One of our grandsons loves superheroes like Superman who is powered by a fictional substance called kryptonite.
One of my superheroes is the prophet Daniel who saw God work wonders in his life. He connected with God through prayer and obedience - a greater power than kryptonite.
I have been re-reading Daniel in the Old Testament again recently and marvelling at the kind of man he was. He was not a strong warrior like David, but he faced just as threatening situations as the great Hebrew king.
He was taken captive in Judah and marched to Babylon as a slave. But God had blessed him with great intelligence and a humble spirit - a rare combination.
What stands out for me is Daniel's wonderful prayer life. He determined from the outset to remain true to God, no matter what. He sought God in prayer in all circumstances and God gave him insights through visions, dreams and revelations.
Amazingly, he became a noted wise man and high official in the courts of several Babylonian and Persian kings even though he was an alien from a conquered nation.
The book of Daniel is filled with great stories of God's hand upon Daniel from the moment he was recruited to serve King Nebuchadnezzar.
But the one that sticks in my mind is Daniel being thrown into the lion's den. He was the victim of a plot by jealous rivals high in King Darius' court who resented the king's trust in him.
They succeeded in getting Darius to issue a decree that people were to pray only to Darius for the next 30 days and anyone found to have broken this law would be thrown to the lions.
Daniel could tell this was a trap and he went immediately to his room, opened the windows facing Jerusalem and continued praying to God for wisdom three times daily as he always did. The conspiring officials found him praying and succeeded in getting the king to throw him to the lions.
The king was clearly impressed with Daniel's faith and Daniel's god and did not want to have him killed. But he had already signed the decree and the Jewish exile was cast into the lion's den.
After a night of tossing and turning, the king ran out the next morning to see if Daniel had survived - and he had. He said that "my God sent his angel to shut the lions' mouths so that they would not hurt me."
Darius responded by having the conspirators thrown to the lions. And he sent out a statement to his people declaring that Daniel's God "is the living God and he will endure forever."
Daniel lived his life so close to God that an angel told him "you are very precious to God" when the prophet sought an explanation of a vision he had received.
In my view, Daniel's power came partly from his habit of praying three times a day to the Lord. He sought God himself and the wisdom that only God can give.
But the second element of his power was obedience. When he determined what God wanted, he carried out God's wishes. And he always turned the spotlight on God, not himself.
Obedience to the Hebrew God in ancient Babylon and Persia was tricky to say the least.
The result was an immense influence on an alien society and great glory to God.
The same path of prayer and obedience is open to me.
A new post on my prayer blog - "Dare to be a Daniel"
Monday 29 April 2013
Sunday 21 April 2013
Pray-reading God's words
How can you have a good conversation with God?
One of the best ways is to start with what he wants to say to you. That's the way you speak to good friends - you touch on the topics that are close to their hearts.
You can find out quickly what God wants to talk about by going to the Bible. Let the Holy Spirit bring light to what you are reading - let him take the words and move your heart.
I talked about this before in an earlier blog post. You can find it at: http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3617534320094379788#editor/target=post;postID=3608998795564093691;onPublishedMenu=overviewstats;onClosedMenu=overviewstats;postNum=50;src=postname
This week I came across added insights into this way of praying in a teaching segment by Mike Bickle, head of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City. Bickle founded the House of Prayer years ago to pray 24 hours a day, seven days a week for God's work around the world.
A couple of years ago, he talked about his own journey in prayer from the time he became a young believer as a teenager. It's filled with practical advice but the thing that struck me most was his insights into praying the Word of God.
Bickle urges us to "[engage] in active conversation with God as we read His Word".
He points to Jesus' comments to the Pharisees in John 5:39-40 who read and memorized the scriptures and yet refused to believe in the Messiah even though these same scriptures were pointing to him. They refused to come to him for life.
So, we must come to God for his enlightenment as we read.
Here are some of his suggestions on meditating on and praying back God's words:
As we read, we ask the Spirit to let us see how he sees and feels about our lives.
Simple steps. And enriching.
Here is a link to Mike Bickle's talk on prayer: http://mikebickle.org/resources/resource/2969?return_url=http%3A%2F%2Fmikebickle.org%2Fresources%2Fcategory%2Fprayer-fasting%2Fprayer-lists%2F
One of the best ways is to start with what he wants to say to you. That's the way you speak to good friends - you touch on the topics that are close to their hearts.
