Prayer! I have a friend who has a ministry of loaning out her Decision magazines to others; I am one of the “others.” Recently I had the privilege of reading the September 2019 edition from cover to cover. The editor, Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, decided to do the entire issue on “Prayer.” He had seen the value of prayer in his father’s crusades and his own. The first article really packed a punch. It was done by the prominent preacher (former pastor of Moody Bible Church, speaker, and author), Erwin Lutzer. He began his discourse on prayer with these words: “In truth, only desperate people pray.” He goes on to tell of desperate times when God’s people were in captivity in Babylon. He offers this word of advice, “And if we have no burden to prayer? We wait before God until He shares His will with us. (p. 14, “Praying in a Pagan Land.”) Also, on p. 14 he counsels us like this: “God often works without our prayers, but our intercession moves His hand.” And, then he says, “Prayer is not just saying the right words; it is having the right heart. We must begin confessing our own prayerlessness before we begin to earnestly pray. The distractions of Babylon must be set aside to focus on what is most important. Our survival is at stake.” Franklin Graham then calls on well-established men of faith to give testimony to prayer. Next, he calls on R. T. Kendall who testifies like this: How much do you pray? Martin Luther (1483-1546) prayed two hours a day. John Wesley (1703-1791) prayed two hours a day. According to one poll, the average church leader in Britain and America prays four minutes a day. And we wonder why the church is powerless! Not praying, then, is to forfeit a close relationship with God. (p. 19) In an old article that Franklin published, he says his father noted that “Praying meant more to Jesus than eating (Mark 1:35), assembling great throngs (Luke 5:15-16), or sleeping (Luke 6:12). (p. 26).” There is an old photograph of Billy Graham and Cliff Burrows kneeling in prayer. See above; notice Cliff Barrows’ left hand is in a supplication mode, outstretched to his Father. In my own life, I have recently seen some exciting things along the lines of prayer. For several years we have had evangelist teams going out from the church and have felt the need for a group to be praying on-site in the classroom from which they went out. We finally got a group together. Some of us ladies began our own class teaching on prayer while the apologetics class went on, and then when the teams went out, we began to intercede for them, what has turned out to be an intense time of intercession. We have studied prayer through examples of James River Assembly of God with their amazing Wednesday night prayer meetings (https://jamesriver.church/series/prayer-meeting). One lady in our group pointed us to a book called The Prayer Saturated Church and also David Jeremiah’s book Prayer, the Great Adventure. Below are some nuggets she gleaned from Jeremiah’s book:
Our evangelistic teams have recently seen a dying man trust the Lord for salvation just days before his death. One recent convert lost all desire for alcohol, a former snare to her soul, and she got involved in the local church. Our prayer group members were told of other great teachers on prayer, including E. M. Bounds and Andrew Murray. It is good to check out the prayer life of all the great heroes of the faith and current leaders. Just put in a Google search with the person’s name and prayer. (For example, Corrie ten Boom prayer; David Wilkerson prayer; etc.) It is OK to emulate them. And don’t forget the outstanding example of the early church. Peter and John were headed to the temple to pray when the lame man was healed. After they were threatened for doing the miracle of healing him, the whole church prayed that they might have boldness in the face of threats so that miracles could be done to magnify the name of Jesus. (Acts 4) They prayed for Peter’s release from prison when there were impossible odds and an impregnable fort against it. An angel rescued him from his impending death the following day. (Act 12) The church prayed and fasted before sending out missionaries. (Act 13) The Ephesian elders knelt to pray a goodbye for Paul and commit him to God’s will. (Acts 20:36) In Paul’s epistles, he requests churches to pray for him. Just a little memorization, meditation, and practice of prayer can change the course of our lives and of others. What an exciting adventure awaits us, just beyond the words “Our Father, who art in heaven….” |
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MIND GAMES The brain might be about 4 inches from bottom to top, yet so many decisions stem from this organ. The brain has certain tactics that it uses for decisions, strategies, justifications, condemnations, etc., etc. We call some of these “mind games.” Three common ones follow. Some of these are nothing short of the work of the devil to deceive Christians or hinder the work of God. He came against Jesus, and we should expect no less. Jesus suffered to the point of a cruel death by crucifixion in this fight. What love!
