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February 28, 2022June 4, 2022

Truth #3 – God Has Promised to Answer Prayers That Meet Certain Conditions

God will answer my prayers because of his words and his ways.

When a wealthy man dies, you can be sure his heirs will carefully read his will. The words of that document determine what they will inherit.

We are in a similar situation. In the previous article in this series, we saw that God is perfectly faithful and truthful. He keeps his every word. Not a single promise or word is forgotten. Once you believe that, you approach the Bible like the heirs of a wealthy man approach his will. For if you know what God has promised, then you know what words he stands behind with perfect faithfulness.

A breathtaking promise

Truth #3 in this series is familiar but crucial. It is also hard to believe—really believe with conviction. If you do, you are well on your way to being established in faith. If you do not, you will pray perhaps with hope, but rarely faith.

The crucial truth is, God has repeatedly promised to answer the prayer that meets certain conditions. For instance, Jesus said, “Whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive it all” (Matthew 21:22, NASB20).

Okay, you know that, but do you believe it, really believe it with conviction? Do you believe the holy truthfulness of God stands behind those words? That he would never break that promise just as he would never deny himself?

Conditions

One thing that makes this truth hard to believe is, there are conditions, and we have all bumped into them. God does not promise to answer all your prayers, or everyone’s prayers. We find one condition for answered prayer in this verse, and elsewhere in the Bible we find more.

Four important conditions to answered prayer are:

1. God answers the prayer of faith.

In the ESV, Matthew 21:22 says, “Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”

More daunting is James 1:6–8: “Let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (ESV).

We must have faith.

But I have a suggestion. In my experience, trying to vanquish even a hint of doubt can tie me in knots if I dwell on it. If I focus on myself rather than on God and his faithfulness and his promise to answer prayer, it dismantles faith and leaves me uncertain. We need to keep our focus primarily on God.

2. God answers prayers in accordance with his will.

This is big. First John 5:14–15 says, “This is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.”

In Scripture God has revealed much about his will, but much of God’s will is also hidden. Unfortunately, trying to know whether our desire is God’s will can again tie us in knots and easily sink our faith.

That raises a major problem. If we cannot pray with faith until we know God’s will with certainty, we will rarely be able to pray with faith.

In my experience, the solution has been this. If I pray in agreement with the general promises and character of God—for example, promises to heal one’s body, or God’s heart to save his people from what harms them—I assume my request is his will and I focus on his lavish promises to answer prayer.

Yes, there will be times when I am wrong about God’s specific will in a situation, but I cannot know that in advance. Just yesterday, for instance, I learned of the death of a former colleague. A week or two ago I had heard she was hospitalized and in serious condition, and I prayed for her and received by faith that she was healed based on God’s perfect faithfulness and truthfulness.

Nevertheless, she died. How does that not leave me disillusioned and ruin my ability in the future to pray with faith? My answer: I believe God’s hidden will was done. His ways are unsearchable.

In the future I will pray and still assume it is his will to heal and deliver, and I will trust in his promises to answer prayer. Although we are not God and thus cannot know his will with certainty, still he calls us to pray with faith and believe we do know his will based on what Scripture shows to be his ways.

3. God answers the prayers of the repentant, who walk in the light.

Psalm 66:18 says, “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (ESV).

No Christian is perfect, so the requirement for answered prayer is not perfection, but rather confession and repentance of known sin and faith in the forgiveness that is in Jesus.

First John 1:7–9 says, “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

4. God answers in his way and time.

When the children of Israel suffered under Pharaoh and cried out for deliverance, they could not have imagined the harrowing details of how God would actually rescue them from Egypt, or how long they would have to wait for it to come. In the same way, we probably cannot imagine when and how God will answer our prayer. If we cannot trust him and be patient, even for a lifetime, we cannot be sure of answers.

Hebrews 10:36 says, “You have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”

God will answer my prayers

These are the major conditions to answered prayer. You need to take them into account, but the more you focus on them, the harder it will be to believe with childlike simplicity that God hears and answers your prayers. If we focus on the conditions rather than the promise, we will rarely be able to believe with conviction that God will answer our prayer.

God has shown his gracious, loving willingness to answer our prayers by giving us breathtaking promises. That is where our focus needs to lie. This is God’s default position. He wants to answer your prayers. He loves you. The Lord wants to meet your needs and bless you in countless ways.

I do not need to know everything to pray with confidence. Faith is a matter of simple focus. In the Gospel narratives, this is how people came to Jesus and received what they desired. I believe God will answer my prayers because of his words and his ways. I choose to focus on God as perfectly faithful and truthful, and that he has given simple promises to hear and answer my prayers. His promise reveals his heart. I believe his heart and his word.

Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)

February 21, 2022July 26, 2022

Truth #2 – God Is Perfectly Faithful and True

In your mind, is God absolutely, meticulously, always, always, always faithful and true, or not?

Do you know anyone who, when it comes to being on time, is a perfectionist? If she tells you she will be somewhere by 7:00, you can be sure that she will walk through the door no later than 6:47? To her it is a matter of keeping her word. If she says she will be somewhere at 7:00, she wants others to know that she takes her words seriously. As the saying goes, her word is her bond. If you do business with her, you do not need to sign contracts. If she agrees to something verbally, she will follow through, even if it is to her loss, because the honesty and reliability of her words is more important to her than money, gain, or loss.

God is like her, only more so—perfectly more so. He has no human failings, weaknesses, or limits, and therefore, unlike humans, nothing can stop him from keeping his promises. A car breakdown can keep even the most time conscious among us from showing up when we scheduled, but nothing can stop God from doing what he says.

