09

Jump Start # 1846

Posted on May 9, 2017 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1846

2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.”

Richard Nixon. Barry Bonds. Bill Cosby. Bill O’ Reilly. There are two common threads connecting all of these names. First, they were all public figures who achieved great success in their fields. They were superstars. Second, each of them is now associated with a cloud of suspicion. Nixon resigned because of a scandal. Bonds used steroids. Cosby connected to drugging women and having sexual relations with them. O’Reilly was fired because of sexual abuse. These names will forever be linked to the trouble associated with them. Each of their careers did not end with honor and respect that we’d think comes after a lifetime of service.

 

Biblically, we could find a similar list. King Saul. Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu. Judas. Diotrephes. To mention these names almost automatically takes our mind to the wrongs that they did. King Saul died in disgrace having had the kingdom taken from him for his disobedience. Aaron’s sons were struck dead by God for offering a strange fire in worship. Judas, chosen by Jesus, betrayed him and committed suicide. Diotrephes, selfishly took over a church and ran it to his liking.

 

Our verse today identifies the three “I have” statements of Paul’s life. The middle statement, “I have finished the course,” is where our thoughts are at today. Finishing strong. Finishing well. It’s easy to start things. It’s hard to stay with it and finish it. Starting a book is easy. But reading the entire book, that’s hard. Starting a diet, easy. Sticking with it and finishing the diet, that’s hard. Starting a budget, easy. Sticking with it to complete your financial goals, that’s hard. Starting college, easy. Sticking with it to finish your degree, that’s hard. Starting a running race, easy. Finishing that race, hard.

 

Maybe this is why Solomon declared that the end of the matter was better than the beginning. We are surrounded with projects, books, movies, diets and budgets that we all have started, but we never completed them. We didn’t finish.

 

Paul’s “I have finished the course,” is addressing the most important thing one can complete in life, his journey with the Lord. To remain faithful, dedicated, committed and obedient to Jesus, from start to finish, that’s not easy. We all know far too many among us who were baptized into Christ and began that journey only to drop out. They quit. They returned to the world. Some crashed their marriages in the process. Some left a trail of destruction. Some had severed as elders, others had preached. But they are now known for the trouble at the end rather than all the good that they have done.

 

How do we finish the course? How do we end well? How do we keep from being another causality of Satan? This is not just about legacy, how we will be remembered, but it’s also about influence and example. What footprints are we leaving for our family and others to follow? We start strong, but do those footprints fade or do they actually turn away from the cross? And, most importantly, if we do not finish the course, we do not get Heaven. It’s that simple. A person who does not finish college will not get a diploma. You have to finish.

 

Paul’s life was touched with hardships. So will ours. We may not be abused and tormented for our faith as he was, but life is hard. There will be health issues, job issues and family issues. Problems arise down at the church house. Paul was also let down by others, as we will be. People disappointed him. He was abandoned. He was criticized. He was blamed. He was accused of false things. Paul was discouraged. He was even depressed at times. But what he never did was quit. He stayed with it. He finished.

 

How? How did he do it?

 

First, his faith was real, deep and in the Lord. His faith wasn’t in the church. His faith wasn’t in people, but in Christ. Jesus was always before his eyes. The Lord was good to Paul. He never forgot that. This is how we endure and keep going through hardships and disappointments. The Lord won’t treat you bad. The Lord won’t leave you. When a person quits, they haven’t just stopped going to church, they have given up on the Lord. Often, they point fingers at people or the church, but their stopping hurts the Lord. The Lord died for them. The Lord blessed them. The Lord was good to them. To quit, hurts the Lord.

 

Second, what he was doing was right. He knew he was making a difference, not only in his life, but also in the lives of others. Good was being done. This was God’s work and he realized that.

 

Third, weary as he was, he knew there was a wonderful divine rest awaiting him. He had to finish. How could he throw in the towel and miss all that he believed in. This is why he said that he “disciplined his body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” He had to do the very things he taught others. He had to listen to his own sermons. He had to be what he wanted others to be. To be disqualified is not to finish. He wanted to finish.

 

Fourth, he did not let others influence him to quit. There will always be those who tell you to take your foot off the accelerator of your faith. But you know better. So you keep teaching. You keep preaching. You keep inviting others to worship. You keep having families into your home. No stopping. No quitting. All of us know those senior saints, who are so engaged, active and busy in the kingdom. They have been doing things for decades. They will continue until health or the Lord stops them. They will finish. These are our examples. They are our heroes. This is what we need to become. Steady. Consistent. Busy. And, finishing what we started.

