When we come across “what can man do to me” in our Bible reading, it sounds a little flippant doesn’t it? Men and women do an awful lot of terrible things to other men and women. There is plenty to fear in this fallen world. But this phrase came from David while people were actively chasing him with the intent to kill him. How can he say such a thing? Stop running for a second and you will see what man can do to you!
One of the wonderful things about the Psalms is how honest they are about the struggles of life. In Psalm 56 we’ll see the hero David, of “David and Goliath” fame, admitting he’s afraid of very real and present danger. But we’ll also see how David doesn’t rely on his ingenuity, strength, or past successes to alleviate his fear, instead he runs to the God who has rescued him time and time again.
Join us to learn from David how to deal with the fears in your own life, even if you aren’t being actively chased by people trying to kill you.
It would be a shame to squander the gift of a pandemic with busyness and
amusement rather than to seize the wonderful opportunity to seek the face of
God and to surrender our lives more completely to Him.
The sermon on the Mount turns upside down our normal expectations of life in
the kingdom and that is true of prayer. Prayer is not an activity in which I come to change the mind and will of God. Prayer is the activity where I relinquish my will and have God reshape my thinking, priorities, values, and passions.
Prayer changes things… definitely! It changes the prayer-er!
This series is an invitation for you to invite God each week to do whatever it
takes to change some aspect of your life. Will you do it?
This week’s prayer: Whatever it takes… to Make Your Presence My Priority.
From Series: "Whatever It Takes: Finding Fresh Power In A Familiar Prayer"
Whatever It Takes: Finding Fresh Power In A Familiar Prayer
Matthew 6:6-15
Have you ever wondered if people can really change? Have you ever
wondered if you could truly change? Often, we think to ourselves that the
possibility of deep change in our lives is increasingly unlikely as time goes on. We
struggle with the same old sins. We fall into the same bad habits. We get stuck in the same mindless amusements. Who really changes and for how long?
One of the great encouragements of the Bible is that there is power for deep and lasting change through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. One of the greatest and most familiar passages in the Bible, The Lord’s Prayer, is actually designed to call God’s people to seek God’s face for deep authentic personal change. Over the next several weeks, we are going to look at a familiar passage of Scripture in what is hopefully a completely fresh and unfamiliar way.
Whatever It Takes is discovering how Jesus’ teaching on prayer is a clear call to seek a radically new set of passions and priorities in our lives – Kingdom priorities.
Pray that God will help all of us pray an old prayer in a radically new way. Are you willing to pray “Whatever It Takes”?