Yesterday, in the second part of my interview with John Piper, he talked about passionate preaching. Today, John talks about prayer and Bible study, and in particular, his personal "rhythm" for this important discipline. The video of this part of the interview can be seen here.


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Adrian
So, what you’ve described — I suspect there may be many preachers out there saying, “Okay, I get what you’re saying, but how do I get to that place?” You mentioned prayer. I know prayer is important to you. You often talk about prayer in your books. Could you talk a little bit about what your own prayer life looks like? How you get, if you like, connected to God in that way you’re describing?

John
I’ll try without disobeying the Lord’s injunction in the Sermon on the Mount to go into your closet . . .

Adrian
Yeah . . .

John
I surely am not a model to hold up for prayer because I have models and I fall short of them. But, my life is a combination of private prayer, family prayer, corporate prayer at church—it’s a rhythm of those things. I try to be with the Lord every morning for an hour or so. The way it works for me is mingling together Word and prayer. I don’t read the Bible for twenty minutes and pray for twenty minutes, or forty and forty, whatever. It’s in and out and in and out. I learned that basically from George Mueller, who said he made the big mistake in his early Christian life of trying to pray for an extended period of time, and his mind inevitably went everywhere except toward the Lord, so he began by whispering up a one minute prayer for help, and then he took the Word and turned everything he’d read into prayer. He said I laid sixty things before the Lord this morning, and I laid them through the Word. And that’s pretty much the way I go about it.

When it comes to praying for things, besides what’s in the text, I pray in concentric circles. The most needy person I know is me. Therefore I pray about me first, because if I can’t be fixed, I won’t fix anybody. I won’t bless my wife or children or the Church. So I pray about this soul and my passion for God here, and then I move out to my wife and my children. I pray for them about whatever was in the text. Then I move out to my elders and my staff, and I name all the staff every day and our elders. And then I move out to the church, and move out to the city, and the nations. That’s the way I pray. And that can fill up a lot of time as God brings different things. I use helps. I have lists. I have lists of the names because I can’t even remember the names of 34 elders sometimes, and I have to say those. And then I use things like Operation World to pray for the nations. I keep it on my computer. I keep it in the book beside my old prayer bench at home.

By the way, I have a place of prayer. In my study there’s a little corner with a built wall, like this—it’s got a bench, it’s got books, it’s got a Bible. So I can kneel, it’s got a little rug. In 1975, so it’s now thirty-two years ago, I realized when I finished graduate school and owned my first home that this home should have a prayer place in it because otherwise, I think if you don’t have a place that’s designated that’s relatively secure, you tend to kind of sit on the couch, cross your legs, put some coffee beside you, and go to sleep, and call it prayer time. You don’t tend to do that if you have a place that’s just set aside for prayer.

Then there’s the family—my wife and I and my daughter—pray and have devotions in the morning. And then we do it in the evening. And then my wife and I pray before we go to bed at night, and read a little devotional called “Daily Life.” So that’s the rhythm—morning, evening, wife.

And then there are eight prayer meetings at our church, and I go to four of them plus the staff prayer meeting. They are thirty minute prayer meetings. That’s all they all. We don’t talk at all. We just sit down—bang! We start praying, and bang! Thirty minutes later we stop and go our separate ways. It’s very . . . and that way they last. I’ve been to one of these prayer meetings for probably over twenty years. The Friday morning 6:30 prayer meeting has been going on for twenty years and I hardly ever miss it, except when I’m on vacation, and there’s absolutely zero conversation, zero nonsense. It’s just you’re there; it’s 6:30, let us pray! It’s 7:00—bang! We’re done! Everybody disappears. And it’s really precious! It’s powerful!

So, those are my rhythms, personal, family, corporate, and lots of others sprinkled in. Paul said, “Pray without ceasing,” so I’m always crying for help. So, “Right now, Lord, help me in this interview!”

Adrian
(Laughing) Yeah! You and me both! So, you pray. Obviously you study the Word. And I suspect most of what you do is fairly standard on that. But do you have any particular hints about how to study the Bible that would help people maybe?

John
H-m-m-m. I’m not a good example there either. My life has kind of been taken out of my control in the last years. I feel like I’m governed by what other people want from me, pretty much, than what I want to do sometimes.

A combination of three things, I would think, is what a pastor would want. One is general reading. And there—what can you say? There’s a billion things to read. You let your own heart and good recommenders, good bloggers, tell you what’s good. And then you don’t waste your time reading what’s bad. Somebody else better read it first. Don’t read it first. And probably you should read something that’s 200 years old, 300 years old, because the new stuff is here today and gone tomorrow by and large. So READING.

Secondly, some more or less systematic way of growing in your knowledge of Scripture. The Bible says, “Grow in the knowledge of the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,” so some regular reading and rigorous effort to broaden your understanding of the scope of Scripture.

The third is preparation for what you do. That’s where most of my effort is right now. I languish in the other two and I flourish here. I don’t begrudge myself that too much because what I have found (and this might be encouraging to any of the younger guys pondering what they’re going to do with their lives)—when I left academia—six years of teaching Bible college to do pastoral ministry, I thought, “I’m giving up all my summers (teachers have all their summers to study and write), I’m giving up a small amount of teaching and a large amount of writing opportunities—I’m giving that up for a life of pressure, and administration, and crises, and crunch, and just normal pastoral labors, so will I languish in my ability to see Scripture?”

Continued in part 4 . . .

Last week Terry shared a challenging quote about prayer. This kind of prayer that will NOT let God go, and will NOT settle for the status quo goes a long way to explaining the secret of Newfrontiers.

It's a good place to start as we commence a video interview with Terry this week. Perhaps we should take note how important prayer is to both Terry and the other two people I interviewed on video at New Word Alive - Don Carson and John Piper.

Here is the quote:

"Lose the importunity of prayer … lose the real conflict of will and will, lose the habit of wrestling and the hope of prevailing with God, make it mere walking with God in friendly talk; and precious as that is, yet you tend to lose the reality of prayer at last." (P. T. Forsyth).

UPDATE
The written transcript of this segment of my interview with John Piper is now available. It can be read here.