 

There is no T-shirt in Heaven for trying. There is no consolation prize. There is no second place or honorable mention in Heaven. It’s all in or not at all. Keep pushing. Keep reading. Keep praying. Keep going. When you see a weary soldier of Christ, encourage him, thank him, pat him on the back and try to keep him marching onward.

 

Finish. Finish strong. Finish well. Finish the course. We all need reminders like this. There are days when we just want to resign from life. There are days when parents do not want to not be parents. But you can’t quit. There may be days when your marriage really bugs you. Don’t quit. There may be times when brethren really get the best of you. Don’t quit. Keep walking with the Lord.

 

Finish what you started. The Lord is counting on you.

 

Roger

 

08

Jump Start # 1845

Posted on May 8, 2017 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1845

Proverbs 18:14 “The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, but as for a broken spirit who can bear it?”

Our passage today tells us what we know all too well. Sickness of the body and sickness of the heart or the mind are two very different things. We hate getting the flu. It sidelines us for several days. Everything comes to a screeching halt when we are sick. But when we are sick in heart, discouraged, down, depressed, hurt, bothered, we can still walk through the day, go to work, function, but it’s very hard. The broken spirit takes much longer to heal than physical sickness. A few days in bed, some good chicken soup and we can snap back after being sidelined physically. But the broken spirit can drag on for weeks, even months. The broken spirit is like living under a giant blanket—everything seems darker and gloomier than what they are.

 

There are many reasons why a spirit can be broken. Shame and guilt from sin can do that. It can happen when people have let us down. It can happen when others are not doing what they ought to be doing. Parents can have broken spirit when a child is living as a prodigal in the far country. When a marriage starts coming apart at the seams, a broken spirit will follow. When someone realizes things are not going to get any better, it can cause a broken spirit. This is true when one watches a loved one nearing death. This can happen when one realizes a congregation is troubled and dead and no one cares.

 

The broken spirit seems to drain life out of a person. You can tell by looking in their eyes. You can tell by the way they walk. They seem to move slower when their spirit is broken. You can tell by the expression of their faces. Joy and peace have been replaced with sorrow, tears and worry. It’s hard seeing this in others. I have sat with many people with a broken spirit. Most times they are looking for a quick, painless and easy solution. There isn’t any. They want prayers. They want someone else to carry this burden. They are tired, weary and often out of ideas. Most times, by the time others find out about it, they have been broken for a long, long time. They hid it from others. They carried it themselves, ashamed to tell others. They hoped that things would get better. But they haven’t. It’s gotten worse. And now, they carry that brokenness in their body.

 

What is interesting about the contrast this Proverb brings, sickness in the body and sickness in the heart, is that the broken spirit many times leads to sickness in the body. When we do not feel well in spirit, we easily start feeling bad in the body. Sometimes that happens because we do not take care of ourselves when we have a broken spirit. We don’t sleep well. We don’t eat well. That combination leads to feeling bad on the inside and the outside. That only complicates things, but it allows a person to have an easy answer when people ask what is going on. Now, all a person has to say is, “I haven’t been feeling well.” This is true, but the real truth be known, it’s because of a broken spirit that you now do not feel well physically.

 

Our passage is depressing. It can give one a broken spirit. The way it reads, it sounds like there is help for sickness in the body. Just hang in there, “this too shall pass,” is generally true with most sicknesses. A man can endure it, is what our verse says. But when it comes to the broken spirit, “who can bear it?” is how this verse ends. That doesn’t offer much help nor hope. It sounds like a broken spirit is a death sentence. It sounds like there is no getting over it. But this verse doesn’t stand alone. We cannot forget what the Lord has said throughout His word. On your own, you probably can’t do much with a broken spirit. But we are not on our own.

 

What helps heal a broken spirit?

 

First, knowing the Lord is there helps. David said, “A broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Ps 51:17). Peter said, “casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you” (1 Pet 5:7). A major factor in creating a broken spirit is the feeling that we are alone and that no one else understands nor cares. God does. Not only does God care, He knows the story. He knows the history. He knows what led up to our broken spirit. We don’t have to convince God, explain to God, or get Him to understand, He already knows. Not only does the Lord know, but the Lord is in the position, more than anyone else, to actually do something. God can help. This is why Jesus said, “Do not be anxious.” This is why Peter said to “cast all your anxiety upon Him.” God can move things, open things, and do things that are beyond our sight and understanding. The more we shut God out of our lives and out of our problems, the deeper we fall into a broken spirit.

