Sundays are my day off, at this point. And this was Monday's post, but I didn't get it posted till early today, and forgot to repost here. On to the real post:
I had a conversation with my roommate last night which really opened my eyes to some points in my own life spiritually where I've lost the kind of awe and wonder that someone exploring the faith anew has. It's so easy as long-standing Christian believers to take so many things for granted. We all-too-often let the flame of our first love fade... and sometimes we have to be reminded to rekindle the fire.
He and I have been working through the issue of prayer, and how it's effective and really does "avail much." Several different points have come up about it - from the simple act of saying grace to my praying for peace and the removal of all fear as we were trying to go to sleep after having a conversation about demonic activity in places he's been. And in every case, he's been seeing the immediate reality of it - seeing his prayers answered in the moment. It's really amazing to watch and see God honoring his growing faith, and to see just how real all of this is in his heart and his life. We pray for freedom from fear, and fear is gone. We pray for overcoming temptation, and the temptation is overcome. It's huge.
There's also some conviction in there to my heart, though. It's so easy to become used to prayer in our daily lives. It's so easy to just take God's reality for granted. It's easy to forget that "the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." The latter count God has already done for us through His substitutionary atonement, and the former is dependent on our faith and on the power of the Holy Spirit. When we ask, and ask in true faith (not doubting or asking double-mindedly), God moves mountains for us. Do we dare to have that kind of faith? Do we dare to be childlike, and simply believe that when we ask, God will do it?
Do I?
- Chris
I had a conversation with my roommate last night which really opened my eyes to some points in my own life spiritually where I've lost the kind of awe and wonder that someone exploring the faith anew has. It's so easy as long-standing Christian believers to take so many things for granted. We all-too-often let the flame of our first love fade... and sometimes we have to be reminded to rekindle the fire.
He and I have been working through the issue of prayer, and how it's effective and really does "avail much." Several different points have come up about it - from the simple act of saying grace to my praying for peace and the removal of all fear as we were trying to go to sleep after having a conversation about demonic activity in places he's been. And in every case, he's been seeing the immediate reality of it - seeing his prayers answered in the moment. It's really amazing to watch and see God honoring his growing faith, and to see just how real all of this is in his heart and his life. We pray for freedom from fear, and fear is gone. We pray for overcoming temptation, and the temptation is overcome. It's huge.
There's also some conviction in there to my heart, though. It's so easy to become used to prayer in our daily lives. It's so easy to just take God's reality for granted. It's easy to forget that "the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." The latter count God has already done for us through His substitutionary atonement, and the former is dependent on our faith and on the power of the Holy Spirit. When we ask, and ask in true faith (not doubting or asking double-mindedly), God moves mountains for us. Do we dare to have that kind of faith? Do we dare to be childlike, and simply believe that when we ask, God will do it?
Do I?
- Chris
O - to have that sweetness of first knowing Christ renewed..daily!
ReplyDeleteLord help!