Author: Brian

Follower of Jesus, Husband, Dad, Grandpa, and Pastor

Communion With God

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

We have been considering the elements of prayer – recognizing God’s presence, confession of sins, recognizing God’s forgiveness, praise, and petition.  But prayer is more than these elements.  Prayer is communion with God.  It is possible to include all the elements of prayer and miss the main point – a relationship with God.

My children could recognize my presence in the house, apologize when they are naughty, recognize that I forgive them, thank me when I do something for them, and ask me for things without much more than an acquaintence level relationship.  In the same way we can include all the elements of prayer and miss a deep relationship with God.

Prayer in the Psalms is more than a mere conversation; it is communion with God.  They want God.  Consider the following verses:

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
– Psalm 63:1

As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
– Psalm 42:1-2

One thing have I asked of the Lord,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
and to inquire in his temple.
– Psalm 27:4

This is more than mere conversation.  This is a desire to know God and spend time with him.  This is about relationship.  Prayer is communion with God. 

When you pray, are you just talking?  Or are you communing with your God?

Petition

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

This week we have been learning to pray from the Psalms.  We considered recognizing God’s presence as we begin to pray from Psalm 139.  We looked at confession of sins from Psalm 51.  We noted the importance of recognizing God’s forgiveness from Psalm 32.  And yesterday we discussed praising God from Psalms 29 and 117. 

Today we want to consider petition.  For most of us, petition probably makes up a large part of our prayers.    And this is okay, as long as we don’t neglect the other elements of prayer.  Indeed, much of the Psalms is also given to petition.  As we think about petition from the Psalms, I want to consider four principles.

1. Recognize Your Helplessness

David clearly recognizes his helplessness as he cries out to God in Psalm 61:1-2:

Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer;
from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

His heart is faint.  He needs someone higher than himself.  He needs help, and out of that recognition, he cries out to God.  As we recognize our helplessness, we too will pray.  What we need to grasp is that we need God’s help for everything.  Too often we think we can do it ourselves.  But we need God for our next breath.  And in the spiritual realm: apart from God we can do nothing (John 15).  We always need God’s help.  And the more we recognize this, the more we will pray.

2. Cry Out To God

In the verses above, that is exactly what David is doing.  He is crying out to God.  Psalm 62:8 tells you to “pour out your heart before him.”  Whatever is on our hearts is what we should pray about.  Nothing is too big or too small. 

3. Trust His Will

Psalm 62:8 starts by telling us to “Trust in him at all times, O people.”  Not only are we to pour out our hearts to God, but we are to trust in him – and that includes trusting his will, his plan in our current situation.  We need to trust his answer to our prayers.

We need to pour out our hearts and trust his will.  I think we tend to stray one way or the other.  We might cry out to God in a way that becomes demanding.  Or we may stoically resign ourselves to his will without ever expressing our hearts.  Jesus as always is our perfect example here:

And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him.  And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you.  Remove this cup from me.  Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Notice that Jesus pours out his heart.  He wants the hour to pass.  He wants the cup removed.  He wants to be spared the agony of the cross and our sins.  He cries out to God.  What is particularly interesting is that he knows the answer to his cries is no.  He came to die.  He has been telling his disciples for days that he is going to Jerusalem to die.  He knows the answer, but he cries out anyway.  He isn’t fake with his Father; he expresses his true feelings – and so should we.

But Jesus also trusts the Father’s will.  He closes his prayer with submission to the Father’s will.  He will trust the Father even in the horror of the cross. 

Jesus is our perfect example.  Tell God how you feel, but then trust his will.

4. Trust His Power

Psalm 62:8 again:

Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.

We need to not only trust his will, but also his power.  Helpless, we cry out to the one who can help us.  He is our refuge.  He is bigger than any trial that can come against us.  Like David in Psalm 61, we cry out to the rock that is higher than we are.   I think of the example of Asa in II Chronicles 14:9-12.  A huge army is coming against Judah.  Humanly speaking, Asa’s puny army is about to be utterly defeated.  Helpless, Asa cries out to a God more powerful than any army.  And God defeats the larger army. 

