Marks of a Minister: Prayer

scripture, this Lord's day comes from the Psalms, and from Matthew's gospel, You know, the Psalms are the prayer book of the Bible. And the songs you can find every aspect of the Human Condition from extreme joy to the depth of pain and sorrow from anger to frustration bitterness. Everything is there and what it teaches us as we pray through, the Psalms is how a faithful person interacts with our God who can handle anything that we have. Bitterness disappointments. Discouragement depression but also Thanksgiving enjoy. I've made it a practice for many, many years to read a Psalm each day and part of my devotional life. I don't encourage you to do the same. Sometimes I read it aloud, sometimes I read it silently. Sometimes I make up a melody and sing it off, then I will do what the song says to do clap meal. Shout It's an amazing book.

Psalm 72. Blessed. Be the Lord, the god of Israel who alone does wondrous things blessed, be his glorious name forever, may his glory, fill the whole earth and I'm in a Matthew's gospel. Jesus speaking on what we know is The Sermon on the Mount concerning prayer.

And whenever you pray, do not be like the Hypocrites for they love to stand in for in the synagogues and on the street corners and so that they may be seen by others. Truly, I tell you, they have their reward but whenever you pray go into your room and shut the door and pray to your father who is in secret and your father who sees in secret will reward you. When you're praying, do not Heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do for. They think that they will be heard because of their many words, do not be like them for your father, knows what you need before you even ask. Then this way, our Father in heaven, Hallowed Be Your Name, Your Kingdom Come your will be done on Earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we have also forgiven our debtors and do not bring us to the time of trial but rescue us from the evil one. For if you forgive others, their trespasses, your heavenly father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your father, forgive you, your trespasses. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Let us pray. Lord be with us in the sharing of your word and its truth. So that we may come to a deeper understanding of how it is. You want us to live these days for Christ's sake, man.

I was an English literature, major and undergraduate and so I was thinking of Tennyson, as I Was preparing a sermon today. Alfred Lord Tennyson said more things are wrought by prayer than this world ever dreams of more things are wrought by prayer than this world ever dreams of testify to the truth of that. And if you ask Cecily, she can, she can tell you, as well, our time and Africa was difficult in many ways. There are countless occasions. When we escaped danger by my dad, used to say by the hair of our chinny chin chin. And I'm most moments those moment we knew without a shadow of doubt that someone was praying, it may have been right at that moment. Even, but we felt constantly surrounded.

By the communion of saints, interceding for us to God. Important prayers, important thing about it before but I want to speak about it in a different way today. In this next three. Sundays, I want to look at the marks of a minister, the marks of a minister. And I want us to think about it in three different ways and will explain it a little bit more in just a minute. Author, Eugene Peterson wrote a scathing admonition to pastors. And what you said. Pastors. Are giving up their professions in America by the drove. He went on to say, they're not leaving their churches. They're not looking for another job, but they have become shopkeepers. And the shops that they manage, we call churches. We're more interested in efficiency and measurable data.

Economic viability. Perception image. Things that would bring in customers to our shop. So that we might peddle our Wares to them.

And thinking about this and then realizing that you very soon, will be nominating a path for nominating committee to find God's person for the senior Minister position of this church. I wanted to direct your attention into the new PNC's. Attention to at least three characteristics that I think are essential marks of a minister essential marks of a minute and I will have in our next three. Sundays prayer, the study of scripture and the giving of spiritual direction for Council, these have been for the last two thousand years, the march of the minister ministers jobs are multifaceted but the main thing of minister is supposed to do is to keep the congregation into to God. To keep the congregation attentive to God. I don't know. Perfect, ministers are, no perfect churches. But these characteristics are vital for minister of missionary anyone who's in leadership in the Christian Community, triangle. And this graphic, I hope will show a couple of thing. The lions are the things that most people see.

You see, preaching, you experience teaching, You observe Administration. These are visible.

What you don't see?

Is a Minister's prayers. The minister study of scripture. Are the ministers giving of Godly counsel and spiritual direction to people who need it away with not having any of them in your life. if you just had the three things in various degrees, you could have preaching teaching Administration, and whatever, whatever proportion worked for the organization that you were working for him. Probably the people who paid your salary, and who came on a Sunday morning, wouldn't know any different. But you'll notice what's missing in this graphic, is there are no angles They're just lying.