So far John has addressed the UK church scene and preaching. In this section of our video interview I asked him about his prayer life, which he described as prayer mingled with the Word rather than separate sections of time for prayer alone and the Word alone. He talked about his Bible study, and how that discipline, along with so many other things in his life, sometimes feels as if it is driven by the expectations placed on him. His focus is currently on preparing for what he is going to do.

Unfortunately there is a small section at the end where we somehow lost the audio, but one of the technical whizzes over at UCCF managed to figure out what Piper was saying. His words at that point have been superimposed on the video picture. This interview continues tomorrow with the final segment.

UPDATE
The written transcript of this video is now available and can be accessed here.

At the recent New Word Alive conference I was able to record a four-part interview with John Piper. John rarely gives interviews of any form, so it was a real privilege, and one that I hope you will enjoy.

Dr. Piper asked that we begin with prayer. His humble request of God that, for the sake of others, he would help us in our conversation was no mere lifeless routine. Here is a man who oozes the presence of God even when you are with him in such conversational moments. I found it challenging and stimulating to spend a little bit of time with him at the conference.

I began by asking him what brought him to this conference in Wales. He spoke of his surprise at realizing he seemed to have a broad appeal in the UK. He is welcomed to speak at a wide range of conferences from different backgrounds. He said that he was both “contaminated by the charismatic” and “a seven-point Calvinist.”

He described how he felt drawn to help in the process of realignment that is going on in UK evangelicalism at the moment. He spoke about the previous differences with Spring Harvest, which together with his discussions with the authors of Pierced For Our Transgressions, had made him especially keen to help the organizers of New Word Alive.

John said he was keen to do what he could to draw exegetically serious Bible, gospel people together—whether charismatic or not.

This interview will be continued tomorrow.

I want to share three stories with you. The first happened right here at our home church. A woman who had previously had a melanoma removed was told, following a scan, that her cancer had returned, I believe in three places. I know this lady personally. We prayed. Following that, the doctors were unable to find the lump in her neck; it seemed to have disappeared and so could not be biopsied. That caused some consternation to the doctors. They then removed another lump, which actually seemed smaller than they had originally thought it to be. It seemed as though the cancer was shrinking, not growing. Now, just this week, they repeated the scan, and could find no trace of cancer. They have told her they do not need to see her for a few months. We are thrilled for her! Skeptics might say, “Oh, but it went into remission naturally,” or “The doctors just made a mistake in the first place.” Me? I just want to thank God that he has healed her—miraculously or naturally—it doesn't really matter to me which way!

The other two stories both come from Terry Virgo's blog. Terry is a man I would trust implicitly having had contact with him for many years.  Incidentally, God-willing, I will soon have videos appearing on this blog of my New Word Alive interviews with Terry, John Piper, and Don Carson. Please pray that some of the technical hitches we have been having with those files will be resolved shortly.

Anyway, when reporting on his own perception of New Word Alive, Terry reported briefly on a healing he had observed the week before:

While at Rhiwbina, I had the joy of praying for Maggie Parker, who had been wheelchair-bound for 23 years. She stood, walked unaided to the front, and testified to an astonished and tearful congregation how Jesus had completely healed her, and then expressed her surprise that everyone seemed so short! That was pretty exciting, too!”

This story is a remarkable one, and just the other day Terry shared the following update from Maggie Parker:

““‘It has been a very strange fortnight, to say the least. I have never had so many opportunities to witness handed to me on a plate. I have many Christian and non-Christian friends all over the world. I am just overwhelmed by the joy He has given to so many people: the hairdresser, an exercise class I attend, the road tax man. The list goes on and on. I haven’t heard from the Council, or the DVLC, or the Department of Works and Pensions, whom I have told I do not want their money any more! All the letters contain a short testimony to the effect that I am a practicing Christian and believe that Jesus died for me to forgive my sins, is risen, and that He is still healing today! Wow! I would love to have seen their faces on opening such a letter.

‘People are not looking quite so small now as I am adjusting to seeing the world from standing upright. I have been up an escalator and, of course, walked where I have not been able to before. My friend in North Wales already has my favourite walks earmarked and, of course, this includes the miners’ track of Snowdon. My muscles and ligaments are complaining because I do not seem to be able to gauge a “slow build up of exercise”! I’ll get to a more sensible stage I expect.’”

In the same post, Terry spoke of a time of remarkable healing this past week during a Russian speakers conference in the Crimea. At the end of the conference, he also reported that his wife, Wendy Virgo, suffered appendicitis.

Wendy was not miraculously healed. But she was sovereignly preserved. And the God-given skills of surgeons and doctors meant that a potentially life-threatening condition was quickly resolved. I am quite sure that although he doesn't say this in his post, Terry is as grateful to God for healing his wife in this way as he is for the other healings he has recently witnessed. Actually, given that Wendy is his wife, I am fairly sure he is actually more pleased that she is recovering well from her surgery.

As John Piper reminded us at New Word Alive, it is right for us to pray for healing. It is biblical to lay hands on the sick and ask God to heal them. God does heal today. Sometimes, like for my friend, it is a mysterious process that some observers might simply put down to the body somehow curing itself (although, in her case, it seems like somewhat more than that to me). Others are healed dramatically as Maggie Parker has been. But a final group are healed through the God-given skills of the doctors. We should rejoice and thank God no matter which method he uses to heal.

We rejoiced in God together this morning in our church prayer meeting. We remembered to thank him for all the wonderful things he is doing. But, hearing these stories made us long for more. Please join us in crying out to God to send more of his Holy Spirit on this earth to heal the sick, bring salvation to many, and purify his Church.

Note: The photograph of an empty wheelchair is taken by Richard James and is not Maggie Parker's.

Part of the reason for my blog holiday has been, hopefully, to fit more time for prayer into my schedule which, even without blogging, remains tightly packed. As usual, I have not found that as easy as I would like—although I am praying more than I normally do. What is it about prayer that we find so difficult?

I thought I would interrupt this blog break to bring you the following prolonged extract from Sam Storms' forthcoming book on Colossians. The daily devotions I am sharing here are all on the subject of prayer, and I have found them helpful to me as I look again at this vital subject. This is taken from The Hope of Glory: 100 Daily Meditations on Colossians, by Sam Storms, pp.309-324, © 2008. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, http://www.crossway.org/.

