fbpx

Posts Tagged with Church Prayer Meeting

The Weakness of God

Posted on Leave a comment on The Weakness of God

“…and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (1 Corinthians 1:25b)

It is strange to use the term “weakness” when speaking about an all powerful God. It almost feels blasphemous. I’m not at all comfortable with saying that until I understand it in the powerful conclusion; “…the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Just this week an Idaho citizen and fellow pastor of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ past his 1,000th day in jail in Iran. His wife, Naghmeh, has just reported that Saeed’s dad was able to have a short visit with him today and that he is encouraged. He told his dad to let us know,

“that for 1000 days he has experienced utter darkness and has died, yet for 1001, he has been resurrected with Christ.”

Oh, follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, not all of us are called to labor in such hardship but all of us are called out, to live differently, daily dying to self, humble lives.

SilasJailToday, where it appears a Christian brother is in bondage to men, behind prison bars, beaten and mocked for his faith, there is a power in God that raises that brother each day.

May you too, experience the weakness of God.

What has you in bondage today? Are your trying to defeat or endure it in your own strength? Why not stop depending on your strength and lean on a liberating power of the “weakness” of God. Your most powerful display and clever genius thought cannot even begin to compete with God at his weakest moment on the cross. Surrender today, be resurrected again.

_______

In light of this; I respect that not all are able, but the church I pastor, Eastside Baptist Church, will gather in prayer again tonight, 6:30pm. We will pray, labor, take the battle ground as prepared men and women to lean into that weakness of God. What will keep you off the battle ground tonight?

The Plague of the Christian Celebrity Culture

Posted on Leave a comment on The Plague of the Christian Celebrity Culture

There may be a plague in the land. Consider this…

  • If I were to secure a popular Christian musician to be present at a Wednesday night at Eastside Baptist Church (the going price to do so is a minimum of $10,000.00) I suspect we would have to rent a facility to house the number of people who would come.
  • If I were to secure a popular Christian athlete to be present at a Wednesday night prayer meeting at Eastside Baptist Church, I suspect we would have to turn people away.
  • If I were to secure a popular Christian actor to be present at a Wednesday night gathering, I suspect we would gather more than just Christians.
  • If I were to secure a popular preacher we could fill the Lord’s house and would talk about that gathering for months to come.

thus showing us at least two problems…

  • The current atmosphere among the “Christian” community is plagued with an attraction for the popular, the rich, the talented, the attractive, the comfortable and is completely naive of the opportunity that is before them to be in the manifest presence of Holy God.
  • What pastor’s (myself included) are calling “worship services”, “prayer meetings”, “bible study” etc, may not be genuinely Christian in nature and more a product of his imagination.

It is my observation that both may be part of the problem. Christian, you have before you an opportunity to gather with the Lord’s people for perhaps the most uniquely compelling reason you could imagine. Can you imagine a worship service where the presence of the Lord God Almighty is so obviously present? Can you imagine a prayer meeting where those present experienced a pouring out of the Holy Spirit that all present were radically changed?

  • Put that moment up against the last episode of American Idol or Dancing with the Stars.
  • Put that gathering up against the opening night of the long anticipated movie blockbuster.
  • Put that time of prayer up against a date night with your spouse.

Our casual approach to worship, prayer, bible study exposes a serious issue. And pastor (I’m preaching to me again) your casual approach to preparing shows you have little knowledge as to who you are representing.

There is no celebrity guest appearance showing up at 204 Eastland Drive North in Twin Falls, Idaho, tonight. There is no celebrity interesting enough to take the stage as the opener. We will humbly ask for the Lord’s manifest presence to be present. May He visit us tonight.

Who Cares What the Spirit Says to the Church?

Posted on Leave a comment on Who Cares What the Spirit Says to the Church?

Is this the most common phrase spoken at the mid-week prayer gathering of the Lord Jesus Christ tonight?

“Who cares what the Spirit says to the church, we have things to do tonight.”

It may not be said everywhere across the land. Likely nobody would say it quite like this… attendees know better, and non-attendees don’t even know what’s happening; but is it what’s being communicated by most? Is it really what’s being said while activity of the night treats prayer as an interruption?

The church is currently teaching a generation that prayer is something people used to do, but we are better now and don’t need to do that any more. Unless repentance of this happens soon, we will leave church life to a generation of people who know nothing of prayer.

This is how Jesus said it (Revelation 3:17-18) to the church at Laodicea…

“Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.”

Is it that only wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked people trust God? It is an amazing invitation to “buy” from God “gold refined by fire” so that we may become “rich”, but may I never forget that the invitation to do so was from my wretched, miserable, poor, blind, naked [completely bankrupt] condition and that which I became “rich” in was due to Christ not me.

We have increased our appetite for what we can do and have little desire among us any longer for what only God can do.

May the church once again hear what the Spirit says to the churches. May we see once again the Holiness of God in Christ. May we once again consider our richness is not in our strength, but Christs’.

Follow

Get every new post on this blog delivered to your Inbox.

Join other followers: