PrayerLife

The Apostle Paul earnestly prayed for believers. He understood that they were just as much in need of God's grace to grow in their spiritual life as they were when they first placed their faith in Him. One of the things he prayed was that God would enlighten the eyes of their hearts so that they could grasp all that God had done for them. He prayed, "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Fath...

The Apostle Paul valued "mutual ministry" in the Body of Christ. He wrote to the Church in Rome, "For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you 10 always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God's will I may now at last succeed in coming to you.11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you...

The Apostle Paul loved to pray for the spiritual vitality of the Body of Christ. He prayed, "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge...

The Apostle Paul loved the Body of Christ and he constantly prayed for the health and well-being of the Church. To the Colossian Christians Paul wrote, "We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven" (Col. 1:3-5). Let's allow...

The Apostle Paul had a passion for the lost and he prayed for their salvation. "Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved" (Rom 10:1). Paul's desire for the salvation of unbelievers was so strong that, if possible, he was willing to lose his own salvation if it meant they could be saved. "For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ fo...

In the Bible, Moses chose to endure being mistreated with God's people rather than enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. There is so much in the world that promises fulfillment and satisfaction but is contrary to God's character and holiness. Eternal perspective equips us to make God-honoring choices today, knowing the ultimate joy of walking in obedience to Him.

God says that we can't begin to imagine all the things He has in store for those who love Him (1 Cor. 2:9). We can so easily satisfy ourselves with lesser things ... even damaging things. However, to make choices today in light of future realities requires eternal perspective.

Whatever you may be suffering today is not the end of the story. The Apostle Paul writes, "We do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that...

What is the most valuable thing you possess? What did you have to pay to own it? The Bible tells us that our salvation was purchased "not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ" (1 Peter 1:18-19). The price God paid for you and me moves us to worship and provides eternal perspective.

You can find people working out at fitness centers 24 hours per day. Our culture is obsessed with fitness and body image. The Apostle Paul exhorts Timothy to "train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come" (1 Tim. 4:7-8). It's important to honor God with our bodies...

We don't want to be deceived by the allure of what the culture and the world system identifies as valuable. Rather, we want to embrace and store-up for ourselves treasure that God reveals to be eternally worthwhile.

We can easily be deceived into thinking that all we see and experience is the ultimate reality. But Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away" (Mt 24:35). The Bible provides an eternal perspective on ultimate reality. God's promises can be trusted and his commands are to be obeyed.

This is Resurrection Day! Sin has been paid for! Death has been conquered! Eternal life has been made available through faith in the risen Christ! He is Risen! Read this stirring account from the gospel of Luke: But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in t...

On this day of Passion Week Jesus' lifeless body was in the tomb. For the disciples it was a day of sadness, discouragement, fear, and shattered dreams. We know, from our historical perspective, that something is about to happen that will radically change everything. Jesus will rise victoriously from the dead! The next time you experience a season of sadness, discouragement, fear, and shattered dr...

On this day of Passion Week ... Jesus was crucified. 800 years prior to Jesus birth the prophet Isaiah wrote, "Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we...

Just hours before His trial and crucifixion Jesus washed His disciple's feet in the upper room. Afterwards Jesus said, "Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have don...

Have you ever said one thing but done another? We all have. On this day of Passion Week Judas, one of the twelve, began making plans on how he would betray Jesus. Luke writes, "Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him...

On this day of Passion week Jesus was teaching his disciples on the Mount of Olives. Their questions centered around Christ's return. He told them, "stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. There...

On this day of Passion week Jesus cursed a fig tree and cleansed the temple. Why? He was addressing two issues: the lack of bearing genuine fruit and the absence of real worship. As we come into God's presence let's humbly allow him to examine the motives and hidden places of our heart.

Palm Sunday celebrates Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. What you may not know is that 600 years before Jesus' entry, the prophet Daniel prophesied the date that Messiah would enter into Jerusalem. Bible scholars have identified the date of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem as the exact date prophesied by Daniel (Daniel 9:25). Palm Sunday, therefore, is a remarkable fulfillment of Bible prophecy an...

When we repent of our sin, God himself rejoices. Luke writes, “I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10). Let’s be the kind of people who are responsive to God with a tender heart and make God celebrate!

Repentance involves a godly sorrow over our sin that leads to change. The Apostle Paul writes, "I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret" (2 Cor 7:9-10).

To those who desire to draw near to God, Peter exhorts, "Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord" (Acts 3:19-20). You may need to embrace Jesus for the first time or you desire to refresh your relationship with Him. "Times of refreshing" come when we repent, turn away from our sin, and place our trust in th...

Repentance involves a turning away from sinful practices and patterns. In Acts 19 we read, "Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word...

Repentance is acknowledging with our mind that our behavior is dishonoring to God; it is feeling sorrow over our disobedience; and it demands a personal decision to stop the behavior and walk in obedience to Christ. To walk rightly with God requires the united engagement of our mind, emotion and will.