Do you pray believing in God’s greater power?  Do you pray expectantly?  Regardless of the situation?  God is more powerful than anything that can come against us.  And he still answers prayers.  Trust his power.

Conclusion

Petition is an important part of our prayer.  Because we are helpless on our own, we must cry out to God for help.  We should share our hearts with him, even as we trust his answer.  And we should pray expectantly, remember that his power is greater than anything that can come against us.  So let us bring our petitions before him!

Praise

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

Psalm 29:1-2 calls us to celebrate God’s greatness:

Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.

To this psalm we could add many others that call us to praise God for who he is – a great and glorious God. 

Is this part of your prayer life?  Do you praise God for his greatness? 

The Psalms can help us learn to praise God for his greatness.  Many of the Psalms give us words to use to convey our praises.  Many hymns and choruses also give us words to use in praising God for who he is.  Indeed, when we sing praises to God we are merely setting our prayers to music. 

As we praise God for his greatness, we ought also to praise God for his many blessings.  Psalm 117 call us to:

Praise the Lord, all nations!  Extol him, all peoples!
For great is his steadfast love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!

By his love and faithfulness, God showers us with countless blessings, and we should praise him for them.

Is this part of your prayer life?  Do you praise God for his blessings?  When he answers a prayer or sends some good thing into your life, are you quick to praise him?

We have a great God who blesses us immensely.  As such, praise should be a big part of our prayers.

Recognize God’s Forgiveness

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

In Psalm 32:1-2a, David recognizes his forgiveness:

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity.

These same words are quoted by Paul in Romans 4 in the context of our great salvation through Jesus Christ.  Because Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead, we can be forgiven of our sins through faith in Jesus Christ.  Do you recognize God’s forgiveness as you approach God in prayer?

Psalm 24:3-4 tells us who can approach God:

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
who does not lift up his soul to what is false
and does not swear deceitfully.

And yet none of us on our own can claim clean hands or a pure heart.  Only in Christ are we clean and pure, and so only in Christ can we approach God.  So again, do you recognize God’s forgiveness when you approach God in prayer?  It is only in Christ that you can come.  It is only in the context of salvation can we truly pray. 

As you come before his throne, consider Christ who makes it possible for you to approach God.  Recognize God’s forgiveness in Jesus Christ.

Confession

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

Psalm 51 is a great psalm of confession:

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
(Portions from verses 1-12)

This psalm teaches us to confess our sins to God.  We are to cry out to God about our sins, to seek mercy and forgiveness.  Is confession a regular part of your prayer life? 

Our church encourages people to examine their lives and confess their sins before we celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  But this is clearly not enough.  Who remembers most of the sins they committed several days ago?  And so we ought to daily examine our lives and confess our sins to God.  The more attuned we become to our daily sins, the more grateful we will be for God’s forgiveness and salvation through Jesus Christ.  Along with a daily examination, we should strive to recognize sin in the moment of its occurrence, and immediately confess it to God and repent of it, as well as apologizing to whomever we committed the sin.  Deal with it immediately.  This will help to deter future occurences. 

We need to confess our sins to the Lord, crying out for his mercy.  Is confession a regular part of your prayer life?  This is an area where I need to grow.  How about you?

Recognizing God’s Presence

On By BrianIn Habit of Prayer

Psalm 139 is a great prayer that reminds us that God is intimately involved in our lives.  Part of that involvement is his constant presence.  As David prays, he recognizes God’s presence with him:

Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me. (v7-10)

Do we recognize God’s presence with us when we pray?  Do we consider that he is right there with us?

