of Christ.  Paul said, 

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.  Romans 12: 4-5

We all belong to the same body, which means that we need each other.  In the human body, every part is needed.  The legs need the arms, the eyes need the mouth, the liver needs the spleen, the bones need the blood.  I’m always amazed that if the smallest bone in the body which is found in the inner ear should break, a person could lose their hearing.  Every part of the body is needed for the body to be healthy and strong.  

The same is true with the body of Christ.  Every person is needed and every church is needed.  There is not one church that will reach every person.  All churches are needed if we are going to reach all people and share with them the gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is only together that we are able to fulfill God’s mission because God’s mission is for us with one mind and one voice to glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ in all the world.  This is why Paul prays for unity.  

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.  

We can not fully praise God and glorify God in all the world if we try to do it on our own - we desperately need our brothers and sisters to make it happen.  In so many ways we need our brothers and sisters in Christ both here and around the world.  When Ruslan and Archie were here and talked about living for Christ in Ukraine, my own faith was challenged because I realized how blessed I am and how easy I have things at times.  We don’t live under the threat of bombs and we don’t live with the kind of scarcity that many people do in Ukraine and in other parts of the world.  I need their faithfulness in difficult situations to help me be more faithful. I need their witness to be more generous and sacrificial.   

We need the witness of the church in persecuted areas to remind us of what it means to stand up for faith.  For us, persecution might be someone thinking we are a bit odd, but for many people it means being arrested, imprisoned and maybe killed.  I  need their witness to give me courage and strength.  And they need us to stand strong for them, and pray for them, and support them and give to them when we can.  We desperately need each other.  

We also need to pray and work for unity in the church because 

the world desperately needs God’s love.  

It is only when we are united as the body of Christ that we are able to show the world God’s love.  If we can’t love and accept each other, there is simply no way we can show the world God’s love.  If we in the church put down or look down on other Christians because of how they worship or what they focus on, we can not show the world the love of God.  Even just here in our own church, if we can’t accept and love one another, then there is no way we can show the world that we love them or that we really love God.    

Paul tells us to accept one another and the word “accept” is a complex word that means to embrace and then walk with people hand in hand.  It means accepting and then walking together and working together.  The world needs to see this kind of acceptance and love action and they need to see it in and through the church. If the world could see this kind of love, maybe they would be drawn closer to Jesus and find salvation, hope, and new life.  

The third reason unity is so important is because 

we can do so much more together.  

Missing trips are great examples of this. The last few years we have partnered with Brookside Wesleyan Church and together we have been able to transform people’s lives by working on their homes.  Our mission team has certain gifts and skills and their team has certain gifts and skills and when we bring them together - great things happen.

For years we also worked in missions with Mt Calvary UMC in the Harrisburg area.  My first trip with Faith Church was with the Harrisburg group to South Dakota and it was a fantastic week of working, fellowship and faith building.  This fall there will be another trip with the Harrisburg church to South Carolina and then our mission week here starting Sept. 23.  On our own we can do some good things, as the body of Christ we can do all things.  

We get a glimpse of what can happen when the church comes together as one from the early church.  

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them.  Acts 4:32-34

When God’s people were of one heart and mind, and came together as one and there was not a needy person among them.  Think about that.  No one went hungry or thirsty.  No one went without shelter or clothing.  Orphans and widows were cared for and became part of a family.  If Christians around the world could come together as one today, we could end poverty, hunger and homelessness. There would be drinking water and medical help for all.  All orphans and widows would be cared for in families.  Not only that, but everyone would be able to see Jesus, they would hear about God’s love and more and more people would accept Jesus and have their lives transformed.  

We can do so much more when we work together and the world will see God glorified and experience God’s love if we are united. People are sick and tired of hearing about God’s love and then not seeing it in God’s people.  In fact, that is often how Christians are seen and thought of, as people who judge and are against others.  If we can’t be loving and supportive of our brothers and sisters in our church and in God’s larger church, what hope is there for us to love the world or to show the world God’s love?

Jesus said, A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.  John 13:34-35

Jesus said, love one another as I have loved you.  