You can find out quickly what God wants to talk about by going to the Bible. Let the Holy Spirit bring light to what you are reading - let him take the words and move your heart.
I talked about this before in an earlier blog post. You can find it at: http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3617534320094379788#editor/target=post;postID=3608998795564093691;onPublishedMenu=overviewstats;onClosedMenu=overviewstats;postNum=50;src=postname
This week I came across added insights into this way of praying in a teaching segment by Mike Bickle, head of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City. Bickle founded the House of Prayer years ago to pray 24 hours a day, seven days a week for God's work around the world.
A couple of years ago, he talked about his own journey in prayer from the time he became a young believer as a teenager. It's filled with practical advice but the thing that struck me most was his insights into praying the Word of God.
Bickle urges us to "[engage] in active conversation with God as we read His Word".
He points to Jesus' comments to the Pharisees in John 5:39-40 who read and memorized the scriptures and yet refused to believe in the Messiah even though these same scriptures were pointing to him. They refused to come to him for life.
So, we must come to God for his enlightenment as we read.
Here are some of his suggestions on meditating on and praying back God's words:
- We thank God for a particular truth that he is impressing on our hearts;
- We ask God to reveal more to us of a particular truth that the Spirit highlights in our reading;
- If God is calling us to obey something, we commit ourselves to obedience in that area; and
- We ask him to give us the power to obey.
As we read, we ask the Spirit to let us see how he sees and feels about our lives.
Simple steps. And enriching.
Here is a link to Mike Bickle's talk on prayer: http://mikebickle.org/resources/resource/2969?return_url=http%3A%2F%2Fmikebickle.org%2Fresources%2Fcategory%2Fprayer-fasting%2Fprayer-lists%2F
Sunday 14 April 2013
Friends with God
God spoke to Moses as he would to a friend.
That's what the Bible says in Exodus 33:11. So, what kind of relationship did Moses have with God? And, can I have that relationship, too?
It certainly wasn't a surface relationship. God knew Moses intimately - all his weaknesses as well as his strengths. He could be tough on Moses.
It was a friendship built on trust. Moses never gave up on God despite defeats and disappointments in his life leading the Israelites. And God never gave up on Moses.
It survived major tests. At one point, God threatened to exterminate Moses' people because they had turned away from him even though he had given them so much. But Moses intervened on behalf of the people. I believe God wanted to hear that from Moses - it showed him Moses' heart.
What God saw in Moses was a man who wanted to know the Lord more than anything else. He was brave enough to ask to see God even though it was a life-threatening request. I believe God loved that request. He granted Moses' wish in part, showing part of himself but not his face because Moses would have died from the power of his countenance.
The relationship grew and developed through conversation - through prayer. Moses spent many hours before God in the Tent of Meeting.
It was a partnership where one partner was all-powerful and the other was a loyal follower. God spoke to Moses and Moses obeyed. God exercised his supernatural power through his friend Moses.
It was a friendship where both benefitted. God's plan for mankind unfolded as Moses listened and acted. And Moses came to know God intimately, so intimately he didn't want anything else in the world.
Can I have that? Yes. Many believers over the years have had a relationship with God like Moses' - although they are not as well known.
Moses' friendship with God began in the desert at a burning bush. He was afraid and he didn't want to do what God asked him to do. But he did.
Time spent with God in prayer, obedience, trust, and a growing thirst for more of God - these were hallmarks of Moses' life.
They can mark the life of any believer. We can speak to God like a friend, too.
That's what the Bible says in Exodus 33:11. So, what kind of relationship did Moses have with God? And, can I have that relationship, too?
It certainly wasn't a surface relationship. God knew Moses intimately - all his weaknesses as well as his strengths. He could be tough on Moses.
It was a friendship built on trust. Moses never gave up on God despite defeats and disappointments in his life leading the Israelites. And God never gave up on Moses.
It survived major tests. At one point, God threatened to exterminate Moses' people because they had turned away from him even though he had given them so much. But Moses intervened on behalf of the people. I believe God wanted to hear that from Moses - it showed him Moses' heart.
What God saw in Moses was a man who wanted to know the Lord more than anything else. He was brave enough to ask to see God even though it was a life-threatening request. I believe God loved that request. He granted Moses' wish in part, showing part of himself but not his face because Moses would have died from the power of his countenance.
