Together in Prayer

Previously, I've summarized our first prayer service, which we held at the end of December last year.  I mentioned that we were beginning plans for what we call an "Equipping Class" on prayer.  Last Sunday, we held our first session of the 10-week class.

We had 20 people attend, which we were all thrilled with.  Our Senior Pastor has mentioned the class a couple of times (including last Sunday) from the pulpit, and has provided a ton of support for us.  We are studying Paul Miller's…

If anyone prayed for our first prayer service on Sunday, Thank You!  God met us and gave us a great time of community prayer.

About 15 people participated, including several leaders.  We provided some instructions at the beginning and then we went into our prayer time.  We had selected 6 topics beforehand, and had identified a facilitator for each topic.  We took each topic in turn, with the facilitator sharing for 3-5 minutes on a couple of things they were thankful for in their area…

Last summer, a couple of the Elders of our church felt a nudge from God that we needed to move in the direction of being more of a praying church.  A group of about a dozen people began to gather every other week (it was the off-season for our small groups) to pray for the church, for our community, and for the development of the prayer ministry.

A core group of three of us continued to meet after the summer to make plans for launching a prayer ministry.  In this blog, which I expect…

Holding to the truth

Today is a day of confusion regarding truth, and that confusion has invaded the church.  Confusion reigns where the church fails to hold firmly on to the Word of God.

The letter to the church at Pergamum starts this way:  "These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword." (Revelation 2:12)  This double-edged sword is the word of God, which comes out of Jesus' mouth…

Perhaps no area of our walk with God is more challenged by our culture today than the area of sexuality.  Having strayed from the truth of God's word, as a society we no longer even know how to define gender.  More and more, our culture reflects Paul's warning to the Romans:

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools…

A civil worker in Kentucky loses her job for refusal to issue a license for a gay marriage due to her religious convictions.  A baker on Colorado is sued for refusing to bake a cake for a gay wedding, again due to religious convictions.  Celebrities who are believers get criticized for positions taken by their pastors on controversial topics.  Long-standing mottos like "In God We Trust" get challenged.

All around us, the church is challenged and squeezed by a culture that…

According to Christianity Today, the United Methodist Church's General Session this weekend will be determining the church's stance on LGBT/gender issues.  At stake are questions like whether to ordain LGBT ministers, whether to perform gay marriages, etc. (1)

The stakes are high in all of this, and there are believers on many sides in this issue.  Words like "love" and "grace" get tossed around a lot, with definitions being assumed and never really spelled out (if you don't…

I watched a message from David Jeremiah today on the question of "Why Doesn't God Answer My Prayers?"  He covered all the typical answers - cherished sin, praying with wrong motives, praying outside God's will, lack of faith, etc.  Nothing he said was scripturally wrong, but I confess that I have difficulty with the hidden premise behind this approach to prayer.

The premise seems to be that prayer is a means to get what we want from God.  And if we remove all the obstacles,…