"Where Are the Men and Women of Prayer?"

Paul writes in Ephesians 5:16, “[Redeem] the time for the days are evil.” We live in exciting times. More people are alive today than any previous generation. The opportunity to impact our world for Christ has never been greater. We have all the resources we need. But there’s one disturbing question, “Where are the workers?”

Jesus said that the solution to enough workers for the harvest is found in prayer (Mt. 9:37-38). But that presents another problem. Where are the men and women of prayer?

Too many of us have become so busy that we have no time for God. It’s impossible to have an intimate relationship with anyone without sufficient time with that person. How much more true is that with God? We long to spend time with those we love. Therefore, if you truly love God, you will desire to spend time alone with Him sharing your heart and allowing Him to share His heart with you.

This may be the greatest hindrance of this generation of pastors. We have become “professional” ministers and learned well how to produce “quality” programs. But we’ve forgotten the secret chamber of prayer. We often entertain but seldom convict. We draw crowds to our buildings but few to our Savior. We’ve learned the art of developing partnerships, but lost the passion to know the one Partner that really matters.

The Father longs to spend time with His children. He calls to us. Steal away and make time to meet with Him. If there is any hindrance to your intimacy with God, identify it, confess it, and repent of it. Determine in your heart that you long to know Him, really know Him, more than anything in life. He will come to you. He will meet with you. Don’t allow any obstacle to keep you from such intimacy with God.

–Adapted from Giving Ourselves to Prayer: An Acts 6:4 Primer for Ministry (Chapter 37, Hindrances to Effective Prayer by Sammy Tippit).

The Strength of a Nation

We find ourselves in another furious dash toward the polls next Tuesday. We have been listening to the candidates explain what they value and what they want to do as the next leader. We have watched some "mud-slinging," listened to criticisms leveled against each candidate, thrown away more political mail than we can count, and watched enough television ads to make us want to get rid of the TV set! What are we supposed to do with all of these messages that appear to contradict each other? Who will be the best leader for what America and the world needs next?

Our Convocation speaker today described four key components of a strong nation: economic strength, military strength, political strength, and strong leadership. All of us need to first ask ourselves if we agree with these four being the most important pillars necessary for a nation to be strong. A strong economy cannot continue to overtax the very businesses that will create the needed jobs. The people either need to take home more of their current paycheck or they need increased wages. Militarily a nation must continue to maintain and update a strong defense to deter potential attackers, as opposed to shrinking the defense system to pre-WWII status (i.e. why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor). Politically we cannot allow or encourage radical governments toward growth and increased power, we must support those leaders and countries who are working to stand against the radical leaders. But, none of these elements are useful if you do not have strong leaders who know what is wrong and know what to do!

There is an account in the book of 2 Chronicles that takes notice of a small group of leaders in Israel who were available during a critical time in the nation's history:

These are the numbers of the men armed for battle who came to David at Hebron to turn Saul’s kingdom over to him, as the Lord had said...from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do—200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command (2 Chron. 12:23, 32)

A country may have extensive resources, but if it does not have a leader who knows what to do and then has the courage to do it, it is still a weak country. We must vote for the person we conclude can lead best.

We must consider similar concerns as we determine the spiritual strength of our churches. Are the churches teaching the Bible as the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God? Are we helping people grow as disciples of Jesus Christ? As they grow, are we helping them understand what it means for Jesus to be our Lord? Do we understand that there is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? Are we helping people conform their lives to God's standard rather than the world's relativistic standard for living? Are we willing to use the word sin to describe offenses against a holy God? Do we lead people to confession and repentance as opposed to redefining sin so they can feel better about themselves?

We need leaders in the church who will share truth through God's love. That is leadership! What are some things you want to see Christian leaders return to or maintain in their priorities for the church? What do you value in a spiritual leader? What does God value in a spiritual leader?