Perfectly faithful and true

We cannot conceive how important it is to God to keep his promises. He is perfect in all his ways, and thus Titus 1:2 says he “cannot lie.” He cannot do it. He is perfect in righteousness and truth. He loves the truth and hates lies. He has never lied and never will. Nothing is more certain than the reliability of God’s words. His words are perfectly trustworthy, absolutely worthy of belief.

2 Samuel 22:31 says, “This God—his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true.”

Proverbs 30:5 says, “Every word of God proves true.”

God told Jeremiah, “I am watching over my word to perform it” (1:12).

God is not like us

We, on the other hand, all know what it is to lie and be lied to, and perhaps we attribute to God our failing, because human beings do not believe every word that comes from the mouth of God. Sinners doubt and question God. They regard themselves, or the media or a person with a doctorate, as more reliable than God. They believe their own reasonings more than they believe his Scripture. How ridiculous!

That does not mean belief is always easy or logical. God tests people to see whether they will believe him no matter what. He allows his people to go through experiences that seem to deny what his Word says.

Take Abram (Abraham) for archetypal example. God promised to give him a child when he was 75-years-old. At that age, it would be natural for him to assume the promise would be fulfilled within months, not decades. But God ordained that he wait 25 years for the birth of Isaac. Meanwhile God changed Abram’s name to mean “father of nations.”

Detached from reality

So the nature of faith in God’s words is complete reliance on them even when circumstances deny them outright. To others, a believer appears to be detached from reality. But believers hold on to words—God’s words—not current circumstances. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, “We walk by faith, not by sight.”

The reason true believers hold on to God’s words is that God stands behind them. Even if we pray and do not see an answer for decades, we know our prayer has not been lost in space and time. Circumstances are nearly irrelevant to a true believer; what is relevant is the character of God and the words he has spoken. That is the enduring reality. Circumstances are a passing reality.

For the God who is truth itself has promised to hear the prayers of those who are in covenant with him and who believe. Again, for emphasis, this truthful God has promised repeatedly to hear and answer the prayers of believers in covenant with him though faith in Jesus, who pray according to the principles and specific promises of Scripture, thus according to his will.

For just one example, Jesus said, “Whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive it all” (NASB20).

Super important to God

Do you believe Jesus? Or do you not? This is crucial. This is what is at stake. Do you believe that God tells the truth always? This is important to God. He wants to make this manifest in each person. He wants to show forth whether you believe him or not. He bases salvation itself on faith (John 3:16). He answers prayer based on faith, not on the intensity of the need. Human faith matters to God (Hebrews 11:6).

Thus we should never be content to live in unbelief about anything he says. Jesus said, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22), and the context of this statement was one that many could regard as a presumptuous request (cursing a fig tree) if carried on by any other human.

So we believe in God’s words because we believe he is worthy. We honor him by believing him; we dishonor him by doubting him. We are convinced he utters his words with perfect seriousness and never forgets one of them.

Trusting God’s character

Such faith is why Sarah contributed much spiritually to the birth of Isaac when she was 90. It was not just Abraham who believed God; it was Sarah. Hebrews 11:11 says, “By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised.”

Sarah considered God to be faithful and true. This is the conviction of everyone who is established in faith. We believe “God is faithful” (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13; 2 Corinthians 1:18, Deuteronomy 7:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:24).

He is perfectly faithful and true. We believe therefore he is faithful to his words. We believe he has spoken promises. His promises include numerous promises to hear and answer our prayers.

We need to have the character of God clear in our minds as we consider his promises. Because God is perfectly faithful and true, we can rely completely on his word and promises.

February 14, 2022July 26, 2022

Truth #1 – God Rules over All with Unlimited, Sovereign, Almighty Power

Is God able to do what you ask?

Jeremiah said, “Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” (Jeremiah 32:17, ESV)

That should take your breath away and leave you pondering how a being can exist who is this powerful. This truth is well beyond the understanding of our limited, finite minds, so do not be surprised as it boggles yours. Nevertheless, accept it, for Scripture teaches it unmistakably. And regularly meditate on this truth and the Scriptures that teach it because it is the foundation of established faith.

A stubborn problem

This truth was at the crux of one, highly emotional interaction Jesus had with a distraught father. The man’s son had experienced life-threatening seizures for years. The father loved his son and had enough faith to believe that Jesus might be able to heal him. He came with his son to the location where Jesus and his disciples were ministering, but Jesus was not available, so the disciples prayed over the boy, without success.

The father was disappointed and began to argue with the disciples. Suddenly Jesus came on the scene and asked his disciples: “What are you arguing about with them?”

The father spoke up, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.”

Can Jesus do it?

Jesus called for the boy.

“And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.

“And Jesus asked his father, ‘How long has this been happening to him?’ And he said, ‘From childhood. And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.’”

Jesus could not let that statement pass by without objection. “If you can!” replied Jesus.

Imagine how laughable those words were to Jesus, through whom all things were created. I wonder if Jesus thought something like this: If you can! If you can! What do you mean, if you can! Do you know who I am? I was at the Father’s side as we together created every star and planet in the universe (John 1:1–2), and every animal that creeps on the earth, and every fish and bird and insect. I am the unique, eternal Son of God. I created the burning inferno you call the sun, and I maintain its fire and the light and life it gives to this planet.

If you can! Yes, I can! I am able. I am able to heal your son and do anything else my Father in heaven wants me to do. Nothing is impossible for him or for me!

And because nothing is impossible for us, nothing is impossible for the one who believes in us.

All things are possible

We do not know what Jesus thought, but verse 23 tells us what Jesus said: “All things are possible for one who believes.”

“Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, ‘I believe; help my unbelief!’ And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ‘You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.’

“And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, ‘He is dead.’ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.” (vv. 24–27)

God’s Almighty Power

Faith and unbelief are central to understanding this story, along with God’s unlimited power and those through whom his power works. Jesus brought all that into focus with his breathtaking statement, “All things are possible for one who believes.” (v. 23)

And the distraught father felt the weight of those words as he immediately cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief.” (v. 24)

Obviously all things are not possible for a human in himself. But when faith brings God’s power into the equation, everything changes, for all things are possible with God. That is what Jeremiah said, “Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” (Jeremiah 32:17, ESV)

So a foundational truth for those who are established in faith is the biblical understanding of God’s ability. God rules over all with unlimited, sovereign, almighty power.

Scriptures on God’s Almighty Power

You will not believe that in the depths of your soul without God’s revealing it to you by his Spirit, and he does that as you meditate on his Word. So here are some Scriptures through which God can cause you truly to believe that he rules over all with unlimited, sovereign, almighty power.

“The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.” (Psalm 103:19)

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalm 91:1)

Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.” (Matthew 10:29)

The angel who announced to Mary that she would conceive the Son of God in her virgin womb said to her: “Nothing will be impossible with God.” (Luke 1:37)

“Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” (Matthew 19:26)

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:36)

Genesis 2:4 says, “These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.”

Ephesians 3:20 says God “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us…”

Nehemiah prayed, “You are the LORD, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.” (Nehemiah 9:6)

Psalm 96:5 says, “All the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the LORD made the heavens.”

Isaiah 44:24 says, “Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: ‘I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself.’”

Isaiah 45:18 says, “Thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): ‘I am the LORD, and there is no other.’”

Psalm 104.

Nature does not rule over God

Is God able to do what you ask?

Most people might say in theory God can do anything, but in daily life they show they believe God can do nothing that contradicts what are called the laws of science. It is hard for them to imagine that divine miracles occur, and they do not expect them to happen when they pray. In their minds, a miracle would be quite a challenge for God to perform. They believe nature controls God rather than God controls nature.

But Scripture declares and shows that God has unlimited power to do as he pleases in the earth. He created and currently controls all natural and supernatural processes, things, and forces. The “laws of nature” are simply God’s normal way of running the natural world. Nature is subject to God; God is not subject to nature. God is not limited, not distant and withdrawn, not subject to the laws of nature, not weak. Rather he is powerful, present, and working as he pleases.

Your faith will be as large as your view of God’s ability. Your faith will be established as you believe God rules over all with unlimited, sovereign, almighty power.

February 7, 2022July 26, 2022

Established in Faith

When you are established in faith, you can truly know God and his ways.

In the Fall of 2012 I was working full-time for a publisher and part-time as pastor of the church I still serve. One day my supervisor called me to his office and informed me that the company was laying off a large segment of its work force due to financial deficits and that I was one of those losing his job.

I had never experienced that before. You hear stories of people losing jobs and being devastated, and you wonder what you would do if it happened to you. As my supervisor explained the process of ending my employment and as I walked back to my office, my thoughts and emotional reaction surprised me. Although suddenly confronted with a long list of uncertainties and losses, my heart was calm. I was disappointed, sure, but not afraid. I felt confident that God was in charge, that he would provide for me and my wife, and that we were beginning an exciting new chapter.

Certainly I have not always been so assured. I recall a decade prior to this layoff driving for several hours with a friend to a meeting, and as the conversation moved to plans for the future, I admitted to my sense of financial insecurity. In other words, I was afraid and told him so. I did not see how I would have enough money for old age. For years I lived with foreboding about this.

Why? Because I did not adequately know God. Yes, I was a regenerated Christian, a devoted follower of Christ, a pastor. I knew God in the sense that I was born again and knew the Bible well and understood many truths about God accurately. But I did not know him well enough to trust what he repeatedly promised in Scripture about providing for my needs.

Faith and knowledge

To the extent that we do not really believe what the Scripture says, we do not know him. True knowledge of God depends on faith. One can articulate the most intricate aspects of the doctrine of the Trinity yet find it difficult to joyfully say, “God loves me.”

This is why the subject of faith is so important for Christians who want to know God better. Our knowledge of God cannot exceed our faith. The quest to know God is far more about increasing faith than about adding theological information and answering our questions.

What Jesus expected

As you read the Gospels, have you ever noticed what Jesus repeatedly called attention to as he engaged with his disciples and strangers? He certainly talked a lot about love, obedience, righteousness, and truth. Nevertheless, though I have not tallied the occurrences, it seems to me he talked most about faith and unbelief. He regularly either commended people for their faith or admonished them for doubt. He expected people to have what we would classify as enormous faith. And he marveled when his disciples were afraid of drowning in a momentous tempest. He admonished them when they worried about going hungry in the desert although they had just two loaves of bread and a couple of fish and a crowd of 5,000 to feed. He bypassed others who doubted he could heal the sick and demon-afflicted.

Moreover, he taught things about faith that are, well, unbelievable. He said true believers would with a word be able to move mountains, perform miracles, replant trees in the sea, and receive whatever they ask. Not only can God do amazing things, so can we.

God’s will

This stretches one’s faith to the breaking point. Some Christians respond by reaching for that level of faith, though it is by no means easy (that is, unless you become as a child [Mark 10:15]) and it raises many questions. Others do not know what to do with these teachings. They might explain them away, regarding Christians who pursue such faith as unwise or unhinged, asking for trouble and disillusionment. Or they might accept the teachings, but shake their heads and regard them as personally unattainable. Some might say these teachings of Jesus are for those who have the special gift of faith.

