Time Well Spent

A practical guide to developing your daily devotions I bought this recently and have read it. (It is not long). It's not really aimed at people like me but I read it as I feel my "Quiet Times" need a refreshing and because I wanted to look at the subject in connection with a present project. The book is very clear and engaging and assumes nothing. It begins with a definition then five reasons for having one. It goes on with Jesus's quiet time from Mark 1:35-39 and then, in the longest section sets out the ingredients (preparation, Bible and prayer). Next comes something on common problems and some useful tips. The penultimate chapter recommends the use of the Lord's Prayer and the Psalms, with which I would heartily concur. The final chapter I have not tackled fully yet as it is a series of eight Bible studies to get you started. Very much worth passing on. It is by Colin Webster, who I have never met.

An Answer to Prayer

When I returned from the Banner of Truth Ministers Conference I heard that several had contracted covid and so I tested myself but was negative and so preached last Sunday. However, I did have a cold and so I tested again last Monday and was positive. So I went to bed with my father-in-law's new autobiography and missed the Westminster Conference committee but zoomed for the midweek meeting and an Evangelical Library committee I had. Anyway by today I am negative again and so have avoided (I hope) having to implement our contingency plan - using an audio recording. My wife and son have remained negative. I think this is a real answer to prayer and has greatly encouraged me. This is the second time I have had covid. These are strange and difficult times.

10 Things with regard to God's Word

1. Read the Word
2. Accept the Word
3. Consider the Word
4. Preach the Word
5. Pray the Word
6. Sing the Word
7. Learn the Word
8. Share the Word
9. Live the Word
10. Spread the Word

Day Off Plus Month 1 2020

I tried a new idea this week just gone. For the last year or so I have been quite conscientious about the day off, as readers of this blog may testify. I'm doing it in part to encourage younger ministers to take this seriously (something I didn't really do so conscientiously in the past). Another idea I have come across is setting aside two days a month as a sort of PPA time. (PPA means planning, preparation and assessment. Mine was more planning, prayer and relaxation). So there was lots of planning for the month ahead and times of prayer (not as much as intended). I did plenty of day off things too - walking, reading, TV (I watched the Beach Boys film Love and Mercy and one or two other things). Whether this is a good idea we'll see. I certainly found the whole process of stopping and thinking a real benefit at the time.

Day off Week 6 2019

This week's day off had to be shunted on to Saturday, as I was at a seminary board meeting on the Tuesday. There was a men's meeting at the church at 9 am where we gathered for coffee and prayer. We had a good chat about prayer and it was good to have seven present all making their contribution. Discussions about prayer tend to make me feel guilty but also resolved to try harder.

One of my sons and his wife were with us for the weekend so that was nice, although I managed to mess up an appointment with the gasman the day before and so we had to hang about for him. In fact we were misinformed and headed off in the car but then had to return as he was coming in a quarter of an hour. Anyway he sorted out our boiler and it was nice to have the heating back (although it has been quite mild).

Later Dylan and I watched the rugby games while our wives hit the charity shops of West Hampstead. Dylan and Cat then headed off to a Gatsby evening in town while we watched most of the latest episodes of Silent Witness. In between all this I read a chunk of Unexpected histories a Christmas present.

Carey Conference 2019 Day 2 Sessions 2-4

Robert Strivens, Jonathan Worsley, Bob Letham, Bill James

Bob Letham

Henry Dixon

We had three more sessions on Day 2 of the Carey, a further paper from Bob Letham on the Trinity, a Q and A session and a final paper on the Holy Spirit and prayer from Henry Dixon. As with the first session, our womenfolk left us for session son Proverbs by Ann Benton.

Bob spoke this time on The trinity, creation, and the world around us and although this is more difficult ground to cover he was again very helpful. Henry spoke first of how difficult prayer can be then of how the Spirit helps us and finally on the fact he prays for us. He spent most time on the second point suggesting ways in which the Spirit helps - giving power over sin, giving spiritual life, leading us, directing us into God's love and giving fervency of speech. Some of this, as Henry suspected, is controversial but widely held among even cessationist theologians. The question session was lively and far reaching and one of the best such sessions I have been involved in. Besides matters connected with the Trinity we got on to infant salvation, the authorship of Hebrews and fencing the table, etc. A good day, I also managed a trip to the nearby Denbyware factory shop in the afternoon with my son and his family. Haven't been there in ages.