The Easiest Thing About Prayer
Colossians 4:2
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
The easiest thing about praying is quitting. Giving up seems so reasonable, so easy to justify. It’s always been that way, which is why Paul wrote in Colossians 4:12, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” Persevering in prayer when no one seems to listen strikes many people as a sign of fanaticism, if not mental instability.

Not long ago I received an e-mail from a friend who was facing the impending deaths of several people in his church. Soon after, I learned of the untimely passing of an incredibly godly Christian man who left behind a grieving wife and two young children. In any given week I hear the same stories you do: a loved one dies, a job is lost and another not found, bills go unpaid, relationships are shattered, dreams fail to materialize. Rain does not fall and crops fail. A teenager is loved and cared for, yet rebels and abandons God. What makes such incidents especially disturbing is that they all occur notwithstanding persistent and fervent prayer that they not. Why is it that a man or woman prays for relief or deliverance or some essential blessing to alleviate intense aggravation, but hears nothing? In humble faith, with sincerity of heart, not for a moment doubting that God is able both to hear and answer their prayers, they pray. But heaven is silent, or so it seems.

I recently saw the film The Island (that’s not a recommendation!) in which unsuspecting clones are nourished and sustained to serve as organ donors for their wealthy sponsors who aspire to live as long as possible. These “folk” know virtually nothing of the outside world or its ways. Two have escaped and are in conversation with a rather strange man who happens to mention “God.” “What’s ‘God’?” asks one of the clones.

“Oh, well, you know when you close your eyes and ask for something?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, God’s the one who doesn’t answer you.”

It’s a bad joke, but for many people it rings all too true. People in Paul’s day faced the same temptation to quit that we do. But too much was at stake. Though defeated at the cross, Satan and his demons are still active. The weakness of the flesh abides. The threat of schism in the body of Christ is ever present. Great opportunities to share the gospel are at every turn. So, don’t quit, says Paul. Continue steadfastly in prayer. Keep watch at all times lest you despair. Be thankful for all God has done and will do in response to your petitions. Much has already been said in Colossians concerning perseverance in prayer, so I won’t repeat myself here. . . . Instead, I want to briefly address the reasons why a good God who can help often seems not to, or at least not to in accordance with our schedules. There are surely reasons other than these, but here are a few suggestions that I hope will encourage you to “continue steadfastly in prayer” (Colossians 4:2a).

First, we are a presumptuous people. We just assume that God ought always to do what we ask, when we ask, precisely in the way we ask. By delaying his response, God awakens us to the gracious character of all answered prayer. In other words, that God says or does anything at all in response to our petitions is sheer, undiluted grace. Resolute continuation in prayer, watchful perseverance, is often the best way for us to learn this invaluable lesson.

Second, steadfast endurance in coming again and again to the throne of grace is God’s way of cultivating in us a sense of absolute and utter dependence upon him. We are by nature self-reliant, self-sufficient folk. If God were instantly and at all times to answer our every prayer, we would gradually lose our sense of urgency. Truth be told, most of us would soon lose sight of the fact that it is God alone who is the source of all good. By suspending his response, God is saying to each of us: “Just how desperate are you? How conscious are you that I am your only source, your sole and all-sufficient supply?”

Third, persistent praying puts us in that frame of mind and spirit in which we may properly receive what it is that God desires to give. In other words, it isn’t so much that God is reluctant to give, but that we lack preparation to receive. Try to envision what a mess your life would have been if your parents granted you everything you asked for as a child! God often delays his answers because, quite simply, we are in no shape to receive them. Few of us are willing to admit that, but deep down we know it’s true.

Fourth, steadfast, watchful continuation in prayer helps us differentiate between impetuous, ill-conceived, selfish desires, and sincere, deep-seated, Christ-exalting ones. Persistence in prayer thus enables us to weed out improper petitions.

Fifth, endurance at the throne of grace purifies the content of our petitions. By repeating our prayers we are forced to think and rethink what we are saying. We are compelled to evaluate our motivation and aim for asking God for something in particular. It’s a bit like how I read, reread, and read yet again each of these meditations. It helps me identify mistakes, locate typographical errors, and rephrase something that otherwise might be false or misleading. I can almost envision God saying in response to my first articulation of a prayer, “Sam, are you sure you want me to answer that one? Think about it. Contemplate the long-term consequences of a yes. Then come back and ask me again in different terms, with a purified purpose.”

Sixth, perseverance cultivates patience. By withholding an immediate response, we learn how to wait on God. Waiting on the Lord is far from a passive posture. It’s an active, expectant, persistent pressing in to the heart and purposes of a loving God. How might we ever learn to do this were it not for steadfastness in prayer?

Seventh, oftentimes God wants to give, but not now. The answer will come in better circumstances, at a more opportune moment. By delaying his response, a greater and better and more God-glorifying end is secured than by an immediate answer.

Finally, even if none of the reasons given above makes sense to you, persevere anyway! God isn’t asking you to understand; he’s asking you to be faithful.


Pray Thankfully!
Colossians 4:2
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
There’s always a possibility that someone reading this passage might walk away with the idea that prayer is an anxious, troublesome, fearful endeavor. Paul’s language might easily contribute to that, were it not for the final two words of the text. Let me explain.

If I were to exhort you concerning some spiritual activity and insisted, perhaps with great urgency, that you “continue steadfastly” in it and that you remain alert and watchful, you might be inclined to worry, perhaps wringing your hands, biting your nails, and pacing nervously back and forth in doubt of the ultimate outcome. Now let’s be clear about one thing: prayer is serious business. James put it pointedly: “You do not have, because you do not ask” (James 4:2). If we fail to pray, we most likely will not receive. It is utterly presumptuous to think that God will do for us apart from prayer what he has promised to do for us only through prayer.

But this reality must be held in delicate balance with the equally biblical truth that God is sovereign: nothing slips his mind or through his fingers. He will accomplish all his purposes. He “works all things according to the counsel of his will” (Ephesians 1:11).

