An Hour A Day
ou{tw" oujk ijscuvsate mivan w{ran grhgorh'sai met! ejmou'_
grhgorei'te kai; proseuvcesqe, i{na mh; eijsevlqhte eij" peirasmovn: to; me;n pneu'ma provqumon hJ de; sa;rx ajsqenhv".
“Oh, that we would pray for an hour a day and change our world!”
(Revelation 3:20)
WHY?
BECAUSE PRAYER WORKS OUT THERE AND IN HERE!
Prayer Works:
“Where there is an absence of prayer there will be an absence of power.”
“Prayer has obtained things that seemed impossible and out of reach. It has won victories over fire, air, earth and water. Prayer opened the Red Sea. Prayer brought water from the rock and bread from heaven. Prayer made the sun stand still. Prayer overthrew the army of Sennacherib. Prayer has healed the sick. Prayer has raised the dead. Prayer has procured the conversion of countless souls.” Bishop J. C. Ryle
Search the NT for anything God does in ministry that is not prompted by prayer.
Works in Here: (heart) “What we do for the Lord is entirely dependent upon what we are in the Lord.”
Prayer is the way you defeat the devil
Ø Luke 2232 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
Prayer is the way you get forgiveness for sin.
Ø Luke 1813 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
Prayer is the way you acquire wisdom
Ø James 1 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Out There: (Life/others/)
Prayer is how we cure the sick
Ø James 513 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.
Prayer is the way to being restored to a relationship with God
Ø James 516 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. 17 Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18 Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. 19 My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, 20 remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.
Prayer is the way we get laborers out to the mission field
Ø Matthew 98 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Prayer is how we accomplish the impossible
Ø Mark 1123 “I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Prayer works and prayer is what enables us to do the work of the Lord.
Dr. Walter Judd, missionary to China, frequently enjoyed sharing his prayer experiences from missionary days. Of these experiences the doctor related, “There would come into my spirit something that supported and helped steady me, gave me confidence and assurance during the day. I can’t explain it. I can’t explain how some of the food I ate tonight for supper becomes brain, some blood, some bone, but I haven’t stopped eating just because I can’t explain it! In the same way, I can’t explain this. It is not in the realm of explanation yet, or of logical proof. It is in the realm of demonstration; prayer works.”
“Oh, that we would pray for an hour a day and change our world!”
WHY NOT?
BECAUSE I JUST DON’T HAVE THE TIME.
I got up early one morning and rushed into the day;
I had so much to accomplish that I didn’t have time to pray.
Problems just tumbled about me, and heavier came each task.
“Why doesn’t God help me?” I wondered. He answered, “You didn’t ask.”
I wanted to see joy and beauty, but the day toiled on, gray and bleak;
I wondered why God didn’t show me. He said, “You didn’t seek.”
I tried to come into God’s presence; I used all my keys at the lock.
God gently and lovingly chided, “My child, you didn’t knock.”
I woke up early this morning, and paused before entering the day;
I had so much to accomplish that I had to take time to pray.
You think you are busy, consider Jesus. The Gospels record only fifty-two days of His life, but what a whirlwind of activity is chronicled in those few hundred hours!
1 Samuel 12 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right.
What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear;
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy laden,
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge;
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer;
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,
Thou wilt find a solace there.
BECAUSE IT’S JUST TOO MUCH WORK
Colossians 412 Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured.
pavntote ajgwnizovmeno" uJpe;r uJmw'n ejn tai'" proseucai'", i{na staqh'te tevleioi kai; peplhroforhmevnoi ejn panti; qelhvmati tou' qeou'.
The word carries the idea of working until there is exhaustion.
Colossians 129 To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.
It is used of an athlete competing for a coveted prize.
1 Corinthians 925 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
It is used of a soldier who battles for his life.
1 Timothy 612 Fight the good fight of the faith.
It is used of a man who struggles to rescue a friend.
John 1836 Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.”
That hour to change our world is prayer that gets down to work!
BECAUSE OF A LACK OF HUNGER FOR GOD.
BECAUSE I JUST DON’T WANT TO CHANGE.
Why would any of us ignore the God of the universe, bending low to offer us the pleasure of his company? One reason may be simple ignorance – we do not really understand how personal God is. The more abstract and impersonal you can make Him, the less demanding He will be.