Midweek Meeting September 5 2018

A little different this week as we focused only on prayer. It is part of a week of prayer that I thought would be a suitable beginning to the new year. We weren't many but after singing and reading from Ehphesians 6 we did pray. We also met last night adn at other times.

Banner of Truth Conference 2018 Last Day 2

The very final message at the Banner ended up being on fervent prayer. Warren Peel gave us a very challenging second message on Epaphras urging us to interecessory prayer for the peopl.

He again used the same pattern moving from Epaphras back to Jesus and on to us - all of us being ministers to God's people

Early on he quoted John Owen

If men are but as they used to be, I do not believe any minister, any pastor in the world, can keep up a due love to his church, who doth not pray for them. He will meet with so many provocations, imprudences, and miscarriages, that nothing can keep up his heart with inflamed love towards them, but by praying for them continually. That will conquer all prejudices, — if he continues so doing. 

Also I think

My last reason is this, — in our prayers for our people, God will teach us what we shall preach unto them. We cannot pray for them, but we must think on what it is we pray for, and that is the consideration of their condition; and therein God teaches the ministers of the gospel. If it be so with them, this is that they should teach them. The more we pray for our people, the better shall we be instructed what to preach to them. The apostles, to take us off from all other occasions, “gave themselves to prayer and the word,” Acts vi. 4.

In Acts 4 prayer is in the first place. This is not personal but ministerial prayer for the church and the progress of the gospel. He highlighted the manner adn the matter

Manner

This is hand to hand combat. It takes pains. It is like wrestling.

Why is prayer so hard? It is a spiritual battle.

Matter

That you may stand mature and fully ...

We can learn this from Christ. There are lots and lots of examples of his prayers in the Gospels. Further, he is now interceding in heaven.

Are we wrestling? Do we have a system? Is it part of our work schedule? If a performance review was done for the last five years what woudl it reveal? Would I still have a job?

It is not the only factor but it is important.

Some quotations

Very valuable was the dying testimony of the great and godly Andrew Fuller:

I wish I had prayed more for the assistance of the Holy Spirit, in studying and preaching my sermons  John Smith

Prayer often gains success to little talents, while the greatest, without it, are useless or pernicious.

The great Welsh preacher, Mr. Williams of Wern one of the princely trio of that land of great preachers (with John Elias, William Williams and Christmas Evans) left this testimony:

“The old ministers were not much better preachers than we are, and in many respects they were inferior, but there was an unction about their ministry, and success attended upon it now but seldom witnessed. And what was the cause of the difference? They prayed more than we do. If we would prevail and have power with men, we must first prevail and have power with God. It was on his knees that Jacob became a prince, and if we would become princes we must be oftener and more importunate upon our knees.”

Dr. Griffin remarked of a young man, a pupil of his who had just commenced preaching

“He has an active mind and superior talents. The only question I have about him is, whether he will pray down the Holy Spirit while he preaches.” The probability of any minister’s success is in the question, “Will he pray down the Holy Spirit?”

I could add the exhortation of the noble French preacher, Massillon, cannot be too attentively studied: “Accompany your labours with your prayers. Speak of the disorders of your people more frequently to God than to them. Complain to him of the obstacles put in the way of their conversion by your unfaithfulness more frequently than of those which their obstinacy may present. Blame yourself alone at his feet for the small fruit of your ministry. As a tender father apologize to him for the faults of your children, and accuse only yourself.”

He also mentioned and commended Intercessory Prayer: A Ministerial Task by Eugene Bradford

Prayer for the evening before the Sabbath by Matthew Henry

You might find this useful

Now give us to remember that tomorrow is the sabbath of the Lord and that it is a high day, holy of the Lord and honourable, and give us grace so to sanctify ourselves, that tomorrow the Lord may do wonders among us; and to be mindful of the work of our preparation, now the sabbath draws on.