Paul said, accept one another as Christ accepted us.  

When we do this and become one body in Christ - we glorify God and show the world God’s love and let them know that God loves them and the world desperately needs to see God’s love and know that God’s love is for them.  

This week, here are two very practical things we can all do to work for unity.  Pray for unity.  Pray that we might be one in Christ in our church and that we might be one with our brothers and sisters in our community, and that we might be one with our brothers and sisters around the world.  If you have a friend who attends another church, ask what they are doing so you can pray big, bold and specific prayers for them.   

Pray for unity - but then work for unity.  Let’s make sure we never put another church down but lift them up.  Let’s not allow negative comments about other churches or the way other believers worship be part of our thinking or speaking.  Let’s celebrate our differences and give thanks that other churches do things differently so they can reach different people.  

And then let’s find ways to support others.  We can support our brothers and sisters in Ukraine through Raising Hope Ukraine.  We can work for unity by being part of one of the mission weeks coming up this fall where we can literally work with people from other churches.  

I pray that we might be one, so that as one body in Christ we might glorify God and all would come to know the power of God’s love and grace.    

Next Steps 

Pray- Unity

When have you been part of a larger Christian community for worship or service?  What was the experience like?  What were you able to accomplish together?

What keeps churches in our own community apart?

3 Reasons Unity is so important:

1. We desperately need each other

● Read Romans 12:4-5 and 1 Corinthians 12:12-27

● What does the body of Christ analogue tell you about our need for each other?  

● What gifts does Faith Church have that can be a blessing to others?

● Only speak positive things about other churches.

2. The world desperately needs God’s love

● Where do you see the need for God’s love in our community?

● How has God’s love touched you through the lives of other Christians?  

3. We can do so much more together

● Read Acts 2:42-47 and Acts 4:32-34

● If all the churches in our community came together, what needs could we meet? 

● Pray for opportunities to work together with others to meet those needs.  

This week:

● Ask a friend or neighbor who attends a different church in the community how you can pray for that church.

● Pray for a different church in the community each day this week.

● Commit to one of our fall mission work weeks.

Pray Week 2

 

This month we are learning about prayer from the Apostle Paul.  Paul wrote many letters to the churches he helped form to teach them about Jesus and how to live a Christ-like life.  There is one letter, however, that wasn’t written to a church to talk about general ideas of faith but to a specific person to address a single issue.  It is the letter written to a man named Philemon.  It is only 25 verses long and is often overlooked in the New Testament but it has a very powerful message for us on prayer.  To understand the letter, however, we need to know its backstory.  

Philemon was a wealthy and successful leader who had a church that met in his home.  Philemon also had a slave named Onesimus who had run away and made the long journey from Colossae (which is in Turkey) to Rome.  In Rome, Onesimus met the Apostle Paul who led him to believe in Jesus as his savior.  Onesimus was so transformed by his new relationship with Christ that he felt the need to go back to Philemon and make things right.  Paul sent Onesimus back with this letter telling Philemon that Jesus had so changed Onesimus' life that he should not welcome him back as a slave but as a brother in Christ.  

The first part of Paul’s letter, however, says this about prayer; 

I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints.  I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.  Philemon 4-6

We see the same formula that Paul used last week to teach about prayer, I pray _____ so that ______.  Paul prays that Philemon will be active in sharing his faith so that he may understand all the good things he has in Christ in Jesus.  But why would Paul pray specifically for Philemon to be active in sharing his faith?  It could be because what he heard from Onesimus was that Philemon, while he was a good and faithful man who loved the people in his church, had not shared his faith in Jesus Christ with him.

Onesimus had been a slave in Philemon’s house but it was Paul who said that he had become his spiritual father.  It was Paul who shared his faith with Onesimus and helped him believe in Jesus, not Philemon.  Onesimus wasn’t transformed in Philemon’s house or under his care but by Paul in Rome, so when Onesimus returns to Philemon, Paul reminds him to share the gospel of Jesus with all those around him and all those in his household.

