MORNING DEVOTION- "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee..." (Psalm 63:1)
Scripture Reading: Acts 1:1-26
Jesus cried out His last breath and surrendered to the will of the Father, giving up His life on the cross as a ransom for the sins of mankind. Three days later, having conquered the grave, He began to meet with His disciples, calling them to follow the path of perfect love. Jesus had completed the work He came to do; achieving victory over sin and death for His beloved creation and opening the doorway for them to enter into the presence of the Father. Over the next forty days He prepared His disciples to take up their cross and to carry the glorious good news of His resurrection to the utmost parts of the world. "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (v.8).
At the end of their forty days together, Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father, where He would begin the work of interceding for His followers; He commanded His followers to wait for the promised Helper, Who would guide them to become successful intercessors and fruitful workers for the kingdom: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard Me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit" (v.4b, 5). The disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy, where they "stayed continually at the temple, praising God" (Luke 24:53). As they waited and worshiped together they prayed for guidance in filling the position for the twelfth apostle. "Lord, you know everyone's heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen..." (Acts 1:24a). While they waited, they worked; desiring to know God's will they made good use of their time during those ten days by being watchful and praying. "They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers" (v.14).
Prayer was the critical component to the success of the early church as the Holy Spirit guided them to fulfill their role of being witnesses for God's kingdom. For the next ten days we will journey with these faithful believers as they lay the foundation for the work we, too, have been commissioned to continue (reference Matthew 28:18-21). The example they demonstrated for us in prayer is an important lesson that we, as the modern church, must learn and put into practice. May God awaken our hearts to what prayer can accomplish.
Heavenly Father,
I praise You for this small remnant
of faithful followers that You
personally picked to provide an example
of the importance of unceasing prayer,
and who paved the way for Your gospel message
to reach and transform my life in this present day.
Awaken Your Church today to recognize
how great a sin our prayerlessness has been,
and revive and strengthen our hearts in Your love
to continue
this holy and vital work
for the glory of Your name.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
This morning may we heed the voice of our Beloved calling us away to wait upon Him in prayer. May we not allow the ticking of the clock or the taunting of the enemy to distract us from this blessed time of fellowship with the Father. Let our Lord have full possession of us this morning; we are His, let us surrender every second to His hearts desire. "I delight to sit in His shade, and His fruit is sweet to my taste. He has taken me to the banquet hall and His banner over me is love" (Song of Songs 2:3b, 4).
AFTERNOON DEVOTION -"Evening, and morning, and noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice" (Psalm 55:17, KJV).
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:3
Jesus calls us out of an ordinary life to walk the extraordinary path of love - the "most excellent way" as described in the first letter to the Corinthians. Jesus gave up His physical body on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins and commissions us, as His "spiritual" body, to take up the cross and carry His message of love and grace to the world. He calls us to carry this mission forward in the same manner in which it began - the way of love! "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal" (1 Corinthians 13:1).
Our sin-debt was paid in full on the cross, and our account has been wiped clean; yet one debt remains outstanding - the debt of love. "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another..." (Romans 13:8). Love is what keeps us connected to the Head, which is Christ Jesus (reference Colossians 1:18). To keep this vital connection, we have been called to "speak the truth in love," in doing so, "we will in all things grow up into Him Who is the Head, that is, Christ. From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Ephesians 4:15-16). Without prayer we are powerless and ineffective. The early church leaders understood that their success depended entirely on whether they were faithful or unfaithful in prayer. In prayer we are co-laborers with Christ.
There is no greater expression of love than one's willingness to lay down their life in fervent prayer for another. It is the one duty of the kingdom where only a faithful few will commit for the long term. Fervent, faithful prayer is a labor of love. As one writer has insightfully penned, "how slothful and unfit we are for this blessed work." Prayer is the highest and holiest work of the kingdom, and it requires discipline and determination. The best way to begin, is to simply begin. We can read and study about prayer all we want, but until we implement the discipline of prayer we can't unleash its' power. These next ten days of our journey we will put our love into action as we take what we have learned about the importance of prayer, following the example Jesus has provided for us, and begin to pray specifically for the various centers of influence which can either hinder or help advance the work of the kingdom. Today, let us pray that we would stay committed to these final days of our journey. May our time in the prayer closet each day lead us to put on our proper garment, so that we will be fully clothed with Christ and enabled to take on His heart with greater sensitivity and understanding to pray more fervently and specifically for those He has placed in our particular spheres of influence.
Heavenly Father,
Fill me with the knowledge of Your will,
through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
Help me to live a life worthy of You, that I may
please You in every way: bearing fruit in every good
work, and growing in the knowledge of God,
being strengthened with all power according to Your
glorious might so that I may have great endurance
and patience as I pray. I joyfully give thanks to You
as You have qualified me to share in the inheritance of
the saints in the Kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:9-12)
May my prayers shed Your glorious light into the
hearts of those who are lost in this dark world.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Please mark your calendars for July 10th! This final day of our 40 day journey of prayer will be dedicated to prayer and fasting. Power in prayer is made perfect through the discipline of fasting. It is when we are ready to give up all for Christ and His kingdom that we are rewarded with the spiritual power we so desperately need to advance His kingdom. Fasting is the pathway to deepening intimacy with Christ through which we lay hold of His power because we have let go of everything else. Please invite other praying friends in your sphere of influence to join us for this corporate day of prayer and fasting. "...nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:19-21, NKJV).
EVENING MEDITATION -"...and on His law he meditates day and night" (Psalm 1:2)
Scripture Reading: 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12
Prayer was a normal part of the daily life and ministry of the believers in the early church. They followed the pattern exemplified in the life of Jesus as He lived and walked among them. As we journey these next ten days, with these first witnesses of the gospel, we will discover how vital and powerful prayer was to the work that they had been commissioned to ultimately being accomplished. Our evening devotion time will be dedicated to a specific prayer focus as we search the Scriptures to give fuel to our prayers and unleash power from heaven that will impact our world for the glory of God. "The word of God is the food by which prayer is nourished and made strong" - E.M. Bounds. As the early church was, may we also be found faithful in our work and diligent in prayer as we wait upon the Lord's return. "But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work" (2 Thessalonians 2:13-17).
