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| The Scribe online for December 2008
“Yet Jesus himself
frequently withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.”
Luke 5:16 NET Bible “I believe that prayer is the
measure of the man, spiritually, in a way that nothing else is, so that how we
pray is as important a question as we can ever face”
(J.I. Packer in D.A. Carson’s, A Call to Spiritual
Reformation, page 17).
My prayer life is as important a question as I can ever face!? I think it is important whether or not
my little Daniel’s 103+ temperature will subside.
I believe it an important question as to who I choose and instruct and
equip to carry out the work of the ministry.
I am convinced that the question of when and how my lost loved ones and
neighbors hear and believe the gospel is a central question. Those seem like important questions,
not how I pray. Jesus’ example
gives me pause to reconsider. Luke 5:16, “Yet Jesus himself frequently
withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.” The
context around Luke 5:16 is the grand beginnings of the Son of God.
He was healing every sick person who was brought to him, he had just
selected the first few men who would lead his church, he was preaching the
gospel with power, and his fame was on the rise…“Yet Jesus himself
frequently withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.” Jesus’ example proves the rightness
of Packer’s thinking. With a
hubbub of new and fruitful ministry and needy disciples and thirsty ears, prayer
was central. Why?
Here are my answers: 1.
Prayer reflects the heart’s passion for God (and vice versa).
In Acts 13:22, David is named as a man after God’s own heart.
That is, David was after God – he desired God.
Now consider that David wrote most of the Psalms, most of which are
prayerful longings for and to God. 2.
Prayer makes much of God’s power and wisdom and provision, it glorifies
God. By its very nature, prayer
recognizes that we are not able and seeks God who is.
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask
or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory”
(Ephesians 3:20-21). 3.
All of life’s pressing issues from feverish infants to lost loved ones
are best conquered by prayer. “You
do not have, because you do not ask” (James 4:2).
The Bible and church history are packed with testimonies of answers to
prayer for events and longings that I deal with every day. 4.
A prayerful life is a life that reflects Christ’s ideal life.
John the Baptist, who was greatest among those born of men (Matthew
11:11), said, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose
sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie” (Mark 1:7). If Jesus is the
greatest, then his example of withdrawing often for prayer is the worthiest
example to emulate. What will I do?
What will you do? One thought
that I have been thinking in response is that I want my life to be a shining
example, especially for Mandi and James and Peter and Cooper and Daniel.
If Jesus is right (and He is), and if Packer is correct (and he is), then
my example of withdrawing to pray with and for and in front of my family is the
greatest impact I can make on them. My
prayerful life example will display and inspire my wife and my boys by
displaying passion and reliance on God. What
greater could I do? Pastor Jeremy
The
Beans’Talk
Update
from Mark and
Patti Bean: Translating
God’s Word for Quechua speakers in central Peru November
20, 2008 Back
to Margos for a Women’s Seminar
Earlier this month I was back up in Margos to watch and encourage three
women from there as they organized and taught the fourth of five seminars on
women of the Bible. What an encouragement to watch all the participants, women
from seven villages, dig into their New Testaments, memorize Scripture, and
learn so they in turn can teach others in their respective villages. There were skits, songs, Bible stories,
participation, application, laughter and smiles. What fun! Many thanks to a
colleague who included our Margos friends in her training and shared these
photos with me! Old
Testament Forging Ahead
We are smack-dab in the middle of another Old Testament workshop. This
middle week, however, we are missing two men. One we sent to Lima in Mark’s
place to attend an America’s Area-wide leadership conference. The other needed
to return to his village for a trial concerning corruption that took place when
he was one of the authorities for the area. We hope he makes it back without
problems. This workshop we finished 50% of the Old
Testament in all five Quechua varieties. We had planned a celebration, but will
wait until the next workshop when hopefully everyone will be working full-time
as usual. Praises:
Prayers:
Thank you, friends. A Thankful Thanksgiving to
you!
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