When you saw everything that you had made in six days, it was very good, but in many things we have all offended. O that by repentance and faith in Christ’s blood, we may wash not only our feet, but also our hands and our head and our heart, and so may go about your altar, Lord.

Now give us to rest from all our own deeds and to leave all our worldly cares at the bottom of the hill, while we go up to the mount to worship God and return again to them.

Prayer - Drawing near

In Hebrews 4:14-16 the writer says Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Hebrews 10:19-22 is similar. There the writer says Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

In Hebrews 7:19 we have the phrase a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God and 7:25 talks about those who come or draw near to God through him (Christ) and 10:1 those who draw near to worship.

In James 4:8 there is a well known verse that says Come or draw near to God and he will draw come near to you.

Here is a way of speaking about prayer then – coming or drawing near to God.

1. Prayer involves movement or change

The very fact that prayer is spoken of as coming to or drawing near shows that we cannot pray simply by staying as we are. There must be a movement, a change, a drawing near to God. We need to move from where we are. We need to stir ourselves up to action. This movement is clearly a spiritual movement or change nor a physical one.

2. We are responsible to move

In all the references it is clear that we are responsible to move towards God not just him to us. Now James does say Come or draw near to God and he will draw come near to you. That is there to encourage us. Only a little effort is needed and God will do the rest. We must bear our responsibilities, nevertheless.

3. Our prayers must centre on God

Perhaps this is too obvious to need saying but we need to draw near to God. God must be the object of our prayers. We must focus on him. We must seek his face. To set our minds anywhere else is to fail to pray.

Let's draw near to God.

Prayer - Lifting up the soul

Ruud Loeffen, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

In Psalm 25:1 David says In you, LORD my God, I put my trust. He uses a similar phrase in Psalm 84:4 Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you and in Psalm 143:8 Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. More literally in each place he is talking about lifting his soul to God. The same idea is in Lamentations 3:41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven, and say: …. Hannah uses a different idiom when she says (1 Samuel 1:15) I was pouring out my soul to the LORD.
To you I lift up my soul and similar phrases say at least three things about prayer.

1. Prayer is a spiritual affair – it is a soul matter

The use of the word soul (an heart elsewhere) suggests that we are talking about an essentially spiritual matter. When we talk of our souls we are talking about us, the essential us, the essential me. Merely saying prayers is a waste of time. That is one reason why written prayers rarely work. If you write it out yourself that is a but different I guess but merely to read prayers is a sure fire way to make it unlikely that you will be lifting up your soul.

2. Prayer is our responsibility – I must do it

The phrase is To you I lift up my soul. There is no suggestion of God lifting up our souls for us. This is not to deny that we need help from on high if we are to pray but there is a responsibility on us to lift our souls to God and not simply wait for him to do it for us.
I remember hearing Eric Alexander speaking about prayer once. He put it this way “We're not to wait until we get a tingle in our spine. It's a matter of moral obedience and duty. It is not a glandular condition where one does not pray until he feels like it”.

No, with prayer we simply have to get on to it.

3. Prayer involves effort – it is hard work

That leads on to the last point. It takes effort. I know the soul weighs nothing and so lifting it to God should not be difficult but sometimes it seems my soul is very heavy and lifting even an inch is hard work. Lift it up though. Pour it out. That's what it is to pray. That effort makes all the difference.

Last Midweek Meeting of 2015

We often don't have a midweek meeting in this final week of the year as so many are usually away but as I was around I said there would be a prayer meeting and six of us go together for that last night. We sang a hymn at the beginning and end and I read from Psalm 20 but most of the rest of the time was spent in prayer. Everyone prayed. I'm glad we met.

Back home we played a game, ate some chocs and watched the rest of the Agatha Christie, which I was not impressed with. The new year beckons. Our few family guests from afar are all gone now.