The relationship grew and developed through conversation - through prayer. Moses spent many hours before God in the Tent of Meeting.
It was a partnership where one partner was all-powerful and the other was a loyal follower. God spoke to Moses and Moses obeyed. God exercised his supernatural power through his friend Moses.
It was a friendship where both benefitted. God's plan for mankind unfolded as Moses listened and acted. And Moses came to know God intimately, so intimately he didn't want anything else in the world.
Can I have that? Yes. Many believers over the years have had a relationship with God like Moses' - although they are not as well known.
Moses' friendship with God began in the desert at a burning bush. He was afraid and he didn't want to do what God asked him to do. But he did.
Time spent with God in prayer, obedience, trust, and a growing thirst for more of God - these were hallmarks of Moses' life.
They can mark the life of any believer. We can speak to God like a friend, too.
Sunday 7 April 2013
Silence is golden
God speaks in silence.
It's hard to hear God when we're talking or our minds are drowning in a flood of thoughts about everyday life.
As I have mentioned in other posts, I have long had an interest in listening prayer or contemplative prayer. It makes sense that the best way to know what God wants is to spend time listening to him.
This week, I had the pleasure of hearing Pastor Jim Cymbala of Brooklyn Tabernacle Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., speak about the importance of listening prayer in his own ministry. His church is a model of a praying church with thousands attending the weekly prayer gathering.
Listening prayer has become so important in Jim Cymbala's ministry that it guides his preaching and counselling.
He says that he no longer preaches with notes, preferring to immerse himself in the scriptures and to listen to what God wants him to say. He will open his mind to what the Holy Spirit is telling him as he preaches.
It is the same with his approach to counselling. He says the Holy Spirit indicates to him when he should be quiet and when he should speak.
I am growing in listening prayer. I am not at Jim Cymbala's level. But, as I have said before in this blog, I have for some years been using a journal to ask questions of God and receive what I believe are his answers - always in line with scripture.
But there are other ways, too.
In her book Listening to God, Joyce Huggett writes about an old man in her church in Nottingham, England who described his own experience to her. He and his wife would get up at 6 a.m., read the Bible together, pray and then spend time listening to God in silence. They would jot down the God-thoughts that popped into their minds - instructions, challenges and directions.
"They determined to obey to the best of their ability," she writes. "Because of this rekindling of spiritual awareness, life opened up for them in a new way."
Spiritual creativity flourished in their lives and words came for deep conversations with friends who did not know God.
For many of us, silence seems threatening. We feel we should be doing or saying something.
But, for Christ's followers, it can be golden if we have listening ears.
It's hard to hear God when we're talking or our minds are drowning in a flood of thoughts about everyday life.
As I have mentioned in other posts, I have long had an interest in listening prayer or contemplative prayer. It makes sense that the best way to know what God wants is to spend time listening to him.
This week, I had the pleasure of hearing Pastor Jim Cymbala of Brooklyn Tabernacle Church in Brooklyn, N.Y., speak about the importance of listening prayer in his own ministry. His church is a model of a praying church with thousands attending the weekly prayer gathering.
Listening prayer has become so important in Jim Cymbala's ministry that it guides his preaching and counselling.
He says that he no longer preaches with notes, preferring to immerse himself in the scriptures and to listen to what God wants him to say. He will open his mind to what the Holy Spirit is telling him as he preaches.
It is the same with his approach to counselling. He says the Holy Spirit indicates to him when he should be quiet and when he should speak.
I am growing in listening prayer. I am not at Jim Cymbala's level. But, as I have said before in this blog, I have for some years been using a journal to ask questions of God and receive what I believe are his answers - always in line with scripture.
But there are other ways, too.
In her book Listening to God, Joyce Huggett writes about an old man in her church in Nottingham, England who described his own experience to her. He and his wife would get up at 6 a.m., read the Bible together, pray and then spend time listening to God in silence. They would jot down the God-thoughts that popped into their minds - instructions, challenges and directions.
"They determined to obey to the best of their ability," she writes. "Because of this rekindling of spiritual awareness, life opened up for them in a new way."
Spiritual creativity flourished in their lives and words came for deep conversations with friends who did not know God.
For many of us, silence seems threatening. We feel we should be doing or saying something.
But, for Christ's followers, it can be golden if we have listening ears.
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