Based on my reading of the Gospels, I do not think Jesus would say that. He expected big faith from everyone. Moreover, to limit strong faith to a spiritual elite is to relegate most Christians to a stunted knowledge of God, as described above, and the fear, insecurity, instability, weakness, and defeat that comes with it.

No, Jesus said, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). That is an imperative. Thus that is his will.

Scripture warns against being double-minded, saying to one who asks for wisdom, “Let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6–8, ESV).

Hebrews 11:6 says, “without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

Romans 14:23 says, “whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.”

Isaiah 7:9 says, “If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all” (NIV). The RSV says, “If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.”

The trouble with accepting unbelief

We cannot experience the Christian life described in the Bible without faith in what God says. So the idea that we should tolerate in ourselves an unbelief of anything God says in his Word is simply wrong. We must not be satisfied with anything less than believing all he says. Unbelief insults God, implying that he is not truthful, cannot be trusted, and is not Almighty. Being content with unbelief requires resisting Jesus, who is the “author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).

Therefore we must not rationalize and excuse our own unbelief. Unbelief will creep and grow. It is Satan’s foot in the door. It is an invitation to the unmanageable power of fear and the ruin that accompanies it.

Established in faith

So we need to be established in faith.

To establish means to put on a firm basis, to make stable or permanent.

I live on the 20^th floor of a high-rise. I have watched many high-rises built around us. Before the first floor is built, I have seen dozens of holes drilled deep in the soil and then filled with concrete. I have seen a quarter million tons of concrete, steel, and glass go into a tower one floor at a time. A high-rise is as established as a man-made building can be. It is heavy and has a big footprint. It is anchored to the ground with deep underground columns. A puff of wind will not knock it over, nor will a normal trembling in the earth crack it to pieces.

To establish something is to position it to endure. It is in balance, not teetering. It is grounded, not suspended in midair. It has a foundation. It is built on rock, not sand. It is consistent, not wavering. It is single-minded, not double-minded.

The 20 truths this series highlights will bring you to this place of established faith. Believing these 20 truths will make you an immovable, spiritual rock. And most importantly, you will know God as he is. You will know him in your experience, not just intellectually. And your Christian life will work the way the Bible describes.

How the Christian life works

The Bible describes the life of a Christian as one marked by peace and joy even in the midst of conflict; by strength abounding even in our weaknesses; by answered prayer even though for a long time we walk by faith and not by sight.

The Christian life does not work as the Bible describes without faith, without faith in everything the Bible promises, without faith in the worldview the Bible describes—a worldview in which God is almighty and responsive to the prayers of those who believe. That is not the worldview of most people in educated, Western cultures, for whom the idea of a God who can do miracles is inconceivable. If you want to know and experience God, you must abandon that worldview and fully adopt what the Bible says about God and his ways with us.

Each of these 20 truths plays a crucial role in the superstructure of established faith, so do not miss a week. You will learn to call these truths to mind before you pray and then pray with confidence. When you sense fear and unbelief slipping into your soul, you will call these truths to mind, and they will reestablish you in immovable confidence. You will learn to live all day, every day, established in faith—and thus knowing God better than ever before.

January 31, 2022January 3, 2022

The Wisdom of Asking, Seeking, and Knocking

If you desire wisdom, the question is not whether God also wants you to have it, but rather whether you will ask, seek, and knock for however long it takes.

Jesus said,
“Ask, and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find;
knock, and it will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives,
and the one who seeks finds,
and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”
(Matthew 7:7–8)

This is a lifestyle that Jesus commends to us, the asking, seeking, knocking way of living. He approves of this approach to daily life. It pleases him, and he responds to it, as shown in the Bible from beginning to end and in the ministry of Jesus to people who came to him asking, seeking, knocking. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Lord, let me recover my sight.” “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her.” “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”

For those of us who seek wisdom from God with specific questions, it is especially important for us to believe that and practice it. Those who desire wisdom need to ask, seek, and knock persistently. Those qualities need to be our mindset, our approach to life. Moreover, we must know that our gracious God delights in those who live this way.

A life of seeking wisdom

Each of these three ideas is important. They overlap, but are not the same.

At the heart of the mindset that Jesus commends, though, is seeking. Those who seek with all their heart ask and look and knock.

What Jesus commends and what therefore pleases God is an approach to life marked by exploration, learning, discovery—the quest for wisdom from Christ.

The opposite is complacency and self-satisfaction. Feeling we already know what we need to know. Being wise in one’s own eyes. A lack of curiosity. An unwillingness to think and experiment.

Mary the seeker of wisdom from Christ

Mary exemplifies a mindset of seeking more wisdom.

Luke 10:38–42 says, “Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” (ESV)

Mary made a choice to put priority on seeking wisdom. She sat at Jesus feet and listened because she wanted wisdom and sought wisdom. Seeking requires effort, discipline, and the setting of priorities. Martha had other commendable priorities, but seeking wisdom was not as important for her as it was for Mary.

A seeker recognizes a golden opportunity, and a golden source, for learning when it comes. Jesus is golden. The Scriptures are golden. The presence of the Holy Spirit is golden.

The scribe who asked for wisdom from Christ

One scribe exemplifies asking Jesus his burning question.

“One of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, ‘Which commandment is the most important of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The most important is, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” The second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ And the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.’ And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’” (Mark 12:28–34, ESV)

Studying the Law was this man’s life. For many years he had pondered the hundreds of laws contained in God’s covenant with Israel and recognized that while all God’s laws are important, some are more important, and some must capture the heart of all the laws. But which were these preeminent commands? Fear God? Serve God? Worship God? Trust God?

