31 Days of Prayer: Day 26 – The glories and ironies of the Lord’s Prayer

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AUSTRALIA-PARLIAMENTA brief look at the prayer that changed the world

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. (Matthew 6:9-13)

It’s the most important, precious prayer ever uttered – a lesson in prayer from the master, an intimate guide from the perfect Son on praying to the perfect Father. Just 57 simple words,* but words that have changed the world in untold ways. Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 25 – Dust off your Prayer Book and learn to pray

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Valley of VisionPrayer is meant to be simple – right? Just a helpless, trusting child talking to a loving Father in heaven. No fancy words needed, no magical techniques required, no limits on what we can pray about.

So if that’s true, is there a place for actually working at the content of our prayers? Does it matter what we pray for, or how we pray? Or is it more godly for our prayers to remain in a state of spiritual infancy, lest we try to impress God with our words?

Like most things in the Christian walk, a life of prayer is caught more than it’s taught. Over the next couple of days, we’ll look at what the Bible teaches us about the content of our prayers – how the model prayer of Jesus teaches us, and how the examples of Paul’s prayers shape our understanding. But for today, let’s think about something that, for most of us, has probably gone well and truly out of fashion: using formulaic prayers. Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 24 – Fifty great quotes on prayer

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Quotation MarksAs I was putting together ’31 Days of Prayer’, I scoured books and websites for quotes on prayer that would encourage and inspire me in my own prayer life, and would help as I wrote this series. Over the course of these 31 days, not all the quotes are going to find their way into the posts, but they’re just too good to pass up. So, here are 50 of the best quotes on prayer that I could find. Be challenged and encouraged by the insights of God’s people! Which is your favourite?

“God likes to see His people shut up to this, that there is no hope but in prayer. Herein lies the Church’s power against the world.” (Andrew Bonar)

“Prayer is the most tangible expression of trust in God.” (Jerry Bridges) Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 23 – ‘Relenting Wrath’ and the sovereign God

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David Platt“Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.” (Phil 1:18-9)

We’ve spent the last several days circling around a big topic related to prayer: How does the importance of prayer coexist with the sovereignty of God? As we’ve put the pieces together, my hope and prayer for you is that the sovereignty of God won’t undermine your determination to pray. Rather, I’m praying that it will be just the opposite: because God is in complete control, and in his sovereignty he graciously chooses to act in response to the prayers of his people, we should be moved to give prayer a far greater place in our lives, both individually and corporately. Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 22 – Is prayer the gaping hole in our lives?

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Torn Sail“You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.” (2 Cor 1:11)

There’s a beautiful line I heard some years ago. I’ve never verified its accuracy because, frankly, if it’s not true, I don’t want to know. But it fits with the life and character of the man who supposedly said it – a Bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, a wonderful man who died some years ago now. This Bishop is supposed to have told his ministers: “If you spend two hours every morning praying for your church and praying for your people, you can have the rest of the day off.” Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 21 – Your prayers and God’s predestined plans

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Revelation Incense“And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.” (Rev 8:3-4)

Over the last couple of days, we’ve been thinking through the question of how prayer relates to the complete sovereignty of God. If God is really in charge, why pray? Do our prayers really change anything (other than us and our wills)? We introduced the question on Day 19, and yesterday we looked at the example of Moses praying to God in Exodus 32.

Today, we’ll try to bring some more clarity to this question by looking at Revelation 8 (yep, you read that right – clarity by looking at the book of Revelation!).  Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 20 – Does God change his mind?

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Prayer Changes Things“The Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.” (Ex 32:14)

Yesterday, we began to wrestle with a key question around the Bible’s teaching on prayer: ‘If God is completely sovereign, why should I pray?’ The question comes from the existence of two unavoidable biblical truths: God is in complete control of all things, and is working out his plans and purposes in deliberate fashion; yet prayer is not just encouraged throughout the Bible – it is commanded. Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 19 – If God is sovereign, why do I pray?

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Prayer 2“The Lord relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.” (Ex 32:14)

If you’re going to think about prayer, and if you’re reading your Bible carefully, sooner or later there’s an important question that might rub up against you: Does prayer really make a difference to a sovereign God?

It’s hard to read your Bible and come to any conclusion other than God is totally and utterly sovereign. He is in control of all things, everywhere. Moreover, his plan for salvation has been in place since ‘before the foundation of the world’ (Eph 1:4). He’s not sitting up in heaven, nervously wondering if things will turn out okay. Everything proceeds just as he planned. God is not a human being, that he should change his mind (1 Sam 15:29). Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 18 – Prayer and Anxiety

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Stress ManDo not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Phil 4:6)

I find there’s something strangely comforting about getting anxious. When I start to worry about the pressures of life that are weighing on me – relationships, money, workload, whether the Rabbitohs will win the Grand Final – retreating into the safe space of personal anxiety is a cosy little coping mechanism.

But you know what I don’t like to admit but I’ve realised is true? Anxiety isn’t just a coping mechanism or a safe place. Anxiety is sin. Anxiety is sin because anxiety is the opposite of actively trusting in God. Continue reading →

31 Days of Prayer: Day 17 – Why praying beats voting

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NZ PM JOHN KEY MELBOURNE“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people — for kings and all those in authority…” (1 Tim 2:1-2)

Here in New Zealand, we’re just over a month away from our latest national election (September 20). It’s a strange thing – I’m not exactly excited about the election, but I should be. How many people in the world would give anything – how many people down through the years have given everything – for the right to vote as freely as I can? (That’s if I can be bothered, in a land of non-compulsory voting.) Continue reading →