From Our Hearts

I know from personal experience that living a life of prayer is not easy. Our lives are filled with a multitude of activities that tend to crowd out time for prayer. How many times have you been guilty of telling someone that you would pray for them? Your heart genuinely yearned to be a part of bringing their need before the throne of God. And then what happened? I’m sure that, if you’re like me, more times than you would like to admit, you forgot about the promise to pray before you rounded the corner of the church building! Why? Because you didn’t write the request down.

Paul knew the importance of strategic prayer in his own life and the lives of others. And he knew what to pray for. His prayers focused on spiritual issues. He knew that if those he was praying for were spiritually mature, they could handle anything.

Just like you and me, Jesus’ disciples seemed to need help with praying. Wisely, they asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). Jesus then gave them—and us—a model or sample prayer to pray. This prayer is usually referred to as the Lord’s Prayer.

As believers, we view prayer as explained by God through the language in the Bible. We learn that prayer is the principle means by which man, created in God’s image, can communicate with Him. From the earliest times, prayer has been an integral part of the worship of God. Believers of all ages have expressed their hearts' desires through praise, thanksgiving, prayer, and intercession to and before God. It is so important for God’s people to learn to pray.

When you talk to yourself, it’s only a one-way conversation. You are just saying what you are thinking in your mind and your heart. But when you pray and talk to God, it’s a totally different story! So, what is prayer?

From the beginning of the biblical narrative in Genesis, God planned the redemption of fallen mankind through a promised Savior (Genesis 3:15). For centuries, devout Jews searched the Old Testament prophecies in the hopes of understanding when and where this Savior, their Messiah, would appear.

Have you ever heard a group of elementary schoolchildren reciting “the Christmas story” from Luke? There’s nothing like it! We experience, again, the story of the shepherds, tending their flocks at night, and being visited by an angel. During this Christmas season, may our hearts be filled with wonder at the reality of God's goodness to us, in sending His Son into this world.

Isaiah is considered among the greatest of the Old Testament prophets because of his many predictions of the Messiah. Christmas is the time when we celebrate the birth of this Messiah, so you’ve probably heard this one during the Christmas season: “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)

Consider God’s choice of Mary as the mother of His Son. Mary was young and probably not from a prominent or wealthy family. The Bible doesn’t give any details about her physical appearance or information about her father and mother. We are not told of any outstanding characteristics Mary had… except of her love for God and her deep trust in Him.

The holiday season can be a time for us to thank spouses for the many ways they meet our needs. But, do we show that appreciation more than one season a year? Do we take time to count the many blessings we enjoy because of their care for us, and show them blessings in return?

Holidays should be a time of joy accompanied by family and friends. There is really no need to stress over the details. It’s a time to be thankful and celebrate peace. We can eliminate most of the busyness of the holidays by simply planning ahead, and not taking on too many major projects.

As we head into the holiday season, I am reminded of the need to focus on spiritual blessings. In the midst of celebration and being surrounded by material blessings, let’s turn to the book of James. One reason I love the book of James is that along with advice to help us with our daily trials and challenges, we read in James 1:3-12 a list of benefits or blessings that come from going through trials. Let’s look closely at two of these verses.