One’s burning question

When this sudden opportunity came to this scribe to hear Jesus, he recognized something extraordinary. But he didn’t stop at listening and admiring—he asked his burning question. And because he asked, he received an answer. And because he believed what Jesus answered, he received commendation from Jesus.

Seekers have the humility to ask. To ask questions is to admit you do not know everything. To ask questions of God is to show you believe he has the answers. James 1:5 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God.” To ask is to admit you lack.

Those who seek and ask please God. He enjoys those who are on a quest, who love and desire more wisdom, who want to learn and do something for God and with God. Seeking and asking from God glorifies him.

The thief who knocked

The condemned man nailed to the cross beside Jesus exemplifies a person who knocks at the door.

He did not begin that way. At first he joined the other condemned criminal in reviling Jesus (Matthew 27:44). But as he hung on the cross and beheld Jesus and heard his words, he had a change of heart. When the other criminal continued to rail at Jesus, the man “rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.’ And he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’” (Luke 23:40–42)

This condemned man did not say, “if you come into your kingdom,” but rather, “when you come into your kingdom.” He believed. He believed what the sign said, the sign nailed above the head of Jesus. In spite of what was happening to Jesus, the criminal believed that he really was the King of Israel, and not just a human king about to lose any chance at reigning on the throne, but rather the heavenly King, the Christ who would someday rule as the King of God’s kingdom.

And he recognized the opportunity. He wanted something, and he recognized a door by which he might get it.

Knocking

Knocking at a door is a multifaceted metaphor. Doors keep unwelcome people out of a building, or they allow welcome people in. Doors can be locked, and doors can be opened. Thus doors can be opportunities, or disappointments.

But the man wanted in, into the kingdom, and so he knocked. This thief did not merely seek and ask for knowledge and wisdom. He asked Jesus to do something for him. He asked a favor and sought the Lord’s grace.

Such requests please and glorify God, and he smiles on them. Jesus opened the door wide, answering him: “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). No instruction, but an open door into a world of wisdom.

Knocking on doors means asking for the opportunity to cooperate with others. Those who knock know they cannot obtain what they desire without others. It means asking for help, permission, entrance. It requires boldness, courage, initiative, assertion. You may be ignored and rejected, but your desire is strong enough to risk that.

We knock on doors on earth with people, institutions, and organizations, but if we do it prayerfully and seeking what we desire ultimately from God, we are actually knocking on heaven’s door.

Takeaways

1. Jesus wants, invites, encourages, and welcomes us to seek. He wants us to assume it is God’s will to answer those who pursue and persevere. God’s default attitude toward those on a quest is to answer, because he is gracious (Exodus 34:6).

2. Therefore there is something in our asking, seeking, and knocking for wisdom that pleases God. And there is something in our having and using wisdom that pleases God. Both fulfill his will and bring him glory.

3. Therefore the Father’s children are called to be inquirers, explorers, learners, discoverers, people on a quest for wisdom and entrance.

4. If you desire wisdom, the question is not whether God also wants you to have it, but rather whether you will have enough faith to keep asking, seeking, and knocking for however long it takes.

January 24, 2022January 3, 2022

Pray for Wisdom When Doors Open

Do we need to ask God for wisdom when the way forward seems obvious?

If we trust God and persevere, sooner or later he fulfills his promises. We come to a turning point when our hopes near their fulfillment. The company for which you have always wanted to work gives you a job interview. The person in whom you have romantic interest agrees to a date. The big-ticket item you have long wanted to own goes on sale, and you have saved enough to buy it. The university you would love to attend accepts your application.

At times like these, who needs to pray about it? Who needs special wisdom? The way seems clear. And we might fear that God will communicate something we do not want to hear.

But when David came to such a hoped-for turning point, he had a different approach.

When doors open

The turning point for him came when King Saul died in battle. For years the insanely jealous king had been trying to kill David. Suddenly there was a power vacuum in the nation. Who would be the next king? David had been a famous battle hero, the man who slew Goliath, the man who as a military commander had victories wherever he turned. When he returned from battle, the women sang, “Saul has slain his thousands, David his tens of thousands.”

Even more important, years before this turn of events the prophet Samuel had anointed him with oil to be king. At this propitious point, how natural it would have been for David to rely on his own wisdom and pursue his personal desire.

But David had a better approach.

Even when the next step seems obvious, check in with God

Second Samuel 2:1–4 says:

“After this David inquired of the LORD, ‘Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?’ And the LORD said to him, ‘Go up.’ David said, ‘To which shall I go up?’ And he said, ‘To Hebron.’ So David went up there, and his two wives also, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. And David brought up his men who were with him, everyone with his household, and they lived in the towns of Hebron. And the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.”

The takeaway from this story is, when turning points come that are the desire of one’s heart, we should still inquire of God for wisdom before we move forward. We need the Lord’s wisdom for matters like what to do, how to do it, and when to do it.

In David’s case, there were no surprises in what God revealed. It made sense to go into Judah because David was of the tribe of Judah; the people would probably look for a new leader; and they would be more likely to choose someone who is present. Furthermore it made sense to move into Hebron because it was a leading city.

Q & A

One further takeaway from this story is what it reveals about God’s answers to questions. God succinctly answered David’s questions and stopped. He gave two answers, each comprising two words (in English).

David: “Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?”

The Lord: “Go up.”

David: “To which shall I go up?”

The Lord: “To Hebron.”