This is the point, I believe, of Paul’s insistence that when we pray, and we should pray always and alertly, we should do so “with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2b). Why does he insist on this? And more important still, how do we do it? How does one pray thankfully?

First, I believe Paul includes this qualifying phrase because he wants to instill confidence in us rather than fear and uncertainty as we pray. It’s his way of saying, “Yes, by all means be faithful and fervent in your prayers. But know this: God is always and ever on his throne. The battle in which you fight is ultimately his, on your behalf. Let gratitude for what God has done and will do permeate your petitions. In this way you will never lose hope or fall into despair or live in fear that he has abandoned you in your hour of need.”

But second, and most important, how do we do this? What does it mean to pray “with thanksgiving”? Here are a few thoughts.

First, pray with gratitude that God is actually there, alive and alert and never asleep. We do not speak into a vacuum or to a God who is preoccupied with other, allegedly more important matters.

Second, pray with gratitude that God not only lives and loves but also actually listens to what we say. He hears us! “Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. . . . He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you” (Isaiah 30:18–19). As you pray, therefore, thank God that he loves to listen and to be gracious.

Third, pray with gratitude that the God who lives, loves, and listens is also more than able to do above and beyond all we ask or think (cf. Ephesians 3:20). I’m so thankful that the God to whom I pray isn’t a wimp or a weakling, but an omnipotent and infinitely wise Father who delights in giving good things to those who ask (Luke 11:13).

Fourth, pray thanking God that he has chosen to include you in the process. God could have ordained that all his will be accomplished independently of our participation. But he didn’t. He has chosen to achieve his ultimate ends through means, the latter being primarily our prayers.

Fifth, pray thanking God for all the ways he is changing you as you pray. Wholehearted and humble intercession transforms the intercessor. Our ideas of God are elevated. Our awareness of personal dependency is intensified. The magnitude of God’s power and providence is manifest in ways that we otherwise might never behold. Our dreams and hopes and desires are cleansed and purified as we humbly submit to his will and crucify our own.

Sixth, pray thanking God that what you are asking him to graciously do in the lives of others he has already done in yours. If we are not grateful for the salvation and healing and mercy granted us, how can we possibly be fervent and diligent in asking that God do the same for others?

Seventh, and finally, pray with gratitude to God not simply for what he has done but for what he will do. Thank him in advance for what he will do in response to your requests. Without being triumphalistic or sinfully presumptuous, we should pray with Thank you, Lord!

The bottom line is this: it’s hard to be fearful when you are immersed in gratitude. Thankfulness turns the human soul toward heaven and away from self. Thankfulness, by its very nature, requires that we fix our focus on the fact that God is and who God is and what God has done and will do. Thankful prayer is necessarily theocentric.

Do you recall the incident in 2 Chronicles 20 where Jehoshaphat and the kingdom of Judah came under siege by the Moabites and Ammonites? After their prayer seeking God’s assistance, the prophet Jahaziel came to them with a bizarre word of counsel. “He appointed those who were to sing to the Lord and praise him in holy attire, as they went before the army, [to] say, ‘Give thanks to the Lord, for his steadfast love endures forever’” (2 Chronicles 20:21).

He instructs them to be thankful on the front end of the battle, before the enemy is ever engaged. Let the reality of God’s steadfast love fill your heart, he told them. Praise him for who he is. Rest peacefully in what he will do. “Stand firm,” he said, “hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf” (2 Chronicles 20:17).

Thus, “when Paul says our praying is to be done with thanksgiving, he means that we should keep our eyes on the victory of God. We do not fight as losers or even as those who are uncertain. We know God will win. And if we have eyes to see, we will recognize the path of his power again and again.”


Just Do It!
Colossians 4:3–4
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
Now, wait just a minute. We all agree that God loves lost souls and wants them to hear the gospel of salvation in his Son. So why does he suspend the opening of an evangelistic door on the prayers of the Colossians? I’m tempted to say, in the words of the Nike commercial: “God, ‘just do it!’” Or, perhaps more reverently, “God, why don’t you directly open these doors rather than telling Paul to tell us to ask you to do so? What’s the point of our asking you to do what you’ve already revealed is in your heart to accomplish? As I said, Lord, ‘just do it!’” I suspect God’s response to me would be: “No, Sam. That’s not how I operate. Yes, of course, I could ‘just do it’ directly and instantaneously, without your involvement or anyone else’s. But I prefer to do it when you ask me to. In fact, in most instances I won’t do it unless you ask me to.”

Here’s another question that comes to mind. Why does Paul encourage the Colossians to pray for him? What’s the point of his asking them to ask God to open a door for the Word? Why does he urge them to pray that God would give him clarity of speech? Isn’t it enough that he ask God himself? I’m assuming he did, but he evidently believed that it would greatly help his cause if others joined him in beseeching God for this blessing. Does this imply that God is more inclined to say yes to our requests if more people are united in asking him for them? That seems odd.

Or is it primarily to aid his cause that Paul enlists the prayers of others on his behalf? Could it possibly be that for the sake of God’s greater glory he makes this request of the Colossians? I’ll return to that momentarily.

Let’s be clear about one thing. I didn’t ask these questions because I intend to solve the tension between divine sovereignty and human responsibility. I couldn’t solve it even if I wanted to, and how prayer factors into the equation is ultimately something beyond my intellectual ken.

Rather, I’m concerned about the nature of prayer. Or, more accurately, I’m concerned about the purpose of prayer. Why has God chosen to incorporate it into the way he governs the world and accomplishes his purposes?

One thing we know: God loves to be asked, and there’s good reason for it. Consider Psalm 50:12, one of the most sarcastic verses in Scripture. God says to the Israelites: “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine,” which is to say, if God were hungry (which, of course, he’s not), he wouldn’t need the Israelites to provide him with a meal. “Every beast of the forest is mine,” says the Lord, “[not to mention] the cattle on a thousand hills” (Psalm 50:10).

So, if God doesn’t need us or our prayers, why does he create us and then command us to ask him for things? That’s a pretty profound question, but it comes with a fairly simple answer.

