Prayer Is Taught And Caught

Prayer Is Taught And Caught

Prayer Point 97 - December 12, 2022

“Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray…’” (Luke 11:1). Perhaps the wisest request the disciples ever made of Jesus was this one we just heard here in the first verse of Luke chapter 11. Simply put, prayer is something we must learn. It’s part caught, and part taught. If you’ve been thinking about developing in your prayer life, I’d like to invite you to look into the Central Illinois School of Prayer. We’re offering a January mini-mester after the holidays to work on strengthening your devotional prayer life. Head to gphop.org/school for more information. Now that’s something to pray about!

Prayer And Eternity

Prayer And Eternity

Prayer Point 96 - December 5, 2022

When we simply take an ordinary moment to speak to God, we enter into an extraordinary dialogue with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The triune God we worship has enjoyed followship and communication for a timeless past, and will continue to for a timeless future. As you know, our Internet-connected world is inundated with information. Although much of the content we have available at our fingertips can be informative, let’s be sure not to consume every other conversation at the expense of our own with God. As the Christmas season kicks into high gear, let’s be all the more sure to prioritize our time with Christ—and this incredible conversation we have access to. Now that’s something to pray about!

Advent 2022

Advent 2022

Prayer Point 95 - November 28, 2022

Advent is a special period of time in December that’s observed by many Christian traditions, especially those that follow the liturgical church calendar. Advent, a word that means “coming” or “arrival,” is a sacred time of year leading up to Christmas Day—a day we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Son of God. Just as we look forward to celebrating the first advent of Christ with great joy and gifts on the 25th, we also look forward with hope to a second advent—a time when He comes to rule and reign forever. A prayer we can all be praying this Advent is simply “Come, Lord Jesus, come!” Just as He came the first time as a precious Baby, He will be faithful to come again as a glorious King. Now that’s something to pray about!

Specific Gratitude

Specific Gratitude

Prayer Point 94 - November 21, 2022

This month, we’ve devoted Prayer Point to the theme of praying with gratitude. Let me encourage you to keep your foot on the gas pedal after November as well. Continue to work the muscle of saying prayers of thanksgiving all year long. Along these lines, one other point of encouragement is to be thankful for specific people and circumstances—even the difficult ones. Lately, Romans 8:28 has come alive to me in a fresh way. Through all of the ups and downs, mountaintops and valleys, it’s easy to forget that God really is working all things together for our good. Not just some things, or most things, but all things. Try thanking the Lord in specific ways, and His peace is sure to come. Now that’s something to pray about!

The Right Kind Of Thankful Prayer

The Right Kind Of Thankful Prayer

Prayer Point 93 - November 14, 2022

I find it interesting that when Jesus taught on prayer, He used the example of a Pharisee praying with the wrong kind of gratitude. “‘God, I thank You’ he began, but then continued, ‘that I am not like other men’” (Luke 18:11). The usage of this example seems to imply that there is wrong kind of grateful prayer that is focused on comparison with the mistakes of others rather than the mercies of God. As we seek to express our thankfulness toward God in a more focused way this month, let’s remember this nudge from the greatest Teacher to focus our attention on the goodness of God rather than the weaknesses of others. The right focus in prayer keeps us spiritually healthy. Now that’s something to pray about!