As a church Pastor I feel an urgency to pray… but I must confess it wasn’t always this way. I guess my commitment to pray intensified with my increased engagement in church life, and that shift occurred well before I was invited to lead a church. (More on this soon.)
my commitment to pray intensified with my increased engagement in church life
One of the key verses that propels us to our knees in prayer is well known, and often quoted.
“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.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Without wanting to preach a sermon, it’s worth noting the four actions that are commanded of us by the Lord. (Yes, God says prayer is essential for all believers.) The four key actions for all of us are:
- Humility: meaning putting our personal needs/preference aside and allowing the Lord to lead us.
- Pray: meaning enter into a personal dialogue with the Lord.
- Seek His face: meaning speaking with our Heavenly Father as a child and/or friend.
- Turn from wickedness: meaning live according to His standards, not ours.
Okay, I’m willing to admit, this is no easy list to embrace!
As I confessed earlier, being a part of a praying church was never high on my list of things to do. So, what changed that, you might ask. For me, it was the first item on the list above – humility.
Not being one to embrace humility willingly, the Lord God was gracious enough to help me. And, honestly, He did that by knocking me off my donkey! (see Acts 9:4)
Not being one to embrace humility willingly, the Lord God was gr
As a result of this God-given invitation to humility, I found myself putting other people and their needs ahead of my own. I found myself serving the church more often. I had a desire (not a grudge) to attend church prayer meetings and align my heart with God and others. The result was astounding as I saw God do amazing things in my world as I was deeply engaged and invested in the purposes of the local church I attended.
I saw God do amazing things in my world
What does it mean to be a praying church? What might this look like? How might you be part of this picture? These are all good questions, if one would dare contemplate them. Watch out, perhaps your donkey is not as safe as you might think!