In Psalm 50:15 God says again, “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” When you’re in trouble, says God, when you have needs and problems and trials and obstacles to overcome, pray to me and ask that I intervene and make provision. If you do, I’ll deliver you. And in your obvious dependence upon me I will be glorified. We both win. You get delivered. I get glorified. You receive a blessing. And people and angels and demons see that I’m the all-sufficient supply, the infinitely resourceful God, the one being in the universe who exists to overflow in abundant goodness to weak and needy people like you!

It’s amazing how asking a few questions about the nature and purpose of prayer drives us directly into the reason why God created the universe. God didn’t create us because he was needy or lacking in some profound way. We don’t supply God with anything. “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:24–25).

So, that being true, why did he make it all? He made it all so that in its (our) utter and absolute dependence on him for everything, his glory as God might be seen and savored. Our need magnifies his supply. Our lack draws attention to his abundance. God honors and glorifies himself by overflowing in bountiful blessings to those who otherwise deserve only death. And how do we get these blessings? By praying for them! God suspends his work on our prayers not because he can’t do it alone but because our prayers highlight our dependence and his supply. We are humbled as dependent and he is exalted as depended upon.

Not only does he get the glory for being depended upon but we get the gladness for being dependent. Yes, please read that again. There is no greater joy than getting what God gives (and he is himself, of course, the greatest gift). And there is no greater glory than for God to be giving.

Jesus commanded his disciples to pray, and here’s why: “Whatever you ask in my name, this will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13). Although there are undoubtedly other reasons why God chose to incorporate our prayers in the accomplishment of his purposes, his glory is preeminent.

One more thing: earlier I asked why Paul felt it important to enlist the prayers of the Colossians on his behalf. It’s not because God is stingy and Paul thought that a multitude of intercessors might have greater success in prevailing on God’s otherwise reluctant heart than would he alone. Once again, it’s all about God’s glory. In 2 Corinthians 1:11 Paul wrote, “You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.”

Note carefully why it’s important that the Corinthians (like the Colossians) pray for him. It is so that “many will give thanks” for the “blessing” that God grants to him in response to their prayers. God’s glory is more readily seen and known and savored when many rise up in unified gratitude for what he has done than if only one or a few do. So, when we pray for one another we get gladness in receiving what God gives and God gets glory for giving what we get.

Open Doors for the Gospel
Colossians 4:3–4
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
Political correctness notwithstanding, Christianity is an evangelistic religion. Its aim is to proclaim the good news that there is eternal life in only one: Jesus Christ. Its aim, by the grace of God, is to bring about the deliverance of men and women out of the domain of darkness into the kingdom of light. There are some things, no doubt, for which we as Christians ought to apologize, but declaring that faith in Jesus Christ alone is essential for eternal life isn’t one of them. We should never hesitate to proclaim the “mystery of Christ” or shrink back from seeking the conversion of every soul.

Here in Colossians 4:3–4 Paul solicits the prayers of these believers, not for his own health or freedom or prosperity but for the opportunity and clarity to proclaim Jesus as Lord to lost and dying people. There are two elements in Paul’s request that call for our attention.

First, he asks them to ask God to open “a door for the word” that he might proclaim “the mystery of Christ” (v. 3). This isn’t the first time he’s used this imagery for evangelistic opportunities (see also Acts 14:27; 1 Corinthians 16:8–9; 2 Corinthians 2:12).

The “door,” evidently, is closed. This may suggest political opposition; social, cultural, and educational barriers to sharing the faith; adverse weather that hinders travel; or any number of factors that make evangelism difficult from a human perspective. It may be that Paul is asking God to grant him favor with those who have the authority to give him access to certain arenas of activity or platforms from which he might declare his message. In any case, Paul believed that God is sovereign over all such circumstances and that he can remove obstacles and overcome resistance and restrain the enemies of the faith when asked to do so by his people.

That an apostle, no less, would ask ordinary Christians like these Colossians to pray for his evangelistic success is stunning. Paul refused to trust in his skill or eloquence or theological knowledge alone. He needed the intercessory support of other believers. It’s almost as if he’s saying, “I’m helpless if you don’t ask God to help me.” Amazing!

And what might Paul do should the door be opened? He has one goal, one solitary purpose: to proclaim the mystery of Christ. The word mystery doesn’t mean what it does in a P. D. James novel or in a Sudoku puzzle. Paul typically uses this word when he has in mind a truth formerly hidden but now made known in Jesus Christ.

The mystery of Christ is the revelation of what God has done in and through his Son to make possible atonement for sin and its forgiveness. That the Word should become flesh (John 1:14) is a mystery now made known for our salvation. That God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself (2 Corinthians 5:19) is a mystery now revealed for our justification. That faith alone in a crucified Messiah is the power of God unto salvation is a mystery now made known for our eternal welfare.

Where Christ is not proclaimed, the gospel is not known. No matter how psychologically soothing a sermon may be, if the mystery of Christ is not center stage, the gospel has not been preached. The focus of our message is not self-esteem, social justice, the plight of the poor, or world peace (as important as those issues are in their own right), but Jesus Christ crucified and risen for the salvation of lost souls.

Paul’s second request is that they ask God to enable him to proclaim this mystery with clarity (v. 4). “Pray that God will work in me,” says Paul, “that I might have the words to speak in the most persuasive manner and at the most appropriate time. Ask God to operate in my heart and mind and soul so that my message will ring true and will reverberate with passion and conviction and courage.”

Stunning, isn’t it, that a man of Paul’s spiritual caliber and gifting felt so desperately dependent on the prayers of others for his effectiveness in ministry! He made a similar plea to the Roman church, appealing to them to strive together with him in their prayers to God on his behalf, that he might be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea and that his service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the
saints (Romans 15:30–31).

His request of the Colossians raises an interesting question: What precisely might serve to inhibit or hinder his clarity of speech or prevent him from proclaiming the gospel in the way he desired? It may be that he anticipated trick questions from a hostile crowd and needed the assistance of the Spirit to see through their deception and speak truth into the fog of error. It may be that he sensed the importance of using just the right illustration or parable or analogy to make a point that would penetrate a closed and calloused heart with the truth that brings light and life. Paul, no doubt, felt confused at times and needed the quickening ministry of the Spirit in his mind. “Pray that God would clear my head of intellectual cobwebs and overcome any sluggishness of speech that would be unworthy of the gospel I proclaim. Pray that the Father would fill me with the Spirit of boldness and confidence and drive from me all fear of man and concern for my own reputation or physical safety.”