What we know about Philemon was that he loved the Lord and he loved the saints, or those already following Jesus, but Paul reminds him, and us, that that isn’t enough.  Loving God and God’s people isn’t all there is in faith.  As followers of Jesus, we are also called to be the light of the world and to make disciples of all people.  We are called to share our faith in Jesus with others so that they may come to know for themselves the love and grace of God.  Paul prays that Philemon will be active in sharing his faith. 

My guess is most of us could use that same prayer.  We know we should share our faith more, but we don’t.  The question is, why don’t we?  One reason we might not share our faith more is because we don’t want to look weird.  In our culture today, many people find it uncomfortable to talk about their faith, especially faith in Jesus.  The world often defines followers of Jesus as judgmental and hypocritical and since we don't want to be seen that way, we remain quiet about our faith and don’t share as much as we should.  

Another reason people give for not sharing their faith is that they don’t think they know enough.  If I start sharing my faith and they ask me a question, I might not know the answer.  I’m going to look uninformed or unfaithful, so I’m just not going to say anything.  We think, if I understand more, I will share more, but what Paul says is if we will share more, we will understand more.  

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.   

So to learn more about our faith and to understand all we have in Jesus, we need to pray for opportunities to share our faith.  As we look through the New Testament, we can find at least 4 different ways people shared their faith that can help us think about ways we might be able to comfortably share our faith.   

The first way is to be loving but direct.  

In Acts, Peter stands up and preaches his first sermon and lays out the gospel in a very direct way, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off  Acts 2:38-39

When the people asked what they needed to do to trust in Jesus, Paul was very direct, repent and be baptized, every one of you.  This might not be the method of sharing your faith that you want to use the first time you meet someone, that would be weird.  It might not be what you want to share in casual conversation at work, but at the right time and in the right place, when people ask what they have to do to start following Jesus, this is something we could say.  Repent and turn to Jesus.  We need to acknowledge that we are sinners and ask God to forgive us.  

A better way to share our faith is simply share your story.  

In the gospel of John, we find a story about a man who was born blind but then healed by Jesus.  Jesus spit on the ground, made some mud out of the dirt, applied it to the man’s eyes  and then told him to go wash in the Pool of Siloam. When he did, his eyes were open and he could see.  The man was then questioned by all the religious leaders about what exactly happened.  The blind man didn’t know how it all happened.  He didn’t really know who Jesus was so he simply told his story.  

The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.”  John 9:11

When the people kept asking him about Jesus, the man didn’t have any answers.  When pressed about Jesus, the man finally said, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”  He simply shared his story and that is all we have to do.

Has walking with Jesus given you peace - tell that story.  Has knowing that you are forgiven helped you forgive yourself and not be filled with guilt and shame - tell that story.  If you have experienced a sense of God’s touch healing you or giving you strength to get through a difficult time or helping you make a difficult decision - tell that story.  You don’t have to have all the answers - just tell your story.  

A third way of sharing our faith is to invite people to join you.  

We can invite people to join us for worship, or to serve with us in or through the church, or to a fellowship event, but a simple invitation can open the door for someone to experience Jesus.  In the very beginning of John’s gospel, Andrew spent a day with Jesus listening to him talk and share.  Andrew was so taken by what Jesus said and how he lived that he went and found his brother Simon (who would become Peter) and he invited Simon to go with him and meet Jesus.  Simon did and that invitation changed his life.  

Later on in John’s gospel, Jesus told an outcast Samaritan woman that he was the Messiah.  She believed him and then went and invited her family and friends to come meet Jesus for themselves.  

Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 

So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.

They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”  John 4:39-42

The woman shared her story and then invited people to come with her to meet Jesus.  Sharing our stories and inviting people to come and experience Christ in the ways and places we have can change people’s lives.  This past week we celebrated the life of Carl Burpo.  Many people who knew Carl maybe 10 or 12 years ago might not think that he would ever go to church.  He was skeptical of churches and church people, but his wife Grace had been invited to church by her friend Michael and Grace’s experience in the church was so positive that she started to talk about it with Carl.  

