Happy hump day!
As many of you know, our Fall Prayer Week kicks off on Sunday. Some of you are probably anxious for me to stop talking about it – which is fair. I’ve kinda brought it up a lot recently.
And, to be honest, I’ve done that for good reason. So, can we have an honest conversation this morning?
In the Hebrew Bible (aka the Old Testament), the temple of God was special because it was the place where heaven and earth met. It was a place that was filled with God’s glory and exuded his presence. The temple was a big deal. It was a common space where the people of Israel could go and meet with God.
This is one of the reasons I believe a ‘prayer room’ is such an important piece of a local church. We need a common space where we come together and occupy with our prayers – as a church family. We need a place where we close the door and cry out to the Father – as a church family. We need a place where we intercede for our neighbors and community – as a church family. We need a space where we ask God to save our neighbors, friends, and family – as a church family.
Let’s face it – we make space for what is important. Our church has kitchens (two! but I would really only use the one…just saying), youth recreation areas, and classrooms. We have space for pianos, choirs, and preachers. We mount TV’s, projectors, and speakers. We consider these things important, and so we honor them with space and time.
But what of prayer? Are we making space in our lives for our community to place the highest priority on prayer? We will go to dinners, Sunday worship, and baby showers…we’ll go to concerts, fundraisers, and cook-outs…but will we pray?
Leonard Ravenhill once said, “No man is greater than his prayer life.” I’ve met a lot of men and women in my life from all over the world.
The reason I care so much about prayer week and our praying (your praying!) as a church is because I believe he is absolutely right.
I want you to be great people. I want to be a great man. I want this church to overflow with the greatness and love of God. And if the Bible and thousands of years of history teach us anything, it’s that this starts in a prayer room, where you kneel in the presence and knowledge of no one but God.
Praying for you today (and thanks for reading my novella),
Pastor Steve
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