Week of Prayer September 2015

Last week we had a week of prayer meetings. That's why I didn't report on the midweek meeting. We had a prayer meeting that night (Wednesday) and the night after and other prayer meetings - one Sunday evening, two early morning ones, one mid-morning and one with breakfast on the Saturday. Seven in all, it was good to have a reminder of the centrality of prayer and to pray. We try and have these weeks twice a year.

Lord's Day April 26 2015

We started again with a bitesize theology class - conversion this time. I then preached from 1 Corinthians 15:33-49 and the nature of our resurrection bodies. We were a little sparse with a few away for various reasons. There was a newcomer, however, who we hope will join us, an unexpected visitor and a man in need turned up once again towards the end. In the evening I preached quite a short sermon from the beginning of Matthew 6 on how we give to the needy. The congregation was not too bad. Prior to the evening meeting we had another prayer meeting for the work among the children, currently in abeyance. I took the above shot on the way home as the sun set.

Lord's Day March 8 2015

I have been in Aberystwyth this week and so I am behind with blogging. We began last Sunday with a  fairly well attended bitesize theology class on the Trinity. The morning sermon was from Ezra 8 and felt a little apprehensive about it again, though not as much as the previous week. I was able to make what were hopefully helpful points about church life in exegetically defensible ways. I spoke of a church preparing itself to serve by gathering the people and their leaders, of the need for humiliation and prayer and a fresh consecration of ourselves and all we have, assuring of protection and safety as we serve and worship. A couple in the church kindly entertained us for lunch and then we all got together before the evening service for our regular tea time. For various reasons we were mire than usual (I counted 18 - we are rarely that many). We are having a week of prayer this week and so we spent  a short time in prayer until we were interrupted a little sooner than anticipated by the arrival of some visitors. In the evening we looked at divorce from Matthew 5:31, 31 - always a difficult subject but hopefully I said something sound and sensible.

 

EMW article 4: How to pray for each other

My latest article on 1 Thessalonians is in the current Evangelical Magazine. It is similar to this

In 1 Thessalonians 3:6-13 we see five helpful rules on how to pray for each other.

Keep informed

In verses 6-8, having spoken of his concern for them, Paul explains how Timothy had arrived with good news of their faith and love. Paul learned of the pleasant memories of him and his team they had and their longing to see him as much as he longed to see them. This was not a complete surprise. In all his distress and persecution Paul had been encouraged by the thought of their faith. However, now he lives. They really are standing firm in the Lord!

Paul prayed for them all the time they were apart but was anxious – afraid he says that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless. Timothy has now reassured him on that score. What a relief! Paul always found faith in others encouraging, especially in distress and persecution, so he was greatly cheered to know of their progress.

We are all the same. One thing we can all do to help ourselves to pray better is to try and be better informed about one another. We must pray for fellow believers whether we hear of them or not but, generally speaking, it is easier if we keep informed, one of the things this magazine seeks to do.

Give thanks

Paul asks (9) How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? It is clear that he often gave thanks. Why was he so thankful? Because of the joy it gave him, in God's presence, to know others were saved and were demonstrating that in their daily lives. He finds it difficult to see how he can be as thankful as he ought to be, so much joy have they given.

At the start of the letter, he wrote how he always thanked God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. It is a note often struck in his letters. It is usually the place to start when praying for believers. How lonely without them! What joy to know that they also are saved. Are we giving thanks for them? Do our thanks equal the joy they give us by their Christian living? At the very least, we ought to be regularly thanking God for one another.

Request fellowship opportunities and growth

Paul constantly prayed for them. He says (10) Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. He gives the prayer - Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. Besides giving thanks Paul makes a specific request – to see them again and preach to them. His prayer is that our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus will clear the way for him and his companions to come to them again.

We should make specific requests to God. More importantly, we should often pray for fellowship. That is what Paul longs for with the Thessalonians. His specific desire, as a preacher, is to supply what is lacking in their faith but we should all long for fellowship with each other.

