April 22, 2015
Unplugged
Mary Southerland
Today’s Truth
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me(John 10:27).
Friend to Friend
Prayer really is so simple. We try to complicate it, and if I do say so myself, we manage to do a fairly good job of it.
Everyone prays when in crisis.
When the house is on fire, the kids are driving you nuts, the job is in jeopardy, the health challenge is serious, the finances are failing – it is amazing how even the ungodly will resort to prayer. It is built into our very being to cry out to God when we are desperate.
But is that all prayer is? Is talking with God only for desperate people in desperate moments?
I really do want to know God’s will for my life. I desperately need His wisdom to get through every day. I just tend to look for it in the wrong places.
Instead of first looking in His Word, I scour the pages of self-help books. Now there is nothing wrong with those books – as long as they take second place to the Word of God.
Instead of instantly dropping to my knees to pray, I call a godly friend for a quick-fix solution. Now there is nothing wrong with looking for wisdom from godly friends – as long as we understand that they should be confirmation of what God has already told us.
Our questions about the best and highest plan for life should be directed to the One who created that life – the One who knows us best and loves us most – God.
Here is the good news. If we ask Him, He will tell us. And the way we ask is through prayer.
Prayer is simply communication with God, a heart-to-heart conversation with Him. Prayer is our source of power and strength. And we need to stay plugged into that source.
In one of her books, Bible teacher Evelyn Christenson tells a story that drives home the importance of prayer in our lives. She needed to drop something off at her church office and decided to take a shortcut through the auditorium. When she opened the auditorium doors, she ran into the janitor, a man who had worked there for years. Unfortunately, he was losing his memory due to an illness, but the staff chose to keep him employed until retirement.
As she chatted with him, she couldn’t help but notice that he was drenched in sweat and had obviously been working very hard. When she asked what he’d been doing, the man smiled and proudly explained, “Why, I just vacuumed the whole auditorium!” Evelyn glanced around the huge auditorium and then looked down to see the vacuum cleaner cord lying on the floor. It had never been plugged in.
How sad! Maybe. But what is even sadder is the fact that many of us try to live the Christian life – unplugged – separated from our greatest source of power – prayer.
Prayer ushers us into God’s presence. And in His presence is everything we need, wrapped in His perfect will.
As we walk in daily obedience, God will direct our prayers and shape our desires so that His plan becomes clear. Oh, we won’t see it all. But we will see enough for the next step. And that is all we need.
1 John 5:14 “This is the assurance we have in approaching God. That if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”
We cannot hear His voice or experience His power without spending time with Him. It is that simple. And the thing that really rocks my world is that He stands - waiting and wanting to spend time with me.
With. Me.
My God wants to spend time with me.
He longs to hear my voice.
He loves me, and He really does long for me to come to Him in prayer.
And the same is true for you.
Come to Him today.
Just come … and pray.
Let’s Pray
Father, I come to You right now … pouring out my heart and soul. Every dream, every fear, every longing, every hope … I lay it all at Your feet. I want to know Your plan for my life, and I want to live out that plan. Please guide my steps. Teach me how to follow You and honor You all the days of my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Read and memorize Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Grab your journal. Write this verse in your own words. What does it mean to you? How would you rate your prayer life – plugged in or unplugged? What one change can you make this week to make your prayer life more powerful?
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