The Ultimate Intercession

I woke up yesterday being led to read Jesus' Prayer for his disciples and in turn us. In John 17, Jesus prays for his disciples. Think about that for a second. Praying for someone is an act of love; praying for someone reminds you that you are thought of. For the One who instituted pray, to turn around and pray for his disciples is profound.

When we think of how to pray, we are often pointed to the Lord's prayer, because it seems to display a model of how prayer is done, again coming from the one who instituted prayer.

But when Jesus prayed for us - it was raw, heartfelt, powerful, intimate, it used simple language yet expressed profound thoughts - some of which may be too deep for us to understand,  yet it showed a depth of caring, wisdom, and compassion. While He prayed, he spanned time - he talked about the past the present and the future. Jesus prayed for Himself (v1-5), his disciples (v6-19) and for us (v20-26). 

When someone lets me know that they are praying for me, because of what praying means, I am so dumbfounded, all I can utter is a feeble "thanks," that is not adequate enough to convey the depth of my feelings. But thanks will have to do - because in praying for another you are lifting up their needs and presenting them to God. You can be as raw and emotional as necessary while maintaining the necessary reverence for God. Praying demonstrates a relationship - definitely between you and God, and somewhat between you and the person you are praying for. Praying demonstrates hope and faith. Praying says I know Someone who can help. Praying provides wisdom, guidance and peace. Jesus was about to face the biggest trial of his life, but he had us in mind. He always had us in mind!

I was reminded of this passage because as I pray for others, I want to demonstrate the depth of care Jesus had for his disciples and for us.

My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. John 17:9 [NLT]

Praying is caring.

A Chapter a Day - Proverbs 5

Proverbs 5 is a warning against sexual sin - adultery.

Observations and Highlights

Adultery is defined as voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man or woman and a partner other than the legal spouse. In Biblical terms, an adulterer was a man who had illicit intercourse with a married or a betrothed woman, and such a woman was an adulteress. Intercourse between a married man and an unmarried woman was fornication. Adultery was regarded as a great social wrong, as well as a great sin.

It is interesting that part of the definition of adultery is that it is voluntary - i.e. the individual makes a choice to act on the enticement. We live in a world that's visual - men see beautiful women everywhere - at work, at church, at play. I think the enticement is greater for men based on how they are wired, but women are tempted also.

Adultery may appear to be condoned, but all parties are injured when it happens (v 9-12). There’s also regret (v13)on the part of the adulterer.

This chapter is saying once you have a spouse do not let anyone remove that commitment. Enjoy your wife or husband; shower each other with love (v 15-19). Nothing outside is better than what you have with each other. Remember the grass only appears greener, because there’s more manure!

There are some lessons that you can learn without experiencing them – be a wise person and see what happens when you choose to commit adultery. Re-read this chapter, if this is an area of struggle for you.

When I initially posted this on 5/5/2011, it was the National Day of Prayer; take a moment to pray about your struggles; pray for your family, your children, your co-workers, our leaders. Pray that you would make wise choices, and not choose to heap sadness on yourself and others by committing adultery.

Pray - That was Easy!

If you've read this blog for any length of time, you know that prayer is foundational to my life.

Today is the National Day of Prayer and I just wanted to remind you to take a moment today and pray.

What can you pray for?  Everything, nothing is too inconsequential.  Nothing - no requests just praise God because He is.  Is anything too difficult for God?  No, nothing absolutely nothing, nothing is too difficult for thee - that's an excerpt from a favorite chorus that I could sing all day long.

Verse:

Ah Lord God, Thou hast made the heavens

And the earth by Thy great power;

Ah Lord God, Thou hast made the heavens

And the earth by Thine outstretched arm.

Refrain

Nothing is too difficult for Thee,

Nothing is too difficult for Thee;

O, great and mighty God,

Great in power and mighty in deed,

Nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing,

Nothing is too difficult for Thee.

As believers, we are told to pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:17  Without ceasing means continuously, non-stop, all the time.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:18

Daniel continued to pray even in times of trouble. Pray was second nature to him. Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. Daniel 6:10

Additional encouragement to pray can be found on this blog post.

Today is a great reminder that we should be praying always.  Pray.