If he felt this burden, how much more you and I! Have you committed to praying consistently for your pastor each time he preaches? Have you interceded for that Sunday school teacher who tells the story of Jesus to indifferent and mocking junior high students? Have you petitioned God for yourself as you prepare to share your testimony with an unsaved neighbor? We are all desperately in need of such anointing and spiritual support from on high every time we open our mouths to speak of Christ.

“O, grant us open doors, Father, that we may speak boldly and clearly and joyfully of your Son and all that you have done for sinners in and through him! Work in us by your Spirit that we might have just the right story, the most telling illustration, the most persuasive phrasing as we declare the mystery of Christ Jesus! Amen.”

It's that time of year again—the time when I reflect on the year that has been. I'm going to follow a structure in my reminiscing which will be as follows:

1. In this post I will think about my own personal life, and in particular my relationship with God.
   
   
2. In the next post I will consider my family.
   
   
3. Then I will consider my church.
   
   
4. Finally, I will spend some time reviewing the blog.

This order truly does reflect the relative priority I place on each aspect of my life.

I find this whole process sets me nicely in the mood to then switch off totally over Christmas and into January. Although I myself will continue my break, beginning on January 1st, thanks to my editor, Annette, we will be publishing a particular series of posts that I have already written and sent to her.

You will notice that there is a clear omission from my list—my job. This is because I don't like to mix my work and my blog. I'm keen to keep my professional life entirely separate from this hobby I carry out in my spare time. This is not because I don't enjoy my job—I very much do. It's just wise to keep some boundaries of separation between the multiple domains of my life.

I am a very busy person, although I'm sure I would have it no other way. If I have some spare time, I tend to fill it with something. I'm not a great believer in simply staring blankly into space! I try to make time for entertainment and relaxation also. Managing my competing responsibilities is all about making the most of every second available to me, and where possible, recycling time or effort so it benefits me in more than one way. Thus, I try not to re-invent the wheel, and find that things I'm thinking about in one aspect of my life often pop up in another area in a surprising way to help me there.

As I end the year, I am painfully aware that the person who can get squeezed out at times is the One Person who makes it all possible, and who is my top priority. I can honestly say that this year I have been better at taking time to pray and truly listening to what God has to say to me personally in his Word than I have in the past. But I do need more extended times when I forget all my other responsibilities and focus only on him. January will be a month very much devoted to that goal, alongside the responsibilities that I cannot lay down for such a season. I am looking forward to a weekend retreat that will help greatly, and by not blogging for several weeks, I will have some time to accomplish this on a daily basis.

If I don't make sure that I am connected to God, filled by God, thrilled by God, and empowered by God, I simply can't get those things done which God intends for me to do. Being well-oiled by the Spirit of God makes all the difference to everything else I do. I very much notice the negative effects on every area of my life when I have rushed this, or when I am shamefully treating God like just another drain on my time.

The good news is that although I am now, like many of you, in real need of a rest, I end this year significantly less worn out and weary than I think I was at this time of year in the last few years. While 2007 has been busy, I have been better at pacing myself and taking time out when I needed it. I still do far more than I sometimes think I ought to be doing. But I'm learning to say "No!" and, where possible, I've handed over things I don't have to do myself.

When we know we are doing God's work, then we can be confident that he will give us all we need to accomplish that work. I wear many hats, all of which he has given me—blogger, writer, doctor, father, husband, preacher, church leader, coach, friend. I need to make sure that I take off all those hats more often and just get before God in prayer as his son.

If you can spare some time, please do pray for me that 2008 will be a year when I learn how to pray more effectively than I currently know how to, and live in more obvious and active dependence on the One to whom I owe everything.

May God help me to continue all I do in the power that his Spirit supplies.

Over at Unashamed Workmen, there are a number of great quotes on the vital place of prayer in preaching. The one that really stood out was in the comments section. I think this quote expresses perfectly why we need to plead with the resurrected Jesus to pour out his Spirit on us before we dare think of preaching:

“This divine unction is the one distinguishing feature that separates true gospel preaching from all other methods of presenting truth. It backs and interpenetrates the revealed truth with all the force of God. It illumines the Word and broadens and enrichens [sic] the intellect and empowers it to grasp and apprehend the Word. It qualifies the preacher’s heart, and brings it to that condition of tenderness, of purity, of force and light that are necessary to secure the highest results. This unction gives to the preacher liberty and enlargement of thought and soul—a freedom, fullness, and directness of utterance that can be secured by no other process.”

—Power Through Prayer by E. M. Bounds

I just had to share this quote from Spurgeon on prayer:

If some of the prayers at certain prayer meetings were less doctrinal, less experimental, and more argumentative with God, they would be more like true prayer should be, for true prayer is just pleading with the Most High, spreading our case before him, and then pressing our suit with all the arguments we can muster. . . .

You can say, “Lord, thou didst tell me to believe in Jesus Christ, thy Son; then, wilt thou not accept me, for his sake, for I have done what thou didst bid me do? Thou hast said, ‘Call upon me in the day of trouble;’ Lord, this is a day of trouble with me, and I do call upon thee; so wilt thou not answer me?” If you argue with the Lord in such a style as this, you will find that this kind of pleading is potent with him who is omnipotent . . .

When a man has promised you something that you really need, you take him by the buttonhole, and you say to him, “Now, you promised to give me that;” and if he is an honest man, you can hold him by his own word; and shall the God of truth ever fail to perform his promise? No, that is one of the things that God cannot do; he cannot lie, and yet cannot run back from his promise, nor does he want to do so. O Christian, if you would get anything from God, find a promise of it in his Word, and then thou mayest count the thing as good as received. When a man of means gives you his cheque, you count it just as good as hard cash; and God’s promises are even better than cheques or bank notes. We have only to take them, and plead them before him, and we may rest assured that he will honor them.