Carl saw for himself the love of the church through Grace and then heard about our Christmas Dinner.  Carl couldn’t believe that people, especially young families with children, would give up big chunks of their Christmas Day to help cook and serve dinner to people they didn’t know.  When Grace invited Carl to come to worship with her, he did.  And when he was invited to help at the Christmas Dinner, he did.  His life changed and it all started with an invitation.  In fact we can go back and see that Grace came to faith church through an invitation from a friend.  A simple invitation is a powerful way to share our faith.  

Maybe you are here because of an invitation from a friend.  Next month we are going to have another Family and Friends Day and we hope you will invite someone to join you.  We will have invitation cards available to help you make that invitation, but start praying now for the people you want to invite and pray for the courage to invite them.  

The fourth way we can share our faith is by living a life of faith that will speak to others.  In the early church, Paul and Silas were missionaries sharing their faith in Jesus from town to town, but the biggest impact they made in one place wasn’t from their teaching but from how they handled a difficult situation.

Paul and Silas had been put in prison in Philippi because of a conflict that arose because of their ministry. During the night, they weren’t shouting and cursing but singing hymns.  As they were singing, the chains that held all the prisoners fell off and the doors of the prison burst open.   This is where we pick up their story:

The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!  

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.  Acts 16:27-34

What gave Paul and Silas the opportunity to directly share their faith and tell the jailor and his family to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, was how they treated the jailor when the chains fell off and the doors burst open.  Instead of fleeing into the night so that the jailor would be held accountable and probably put to death for losing the prisoners, Paul told him not to harm himself because they were all there.  They hadn’t gone anywhere.   They didn’t take advantage of the situation.  They had integrity. This moved the jailor so deeply that he asked them about their faith.

The way we live in our lives and handle situations can open the door for people to ask us about our faith.  Sometimes the best way we can share our faith is simply by how we live.  If we fully follow Jesus in this world, we will look different than those around us.  People will notice and people will ask us about it and people will begin to want what we have.  This is part of my faith  story.  

When I went to college, I thought I knew what I wanted.  I wanted to be a hotel manager and work at resorts around the world because I wanted to live in those fancy and wonderful places.  While hotel management isn’t as glamorous as I was thinking, that wasn’t what changed my life, what changed my life was meeting a man named Dave DeGraaf.  

Dave was a student a few years older than I was and he was studying linguistics so that he could help translate the Bible into other languages.  As I got to know Dave through a small group Bible study, I realized that there was a sense of purpose and meaning in his life that my life lacked.  Dave had a clear vision of what it meant for him to follow Jesus and there was joy he had that was contagious.  The more I got to know Dave, the more I wanted the things he had - a deep sense of meaning and purpose, and life filled with joy and peace.  What I realized was that all of that came from his relationship with Jesus.  Because of the way he lived his life, I finally gave my life to Jesus.  

How we live our life can be the most powerful way we share our faith.  Being gracious to those around us when others are being critical can point people to Jesus.  Forgiving others and letting go of grudges can point people to Jesus.  Having a deep sense of meaning and purpose and joy can point people to Jesus.  The more we live in Christ the more our lives can share Christ with others.  

While we often think that sharing our faith means directly telling people about Jesus and that they need to repent and believe, that is just one way - a way that I would say we need to pray about before jumping into.  But telling our story, inviting others to join us in worship or service or fellowship and living our lives fully in Jesus are ways we can authentically share our faith every day.  We still need to pray that God will use us when we share, but these are just as important and powerful ways to share our faith. 

If we want to fully understand all that we have in Christ Jesus, we need to share our faith.  Begin today by simply asking God to show you who might need to hear your story, or get an invitation to worship with you or join us family and friends day.  Ask God to help you share your story with them so they know why you believe in God and trust in Jesus.  Pray for opportunities and open doors to share these things and then be ready for God to open those doors.  

When we share our faith, two wonderful things happen.  First, we  find ourselves part of God’s divine plan in someone else’s life. We may be the one to plant the seed, or water it along the way, or we may be the one to bring in the harvest and see someone’s life change, but no matter what, we will be part of God’s divine plan. The second thing that happens when we share our faith is that we come to know and experience every good thing we have in Jesus.  We will experience the love of God, the power of the Holy Spirit and all the glorious riches found in Jesus.  