The address to our prayers should remind us of who we are talking to and that he is right there listening to us.  When we start our prayers with “Dear Lord” or “Our Father” or something similar, these addresses ought to draw all of our attention to our very present God.  And yet I fear we too often zip right through it; we forget who we are talking to.  We just start talking without thinking about what we are doing.  At least I know I do. 

How different our prayers might be if at the beginning of each prayer we simply stopped to consider who we are talking to, if we recognized that we are talking to a great God who is right there listening to us.  We are not talking to the air.  We are not talking to ourselves.  We are not talking to a distant god who may or may not hear us.  We are talking to a very present God who hears every word.  As we recognize his presence, we can really talk to God as we should.

Prayer Quotes To Ponder

On By BrianIn Prayer Quotes

If we think we can do life on our own,
we will not take prayer seriously.
– Paul Miller

 Prayer is bringing your helplessness to Jesus.
– Paul Miller

 Learned desperation is at the heart of a praying life.
– Paul Miller

 It is atheism to pray and not to wait in hope.
– Richard Sibbes

 True prayer measures no need too great or too small. 
It neither assumes human probability nor flinches
 in the face of human impossibility.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

 Jesus’ example teaches us that prayer is about relationship.  When he prays, he is not performing a duty; he is getting close to his Father.  Any relationship, if it is going to grow, needs private space, time together without an agenda, where you can get to know each other….  Efficiency, multitasking, and busyness all kill intimacy.
– Paul Miller

 A sign of true love and friendship is when two people treasure time to be alone to talk together.  So it is with the Lord and true believers.  They love to hear each other’s voice.  This involves a double grace – not only that a sinner loves to hear Christ’s voice, but also that Christ loves to hear a sinner’s voice.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

 When a man draws near to God in prayer, he forgets prayer…prayer goes for nothing, but Christ is all.
-I.Ambrose

 True prayer is fellowshipping with God. 
It is a foretaste of heaven’s eternal conversation.
– James W. Beeke and Joel R. Beeke

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Mark Altrogge gives us several reasons why we must rejoice always.

Thinking about sin and morality, Stephen Altrogge warns us of the danger of turning a good thing into a moral and necessary thing.  And Kevin DeYoung reminds us that every sin is not the same in God’s eyes.  And Joe Thorn considers what it means to die to sin.

In the midst of rising prices and a struggling economy, here are ten principles from Proverbs on money and possessions.

And as you prepare for church tomorrow, be careful to worship God, not our feelings.

Have a great Lord’s Day with your local church praising God, studying his Word, seeking him in prayer, and encouraging one another.

Next week we will begin a four week focus on prayer.

My Shepherd

On By BrianIn Uncategorized

Psalm 23 is one of the best known, most beloved passages in the Scriptures – perhaps because it gives us great assurance in troubled times.  As I look around this world, I see a people living in troubled times.  I see the concerns, cares, struggles, and pain that so many are facing, so many are carrying.  I see financial concerns, health struggles, loved ones who are ill or dying or who have passed away, family struggles, struggles with sin, and the list could go on.  I see a hurting people in need of some assurance.  When we look at Psalm 23 we find that assurance as we remember that we have a great Shepherd.

The Lord is my Shepherd (v1a).  What a wonderful thing that God – the Creator of the universe, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords – would care about little people like us, would choose to be our Shepherd.  And yet David makes it more personal than that.  He is not just our Shepherd, but he is my Shepherd.  I have personal relationship with God.  He cares about me.  He is my Shepherd.

Can you say that?  Can you say that he is your Shepherd?  Can you say that you are his sheep?  Jesus uses the same imagery in John 10:27-28.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Does God know you as his sheep?  Has he given you eternal life?  Eternal life in the Gospel of John is a relationship with God today that extends into eternity (John 17:3).  Have you received this eternal life, this relationship with God?  Jesus also says in John 10:

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. (v11)

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. (v14-15)

For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. (v17)

Jesus knows his sheep. He died for them and rose from dead.  And to be his sheep, we must simply believe in him.  Jesus said in verse 26:

But you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. 