Just about anybody. Can do those three things.

With the modern technology. And even before, when we had books of people sermons created plagiarism, Anybody can give a message.

Teaching why we have such great resources now it even says read this save this.

How many books are on Administration and smooth office running or a 3-day course? You don't have to have any connection to God, to run a shop that only has those three things. Those visible things, But you say when we don't have the angles, right? Then we have a distorted picture, a distorted image a distorted reality of what the church is and it's not what God wants. so, the first Mark that we're going to look at it sprayer, Prayer prayer, prayer prayer, is the single most vital thing that can be done by a clergy person. A missionary a minister I want to talk about a few aspects of prayer today.

First, have you ever considered that prayer is dangerous?

Prayer is dangerous. When we enter into prayer, we are entering into the holy of holies. We are coming face-to-face with the creator of the universe and we fear of touching the ark. It's almost as if we are being thrown in the Lion's Den and we don't know if we're going to come out alive or Shane. And Hebrews chapter 10 verse 13 and says it is a fearful thing to be put in the hands of the Living God.

William Carey father, the 19th century missionary movement said prayer, fervent secret believe in prayer, lies at the root of all godliness. Root of all Godly.

Godliness is not what I have. It involves me adapting changing.

Missionary to China. Said that Satan will move into any. He will put anything for us to do when we ought to be praying.

I wrote in that the news later this week about change, Change is tough because we are here. And if we change, we have to go here. And we don't know what this is going to look like, or how it's going to play out. We've all experienced some sort of change in our lives. And if some of it has been Pleasant, some of it's been unpleasant. It's always been dangerous because we don't know what's ahead

Prayer is dangerous. Because if we truly pray, then we are opening ourselves up for God to change us into what God wants us to be for his kingdom to work to go forward.

And that could be a fearful. Powerful thing.

Soren Kierkegaard. Great Danish Theologian said,

Changes the one who prays. Bring up change God. But God changes us when we come before God. The second thing I'd like to think about in prayer is prayer, is vital. Vital. Meaning life. Getting like the vital signs, it is the very breath of our being God, gave us breath the Rocks. That's the Numa. We talked about before. It is God's breath. That is, in US, each, inhale, we take is a gift from God. Each Excel is a prayer of praise to God, whether we know it or acknowledge it or not. It is God's breath. That is in us working through us

It's vital that Jesus thought it was incredibly Bible as did many of the Great Heroes and heroines of the faith.

It was sad that I don around Judson missionary to China, stole away from his work and people seven times a day to go into a real quiet, private place and pray. And what an amazing work. God did in China through him. John Hyde missionary from India, worth are his passion for prayer was unbelievable people. There gave him the nickname praying Hyde. That's what he did. He was in prayer. Martin Luther got up hours before the day, break every day to be on his knees and prayer. Any road being a Christian without prayer is no more possible. Been being alive without breathing. Prayer is essential Mother Teresa, the power for her own life and her missionaries of Charity was rooted and grounded centered in prayer but she talked and that enable them and Empower them to do the great work because they were changed and empowered. By that. Holy One.

My friend classmate. Dr. Scott Sunquest scholar missionary to China. Current president of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary gets up at 4:15 4:40 every morning so he can spend from 5 to 6 in prayer everyday.

I got to serve this time spent a week with him and he and his wife when I was teaching for Gordon-Conwell and I observe that rhythm of his life,

Powerful witnesses to say all these things. And, you know it makes me feel about Yeah, I'm like I'm the pipsqueak of prayer when I consider all these grapes, but that's exactly what all together. You can't be like that. That is the wrong message. Meet us where we are in our prayers. The Bible messed up, the light giving flow of Prayer. Is connected with us. Whether we have never been a person of prayer or whether we are well-schooled in it, God will come and show us. Its Vitality, still take us and meet us where we are and take us along the way until we learn dog weighs more and more. such that it is that vital Life, Giving force in our life,