Pray too for the supply of what is lacking in people's faith. Give thanks for faith but recognise that no-one has perfect faith so we ask for growth and increase. People don't do it so much now but there was a time when a woman would sit and darn the socks. Our faith often has holes and needs repair. Pray for faith to be “darned”.

Pray for each other – for opportunities of fellowship, the supply of what faith currently lacks.

Request increased and overflowing love

Paul prays May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you (12). He prays not only for an increase in faith but also love. The CEV has - May the Lord make your love for each other and for everyone else grow by leaps and bounds. It's like faith – every Christian believes and every Christian loves but there is room for growth. Let's pray for each other that our love will grow in leaps and bounds. In particular pray that we may have

Love each other more and more. Brotherly love is a basic Christian trait but too often we are found wanting. Pray for a real increase in love to one another.

An increasing love for outsiders too. Love is to extend beyond us to all sorts of others. Pray it will.

The pattern is the same as Galatians 6:10, Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Request strengthened hearts and blamelessness when Christ comes

Having spoken of faith and love one expects a reference to hope. That is not what follows but there is an emphasis on the future hope. What Paul prays is (13) May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones. The prayer is interesting as it requests God to strengthen their hearts. The end of this is seen as increased holiness so that they will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

So here's another thing to pray for each other – a strengthening of the heart so that, in light of Christ's return, we may become more and more holy. We tend not to think of holiness as a matter of being strong in heart but Paul saw that is often the issue. More strong heartedness would mean greater separation to God and more holy living. Pray that will increasingly be the case with all of us. Then those we pray for will be among the holy believers who return with Christ when he comes.

The very mention of Christ's return, a subject Paul keeps returning to in this letter, reminds us that if we would pray, we must set our minds on Christ's return. It is in the light of that event that we must always pray.

Midweek Meeting September 3 2014

Some time ago I started blogging my Lord's Day activities to better reflect here what goes on in my life. I think the same argument could be made for the midweek meeting. So here we go. Wednesday night's our night. We meet at 8 pm in the parlour. Normally, we sing a hymn, I pray and read the Scriptures then speak. After that we discuss what to pray for and then pray. Praying needs to begin before 9 pm and usually ends between 9.15 and 9.30 pm. Last night I did the second message on Spiritual growth (Growing in knowledge of the Spirit and the Father - we did knowledge of the Son two weeks back). I am using a book by Joel Beeke to guide us through Colossians 1:9, 10. I was slightly longer than I should have been I guess. I need to cut down on the number of sub-points (a Puritan overhang). There were about 13 present including my son Rhodri now back with us. It was nice to have my fellow elder back from Korea. There are always too many things to pray for but there was a good spirit of prayer.

Gravity 3D

Oh yes I went to the cinema last week as well - on my own as I couldn't persuade anyone to come with me. Gravity, a film about being lost ins space is pretty much a one person show so it was appropriate. I tend to think of myself as rather cynical b this stage but I still get taken in by all the hype and certainly this film, although very good, was hyped up to the nth degree. Its attraction is its being set in outer space but it is not a science fiction film or anything like that bit a rather ordinary tale of dicing with death and coming through it. I didn't find the character particularly interesting and so despite their efforts I never really identified with her. This plus the fact that whatever happened I guessed she'd make it through any way took a lot of the energy out of the film for me. The most interesting line in it, I thought, was when, thinking she was about to die, Dr Stone says "No one will mourn for me. No one will pray for my soul. Will you mourn for me? Will you pray for me? I mean I'd pray for myself, but I've never prayed—nobody ever taught me how." (That's the line unsurprisingly that the Gospel Coalition article picks up on too here That article also notes the rebirth theme - completely lost on me I must confess). I wanted a bit more of that sort of thing really. The 3D works well as it adds to the impression of being in deep space. The sound track adds to the feel too. So good film, worth seeing on the big screen but disregard some of the hype. See Rotten Tomatoes where they love it here.

Carey Conference 2013 01

The Carey Conference is here again and the opening (Tuesday afternoon) session this year was on praying for revival and the speaker was Jonathan Bayes.