 

Second, being around quality people and taking care of ourselves is essential. Elijah was hiding in a cave from Jezebel and her death threats. We all have our own caves. Dark. Lonely. And all we think about is how bad things are for us. God told Elijah to get out of the cave, eat and go appoint someone as king. Get out of the darkness. Open the blinds. Let the sunshine in. Take care of yourself. Eat. Then go do something for someone else. Get around others. When Paul was depressed, God sent Titus to him. Titus refreshed his spirit. Get back to work. Spend an afternoon with the grandkids. Get to church services. Plug back into life. This helps us get our minds off of self and it helps us to count our blessings. Sometimes around others we will pick up great ideas that we haven’t thought of. We will face our troubles with an new energy and a new hope.

 

The problem with doing these things is that the broken spirit hides behind the excuse, “I don’t feel like it.” No, you don’t. But you have to do somethings that you don’t feel like. You don’t feel like going to worship, but you will and you do. You don’t feel like shaving, showering, eating, getting out of the house, but you will and you do. You don’t feel like being around others, but you will and you do. I don’t feel like it only keeps us in our dark cave longer than we need to be.

 

Third, trust God. In His time, He will do things. When God told Elijah to get out of the cave, eat and do something, Jezebel was still around. His problems weren’t gone. Not yet. A chapter or two later and Jezebel gets it, but not when God first tells Elijah to move out of the darkness. Your problems will probably still be there. But we can’t let our problems, especially other people, dent our faith and ruin us with the Lord. Our problems will stay here. They do not go with us to Heaven. God’s time table is not ours.

 

Fourth, prayer is powerful. Cast those troubles and worries to the Lord. Let God have them. Don’t shut God out of your life. Pray every day. Pray often. I am so impressed with the bent over woman who Jesus healed. There are two remarkable things about her story. First, she didn’t throw her back out over the weekend. She was this way for 18 years. That’s a long time. Second, Jesus saw her in the synagogue. She hadn’t given up on the Lord. Being there, implies that she was Jewish. One can only wonder how many prayers she said in those 18 years concerning her back. For 18 years, it seems like her prayers were ignored. She hadn’t gotten any better. Then that one day, Jesus saw her and healed her. It’s hard imagining the patience that this woman had. It’s hard to think that she would still go to the synagogue to worship when it seems God was not answering her prayers. Patience, faith and hope were the key. We will not have a miracle like she did, but we need that same patience, faith, and hope. God can do things without miracles these days. God can heal a broken spirit.

 

Finally, listen to those who have been healed of a broken spirit. Listen to what believers have to say. Don’t rely on pills to get you through those dark days. Don’t sleep yourself through those long periods in the valley. Listen to what works and what doesn’t work. Be strong. Feed your soul. Connect with others. Someday, you will be able to help others. Someday you will be on the other side of these problems and then you can reach out and be the Titus for a depressed Paul. Someday God will use you to share, teach and remind others of the goodness of God.

 

Who can bear a broken spirit? The child of God can. He can because He has Christ. He can because Christ will see him through.

 

Roger

 

05

Jump Start # 1844

Posted on May 5, 2017 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1844

1 Timothy 4:8 “For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also the life to come.”

The value of godliness, that is what Paul was wanting us to see in this passage. The word, “godliness” appears nine times in the book of first Timothy, more than any other N.T. book. Being godly carries the idea of being like “God,” God-ly.

 

In our verse today, Paul compares the value of godliness to exercise, as the King James states it, or bodily discipline. There is value in taking care of yourself. Eating right, exercising, warding off diseases, not only makes one feel better, but it makes them able to do things. There is value or profit in those areas. But Paul reminds us that the value or profit is “little.” It isn’t great. A healthy body can still belong to someone with a sick mind. A strong body can belong to someone who has a weak soul or a calloused conscience. Fitness is in. Eating well and eating right is in. The nutritional value of what we put in our mouths is listed on every product, even bottles of water. We watch what we eat because too much sugar and too many carbs are not good for us. Our obese times reflect that.