If we do not believe, we are not his sheep.  But the opposite is also true.  If we believe in Jesus, we are his sheep.  If we believe that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead to give us eternal life, he will be our Shepherd. Have you received him as your Shepherd?  Have you become his sheep?  Without a shepherd you are a lost sheep, wandering in wilderness, chased by wolves, with no support, no help, and no hope.  But if you have Lord as your Shepherd – Psalm 23 gives you glorious truths that you can hold onto in troubled times:

He Provides For You

He makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters (v2).  Sheep need green pastures in which to graze.  They need still waters to drink.  They need to lie down to rest.  And God provides food and drink and rest for you.  He provides for your needs.  He will take care of you in this uncertain economy.  Gas prices are rising, grocery bills are increasing, and health insurance and doctor bills are climbing.  Many people are without a job or losing their home.  In the midst of all of this, you can fret and fear, worry and whine.  Or you can look to your Shepherd –  he will provide for you. 

Spurgeon understands this verse as the Shepherd providing  spiritually for you.  He gives you the green pastures of his Word on which to feed.  God gives you living water, which is the Spirit at work in you (John 7:37-39).  Whether physical or spiritual, God provides for you.

He Restores You

He restores my soul (v3a).  Are you in need of restoration today?  The world offers many restoratives, but in the end they will leave you empty.  Only your great Shepherd can restore your soul, can restore you deep down where it hurts, where it aches, where you need it.  Are you cast down?  He will pick you up.  Are you weak?  He will give you strength.  Are you hurting and wounded?  He will bind up your hurts and heal your wounds.  Are you sinful?  He will pardon you and sanctify you.  Are you tired and weary?  He will revive you.  Are you wandering?  He will leave the 99 and come for you and bring you back (Luke 15).  Do you need restoration in your life?  Look to your Shepherd – he restores your soul.

He Leads You In Righteousness

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (v3b).  Through the Word and the Spirit, he leads you in righteousness.  He helps you to grow, to change, to be the person he created and saved you to be.  His grace teaches you to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age (Titus 2:12).  He leads you, but are you listening to his leading?  Are you in his Word?  Are you following?  Are you obeying?  Or have you been straying from the right paths, wandering away from your Shepherd?  He leads you, but you must follow.

He provides for you, restores you, and leads you in righteousness, and so you can say with David: The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. This is the first of three statements about himself.  He shall not want.  He shall have no lack.  In God, he has everything he needs.  And why not, for God is the source of all good things (James 1:17).

And so you can be content in Him.  Many things of this world may be denied you, but in him you have what you need.  He will provide.  He will restore.  He will lead.  And so you can say with David in Psalm 16:5-6,

The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

You have what you need in him; you need not look elsewhere.  Other gods, idols of this world, tell you that they can provide, restore, and lead, but they can’t compare to your Shepherd.  They can’t compare to your God.  Your God is a big God.  Your God is a strong God.  Your God is a powerful God.  Your God loves you.  He is your Shepherd.  And you can be content in him.

He Is With You

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me (v4).  Back in verse three, the words could be translated – he leads me in right paths.  Our translations tend to suggest the moral sense (paths of righteousness), but it could also be taken as God guiding your life in his perfect right way, and sometimes that way leads though the valley of shadow of death. 

You walk through this valley when a loved one dies.  And in midst of your loss, your Shepherd promises that he is with you.  You will walk one day through this valley as you face your own death, but you won’t face it alone because your Shepherd is with you.  Spurgeon notes that it is the shadow of death.  If you know Christ, death has lost its sting – it is now merely a shadow of what it once was.  Spurgeon further notes that shadow implies light.  It is the shadow of death because on other side of death is great light – the Light of the world with whom you will dwell forever.

