How, then, could we NOT pray?

9 And I tell you, rask, and sit will be given to you; tseek, and you will find; uknock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for4 a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, wwho are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father xgive the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Luke 11: 9-13

Prayer is an interesting subject for us all. It is, obviously, a direct communication with

God that is a personal involvement with Him. The bible, God's word, suggests that God

welcomes and desires to hear our prayers; He is glorified by the fact that we are dependent

upon Him and aware that He is sovereign and in control.

At our church, Crossroad Christian in the McKinney area, I started to send out bi-weekly

prayer request lists, mainly because I found myself unable to remember who I was

wanting to pray for. Old age, again. So this was a way to not only remember prayer needs

but also to share them with others and track the apparent success of prayer 

from the standpoint of positive answers. I am amazed at the number of prayer 

offerings that seem to have been answered in a positive way! I would have to say that

prayer works.. big time.

I think, personally, that my praying has greatly increased my trust and faith in God. I

haven't "heard" from Him personally, by voice, but I have the increasing assurance that

He is listening and that He will answer in his own way, in His own time. It's so

comforting to understand that, despite what I encounter, problems, hopes, dreams...

He is there to listen.

Obviously, God is true to His own directions, promises and answers. He is willing
to listen and consider, but, as we would expect, he will be true to His own decisions.
Sometimes He will answer our prayers with a "Yes!" Sometimes, He will answer
them with a "No." We need to go to Him humbly with appreciation for all that He
has done and is doing in our lives.

Pray enthusiastically, pray frequently and pray with the expectation that the King
of the universe is not too busy, amazingly, to listen and consider. Praise God!!!

We have His Covenant on it!

A covenant is a strong thing! It's, essentially, an agreement where two parties
agree on something with promises from each as part of the agreement. When God
is a part of a covenant, that's saying something very very powerful!

There were several noteworthy covenants in the old testament including covenants
between God and Noah, the rainbow comes to mind, here. A covenant with
Abraham promising a nation of descendants, which, was of course, improbable
considering his age. The Mosaic covenant between God and the people of Israel
brings to mind the ten commandments and the covenant with Kind David
establishes the lineage for the birth of Jesus Christ. 

 ²⁵ In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 1 Cor. 11:25

This last covenant, established through the life, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus
was a fulfillment of prophecy where God promised to write the law on the hearts of
men, not just men of Israel but of Judah, as well. In other words, the covenant opens
the way for all peoples to be in an acceptable relationship with God. The sacrifice
needed to establish this covenant, by a great High Priest, Jesus, was the key to making
this agreement.

Now, it's amazing, is it not, that a Holy, Just, Righteous, Sovereign God would be willing
to make such an agreement with His creation that has fallen short on all accounts. A
creation that has been rebellious, has been in sin and one that turns away from God is
far from deserving of an agreement that promises eternal habitation and acceptance,
promises the opportunity to live in the presence of the Holy God who created it.

So what's our part? We, in my way of thinking, need to be down our knees, even if
they are old and hurt like mine do, praising and thanking Him for His loving-kindness
and Grace. Did He need to enter into this type of agreement? Absolutely not. Did we
earn or merit such an agreement. Nope. Our job is to accept, love and cherish Jesus
Christ as our savior and King. Calling that a job is really a misnomer. It's a privilege..
with a capital P! Praise God!

Alistair Begg

"All the deepest longings of the human heart are answered in the gospel." 

 Isn't that a phenomenal set of words? They were spoken by Alistair Begg in a talk
given at a Ligonier Ministry conference this year. I'm not sure if these are his original words  or if they are ones spoken by another, but I am sure that they are profound. 

Had I known that Mr. Begg was the pastor at Parkside Church in the Cleveland area
while I was living and teaching in a suburb of Columbus, I would gladly have made the
100 mile drive to Bainbridge to be among his congregation. I just love the man and his
teaching. (I also must admit that I love the accent..so much so that I have to be careful
not to lose the important stuff just listening to the way he forms the words)

The quote above was a part of a talk he was giving about mercy. Luke 6:27-36 was the
scripture base for his talk, and these are verses that represent great challenges in
our lives. There is no question that living a life that honors the words of Jesus and
seeks to be like Him is a monumental goal for humans who sin. Showing mercy
as the words from these verses suggests, loving those who mistreat us, giving to others
without the expectation of the gift being returned, doing to others as we would 
have them treat us are easy to read and digest and very very difficult to fulfill. Left
to our own devices, our own pride, our own self-contentedness; living in this sinful
world, a world that seems to emphasize getting ahead and taking care of ourselves,
we are definitely in need of the Holy Counselor to help us try to live up to His
directions. God is merciful. Jesus is merciful. We need to strive to show mercy
to others through prayer and guidance.

As for the quote above, those words seem so very very truthful. We all, in the depths
of our hearts, have a desire to see meaning and good in our lives. We all long for
a future and, I believe, whether admitted or not, we ALL long to know God. It's
a part of our creation, a part of our humanity to be united with He who created us,
indeed, He who loves us and has forgiven us through the justifying blood of the
Lord, Jesus Christ. The gospel is the Good news, the news that answers our hopes,
our fears and our needs. Praise God for His loving-kindness and mercy!