Awake, O Sleeper

We have to look carefully how we walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time we have because, truly, the days are evil. We must abstain from foolishness and be eager to understand what the will of the Lord is.

Being awake is proclaiming the strength and power of who God is, praying unselfishly with boldness, and standing firm — unwavering — in the Lord and in His promise.

Proclaim

God is King. He is Lord of Lords. He sits on the throne. His word is absolute truth. God is our Lord and Savior. He is present in Paris, in the hearts of our leaders, and He is overflowing in the ones who are putting the whole armor of God on each and every day.

Pray

We have to pray with an amazing sense of destiny, and know that the action of asking God is not a small calling. We must humbly ask God to move his sovereign arm. Living out the Great Commission happens by the communication of the Gospel; the Gospel has the ability to be communicated because we pray; we pray that the Gospel transforms the heart’s of people.

I pray that we be rooted and grounded in love, and may comprehend what is the breadth and length and height and depth of God’s glory.

We must trust and know — even if sometimes we don’t feel it — that God is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.

Why we don’t pray. Our lack of prayer is is summed up in many different ways, but similar to many we are too lazy, we have wavering belief of what prayer can actually do, or we feel guilt and unworthiness. To understand our position in the presence of God is to understand that in Christ we don’t have to avoid Him, but rather run to Him regardless of our guilt.

See how quick we are to neglect our most powerful duty because we become unrighteous through our selfishness? Do we truly realize the supreme power of praying to the creator of all things, the one who still sits on the throne, and the one who’s grace and love abounds all the more?

Why prayer matters. Prayer is upheld, and pursued, by us believing that God is capable of the impossible. In the context of every day life we must realize that praying not only helps us live rightly, but living rightly also helps us pray.

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to his prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. 1 Peter 3:12

The context of 1 Peter 3:12 is for believing husbands and how they lead their wife, but I truly think it applies even outside of marriage. “God is not interested in the prayers of someone who has a lack of righteousness. There are ways to live that hinder our prayers and there are ways to live that help our prayers.”

Prayer matters for the kingdom. Prayer matters for the heart’s of the people in this world. Prayer is power, sourced by the one who is most powerful. Prayer is obedience.

I pray that followers of Christ might awake from our slumber, and address one another in love as Christ loved us. I pray that we may be imitators of Him. That we may give thanks and worship always, with all our hearts. I pray that we as believer understand how the world will treat us, and more importantly how we treat others when despair and destruction is among us. May our calloused hearts soften by the inclination of know who Jesus is; humbly replacing our indulgence with a bolder action of displaying God’s truth in love and grace.

Stand Firm

In times of evil destruction we have to stand firm in the unity of the body of Christ. We must stand and be ready to speak the gospel of peace. We must take up our faith so that we can be alert in perseverance. We should do this so that we can open our mouths in a bold way with words given to use by God in our preparation of seeking His glory.

Stand firm in the Lord and take up the full armor of God. Do not waver in His commands for we know the power of God is supreme over the battle of flesh and blood.

By proclaiming that everything is from God, to God, and through God allows us to be saved by His grace through faith. This gift pulls us to our knees in prayer. Prayer full of thanksgiving and awe of his glory. Finally, we stand firm in God because of who He is, what He’s done and how He is working in this world.