Jesus far exceeds others. Compare mentally or on paper how far Jesus excels leaders of other world religions. Also, compare how far the authenticity of the Bible outshines other books of world religions. Online research of prominent apologists helps tremendously to equip us in dealing with haunting questions; they (apologists) have had time to research and combat arguments. (question of good and evil, God’s existence, age of earth, the Trinity, etc.) Check out names like Frank Turek, Ravi Zacharias, Norman Geisler, Nabeel Quereshi, and others on YouTube and their websites. Turek’s website is www.crossexamined.com. Another strategy against doubting is to remember that the saints of past ages did not hear God’s voice continually. The people listed in Hebrews 11 spent many days just living out life, usually practicing the presence of God and poised to obey Him when He did speak to them. We can know His constant presence, and Brother Lawrence of Practicing the Presence of God has done a good job instructing us in this skill. Apologist Josh McDowell stresses the testimony of Paul, an archenemy of Jesus who converted to the faith he once destroyed, because of his witness to a resurrected Savior. See his books, Evidence That Demands a Verdict and More Than a Carpenter. With each attack, the child of God can raise his hand like an authoritative policeman and say, “Sorry, devil, ain’t got time.” Some add, “I rebuke you, Satan.” Then, he can resume his/her conversation with the Lord, from which he was so rudely interrupted. In closing, look at the beautiful language of The Message Bible for the ongoing fight against a devil who hates us: Ephesians 6:10-18 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So, take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting, you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out. Who Was R. A. Torrey? His ministry was as outstanding as that of D. L. Moody or Billy Graham, but he is not as well known. Who was he? What did he do? He influenced influential people. He was the first dean of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago and of BIOLA University in Los Angeles. (BIOLA began as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles.) He replaced Dwight L. Moody as the pastor of the famous Moody Memorial Church, once Chicago Avenue Church. His dates: 1856-1928 His real name: Rueben Archer Torrey. Mr. Torrey was also known for his evangelistic crusades. Hundreds of thousands came to Christ through his ministry. Let’s look a little closer at his life. When he pastored the Moody Memorial church with its 2200-seat auditorium, it was always filled, and many times the galley had to be opened for the overflow crowd. In l898 he started a 9-10 PM Saturday prayer meeting. Around 300 people attended; Torrey and associates often prayed all Saturday night for a worldwide revival. Therefore, he impacted the Welsh revival. (p. 15) Torrey wanted God’s power to be on his life, and he wanted to be used of God. He heard through Moody and Charles Finney that there was a God-given power to be had through a baptism of the Holy Spirit. He sought that and received and urged others to seek the same power. Those who taught instant sanctification were comfortable with his teaching. He wanted God to use him when he traveled abroad to Japan and China; there hundreds made decisions for Christ. Then he made his way to Melbourne, Australia. AUSTRALIA: In Melbourne, there were 8500 decisions for Christ recorded. There Torrey’s well known and well-loved song leader, Charles M. Alexander, met him. Alexander made famous the renowned “Glory Song,” an abbreviation for “Oh That Will Be Glory for Me.” At one time, it was sung all over London. Torrey always credited the success of the campaigns to the prayer groups that encircled Melbourne and every city where they held meetings. Over 10,000 Christians prayed for them, twenty-four hours a day. Later, in England, there were over 40,000 praying for their meetings. Of this Torrey said, “Who could not preach under circumstances like that, and is it any wonder that such marvelous results followed?” (p. 13) (His methods were truly a forerunner of the prayer meetings that Billy Graham solicited for his meetings.) History records that there was an average of 5500 in attendance in London with some 20,000 converts. HIS INFLUENCE: In the United States in 1906, Oswald J. Smith was saved in one of Torrey’s crusades. Smith later pastored The People’s Church in Toronto, Canada, and wrote many hymns. For example, “When Jesus Comes” by Smith is stilled loved today. See this beautiful hymn sung by George Beverly Shea at this website: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HIHAPUQbUc) (https://thepeopleschurch.ca) Torrey served from 1912-1924 as the first dean of BIOLA University in his later years. At BIOLA he trained the famous Charles Fuller, the founder of Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. Fuller’s radio broadcast lasted from 1937-1968. It was Torrey who taught Fuller to never preach a sermon without bringing up the cross of Christ. (p. 18) At Torrey’s funeral, the speaker said, “Those who knew Dr. Torrey more intently knew him as a man of regular and uninterrupted prayer. He knew what it meant to pray without ceasing. With hours set systematically apart for prayer, he gave himself diligently to this ministry.” (p. 18) Torrey’s wife made this diary entry about the day of his death: Friday, Oct 6, 1928. He died. “God’s finger touched him; and he slept.” And awoke in heaven to be with his Saviour whom he loved and served for fifty years. He just peacefully stepped across one threshold into the Father’s house, between four and six a.m. (p. 24) The above information comes from the book, Torrey on Prayer by R. A. Torrey. Alachua, FL: Bridge-Logos, 2009, edited by Beverlee J. Chadwick. A brief biography is found on pp. 1-18. After a small photo gallery, Torrey’s lessons on prayer follow. He admonishes us to pray for our pastor, foreign missions, native Christians, native churches, mission boards, and money for mission boards. It is easy to see where his love was. Torrey tells us to let the Holy Spirit lead us into God’s presence. He discourages rote prayer. He says there is both a rest of faith and a wrestling in prayer against the enemy. There is an “agonizing” in prayer. There are many more lessons on prayer from this great “pray-er”. For example, he points out that Jonathan Edwards (evangelist) and David Brainerd (intercessor) were used as a team by God. There have been many other such teams or partners throughout time. Overall, Torrey’s life is a tremendous example to follow. Surely, since God is not a respecter of persons, would he not reward others just as he did R. A. Torrey? |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOo0fvOxiy0Dottie Gravely, Alabama and Beyond
Dottie holds a BA in Spanish and a Master’s in Foreign Language Education from the University of Alabama. She has taught English and/or Spanish in Alabama and North Carolina public schools. She and Allan, her husband of over 40 years, reside in Alabama. They have four grown children and four grandsons. Dottie became a Christian at age 15. Four years later she received the empowerment of the Holy Spirit for which she had been searching in order to fully dedicate her life to the Lord. Archives
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