And thirdly prayer is learned. Where is learn? Augustine said our hearts are restless till they rest in thee O Lord and goes on to explain that there's a there's a hole in the human soul that cannot be filled with anything, but God now we'll try and have tried for all of human history to fill that was something else, but it is only satisfied in God. That's not the case in prayer. We don't Come out. Born with a knowledge of how to pray. It is a learned activity. We have to go to the School of prayer, and that school is best taught by the master of prayer. Jesus Christ, himself and tell, if we just think about some of the prayer Life of Christ in flames. And in the text, we're in some of its principles. But one of the things we notice in Jesus prayers, was prayer, was the habitual atmosphere of his daily life. Jesus prayed. Mark 1:35 rising up a great while before morning. He went to a solitary place and there he prayed and Mark 6, we see price pulling away from the crowds Mark, 70, praise all night, prayer, prayer, prayer, It was the very essence of who he was prettier, wasn't just part of the Life of Christ. Prayer was his life.

Secondly, prayer for Jesus, at important times in his journey in his ministry, that important places in his ministry. We see our savior turn into prayer. Luke chapter 3,

The heavens open. The Holy Spirit, descended like a dove.

And Luke chapter 6 received, scuse me.

We seem praying all night. Is all night in prayer and he comes back and he chooses 12, chooses 12 to be the people that take his torch to the world.

Luke chapter 22. We see the praying Christ in agony In The Garden of Gethsemane with sweat. Like great drops of blood spilling from his head and a Luke chapter 23. He is on the cross dying, and what does he do? Praise.

We learn from Christ. We pray at every juncture of our life has Paul says, pray without ceasing it is that idea of the breath that is Our prayer. And finally Jesus prayed in many different forms. He prayed using many different elements. He prayed in communion with God just to be in fellowship with God. I'm not asking anything just to be with God.

He prayed. Thanks prayers of Thanksgiving. we can see that in the break feeding of the 5000 and many other things and we can see the celebration of the Eucharist, which means Thanksgiving

Ms. Institution of that, supper that reminds us of the great gift that God has given and give him. Thanks, I prayed prayers of petition and taught us to pray, even in this text. Give us this day, our daily bread.

Lead us not into temptation.

then finally he prayed for others prayers of intercession, he prayed for children and prayed for his disciples, he prayed for the world, he prayed for his enemies, go through a Bible, study and see all the different people that Christ prayed for

It was the living breathing element of his life and it was everywhere. The praying Christ is our Supreme example.

The folks.

Unfortunately.

There's a tough job ahead for this peeing. Say that you're going to elect because there aren't many people who wear these robes who are not followers of Christ. And they don't know anything about these angles.

And I suggest that the first question a PNC should ask a candidate. The first Prairie would be tell me about your prayer life.

Tell me about your prayer life. Not not the fancy things that we can see with the invisible things. That invisible things that routes and Browns us so deeply. That that leader is in touch with God in such a way that they can study scripture. That God's holy spirit, will reveal the truth of those words so that that person can give them to the congregation that will give Godly counsel not just psychobabble. But Council from God himself.

And that that person is praying for you by name.

Praying for the situations. That come across the wives of all of you in church. Because that's invisible. It is your responsibility to give that minister to do. That great work. Everything's going hunky-dory in the administrative piece of the church. Be concerned that that man or woman is on his or her knees. Are you have enough time for prayer pastor? What can I do to take some of this burden off of you so you can pray?

I can't.

I can't overemphasize.

Prayer prayer. It's the most important thing. A minister can do for his congregation for for his or her Mission work.

Now.

We can rely on our organization organization. And we will get what an organization can do. We can rely on education and we will get what education can do. We can rely on technology will get what technology can do? We can rely on eloquence? We can get what eloquence can do. but, if we rely on prayer, We get what God can do.

Hope Church. Join. And dish.

Commitment to prepare yourself for your minister and to enable that minister to lead you in prayer.

so, I invite you

Let's go down to the river to pray, studying about that, good old way, and who shall wear the starry Crown. Oh, Lord. Show me the way you remember that 10? Sinners. Let's go down. Let's go down. Come on down. Let's go down down to the river to pray.

Amen.