“Our Lord in His teaching regarding prayer never once referred to unanswered prayer; He said God always answers prayer. If our prayers are in the name of Jesus, that is, in accordance with His nature, the answers will not be in accordance with our nature, but with His. We are apt to forget this, and to say without thinking that God does not always answer prayer. He does every time, and when we are in close communion with Him, we realize that we have not been mislead.”
oswald chambers, prayer – a holy occupation, p. 101
Daily Devotionals: As we step into this next season in the life of our church, we are asking the Lord to help us “Make Room in our Hearts” – for the people Jesus loves, and the people Jesus brings. During these 21 Days, our whole church will be reflecting and meditating on these same thoughts and prayers together, with one mind, guided by and depending on one Spirit.
We want to encourage you to grab a journal or a notebook – something to write on as you walk through each prayer guide or devotional. Yes, it will add a few minutes to the time it takes to do the devotion, and it will also deepen your experience and shape your walk with God for years to come. This journal or notebook will be a keepsake to remind you of God’s faithfulness during this challenging season for all of us. Each devotion will take less than ten minutes of your time.
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Engage the Word: Loving God
Over these few days, we continue to focus on Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer” in John 17 from the Upper Room, as He prepared to go to the cross, where Jesus prays for His disciples, for us and for the world. Jesus prays to His Father…
John 17:11-19
11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.[a] 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them[b] in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself,[c] that they also may be sanctified[d] in truth.
Connect the Heart
Truth is under attack in today’s culture. The most common belief seems to be that truth is whatever you believe it to be. The Bible says otherwise. Jesus says otherwise. In this prayer to His Father, Jesus acknowledges that the world will hate His followers because His followers will stand in the truth – which stands against the moral relativism of the culture. We should not be surprised either that truth is under attack, or that we are hated when we stand for truth. Jesus asks the Father to “sanctify” us in the truth of His Word – an often-repeated request of Jesus. Sanctify means to become or make holy – and to be set apart from the world.
In our churches today, God is alive and well – yet, sadly, fewer people are listening to God than at any time in our recent past. A recent study by authors James Patterson and Peter Kim (The Day America Told the Truth) concluded that while ninety percent of people questioned said they believe in God, the vast majority simply do not turn to God or faith to help them decide on moral issues of the day. Most people do not even know their church’s positions on important issues, and only one in 10 believe all of the Ten Commandments. Hard to comprehend, but most people now choose which Commandments to believe and which ones not to believe.
Jesus asks His Father to sanctify us in the truth. The heartbeat of His prayer is that the church of Jesus Christ would be holy… sanctified… set apart. This must be our prayer as well.
Reflect on the Truth
- Jesus is interceding continually before the Father on our behalf – and praying that we would be holy and set apart from the world. Is your heart – your words, your actions, your desires, your motivations – reflecting this desire of Jesus? How might Jesus’ prayer be an invitation for you to experience more intimacy with Him?
- What are some areas of your life that the Holy Spirit might be prompting you to consider where you may not be living as “set apart” or sanctified in the truth? How might you offer these areas to Jesus in prayer to allow His sanctifying work to begin to transform your thoughts, feelings, desires and choices?
Depend on the Spirit
Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see the deeper longings, desires or motives in your heart that these thoughts are pointing to. (For example: you may write down, “I truly want to be sanctified in the truth – and live a life that is more set apart than I’m currently living. It’s so difficult. I’m not able to do this on my own. Please help me.”) The Lord can help us discern the path forward – through His word, His Spirit, His people.
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For Prayer:
Today, pray for our Ascent Church family – that each man, woman, student and child will grow deeper spiritually in this season as we seek the heart of the Father, and seek to align with the heart of Jesus, together.
Fasting
Please read the first blog post entitled “Why Fast?” This explains what fasting is and why we follow Jesus in this spiritual discipline as together we seek the heart of God.
Previous Posts
To read yesterday’s blog post devotional, please click here.
To read our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting Introduction, please click here.
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Some parts of our 21 Days devotionals are adapted using various resources on scripture and prayer like Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, The New Bible Commentary, Logos Bible Software and other resources.
Two things stick out to me in this passage. First, verse 11: “that they may be one, even as We are one.” As we, Your people, are sanctified in Your truth, Jesus, let us not only be drawn closer to You, but let us also experience more unity and togetherness as a church family. Second, verse 13: “that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.” Yes, Jesus, may we come into more and more joy as we come together in unity to make room in our hearts and in our church home to welcome the searching, the tired, and the hurting. May our “together joy” and the other fruits of the Spirit flow out of us into the community around us too. I will be praying for this “together joy” to abound as we grow up into even more of who God created us to be as a church family.