 

Yet, of greater value is how we take care of our souls. Being godly is a choice. Just as we must decide between ordering water or a soft drink, we must decide and choose to “be like God,” or, not. Exercise has some value, in some areas and in some ways, but godliness is profitable for all things. Being godly will affect my mind. It will affect what words I choose to say. It will affect what I look at on the internet. It will affect whether or not I “like” something on Facebook. It will affect my habits. It will shape my circle of friends. It will factor into what shows I watch on TV. My total being is influenced and directed by my decision to be godly.

 

Not only does godliness influence my insides but it directs my today and my eternity. The present life and also the life to come are influenced by godliness. This is where physical exercise is limited. Generations ago, folks weren’t so concerned about eating well and exercising. Many remember grandma cooking with lard, bacon grease and drinking water out of the creek. Having a strong mind is not based upon having a strong body. Being godly will lead a person to make the right choices. It will cause a person to apologize when he is wrong. It will extend the hand of forgiveness when wronged. Godliness is wrapped in compassion, kindness and gentleness. The godly one is one who will help others. The godly one is not selfish nor only interested in himself.

 

How does one become “godly?”

 

First, it’s a choice. It’s not that some just came that way and others didn’t. Godliness is found in Christ Jesus. Faith in Christ is where it all begins. It’s hard to be godly when one’s character is wrong. So with godliness, one will find righteousness, the quality of being “right” before God. To be godly, therefore, one must be a Christian. Anyone can be generous, but that alone, does not make them godly. A person may like a foundation or an organization and donate simply because they believe in it or had a good memory of it. That act is nice, but it does not mean that the giver is godly in character. To be godly, one must be a Christian. You can’t be like God and not be in Christ.

 

Second, godliness comes from watching and imitating the characteristics of Jesus. Godliness is what a person is. It’s in their spiritual DNA. To be godly, one is godly. To be godly, one does godly things. Their mind thinks godly thoughts. They see Jesus caring, helping and being a servant. So, the child of God, will do the same. He will share with others. He will help others. He will do what he can to help others, especially the kingdom of God. The more time spent with Jesus in the word, the more one becomes like Jesus. Godliness is a process. It doesn’t happen naturally nor automatically. The old self, the old man, must be crucified. A new person or a new self now dwells within us. It’s not easy. We must fight the old ways and the old feelings. “I don’t feel like it,” comes up. “Do I have to,” will be asked. What is right conquers what I feel. Doing what God wants pushes a person to do the godly things.

 

Thirdly, godliness is something that becomes a part of us and is noticed by others. In every church there are certain people that stand out. They are the ones who go out of their way. They remind us of Jesus. They are godly. They generate a feeling to be like them. Their goodness rubs off. They are not stuffy, too good nor uppity with others. Humble yet helpful. Kind without being stuck on themselves. Generous. Thoughtful. Prayerful. Thankful. Being around godly folks makes us more spiritual. They remind us of what we are missing in our lives. They show the value of being a Christian. They open our eyes to see that Christians are the best people on the face of the earth.

 

Are all Christians godly? No. They should be, but some are not. In writing to the Corinthians, Paul said that he could not write to them as spiritual men but as carnal, or worldly. The carnal mind and a godly heart are not found in the same person. That’s water and oil– they simply do not mix. Either the carnal will take over or else the godly will change that worldly mind.

 

Can you be godly? Certainly. God wants you to be that way. It will change this day and it will change your eternity. How do I know if I am godly or not? Read your Bible. Are you like Jesus? Not sinless. Not perfect. But godly.

 

It seems from our verse, that Paul is driving at a person putting more emphasis upon the spiritual than the physical. Exercise has it’s place, but it has limited value. Godliness has great value for now and for later. Therefore, we ought to put more effort and more attention into being godly. We watch what we eat, do we watch what we feed our souls? Are we reading a bunch of poison on the internet? We make sure we get our steps in each day, do we make sure that we get our souls get connected to God each day? I wonder what it would be like to have a “spiritual” Fitbit? Taking care of your body may extend your life here, but you will still one day die. It is appointed unto man to die once, Hebrews tells us. So, we extend our lives here, eat well, feel good, and still spend forever away from God in Hell. What value is that? It is more important to take care of your soul. Feed it. Exercise it. Live with Christ. That not only will shape today, but it will insure your eternal home with God.

 

Godliness—great value here. Put your energies into being godly.