— Charles Spurgeon, Sermon No. 3010

In this quote, taken once again from the Doctor on Ephesians, we see a strong emphasis on experience. The Christian must KNOW God. Oh, how little we emphasize that today! How poor our experience often is. How few people glow when they speak about their relationship with their precious Saviour. How this challenges me personally once again to seek God!

"There are, unfortunately, even many evangelical Christians who deny that God has any direct dealings with men today, and who hold feeling and emotion at a discount. They frequently substitute for true emotion a flabby sentimentalism. They are afraid of the power of the Holy Spirit, and so afraid of certain excesses which are sometimes found in mysticism and in certain people who claim to have unusual experiences of the Holy Spirit, that they 'quench the Spirit' and never have any personal knowledge of Christ. Indeed, they often go so far as to deny the possibility of such a knowledge.

This is obviously something with which we must deal, for if we hold this particular view we shall clearly never seek the knowledge of which the Apostle is speaking, and therefore shall never have it. How then do we answer this charge?

There is, of course, a false mysticism. This becomes quite clear in books on the subject and especially in the biographies of certain mystics. Beyond a doubt, there were aberrations in the lives of many of them, and much that was morbid and unhealthy. There is a morbid, introspective, selfish, impractical and useless type of mysticism. But because certain mystics have been guilty of such things we should not allow ourselves to be blinded to that which is a true and healthy mysticism, a mysticism which is taught in the Bible itself . . .

. . . we must remind ourselves that this teaching is found, perhaps supremely, in the words of our blessed Lord Himself. In the fourteenth chapter of John's Gospel, having told them that He is about to leave them, our Lord says: 'Let not your hearts be troubled. Ye believe in God, believe also in me'. They were troubled when told that He was going to leave them. They had been with Him three years, they had looked into His face, they had seen His miracles, heard His sermons, and could always ask Him questions. But now He is going to leave them, and they feared that they could not possibly continue to live and be happy without Him. His answer was, 'I will come unto you. I will manifest myself to you' (vv. 18, 21, 22). But still more explicitly in the sixteenth chapter we find Him saying, 'It is expedient for you that I go away' (v. 7). It would be good for them that He was going to leave them and to go away from them in the form in which He was then with them, because (as He proceeded to explain) 'if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go away I will send him unto you'. How can it be expedient for the disciples that He should leave them in the flesh and go away from them in the body? How can that be true if it is not possible for the Christian to know Him immediately and directly? Obviously the supreme blessing is to be with Him, in His presence and in His company. What He is really saying is that after He has gone and has baptized them with the Holy Ghost, He will be more real to them than He was at that moment. And this is what actually happened. They knew Him much better after Pentecost than they knew Him before. He was more real to them, more living to them, more vital to them afterwards than He was in the days of His flesh. His promise was literally fulfilled and verified . . .

Nothing stands out more prominently in the life of George Whitefield than his consciousness of the love of Christ. He knew it to an exceptional degree and you will find that it was always after he had had some exceptional experience of Christ that he was given unusual enlargement and liberty in his preaching, and that men and women were broken down and melted before his holy eloquence and his portrayal of the love of God in Christ Jesus. Charles Wesley knew it equally well, and so writes:

Enlarge, inflame, and fill my heart
With boundless charity divine!
So shall I all my strength exert,
And love them with a zeal like Thine.
This has been true of God's greatest servants in all ages, in all centuries, in all places.

. . . The secret of the early Christians, the early Protestants, Puritans and Methodists was that they were taught about the love of Christ, and they became filled with a knowledge of it. Once a man has the love of Christ in his heart you need not train him to witness; he will do it. He will know the power, the constraint, the motive; everything is already there. It is a plain lie to suggest that people who regard this knowledge of the love of Christ as the supreme thing are useless, unhealthy mystics. The servants of God who have most adorned the life and the history of the Christian Church have always been men who have realized that this is the most important thing of all, and they have spent hours in prayer seeking His face and enjoying His love. The man who knows the love of Christ in his heart can do more in one hour than the busy type of man can do in a century. God forbid that we should ever make of activity an end in itself. Let us realize that the motive must come first, and that the motive must ever be the love of Christ.

I end with the question which I asked at the beginning: To which of the circles do you belong? Are you pressing your way right into the centre? You may have seen people in a crowd, when the Queen or some other notable person is passing, trying to push themselves forward in order to have a front-line view. The same thing occurs at various games. There are those who always want to be in the front to have the best view. Are we pressing into the innermost circle? Are we seeking the Lord's face? Are we coveting the knowledge of His love? The Apostle prayed for every single member of the Church at Ephesus that he or she 'might be able to comprehend with all saints what is the length and breadth and depth and height, and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge.' How tragic it is that any of us should be living as paupers, out on the cold street, while the banqueting chamber is open and the feast prepared. Let us search for the knowledge of the Lord in the Scriptures and read about it in the lives of the saints throughout the centuries. As we do so, we shall never be content until we are in the innermost circle and looking into His blessed face."

Lloyd-Jones, D. Martyn. An Exposition of Ephesians 3: The Unsearchable Riches of Christ, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1979, pp.247-253.

For more information see my previous posts on Lloyd-Jones and the MLJ Recordings Trust website.

Just as it is not possible to really understand a car without knowing about its engine, you cannot understand Newfrontiers without knowing about the engine which lies under its hood. That engine is in very large part what happens several times a year when church leaders gather for a time of prayer and fasting. This past week it was truly awesome to gather with 750 others to devote ourselves to seeking God. In the context of prayer, prophetic words are shared and evaluated. We catch the heart of God for our next thrust forward. Family news is shared. And what news! We have now seen God work in such a way that there are over 200 churches in the UK. We also heard about fresh drives to plant churches in Paris, Rome, Berlin, Dublin, Porta, Amsterdam, and Valentia, among others. There are even some more churches looking at joining our growing family in the USA. In every continent of the world, Newfrontiers churches are growing and multiplying. With the work God is also doing in other groups, it is increasingly possible to believe that reformed, charismatic, grace-filled, relational churches will be planted all over the world.

To join a resounding chorus of praise to God and prayer for the success of all these endeavors was deeply moving. We also heard about how the churches of Zimbabwe with whom we are in touch are full of joy and faith despite the difficult circumstances they face. Who could not have been stirred by Terry Virgo's fresh challenge to us to rediscover the vital place of shepherding God's flock and focusing our best efforts on caring for churches even as they go out on a mission? Meeting with some of you my readers was also great fun.

