A Dash of Salt

Your Preacher Needs Prayer

This preacher sure needs prayer!  Here are some ideas of how you can pray for me and other preachers and teachers of the Scriptures, from Justin Childers.  The most valuable thing you could give a pastor is your prayers.  So in advance I say, "Thank You!" (HT: Justin Taylor)

The Royal Telephone

When I mentioned this past Sunday about the iTunes server being overwhelmed with download requests after Christmas and made the analogy that God is never overwhelmed by all of our prayers to Him, it reminded Kay Henson of the old gospel song, The Royal Telephone, which she heard on the radio as a child.  Kay handed me a copy of the words last night at Oasis, and I'll share them now with you.  (Here's a link to the tune.)  It's a quaint and clever little song that uses the telephone (the land-line kind with an operator who connected your call for you) to teach about the Lord's loving attentiveness to his children when they pray.  It also echoes the lessons to be learned from my recent wireless connectivity issues...

The Royal Telephone
Words and Music by Frederick M. Lehman (1919)

Central’s never “busy,” always on the line;
You may hear from Heaven almost any time;
’Tis a royal service, free for one and all;
When you get in trouble, give this royal line a call.

Refrain
Telephone to glory, O what joy divine!
I can feel the current moving on the line,
Built by God the Father for His loved and own,
We may talk to Jesus thru this royal telephone.

There will be no charges, telephone is free,
It was built for service, just for you and me;
There will be no waiting on this royal line,
Telephone to glory always answers just in time.

Refrain

Fail to get the answer, Satan’s crossed your wire,
By some strong delusion, or some base desire;
Take away obstructions, God is on the throne,
And you’ll get your answer thru this royal telephone.

Refrain

If your line is “grounded,” and connection true
Has been lost with Jesus, tell you what to do;
Prayer and faith and promise, mend the broken wire,
’Till your soul is burning with the Pentecostal fire.

Refrain

Carnal combinations cannot get control
Of this line to glory, anchored in the soul;
Storm and trial cannot disconnect the line,
Held in constant keeping by the Father’s hand divine.

Refrain

Connectivity Troubles

I spent most of today studying for my Church History final exam tomorrow.  (How would you spend your day off?)  Right now the outcomes of the four main ecumenical church councils are beginning to blur together, along with most of the apostolic fathers.  I got cauliflower ear while I was on the phone for a long time with one of my seminary classmates reviewing our notes. 

I was also on the phone talking a good while with tech support people located in who-knows-where trying to get some answers to why my new notebook computer can log onto the Internet using WiFi in all sorts of places (like Panera and church) but not at home. (The problem has been narrowed down to its incompatibility with our old router.  Some junior members of our household are lobbying for dad to purchase a newer, faster router that will most likely solve the problem.)

I am thankful that when it comes to my Heavenly Father hearing my prayers, everyplace is a hot spot with full connectivity to Him.  Like my laptop, the issue is my internal compatibility with Him.  Periodically, I need to run some diagnostic questions to check and see if there's any interference.  I ask questions like these...

• What are my motives right now?
• Have I confessed known sin in my life?
• Am I operating out of fear?
• What am I thinking about?  Is it true and right and good?
• Am I trusting God in this situation?
• Am I obeying what I know God wants me to do?

This is what King David was dealing with when he prayed, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24, NIV). 

Thankfully, our prayer connection can be reestablished when we draw near to God.  Humble submission, honest confession, and wholehearted obedience lead us right into God's presence (James 4:6-10).  Prayer is not just sending and receiving a signal; it's the outflow of a deepening relationship with God.  How strong is your connection to Him?

Focused Prayer, Powerful Prayer

"Therefore, we also, from the day we heard (about you), did not cease earnestly praying for you, that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding..."  (Colossians 1:9)

Intercessory prayer was an important tool in Paul's hand for making disciples.  His preaching and teaching -- whether in person or by letter -- were vital for his converts' spiritual maturity, but the truth planted in them needed to be watered by prayer for it to grow.  The priority of intercession is seen in urgency with which Paul prayed.

Paul prayed "without ceasing."  As soon as he heard about the Colossians and their struggles, Paul prayed for them.  Whenever he was prompted by the Holy Spirit he interceded.  He kept praying when he didn't hear from Colossae, he prayed for them even though he was busy, and he prayed for them when the news wasn't good.  Even though he was tempted to quit, Paul didn't stop praying for the Colossians.  Prayer for others requires urgent persistence to see it produce fruit. 

Paul also prayed intensely for them.  As he describes his intercession for them, Paul uses two participles to emphasize how focused he and Timothy were in prayer ("while praying and asking").  He knew they were threatened by false teachers who devalued Christ and blended the gospel with their own brand of "special knowledge" and so cooked up a deadly spiritual concoction of lies and confusion.  With great urgency Paul prayed that the Colossian believers would receive full and true knowledge from God.  Even though he was hundreds of miles away and helpless to assist them in person, Paul prayed to the God who was right there among them.  He knew that if there were going to be changed lives in Colossae, God Almighty had to make it happen.  Recognizing our own helplessness and others' great spiritual need should prompt our intercession.

Prayer is a powerful weapon for others' good.  Their need is urgent, and God's power is unlimited, so let's keep praying.