 

Roger

 

04

Jump Start # 1843

Posted on May 4, 2017 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1843

2 Corinthians 5:8 “We are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.”

Last night I preached about eternal life. That topic naturally leads to thoughts about Heaven. Being with Lord, in Heaven, is the theme where our verse is taken today. Paul says we prefer to be at home with the Lord. Home with the Lord is Heaven. Home.

 

We often interchange the word home and house. When we think about where we dwell, our homes, our houses, there is a comfort about that. Certainly, we often think about needing to paint, find more room, update counter tops and on and on, but there is no bed like your own bed. Coffee just tastes better out of your own cup, made just the way you like it. It’s at home that we can kick off our shoes, literally, sit in our favorite chair and relax. There is no place like home. Home sweet home, is more than something cross stitched and framed on a wall, it’s truly a calming and restful thought. When on the road, even on vacation, getting home sounds wonderful. Every year there is one or two kids who are sent off to camp who get so home sick that they must leave. They miss home.

 

But Heaven isn’t couches, beds, kitchens, accent pillows, doors and walls. Most of us would be amazed at how small those first century homes were. Even in our past, the log cabins of our forefathers, would fit within our modern living rooms. Structure is not the thought here.

 

Home brings another thought, not the structure and furnishings, but the people. What we truly like about our homes, is not the brick, stone and paint contrasts, but the people who live within those walls. It’s the love, the acceptance, the joy, the history, the comfort of being around family. Your family. Your family is special to you. Your family is dear to you. Late last night, my wife and I were looking for a graduation picture that one of our kids needed for work. There were lots of pictures. It was late, and I was tired, but it’s hard to flip through pictures, without going down memory lane and talking about those times. Family. Home.

 

Home– the people, those are the ones you miss the most when you are gone. When there is some exciting news, it’s the people at home, your family, that you want to share with first. When things are not going well, it’s the people at home that help you the most.

 

When we think about home, we have a history, both with the place and with the people. Home is where we live. Home is my family. This is the word Paul uses to describe Heaven. To be at home with the Lord—a place we have never been before, and a relationship that has only existed by faith. The history isn’t the same as with our physical family. Yet, home with Jesus—is the concept Paul draws from.

 

Three simple thoughts.

 

Home with the Lord is where I am loved, accepted and wanted.

 

Home with the Lord is where I am comfortable.

 

Home with the Lord is where I want to be.

 

Given the choice, of being here, or being there, Paul said, “we prefer to be at home with the Lord.” There are always things here that disrupts “home.”

 

First, nearly every day, we must part from one another. We have to go to work, go to school, go somewhere. We are always going somewhere. It’s to the store. It’s to the doctor. We must leave each other. There is no leaving Heaven. There is no other place to be. We don’t have to go somewhere else. The journey ends with Heaven. It is our final place.

 

Second, because of sin, even at home, we disappoint, let each other down and hurt one another. We say things that we shouldn’t to the people we love the most. We get selfish and we do things that hurt the people we love. Home, as much as we love it, isn’t perfect, because we are not perfect. There won’t be any sin in Heaven. There is no tears, death or mourning. The first things have passed away. These things are all connected to sin.

 

Third, home never stays the same. This is true of the physical structure as well as the people. My dad, who is in his nineties, was born at home. That home is where my grandparents lived for decades. About a year ago, that house burned to the ground. Nothing remains. That really bothered my dad. He told me about it several times. Home never stays the same. Even the people don’t stay the same. Kids grow up and move out. We age. Eventually, we come to the end of our journey here. Home here is constantly changing. It’s not that way in Heaven. No one ages and dies. No one leaves. No one falls apart.

 

Fourth, Jesus is at home in Heaven. He’s in many of our homes, because He is in many of our lives. He lives in our hearts. But we also know that in many homes, one is a Christian, and another may not be a Christian. That relationship will never be as great as it could be because they are not the same spiritually. It’s hard to have a deep discussion about Biblical matters with someone who doesn’t know the Lord, or worse, doesn’t really care about the Lord. It’s hard to pray with one who is not a Christian and doesn’t understand. Heaven has Jesus. Heaven has only believers. Heaven is perfect.

 

We prefer to be at home with the Lord. Like a child waiting for Christmas, or, an adult anticipating a vacation, Paul wanted to be in Heaven. To be with the Lord, won’t that be wonderful!

 

Home—what a great word to describe Heaven. Where’s home? I live in Indiana. I have a house in Indiana. But my home is in Heaven! That’s the way we need to see things.