The worship was very rousing. In particular, I felt my heart swell as we sang Jesus My Only Hope. I found myself thinking—if he is our only hope, what of those who have no hope? How can we not share him with them? As you can imagine, I was all the more thrilled therefore to witness baptisms this morning at our own church. He really is our only hope!

Words and music by Mark Altrogge
As recorded on Songs for the Cross-Centered Life

Lyrics

I come into Your presence
With nothing in my hands
I only bring thanksgiving
For Jesus, God and Man
I cast myself on mercy
I cast myself on love
I trust Your gracious promise
To wash me with Your blood.

I will not fear Your judgment
For me, no wrath I dread
For it was spent on Jesus
Poured out upon His head
When Satan’s accusations
Make my poor heart afraid
I hear my King declaring
“Father, that debt is paid.”

Jesus my only hope, my only plea
My righteousness, my Great High Priest
Who intercedes for me before the throne
Jesus, I trust in You alone.

© 2002 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI).

My buddy, Mark Moore, has asked us to pray for a friend of his who is a pastor facing persecution in India. See Mark's blog for the full story:

“One of our international pastors in Acts 29, Pastor Sudhakar in India, is facing tremendous persecution, having been drug out of his church on a Sunday morning and beaten by twenty men. He is now standing trial for "converting Hindus to Christianity."

One of the temptations for us Reformed Charismatics is to just not talk about our experiences of the Spirit and the things we see. If we just don't talk about our charismatic experience it is much easier for us to fit in with our reformed brothers. At times I feel I am more interested in fitting in with my reformed brothers than my Arminian Charismatic brothers! I wonder even if I have many Arminian readers? If you are one, do let me know....

Anyway, I am thrilled with Terry Virgo for not succumbing to that temptation. The following story of Dyslexia being healed by God is worth a read.

Five years ago his parents were told, ‘Parker has the worst case of dyslexia we have ever seen in our thirteen years.’ This was the assessment of the Director of Applied Learning Processes, one of the nation’s most recognised learning disability centres. Throughout his high school years he was given a classification which allowed him to have his reading provided in audio form as well as other special provisions...

During one of the worship sessions his friend Jon Alden felt that God had spoken into his heart concerning Parker, so he leaned over to him and said, ‘The letters will be where they are supposed to be and God will make you see things you never thought you would.’ Parker immediately knew what this meant. Running back to the book table, he picked up a book and started reading. Miraculously for the first time ever in Parker’s eighteen years he could read clearly and understand!"

Because he is of course a reformed charismatic Terry of course followed it up with a post about the latest books he has been reading, as well as mentioning Mark Driscoll. I loved what he said about the man from Mars Hill.

"Though his unconventional style is mildly shocking to the ears of this particular English preacher, who can no longer claim to be in his middle years, Mark Driscoll, coming clearly through my iPod in this last week, has been a huge blessing (www.marshillchurch.org).

As I walked to my office, in hopefully not a vain attempt to lose a few pounds, my spirit was soaring as I heard his outstanding commitment to preaching Christ. His Biblical perspective was magnificent. Verse after verse insisted first on Christ’s humanity and then on His deity. How wonderful to hear preaching so centred in Christ albeit with fascinating contemporary asides. How rarely one hears sermons so exclusively about Jesus and simply talking about Him, focusing on Him, glorying in Him and feeding my soul."

After sharing his theological reading, Terry then ended on some more recent healings he has observed

On my return from the USA last week it was great to hear of healings following prayer times while I was there. Particularly thrilling was a breakout of healings at Christ Church in Kaiser, Missouri, where one lady was healed from an allergic backlash to eating fish and also from asthma. Since my being there she has happily eaten salmon with no problem and went for a 1-mile run without use of her medicine and with no related difficulties. Also another lady, whose spine was out of line, straightened up, and a further lady with a hip out of line, which gave her great pain, ran around the church building. Over a dozen or so also came forward at Christian Fellowship in Columbia, Missouri, to testify that they had been healed on the night that I prayed for them. Praise the Lord! God keeps telling us that a new era has started for us. I intend believing Him and keep on pushing the door and looking for fresh manifestations of His presence and power.

This Piper Friday, I would like to share an extract with you from an old sermon by John Piper. It rightly entwines three themes that were flowing through my head (and hence this blog!) earlier this year: The study of God’s Word, prayer, and the activity of the Holy Spirit. I am increasingly convinced that we need these three things more than anything else! Oh, God . . . make us preachers to be men like this!

“The minister of the Word must not choose between study and prayer. Study without prayer is the work of pride. Prayer without study is presumption. This is what the Proverbs teach: "If you cry out for insight and raise your voice for understanding (that's prayer), and if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures (that's study), then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God" (Proverbs 2:3–5).

Prayer humbles the heart and gives it the tone of Christ and makes it ready and open and sensitive to the truth of Scripture. But it is study that brings in the truth and fills the heart with joy and power.

Meeting the Almighty God
The ministry of the Word is a ministry of prayer because in prayer the minister meets God and has real living dealings with the Almighty so that his preaching and teaching have the aroma of God about them. The ministry of the Word must be a ministry of earnestness and intensity, and where are these to be found if not in our private meetings with God where you learn to know if you are real or just playing games?

One great Baptist pastor, Hezekiah Harvey, put it like this in 1879: "Moral earnestness can never be assumed; it is the attribute only of a soul profoundly feeling the power and reality of divine truth. The man, therefore, who would speak God's Word with the pungency and fervor of a Bunyan, a Baxter, a Flavel, or a Payson must, like them, be constant and fervent in prayer. The springs of spiritual life opened in the closet will pour forth never-failing streams of life in the pulpit."

Without much prayer all the study in the world will leave us shallow and lean. Without prayer there creeps in what Richard Cecil called the "low, managing, contriving, maneuvering temper of mind among us."

E.M. Bounds is right when he says, "What the Church needs today is not more machinery or more novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use — men of prayer, men mighty in prayer. The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but men — men of prayer."