The Holy Spirit helps us on our way to heaven. He lives within us, empowering us for good and enabling us for service, and He endeavors by praying for us to the Father. Romans 8:26–27 teaches us about the Spirit’s ministry of intercession. Some of what Romans 8:26–27 teaches is fairly clear. Our human weakness… Read More »
I pray for my husband but not nearly as much as I should. I pray generically for him to have grace and strength in life, and I pray for some certain situations or struggles that I know of. But it never seems quite adequate. Sometimes I just don’t know how to pray for my husband… Read More »
According to the National Weather Service, “Thunder is created when lightning passes through the air. The lightning discharge heats the air rapidly and causes it to expand. The temperature of the air in the lightning channel may reach as high as 50,000 degrees Fahrenheit, 5 times hotter than the surface of the sun. Immediately after… Read More »
“Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). Not only did Jesus teach His disciples how to pray (Luke 11:2–4; cf. Matt 6:9–13), but he also gave an example for us in His “High Priestly Prayer” in John 17. In other Scriptures, His apostles spoke by His authority and the Spirit to leave us example prayers… Read More »
In closing his letter to the Colossians, Paul gave some greetings, including one from Epaphras: “Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God” (Col 4:12 ESV). As simple… Read More »
Philemon 4–7 is a prayer by Paul for Philemon, an example for us as to how we can pray for others today. We will look at these verses briefly, only to focus on Philemon 6, which is a wonderful part of this prayer but difficult to translate and piece together. Here is the text: “4I… Read More »
In Mark 6:4, Jesus is rejected by His listeners in Nazareth and quotes the well-known proverb: “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” Notice how He specifies three groups and narrows the group each time―hometown, relatives, and household. Jesus knew what it was… Read More »
This little blurb hardly scratches the surface of a theology of prayer. Nonetheless, let it be a little reminder to heed the call to prayer in your personal life and the life of your church. The Book of Acts records several instances that show the early church as an example for us to be just… Read More »
Paul asked for prayer multiple times in multiple letters. Here are two passages that act as examples to instruct us how to pray for ourselves and others to give the gospel. Ephesians 6:18–20 Pray for the words to say when giving the gospel. Paul encouraged the Ephesians to persevere by “making supplication for all the… Read More »
Call upon God, adore, confess, Petition, plead, and then declare You are the Lord’s; give thanks and bless, And let the Amen confirm the prayer. ~Isaac Watts The ninth and final item of prayer in this poem by Watts is the Amen, that which confirms the prayer. Watts describes Amen as “a Hebrew word that… Read More »