It was noted that one of the objections to the doctrine of revival sometimes made is that it is based so often on Old Testament Scriptures not New Testament ones. The point was made that although the word revival is nowhere in the Bible, the New Testament flows out of the Old and is based on it and so Old Testament passages were considered that speak to the subject of revival as well as focusing on the New Testament.

First, we looked at Psalm 89, which was written at a time when the great promises of David's son and his throne seemed to have stalled. The prayer is not for the final heaven or for personal growth in grace but for the manifestation of Messiah in the world. We are to pray that the kingdom will spread all over the world.
When we come to the New Testament we find calls such as that of Jesus in Matthew 9 to pray to the Lord of the Harvest that labourers will be sent out so that the harvest will be brought in. We can be very pessimistic and become closet liberals if we are not careful allowing our perceptions to dictate our understanding of Scripture rather than the other way round.
Acts 4 gives an example of how the early church responded to the call to pray for the advance of the kingdom. The prayer uses Psalm 2 and this suggests that the church was praying with great hope despite the situation. We should be praying above everything for the exaltation of the name of Christ. Revival is not always easy. It can come hand in hand with persecution even. It exalts Christ and that is what matters.
Albert Barnes calls Acts an inspired description of ongoing revival. He says
This book is "an inspired account of the character of true revivals of religion." It records the first revivals that occurred in the Christian church. The scene on the Day of Pentecost was one of the most remarkable displays of divine power and mercy that the world has ever known. It was the commencement of a series of stupendous movements on the earth to recover human beings. It was the true model of a revival of religion, and it is a demonstration that such scenes as have characterized our own age and nation especially are strictly in accordance with the spirit of the New Testament. The entire Book of the Acts of the Apostles records the effect of the gospel when it comes fairly in contact with the minds of people. The gospel was addressed to every class. It met the Jew and the Gentile, the bond and the free, the learned and the ignorant, the rich and the poor, and it showed its power everywhere in subduing the mind to itself. It was proper that some record should be preserved of the displays of that power, and that record we have in this book. And it was especially proper that there should be given by an inspired man an account of the descent of the Holy Spirit, "a record of a true revival of religion." It was certain that the gospel would produce excitement. The human mind, as all experience shows, is prone to enthusiasm and fanaticism; and people might be disposed to pervert the gospel to scenes of wildfire, disorder, and tumult. That the gospel would produce excitement was well known to its Author. It was well, therefore, that there should be some record to which the church might always appeal as an infallible account of the proper effects of the gospel, some inspired standard to which might be brought all excitements on the subject of religion. If they are in accordance with the first triumphs of the gospel, they are genuine; if not, they are false.
This book shows that "revivals of religion are to be expected in the church." If they existed in the best and purest days of Christianity, they are to be expected now. If, by means of revivals, the Holy Spirit chose at first to bless the preaching of the truth, the same thing is to be expected. still. If in this way the gospel was at first spread among the nations, then we are to infer that this will be the mode in which it will finally spread and triumph in the world.We were urged to pray for boldness, the sort of boldness we see in Acts.
To close he drew attention to two parables that encourage us to pester God with regard to revival. The first is in Luke 11 where we are urged to pray not for what we fancy but for the giving of the Holy Spirit, for spiritually starving friends all around us. The second is in Luke 18 and is designed to help us not to grow weary in praying. Widowhood is used in Isaiah and elsewhere to describe spiritual dearth. We are like a needy widow today, we need someone to gain justice for us against our adversary Satan. Too often our prayers are unenthusiasitc and we do not really want what we ask for. The final question is not so much about the Second Coming or suggesting faith will be very  low before the end. Rather, the question is a real one and is intended to challenge us.
Jonathan's paper grows out of the concert for prayer movement based in Yorkshire. See here and here. Also see here and here.

Matthew Henry Prayer Guide

I vlogged recently commending O Palmer Robertson's version of Matthew Henry's Method of Prayer. I noticed recently that there is a website here with many resources in connection with Henry's book, organised by Ligon Dincan III.