Tag: church

Book of 70 Prayers (A Book Review)

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Sometimes books drop into your life at precisely the right time. And so it is with Book of 70 Prayers. Book of 70 Prayers is a Deja Vu experience of God’s favor gracing my life at just the right time. The author sent me a copy of his work, and the book is such a blessing.

The content is simple, easy to read, and practical. What I particularly loved about this book is that if you have a basic understanding of the Bible, then you’ll immediately notice that the prayers are scriptural.

There is nothing more powerful than praying the scriptures, and this is one of those books that brings the Word of God into your prayer life seamlessly. Another aspect of this book that I admired was the author’s wisdom in isolating the prayers of the Apostle Paul. When viewed in such a context, the prayers serve as a stark reminder of what we should be praying for the church today.

There are two primary things that this book can do for you:

1. This book will change your heart. Prayer has a way of cleansing the heart, soul, and spirit. I’m reminded of a promise found in Exodus 36:26 which reads: A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. This is something that we should all long for – a new heart.

2. This book will inspire you to become more reflective. I’m drawn to books that foster quiet introspection. I found myself reflecting as I read through Royle’s work.

Charles Spurgeon wrote, “Prayer does not fit us for the greater works; prayer is the greater work.” If you are interested in deepening your prayer life, you can purchase the Book of 70 Prayers here.

To find out more about the author (Jason Royle) check out his website here.

How Often Do You Pray for Your Country?

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Every Shabbat, my family and I follow a ritual. There are certain prayers that we pray, and included in our prayer time is a small time of prayer for our country. This prayer is usually very short and simple: “Have mercy on our country!”

As the elections proceed, we pray this prayer with more intensity than ever. I feel like an echo when I say that the US is in trouble, but it needs to be said. We are in trouble, and if the Church doesn’t pray, the foundations will continue to crumble.

However, I find comfort in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah when I think about the state of our country. While many Christians (and theologians) see impending judgment when comparing the Genesis account to America’s cultural climate, I see the mercy that God extended before the judgment.

God said that if there were just ten righteous people in Sodom, God would extend his mercy.

Do we have ten righteous people in California? Do we have ten righteous people in New York? What about Texas, Washington, North Carolina and all the other states that the enemy wants to destroy?

Let’s never forget to pray for our country. Let’s never forget that the prayer closet is more powerful than the voting booth.

Please pray for America.

Should Catholics and Protestants be Friends?

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I know that a lot of people don’t like the idea of Catholics and Protestants hanging out with each other. Apparently, there’s supposed to be a huge fight between us. But the rift doesn’t end there. Even between different denominations there is a battle raging. Baptists don’t like Methodist; Methodist don’t like Anglicans and so on, and so on.

But what does the Bible say about all this?

Ephesians 4:1-6 says:

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

When it all comes down to it: here is the question we must ask each other: Do you believe that Yeshua is the Christ? Do you serve God? Is the Holy Spirit living in you?

It’s easy to get caught up in different interpretations, but we don’t have time for dissension. There isn’t time for strife. There’s an African proverb that states: “Two men in a burning hut don’t have time to argue.” Church: THE HUT IS ON FIRE! And when I refer to the hut, I’m speaking metaphorically of the world. The world is dying. People are dying around us.

Christians don’t have time to argue about whether a passage means this or that. When we allow disunity in the body through scriptural confusion, we are allowing the enemy in – God is not the author of confusion or chaos.

I understand that the word ‘ecumenical’ raises red flags because sometimes this means that non-Christian doctrines are in a “Christian” church. I understand. I care about sound doctrine – and I think that every believer should often pray, “God if there is any doctrine in my life that is NOT sound, expose and remove it.” If you ask, God will remove false teaching from your life.

With that said, let’s not spend precious time fighting brothers and sisters in the faith. Let’s walk in love and focus more effort on reaching the lost.

Tithing Your Time

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Giving isn’t a command – it’s encouraged. And it’s encouraged with good reason because when we give, it transforms us. We evolve into better people when we are generous and unselfish. The doctrine of tithing often focuses on money, but another area that we often overlook is time. While being generous with our money transforms us; giving our time is also transformative.

Many years ago after getting my first “real” job in a corporate environment, God showed me that He wanted me to tithe. I soon realized that money wasn’t the only area of my life that I needed to surrender to God. Time was a part of my life that I had kept entirely to myself. I went to church on Sundays, but God wanted more for me. And so, I began the habit of tithing my time. There are so many different ways to tithe your time, but below are just a few.

Serve in your church – if there are areas of ministry where your church needs help, jump in. Many churches need help with the children’s ministry, or perhaps the church is looking for volunteers who are willing to pray for others or greet visitors at the door. Church is an excellent place to tithe your time.

Volunteer – Homeless shelters, foster homes, crisis centers, hospitals, libraries, and many other places need volunteers. We are all put on earth to help each other. Helping others fulfills our purpose, and is a beautiful way to tithe our time.

Give God the first of your day – In the Old Testament, the Israelites were commanded to give a tenth. Before they paid workers, bought property, or did anything else, they tithed. You can tithe the first of your day by dedicating your mornings to God. When you wake up in the morning before you do anything else, pray.

Lighten Your Emotional Load: Go to Church

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People who carry unforgiveness, aren’t just carrying it in their mind, but also in their bodies. Scientific studies have confirmed that unforgiveness literally weighs you down. But I would hypothesize that it’s not just unforgiveness that ways a person down. I think that worry, anxiety, frustration, anger and other negative emotions can also weigh us down. The answer is to give those worries to God.

Leave your troubles at the altar is an old Southern spiritual saying. In Southern Baptist churches, there is this idea that you got to church and leave everything at the altar, in God’s hands. And you leave lighter.

I once attended a church with a congregation of about 15. It was a small church, and I liked it that way. I didn’t just like the size, but I also enjoyed the way that I felt after the service. I often left church feeling lighter – physically lighter.

Yeshua said His yoke is easy, and His burden is light. When we follow Him, we find peace and lightness – the weight of the world is lifted off our shoulders. When we trust in him, we don’t have to worry about everything around us and carry the burden of worry. Instead, He takes it upon Himself for us.

Cast all your cares on Him. This is a refrain echoed throughout Scripture. God cares about every little detail of our lives. He doesn’t want us to worry about anything. Instead, He wants us to pray about everything.

There is a freedom in knowing He cares for us. It makes us feel lighter.