Of course, God works differently in different times and situations, but here at least he did not give many step-by-step instructions. He was willing to tell David which city he should move to, but he did not say that until David in his second question asked specifically. And that was the end of what God wanted to reveal.

The lesson for us is, pray for wisdom specifically. Begin at the beginning without making any assumptions. Then request specifics. In this way, you walk in surrender to the Lord and acknowledge his rule. In his time he will tell you as much wisdom as he wants you to know.

When we cannot wait

Of course in many situations if we do not feel that God has communicated further wisdom to us, we cannot wait. We have to decide and act. When that is the case, pray for wisdom and then make the decision that seems best in light of what you know of God’s will and the wisdom you already have.

Do not be surprised if God does not carry on a conversation with you in answer to your questions. He will communicate his wisdom to you in the way that is best for you, at the time that is best. Trust him and be patient.

However long it takes, in the end learning to seek God for wisdom will enable you to know and trust God more.

January 17, 2022January 3, 2022

Pray for Wisdom by Inquiring of God in the Deep of Night

What is different when we inquire of God at night?

Yesterday morning I awoke around 2:30 and began thinking. I thought about things that regularly occupy my mind: the ministry of our church and what I am preaching and writing. My thoughts were so clear and focused that I gave up on sleep and prayed and thought productively until 4:30 and then got out of bed and went to my computer to record my thoughts and think more. I outlined this post.

It is not unusual for me to do some of my best thinking in the middle of the night, as well as some of my worst. I learned decades ago that fear is worst in the middle of the night. Psalm 91:5 refers to “the terror of the night.” Whether positive or negative, then, something about our mind and spirit in the deep of night is more intense, clear, and focused.

Thoughts of a different quality

During the night our human spirit seems to be more awake, active, even dominant as the mysterious world of our dreams unfolds. But I do not think such spiritual sensitivity is simply a matter of dreaming. Rather, I think our spiritual perceptions can be stronger at that time.

God spoke to David during the night. David said, “I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me” (Psalm 16:7, ESV). The NASB20 translates that, “Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.” So the Hebrew adverb ’aph can be translated “also” as well as “indeed.”

The example of Jesus

Isaiah’s Servant of the Lord, namely Jesus, experienced the same thing. Isaiah 50:4–5 says, “The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning he awakens; he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught. The Lord GOD has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious; I turned not backward” (ESV). So the Father spoke to Jesus early in the morning.

Mark also records that. “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, [Jesus] departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, ‘Everyone is looking for you.’ And he said to them, ‘Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out’” (Mark 1:35–38). It appears that Jesus heard from the Father during that time of prayer that he was supposed to travel to preach elsewhere.

Choosing the Twelve

In Luke’s Gospel, the implication is unavoidable that God told Jesus whom to select as his twelve disciples during the deep of night.

Luke 6:12–13 says, “In these days [Jesus] went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles.”

Therefore the deep of night, or early morning, can be especially productive times to obtain the wisdom we seek.

All night is a long time

Long periods of prayer can also help. The verse above says Jesus prayed all night, which could mean I guess six to ten hours. If Jesus was focused most of that time on the identity of the twelve, that is a long time to receive just twelve names. With efficient communication, God could have voiced those names in less than a minute. But it lasted many hours.

By our measures God can be slow and long. When Moses ascended Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments, he had to wait seven days before he could actually enter the cloud of glory. Exodus 24:15–16 says, “Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the LORD dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud.”

It could be that it will require an extended time of prayer for you to receive the wisdom you seek.

Takeaway

The problem: We are busy and distracted in a normal day, and that makes it hard to get clarity, connection, and focus with God. We may fail to give God our undivided attention for a long enough time for him to do all he desires in us as he imparts wisdom. Moreover, our culture and technology condition us to want everything instantly.

The solution: To obtain the wisdom we need, sometimes we need to inquire of God deep into the night or in the dark of early morning.

January 3, 2022December 19, 2021

Pray for Wisdom and Read Scripture

When we inquire of God for wisdom, the Bible helps us find answers.

When you seek particular wisdom from God, Scripture should play an important role.

Psalm 119:24 says, “Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors.”

Therefore as you seek wisdom, God’s words can counsel you.

Likewise Psalm 119:98–99 says, “Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. ⁹⁹ I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation.”

Therefore God’s commands not only tell us what God expects of us, but they also make us wise, which is again what we seek. To get that wisdom verse 99 says you should engage with Scripture in meditation. Repeat it over and over, break it down word by word and phrase by phrase, imagine what the words picture, draw implications from its assertions, trust its promises, think of ways to apply it.

Moreover, ask the Lord where to read Scripture to find the answer to your inquiry. That guidance can come in various ways. He might guide your heart in that very session of prayer, or he might do so a month or a year later. He might create an interest in reading a particular book of the Bible. Or as you follow your annual Bible-reading plan, he might providentially bring you to that place in Scripture where the needed wisdom lies. If you maintain your faith and your inquiry, your eyes will fall sooner or later on Bible verses that help answer your question, and you will recognize them as such.

How Scripture imparts the wisdom we seek

Therefore, when you ask God for wisdom on any matter, read the Bible with that question in mind, search Scripture for what it says on the subject, and meditate on relevant passages.

This is important for four reasons:

1. God might have spoken directly to the subject in his Word, and if not, he has given relevant principles.

For example, if a man asks for wisdom about how to improve his marriage, he can find specific help in Ephesians 5:22–33. On the other hand, if a woman asks for wisdom about how to protect her dog from catching ticks, she will not find anything in the Bible on that specific topic, but there might be relevant principles.

