Power Of Prayer

And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ.  (Colossians 4:3 NIV)

Toward the end of Paul’s letter to the believers in Colossae, he asks for their prayers as he proclaims the mystery of Christ. This petition has a few layers to it.  First, Paul asks for prayer. This may not seem to merit extra consideration, but the fact that even the apostle needed others to pray for him should encourage us. Second, Paul needs prayer for God to open the door. While many of us like to believe that we have the ability to convert someone, only God can open the door for this change to occur. The last part of his petition is related to the previous one—the reason that God must open the door to gospel proclamation is because the gospel is a mystery. This is still true today. The message of the gospel is something that we are incapable of understanding without the direct activity of the Holy Spirit. In the same way that Peter was only able to articulate the message of the gospel at Pentecost after receiving the Spirit, we still rely on God’s timing for the seed of the good news to take hold. Pray today for someone you know who needs to hear the good news.      (Words Of Hope, Grand Rapids, MI, 8/20/13)

How Each Disciple Died

I have always been captivated by this. Tradition tells us that Matthew suffered martyrdom by being slain with a sword at Ethiopia.  Mark died at Alexandria, after being cruelly dragged through the streets.  Luke was hanged on an olive tree in Greece.  John was put in a caldron of boiling oil, but escaped death miraculously and was banished to Patmos.  Peter was crucified upside down in Rome.  James, the Greater, was beheaded at Jerusalem.  James, the Less, was thrown from the pinnacle of the temple and then beaten to death with a fuller's club.  Bartholomew was flayed alive.  Andrew was bound to a cross, from which he preached to his persecutors until he died.  Thomas was run through the body with a lance in the East Indies.  Jude was shot to death with arrows.  Matthias was first stoned and then beheaded.  Barnabas of the Gentiles was stoned to death at Salonica.  Paul, after various tortures and persecutions, was beheaded at Rome by the Emperor Nero.

What sacrifice are we willing to make for Jesus?  We may not be asked to die for our faith, but how are we living our faith?  Pray that God might bless your journey with him this week.

My Daily Walk With The Lord

Some questions I reflect on in my daily walk:

1.     Where is God at in my life?

2.     What is He trying to teach me through this pain, person, event?

3.     Who have I blessed today?

4.     Whom have I hurt today?   What amends are needed?

5.     What is God calling me to do today?

God's Imperfect Disciples

Jacob was a cheater, Peter had a temper, David had an affair, Noah got drunk, Jonah ran from God, Paul was a murderer, Gideon was insecure, Miriam was a gossiper, Martha was a worrier, Thomas was a doubter, Sara was impatient, Elijah was moody, Moses stuttered, Zaccheus was a cheater, Abraham was old, and Lazarus was dead....

God doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the CALLED.  May we each live in the confidence that even in our weaknesses and vulnerabilities, God can use us in powerful ways to accomplish His Kingdom work on earth.

Blessing Others We Are Blessed

One corn farmer won all the blue ribbons for his corn year after year at the surrounding fairs.  Yet each year he shared his best seed corn with all his neighbors.  "How do you expect to continue to win blue ribbons," someone asked him, "if you give your best seed corn to others?"  "You don't understand," said the farmer.  "The wind carries the pollen form field to field.  And if I am to have the best corn I must see to it that all my neighbors also have the best corn.  If they produce poor corn it will pollinate mine and pull my quality down."  So it is, the principle holds for all of life.  We are interdependent and dependent on each other.  And the quality of our lives depends on the quality of our neighbors' lives.  Sounds like the community of Christians to me.

Zig Ziglar said many times: "You can get everything out of life you want, if you just help others get what they want."