 

Live as if one foot is already in Heaven.

 

Roger

 

03

Jump Start # 1842

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1842

Luke 18:1 “Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart.”

 

Just pray about it, that seems to be the thought of Jesus. Pray rather than lose heart. Pray instead of getting discouraged. Prayer is better than worry.

 

There are three thoughts here:

 

First, the losing heart. It is an expression for discouragement. When our heart is not in something, we don’t feel like doing it. We go through the motions because we have to.

 

  • It’s hard to get up and go to work when our heart is not in it. When we dread work, work becomes work. It’s hard. It’s hard when we don’t like the people we work with, or we hate what we do, or, we are just bored with what we do. The week is long when we have lost our hearts about our jobs.

 

  • When a person’s heart is no longer in their marriage, they will exist but not thrive as God wants. The bills will be paid, and the house will be cleaned, but the emotion, love and desire to be home is missing. It won’t take much of this for one or both to start thinking about leaving.

 

  • Getting down to the church house is hard when our hearts are not there. When we must force ourselves to assemble. We can manage to mumble a few words, but there is a huge disconnect between our world and what is going on spiritually. We tend to see faults more when our hearts are not in it. We complain more than we thank. We feel burdened more than blessed when our hearts are not in it.

 

Losing heart—discouraged– not wanting to do things. It’s easy to get that way. The world tends to beat up those who are trying to follow God. We become weary. There is also the strain of doing so much. Demands at home. Demands at work. Demands at church. Stretched so thin, we just lose heart.

 

Have you noticed the eyes of someone who is discouraged? Their spirit seems to drag them down. They look and seem sad. They are tired. The world seems to be heavier than they can handle. There is a clinical depression in which a person may need medication to help him. But here, Jesus tells the multitudes to turn to prayer and not lose heart. Not losing heart seems to be a choice. It seems to be something that they were able to do something about. It wasn’t beyond them. They didn’t need extra help other than God through prayer.

 

God doesn’t want us to be discouraged. Satan does. Satan knows that discouraged people quit. They quit their jobs. They quit the team. They quit the marriage. They quit God. Eventually, they quit life. Satan will throw all kinds of bad news, fears and worries our way. He wants us to focus on those things. He wants us to be so overwhelmed that we lose heart. Give up, is what Satan screams. There is no hope, is his message. But here stands Jesus saying, “Do not lose heart.”

 

Second, Jesus tells the crowd to prayer. The counter to losing heart is prayer. Our problems are big. They are bigger than we are. They are enough to cause us to lose heart. However, God is bigger than the problems. God is bigger than we are. We may not see a solution, but God can. We may feel that our boat is sinking, but God can help. God can send help.

 

Don’t be overwhelmed by the day, Pray! What does a person pray about? Pray for strength to keep going. Pray about what is making you lose heart. Pray for better solutions. Pray for help. Pray that you will keep walking with God and that through this you will glorify God.

 

The value of prayer is that you are inviting God into your world. You are calling upon Him to help you. The spies of Israel were helped by Rahab. Paul was helped by brethren who allowed him to escape in a basket over the city wall. Titus was a form of help to a discouraged apostle. The Thessalonians who were upset and saddened by the loss of loved ones were comforted by God’s word. All of these are times and ways God has helped His people.

 

Prayer admits that we need help. Prayer invites greater insight, greater power, and greater hope than we can ever have among ourselves. Don’t give up, pray. Don’t get discouraged, pray.

 

Thirdly, the Lord says, “at all times pray.” Prayer always fits. Pray before the meeting at work. If others won’t pray with you, then you say a prayer silently. Pray before you eat. Pray before you make a decision. Pray before you travel. Pray after things, to thank the Lord. Pray before and after the surgery. Pray before and after the wedding. Pray often. Pray everywhere. Pray at all times.

 

Pray has a way of reminding us who we are and what we are supposed to do. We tend to forget. Pray has a way of getting our order back in order. Priorities get scrambled up and sometimes the important things are left off the list. Prayer helps with that. Prayer helps us to be spiritual. Being spiritual keeps our eyes on things above. Being spiritual helps us make the right choices. Being spiritual reminds us of our walk with the Lord.

 

At all times pray.

 

Not just good advice, essential for one who is walking with the Lord. Without prayer, you’ll likely lose heart. But with prayer, you’ll keep marching on to Zion, beautiful, beautiful Zion.

 

Roger