2. Setting your mind on Scripture brings the presence of God within.

Regardless of whether the Bible speaks to the question, whenever we read Scripture long enough with humility, faith, and reverence, our awareness of his presence increases. Our fellowship with God becomes more real, and the mind of Christ prevails in our mind. God’s presence and the wisdom we seek go well together.

3. Whatever Scripture says shapes you with wisdom in general and thus makes your mind a good environment for wisdom.

A heart filled with wisdom is a conducive place, a suitable environment, for the revealing of further wisdom on any specific subject. When you saturate your mind with Scripture, your mind develops an ecosystem of wisdom where further wisdom finds rich soil for growth.

4. Reading Scripture sanctifies you.

Jesus said, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).

Sanctification puts you in a right place with God and thus better able to receive from him.

The Bible tells several stories of people who sought information from God even though they had no intention of having a holy relationship with God. The results were negative.

For example, 1 Samuel 28 tells how King Saul inquired of God when he and his army faced an overwhelming enemy. But Saul had long been far from God and hardened in heart, so the Lord did not answer.

Still, Saul wanted information about the future, so he went to a fortune teller to see if she could contact the dead for the help he wanted. He had reached the ultimate, muddy bottom of his pathetic life, and he died in battle hours later.

(For other examples of people who inquired of God for information while rejecting God’s will for their lives, see Jeremiah 42; Ezekiel 20:1–32 [especially v. 31], and 1 Kings 22:1–40.)

Because we sin in many ways, we always need God’s counsel not only for our specific inquiry, but for the general sanctification of our lives. Holiness makes us better receivers of wisdom.

Takeaway

When we pray for wisdom, we should approach Scripture as our counselor and be open to all God wants to say to us, not just the answer to our question.

We should desire the full light of Jesus in his Word, both the street light and the focused laser beam. The way to have eyes that see and ears that hear God’s wisdom is to hunger for all he says, in all ways, about all things.

December 27, 2021December 19, 2021

Pray for Wisdom with Reliance on the Holy Spirit

When we pray for wisdom with reliance on the Holy Spirit, he imparts wisdom to us normally from within, in a way that seems like our own thoughts or feelings, but with divine clarity and calm.

As you seek wisdom for everything that matters to you, it is helpful to reflect on which member of the Trinity actually illumines your mind with that wisdom.

Jesus said, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John 14:26, ESV).

First John 2:20, 27 says, “You have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge…. The anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.”

Pray for Wisdom with Reliance on the Holy Spirit

The One who imparts wisdom to you is God the Holy Spirit. His presence on you and in you is called “the anointing,” and thus in one sense his presence resembles oil smeared on your skin.

But his anointing goes deeper. His anointing is not merely on the surface. It “abides in you” (1 John 2:27). First Corinthians 6:19 says, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?”

1 Corinthians 6:17 says, “He who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.”

So the God who teaches you is not distant, out there somewhere external to you. Rather, he is as near to you as he can possibly be. His Holy Spirit has united with your human spirit. He now indwells you. You are the temple of the Holy Spirit. He has anointed you as if smearing you with oil or pouring into you as into an oil jar.

As you seek wisdom for what matters to you, this means the divine person who will reveal that wisdom is as near as your own beating heart. And when you receive that wisdom, it will typically seem as though you conceived it yourself, rather than it coming like a voice from outside.

Your ceiling

Because you as a Christian have the Holy Spirit, your ceiling for wisdom is not your IQ—whatever that is in the physical human brain and immaterial spirit, and whatever it is that determines it. Rather, your ceiling is the divine knowledge of the Holy Spirit, which is unlimited.

First Corinthians 2:11–12 says, “No one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.”

The Holy Spirit is able to reveal wisdom and knowledge to you in a way that also gives understanding. He is not limited like a human teacher, who can only explain and illustrate and so on, and then it is up to you to comprehend. A human teacher cannot get inside of your mind and actually enable you to understand—actually turn on the lights. But the Holy Spirit can do that.

The Holy Spirit understands the deepest thoughts of God, and he enables us to understand what he wants us to know.

What God is willing to teach you

Moreover, the Holy Spirit does not limit what he will teach about.

First John 2:27 says, “His anointing teaches you about everything.”

John 14:26 says, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

This verse highlights what it means to have inside of you the Holy Spirit himself.

“the Helper” – Do you need help? Do you feel your limitations? Do you lack wisdom? The Holy Spirit lives in you in order to help you. He knows you need help and wants to give it to you. You are not asking him to do something outside of his divine role.

“whom the Father will send in my name” – The Holy Spirit cooperates with the other members of the Trinity to help you. He applies to you all the unlimited resources of the Sovereign Father and his beloved Son.

“he will teach you” – Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit himself will teach you. Trust him and be patient. He is the master teacher, along with the Father and the Son the most competent instructor in the universe. Place yourself in his competent hands as a teachable student.

“all things” – Things like understanding the Bible; overcoming stubborn sin; managing your work, body, emotions, ministry, and finances; organizing your home and possessions; overcoming challenges and problems; and having a healthy marriage, single life, family, and relationships of all kinds.

“bring to your remembrance” – He not only teaches what you do not know, he helps you remember what you have forgotten.

How George Washington Carver learned to help poor farmers

George Washington Carver’s scientific work on behalf of poor farmers is an example of the Holy Spirit’s willingness to help those who depend on him with anything they need to know. A Christian and botanist who lived from 1864 to 1943, Carver taught at the Tuskegee Institute in the years after the emancipation of slaves in America and devoted his work to helping former slaves become self-sustaining farmers.