I pray that we would be active in sharing our faith so that we will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.  

 

Next Steps

Prayer - Sharing Your Faith

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith 

so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.  Philemon 6

Is sharing your faith an ongoing part of your life?  

If not, why?  What holds you back?

What would help you share your faith more?

Four biblical examples of how to share our faith.

1. The loving and direct approach: Acts 2:37-42

How would you answer the question, what must I do to 

be saved?  

Write out a response so you can be prepared when asked.  

2. Share your story: John 9:1-9 and John 9:13-25

What can you share about your faith?

Take time to reflect and write out a story of your faith and what you might want to share with others.  

Share with a friend or small group to get comfortable in sharing.  

3. Invite people to Jesus:  John 1:35-43 & John 4:1-30, 39-42

Who has invited you to worship, a small group or to serve with them in the church or community? Give thanks for them.

Begin to pray for someone in your life that God wants YOU to invite to join you in worship, at a fellowship event, in a small group, or a service opportunity.  

Pray for someone you might want to invite to the Family and Friends Day at Faith Church on September 15.  

4. Living a life of faith that speaks to others:  Acts 16:25-34

Whose life has been a witness and example to you?  Ask God to use your life of faith to be a light and witness to others.  

Pray - Week 1

 If I were to ask, I think we would all absolutely agree that prayer is powerful, important and should be a vital part of our life of faith.  I’m also pretty sure that most of us would say that we absolutely don’t pray enough.  We know we need to pray more consistently and intentionally, but we don’t.  We might not pray more because we feel inadequate and don’t know the right words or the right way to pray.  We might not pray because we feel guilty when we find ourselves dozing off or losing focus.  We might not pray because we don't think our faith is strong enough or that our lives are important enough for God to take the time to listen to us.  We might not feel worthy enough before God to pray.  There are many reasons we don’t pray more often, but we know prayer is important.

Because prayer is important and we need to be more intentional and focused in our prayer life, we are going to take the next 4 weeks to reflect on and learn about prayer.  We are going to look at what the Apostle Paul said about prayer in his letters to the early church.  The early followers of Jesus would have also struggled with prayer.  

Until the time of Jesus, prayers would have been structured and formal.  Prayers might have come from the psalms and other scriptures or the prayers provided by the religious leaders, but when Jesus came along, He changed all that.  Jesus told people they could pray to God as their father.  Actually, the word Jesus used to address God in His prayers was Abba, which is an intimate and personal reference to a father, it’s more like daddy.  When Jesus taught his disciples to pray, He wanted their prayers to be personal and genuine.  As more people started to trust in Jesus, Paul helped them understand how and why to pray.  

Before we look at what Paul has to say, there are two general mistakes we make when we pray, and it’s not losing focus or falling asleep.  The two mistakes we make is that our prayers are Too Small and Too General.  For example, we might ask God to bless us and there is nothing wrong with that, but I can imagine God saying, open your eyes!  I have already blessed you.  Or we ask God to be with us, to which God says, have you forgotten that I have promised to be with you always and everywhere?  Maybe we should begin our prayers with gratitude that God is with us and that God has blessed us and then get specific about what we need.  General prayers don’t move the hand of God to specific actions.  If we need or want God to provide in some specific ways - we need to be bold and ask.  

We also might feel too small or that our faith is too small to pray for something big.  Our own lack of faith can hold us back in asking God to move in big and specific ways, but if we believe God is loving and powerful and capable of all things - why not be bold and lay our hearts before God and ask for what we need or desire.  Let me give you an example of a big, bold and specific prayer.