The sense here can also be broader than shadow of death.  It could be translated as the valley of deep darkness.  Certainly this would include times of loss and your own death.  But your valley today might be something very different.  It might be your health, an illness, pain.  Your valley might be weariness or depression or loneliness.  Your valley might be a family issue or a financial concern.  Some other trial may be taking you through the valley of deep darkness. 

Whatever the valley, your shepherd reminds you that he is with you.  He will not leave you.  If you stumble, he will carry you.  He will also comfort you.  He will calm you.  He will give you a peace that passes understanding in midst of valley. 

Finally, Spurgeon notes that you walk not in the valley, but through the valley.  The valley won’t last; one day it will be past.  Until that day, remember that your shepherd is with you and will comfort you.

He is with you in the valley.  That brings us to David’s second statement about himself: I will fear no evil (v4).  If God is on your side who can be against you?  And so you can trust in Him.   As David declares in Psalm 56:3-4,

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can flesh do to me?

And again David says in Psalm 16:8,

I have set the Lord always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

In the midst of the valley of deep darkness whatever it is for you, you need not fear.  You need not be shaken.  He is with you, and you can trust him.  

He Blesses You

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies(v5a).  You may be surrounded by enemies, trials, or struggles, but he still provides a meal for you.  In the midst of the struggle, he still provides. He still showers blessings upon you.  Have you not found that to be true in your life?  No matter how deep the valley, there are little rays of light.

You anoint my head with oil (v5b).  Oil was often used to bind up wounds, so this may speak of the blessing of healing.  How many times have you been sick or injured, and God has healed you?  Spurgeon suggests it refers to the anointing of the Holy Spirit – and certainly the Spirit’s work in your life is a great blessing.

My cup overflows (v5c).  Your cup overflows.  It runs over.  In other words, God gives you blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing upon blessing…. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life(v6a).  His goodness follows you; that is, it pursues you – it is right there with you.  God showers so many good things upon you.  And then there is his mercy.  You fail again and again, and he shows mercy again and again.  The word mercy could also be translated as unfailing covenant love.  His love won’t let you go.  His love continues.  It is unfailing.  He will keep blessing you until that day when you will dwell in his house forever.

That brings us to David’s third statement about himself: I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever (v6b).  You will dwell in his house.  He blesses you in this life, and he will continue in life to come.  And so you can hope in Him.  Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, you have the hope that when Jesus your Shepherd returns, you will be raised with him to dwell with him forever.  Revelation 7:15-17 says:

Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.
They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

This is your hope – that you will dwell with him forever.

Conclusion

Do you know the shepherd?  Are you his sheep?  If not he invites you to turn from your sin and believe in him.  Through Christ’s death and resurrection, your sins will be forgiven, and you will know God as your Shepherd now and forevermore. 

And if you know God as your great Shepherd, remember:

He provides for you, restores you, and leads you in righteous, so you can say with David: I shall not want; I will be content in Him.

He is with you in the deepest valley, so you can say with David, I will fear no evil; I will trust in Him.

He blesses you now and forevermore, so you can say with David, I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever; I will set my hope in Him.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ help you to keep your gaze on your great Shepherd.

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

The last few weeks have been busy, and I haven’t had much chance to blog.  Hopefully next week will be better.  In the meantime, here are some good posts to ponder for the weekend on two important Christian virtues.

Humility

Joshua Harris gives us a good quote from J. I. Packer suggesting that humility is essentially a true sense of reality.  Russell Moore talks about how the devil encourages us to rethink reality by exalting ourselves.  And Kevin DeYoung reminds us that if we think we are humble, we probably are not.

Contentment

Stephen Altrogge has a new book out on contentment.  I haven’t read the book yet, but the excerpts I’ve read are helpful.  He invites us to consider the lies that keep us from contentment.  Pondering the cross and our adoption will also teach us contentment.  Meanwhile John Temple has a book on resisting consumersim, and Tim Challies shares from it several practical suggestions to fight against the constant urge for more.

Have a great Lord’s Day celebrating our risen Savior with your local church!