One significant challenge they faced was poor soil depleted of nitrogen by generations of planting cotton year after year. To address that need Carver taught the necessity of crop rotation. In alternating seasons, farmers needed to plant crops like peanuts and sweet potatoes, which restored nitrogen to the soil. But peanuts were not a profitable crop, and farmers balked. Carver realized he needed to create demand by discovering new uses for them.

So he prayed for God’s understanding, and then he went into his lab, which he called “God’s little laboratory,” and followed God’s leading.

Over time he identified more than 300 uses for the peanut and published 105 food recipes using peanuts.

To demonstrate the value of his discoveries, writes Glenn Clark, “He himself took a plot of land that was 19 acres of the worst land in Alabama to experiment on to find what could be done to improve production. The first year it brought him a net loss of $16.25 an acre. After his first year of scientific treatment and cultivation it showed a profit of $4.00 [an acre]. Within another year the profit was $40.00 an acre and every following year brought better returns.”¹

For perspective, at the time, in the South “most of the farmers contrive their best to live on an average cash income of $310 a year per family of five persons.”¹

Quotations from George Washington Carver

Carver said:

“As I worked on projects which fulfilled a real human need, forces were working through me which amazed me. I would often go to sleep with an apparently insoluble problem. When I woke, the answer was there.”

“Believe. The promises of God are real. They are as real, as solid, yes infinitely more solid than this table which the materialist so thoroughly believes in. If you would only believe, O ye of little faith.”

“God is going to reveal to us things he never revealed before if we put our hands in his. No books ever go into my laboratory. The thing I am to do and the way of doing it are revealed to me. I never have to grope for methods. The method is revealed to me the moment I am inspired to create something new. Without God to draw aside the curtain I would be helpless.”

“There is no shortcut to achievement.”

“Start where you are, with what you have. Make something of it and never be satisfied.”

“Anything will give up its secrets if you love it enough. Not only have I found that when I talk to the little flower or to the little peanut they will give up their secrets, but I have found that when I silently commune with people they give up their secrets also if you love them enough.”

Honors

That Carver helped poor farmers, accomplished extraordinary things, and had enormous positive effects on his fellow Americans both black and white is beyond question.

After Carver died in 1943, “President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated $30,000 for the George Washington Carver National Monument west-southwest of Diamond, Missouri, the area where Carver had spent time in his childhood. This was the first national monument dedicated to an African American and the first to honor someone other than a president.”²

Among many more honors and recognitions, “in 1977, Carver was elected to the Hall of Fame for Great Americans. In 1990, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. In 1994, Iowa State University awarded Carver a Doctor of Humane Letters. In 2000, Carver was a charter inductee in the USDA Hall of Heroes as the ‘Father of Chemurgy.’ In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed George Washington Carver as one of 100 Greatest African Americans.”²

(Lawrence Elliott’s biography on Carver inspired me: George Washington Carver: The Man Who Overcame. It is probably available at your library.)

Life principle

When seeking God’s wisdom, people often look for external guidance of some sort, such as a voice or a sign, or for dramatic guidance that is unlike their normal experience. But it is God the Holy Spirit who imparts wisdom to you, normally from within your human spirit, in a way that will usually feel like your own thoughts or feelings, but with divine clarity and calm.

God wants to help you if you will persevere. The Holy Spirit is your helper. Like Carver, we can learn to work with him. He will teach us what we need to know.

A Prayer: Lord, teach me how to work with the Holy Spirit. Teach me how to receive wisdom and help from him. Holy Spirit, I need and request your help in ________. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1. Glenn Clark, “The Man Who Talks with the Flowers,” (Kindle location 568 of 638)

2. Wikipedia, “George Washington Carver”

December 20, 2021December 20, 2021

Newsletter for December, 2021

Merry Christmas! May this newsletter be my holy kiss to you (1 Thessalonians 5:26) for this happy season.

I’m looking forward to having all our family with us this year for a downtown Chicago Christmas.

Happenings

Since my last newsletter the biggest event for me and my family was the joyous marriage of my son Aaron to his fiancé Lucia. We will never forget how beautiful the wedding was and how blessed we were to have family, church members, and friends sharing this special time.

Aaron and Lucia have attended our church for years, but it was the virus lockdown that altered their schedules enough to where they got interested in each other and took time to do things together. In all things God works for the good!

The picture below is of my four sons, from the left: Brian, Aaron, Ben, and Mark (I do not yet have photos from the wedding of them with their wives and children).

Amplify Conference

Another important happening for me over the last six months was an evangelism conference I attended in October. It is an annual event sponsored by the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College, called Amplify.

What made this important to me was its relationship

(a) to one of the driving passions in my life, which is leading others to faith in Christ,

(b) to the main thing for which I have been inquiring of the Lord for several years, which is how to do evangelism successfully, and

(c) to the topic I have been writing about on the blog since August: How to Get Wisdom for Everything That Matters to You.

Since finding wisdom for successful evangelism is a focus of my life, when I saw an ad for the conference, I said, I should go to that. Although I did not want to take two full days out of my schedule, it does not make sense to pray daily for wisdom on a subject and not pay attention to what others who have been successful at it are saying. God often answers our questions by speaking to us through other people and their content in books, videos, and so on.

The conference was outstanding, definitely worth my time. I came away with numerous resources that I am confident will help us. And I believe this was one piece of how God is answering my prayer for wisdom to successfully lead others to faith in Christ.

Fun stuff

We bought a bread machine, and I’m using it weekly. Cuisinart model CBK-110P1, where have you been all my life! I appreciate being able to control what ingredients are in my bread, the fresh-baked taste, and the smell of bread baking in the kitchen for hours.