Martin Luther was the leader of the reformation which transformed the Christian faith around the world.  He had a faithful assistant named Friedrich Myconius.  In 1540, Myconius got sick and was on his deathbed.  He wrote to Luther saying his final goodbye.  When Luther received the letter, he didn’t pray a small prayer of thanks for Myconius' life and friendship, he prayed a bold prayer of healing.  Here is how Luther responded to Myconius:

I command you in the name of God to live because I still have need of you in the work of reforming the church. The Lord will never let me hear that you are dead, but will permit you to survive me. For this I am praying… because I seek only to glorify the name of God.  Martin Luther

This is a big, bold and specific prayer.  Luther not only prayed that Myconius wouldn’t die now but that he would never hear of his death.  Luther knew what he needed to accomplish God’s purpose, so he prayed for that to happen.  It was a bold and specific prayer, and the result of this prayer was that Myconius, who was literally about to die, didn’t die.  He got stronger and lived another 6 years.  In fact, Myconius didn’t die until 2 weeks after Luther.  Luther never did hear of his death.  That is a big, bold and specific prayer!

Now does this mean our prayers will always postpone death and heal people? No, but why not ask?  If we believe in the power of God and the love of God - why not be bold and ask.  If the prayer isn’t answered the way we want, then God will give us what we need. God loves us and will provide for us so let’s make sure our prayers are not too small or too general but big, bold and specific.  

During this series, we are going to look at Paul’s teaching on prayer and today we are going to look at what Paul says to the church in Ephesus.  

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.  Ephesians 3:14-19

Paul begins by saying that he kneels before God in prayer.  Kneeling is just one posture we can make when we pray.  It’s a great way to pray because it shows the reverence we have for God, but the good news is that we can pray in any position, in any place, and at any time.  We can pray standing, sitting, kneeling or lying flat on our face before God.  Many Jewish people at this time prayed standing up and with their palms raised to heaven.  

You can also pray at home or at work and even in school.  No matter what anyone says, they have not taken prayer out of school because all students, teachers and staff can pray there any time they want.  You can even pray driving a car but please pray the way Jesus told his disciples to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane.  There Jesus said, watch and pray.  So watch the road, but pray.  

For many people, kneeling in prayer is an important way of showing deep reverence to God.  I have prayed on my knees many times, but I will make a confession, for some reason, when I’m on my knees it's like my mind shuts down.  I can’t think very well or remain focused, so for me, standing or better yet, walking and praying is best.  For about 10 years I did a lot of hiking and my mind was full of prayers and conversations with God during those hikes.  We all do our best thinking and praying at different times and places.  Find the time that works best for you and pray.  

Then Paul said, I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power.  Paul tells us that we pray to God because He is spiritually rich and unconditionally loving.  We pray to God because God has all the wealth and power of heaven and earth and the love and desire to share it all with us.  These are part of the glorious riches of God.  God is the good father who desires to give good gifts to His children.  While we often beg God to forgive us because of our shame and remorse, God is quick to forgive and show mercy.  While we might come humbly before God because we know we aren’t worthy, God is quick to lift our heads and call us His children, joint heirs with Jesus in His kingdom.  We can’t become prideful and arrogant in our prayers, but we also can’t forget that out of God’s infinite and glorious riches, He desires is to give us all that we need.  

In each of the teachings on prayer we are going to look at, we will see Paul use a similar format. Paul will say, I pray ___so that ___.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. 

Paul prays so that Christ may dwell in us through faith.  And if Christ dwells in us, we have power.  Specifically, Paul wants us to have God’s power so we can understand the full measure of God’s love.  The reason we need God’s power to understand God’s love is because God’s love surpasses our knowledge.  Paul said.

I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.

As much as you think God loves you, He loves you more.  As much as you think God forgives you, He forgives you more and even before you asked.  As much as you think God wants to help you, He wants to help you more.  The love of God is higher, longer, wider and deeper than we can possibly imagine.  It surpasses common sense and all our understanding and so it takes God’s power to help us understand and grab hold of God’s love.  And the reason we need to grab hold and understand God’s love is because that is what strengthens us in life and faith and prayer.  Knowing the unconditional and all-powerful love of God is what helps us pray with power.  It helps us pray big, bold and specific prayers.  

