What if we really prayed about just about everything? What if we so relied on God’s help that we had something to say to him in any situation? You might only do this if you think God is talking. Who listens to someone you don’t think is speaking?
- Let’s say you don’t know what to pray about – ask him what to pray about.
- Let’s say you didn’t get that job you wanted and you don’t know what to do next – ask him to make clear what is next.
- Or maybe you have something you know you need to do – ask God for the help.
In every situation there is something we can pray that demonstrates (or is driven by) our dependence on God (Matt 7:7-8, 1 Thess 5:16-18). If you don’t know, ask!
- If you can’t do something (the requirements are larger than your ability), ask for help and empowerment. God can align things outside of your control, knowledge and understanding.
- If you have a decision to make, ask God give you what you need to make a good decision.
- If you have to do a hard thing, ask God to help you know when to do it and empower you to do it.
There is always something to pray about and it matters. God is always working, we can always be praying!
After you pray, you wait and listen.
We meet God on the dancefloor of prayer.
You wait on God’s move and then move with his move. If you don’t have an answer and it is unclear, don’t move ahead. Unless, of course, you are praying about something moral that the right thing to do has already been made clear.
We end up in the dance – praying and asking, waiting and listening, moving when He moves…waiting when He waits. God is the lead and we follow. This is called – discipleship!
It is a rhythm – pray, wait, listen and move…move with God’s move. God is the lead.
Prayer becomes the operating system of our lives. It is the code beneath it all that is communicating to everything else. The Holy Spirit is the power supply!
This is true as individuals.
This is an important rhythm for church leaders
Church leadership can operate like this. Imagine a church leadership meeting that was carried by prayer…not carried by logic…not carried by the complainers…carried by prayer (really carried by God, accessed by prayer). The leaders pray for a clear direction and don’t make a decision until they are convinced God made it clear.
That process and conclusion is communicated with the congregation and if people complain, you don’t just quit because someone didn’t like what God laid on the leadership. The quitting process is the same as the starting process – take it back to God in prayer and ask Him if He wants you to stop what you thought He wanted you to start. People will follow and trust leaders like that, leaders in tune with the movement of God and who faithfully follow.
The level of conviction of these kinds of decisions is 1000% stronger than our typical leadership decisions made by intuition and logic.
So let’s pray…let’s dance…our toes might get stepped on a bit (when we get out of step) but it is going to be amazing!
One Response
We KNOW what to do. We KNOW the why. We HAVE all the tools we need:
2Pe 1:3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
God has given us ALL we need – and if, ONLY if, these qualities are increasing, will we be effective and fruitful.
We have the One guideline for what we do: Does it glorify God or not? Our decisions – do they glorify God?
It is predicated on the escape from the worldly corruptions, the sinful desires. And as I read through the Old Testament, looking at a nation whose desires were sinful (want to be just like the neighbors: Gods we can see and tough, leaders we can see and touch…) I see the same desires leading to our modern problems:
The neighbors have fancy buildings? We want them, too!
The neighbors have para-church organizations? We want them, too!
The neighbors have trained specialists? We want them, too!
The neighbors have staged performances? We want them, too!
The neighbors have accepted same-sex marriages? We want that, too!
The neighbors have female elders/ministers? We want them, too!
All that “being like the neighbors” has brought us to where we are today. We have lost sight of the very reason the Body exists: Eph 3:7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.
You concluded with, “The leaders pray for a clear direction and don’t make a decision until they are convinced God made it clear.”
I am struggling with this, Matt. Experience: Looking for new minister.
Two are invited, both decline.
MY interpretation: God made it clear we do not need a new minister.
Their interpretation: God wants us to look more.
Who is right?
Are they right because they are convinced God made it clear to them? Am I right, because I am convinced God made it clear to me?
This reminds me of the LDS missionary invitation: Pray, and ask God to let you know
The mission of the Body is clearly stated. The “how to” is up to us. The example is, “Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”