When we know the full love of God and the power there is in that love, we won’t pray general prayers of God watching over us and helping us, we will pray specific and bold prayers for God to heal our relationships and provide what we need in life.  We will pray for patience to wait for God and for the peace we need in our community and world. We will pray to find joy in the midst of adversity and self-control in our out-of-control lives.  We can pray big, bold and specific prayers when we know the love of God.  

Last Sunday we were blessed to have Ruslan and Archie with us from Raising Hope Ukraine and they are a great example of people who know the power of Christ in them and the love God has for them and it shows in how they pray.  Archie and Ruslan heard God call them to bring several orphaned and foster children into their families when they were working as part of a ministry, and so they did.  After adding many children into their family, they ran into problems with the ministry and parted ways with them.  The problem was that the ministry owned the house they lived in, so they had to move.  

Ruslan said he prayed, “God you gave us all these children, this was your plan, now you have to help us and provide us with shelter.  We need a home .”  God did provide what they needed and then God increased their faith and gave them more children, which meant there were more needs and God continued to provide.  And then God grew their ministry and they had new needs and then they had more big bold prayers to pray.  

That’s what is so great about changing our prayer life.  When we pray big, bold and specific prayers and see how God provides, it gives us the power to pray more big and bold prayers.  As this cycle goes on, we find our faith growing and pretty soon we are doing things and praying for things we never thought or imagined.  

Today, Ruslan and Archie have another big, bold and specific prayer, they are praying to build a Hub of Hope.  The ministry center they had used at the start of the war has taken over by the government, so they are working out of their home which is just too small.  They stepped out in faith to build a hub of hope and are trusting God for the resources they need to finish.  Ruslan said they need about $30,000 to finish the building so they can continue their ministry.  It’s a big, bold and specific prayer.  Can we be part of God’s answer to this prayer?! Let’s give generously and sacrificially and help make their hub of hope a reality.  We can step into the gap and provide all that is needed for the hope of Christ to shine in the darkness of war.

What have you prayed for recently?  Was the prayer too small?  What prayer has been too general?  How do those prayers need to change?  How can you make your prayers big, bold and specific?  

Don’t just pray for your family, pray for your children to come to know the Lord, or family members to overcome addictions, or for jobs that are needed, new opportunities to pursue, or broken relationships to be restored.  

As we pray for our blessing of the backpacks next Sunday, let's not just pray that we are a blessing to our community, let’s pray for children and families to experience the love of Jesus in such a way that they come back to learn more about Him.  Let’s pray for children to find the hope they need to keep working for their dreams.  Let’s pray for children to lead their families to Jesus if that’s what needs to happen.  Let’s pray for abuse and addiction in families to stop and for transformation to take place because someone here on Sunday shared with them the love of Jesus.  Let’s pray some big, bold and specific prayers about our outreach next Sunday.  

As a church, our prayers need to be big and bold and specific.  Paul prayed to rich and glorious God so that we might be filled with the full measure of God’s love and be able to draw upon God’s power.  So God,  open our eyes so that we can see how deep and wide and high and long your love is so that our prayers can be filled with power, so that our prayers will be big and bold and specific, so that our world might become more like the Kingdom of God.   

 

Next Steps

Prayer - Power

What keeps you from praying?  Guilt, boredom, busyness, distractions, pain, doubt, insecurity…

In what ways have your prayers been too small?  

In what ways have your prayers been too general?  

How can you take your too small and general prayer and make it big, bold and specific?  Write it out.

Read Ephesians 3:14-21

Identify some of the “glorious riches” that are yours through Jesus Christ.  

How can focusing on these things change your prayer life?  

Read Romans 8:37-39.  How have you experienced God’s love and how has that love made a difference in your life?  How can God’s love help you pray with more power?

If you knew that God loved you no matter what and that all His power was at your disposal, what would you pray for? 

Be bold and make that your prayer this week.

Find one way to grow and expand your prayer life this week.

● Set aside a specific time every day to pray.

● Pray with a friend.

● Ask a friend to hold you accountable in praying every day.

● Read a psalm every day and use it as a prayer.

● Find a new posture to pray (sit, stand, kneel, walk…)