DAY 61: Pray for me…

Read: Romans 15:23-16:9

Think: Paul’s request to the believers—the brothers and sisters in Rome—is to “join in my struggle by praying to God for me. Do this because of your love for me, given by the Holy Spirit.” One of my favorite books is Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer because it describes a contemporary, 20th century setting (World War II) in which the author is passionately instructing believers to struggle for each other in prayer. Both Paul and Bonhoeffer teach that prayer is a battleground in which we plead to God on behalf of others. Throughout the New Testament, prayer is the physical and virtual place where believers meet God to “do” business. It is the posture in which believers came humbly to God, bringing every need to Him. Prayer was vitally important to the inner life of a believer—which is the very reason prayer was (and is) considered a struggle!

Act: Andrew Murray, 19th century author and prayer expert, issued a reminder to believers in his book, Christ in the School of Prayer, that “the devil’s greatest tool is to keep the believer from praying!” Take the challenge to pray continuously, spontaneously, and relentlessly until you see God’s hand move in the life of your family and your nation. Two ways to increase in prayer power and focus include: (1) Make an appointment with God in prayer today and everyday for the rest of your life. (2) Listen to God’s promptings throughout the day to pray spontaneous prayers when He brings someone to mind. (You might never know how God uses your obedience in prayer and intercession for others.)  Most importantly, don’t think of prayer as a passive activity. Instead, allow prayer to become one of your most powerful spiritual resources, fueled by tenacity, unwavering faith, endurance, and relentless hope.

Pray: Dear Jesus, I lay my time before You. Give me the willingness to plan ahead each day and make an appointment with You in which I can share my concerns, my needs, and the needs of those around me. I ask You to make me a prayer warrior who is faithful—the moment you prompt me—to struggle for those who need help and healing. Give me a great listening ear and praying heart, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 60: Paul’s Ambition and Passion

Read: Romans 15:1-22

Think: Paul is an itinerant evangelist. He can barely stay in one place before thinking of traveling to another area to share the Gospel. He wants the whole world to hear the Good News about Jesus Christ! Romans 15:20 explains his ambition and passion perfectly, “My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else.”

Act: One of the greatest advantages of planting a church on a peninsula is that we have been given a very specific plot of land in which to proclaim the Good News to those who might not have heard it! Our goal has been to equip the believers to reach out to those who are not church-goers, who are not familiar with the Gospel, or who (for whatever reason) have turned away from God. We have become fully aware, in our “sector of the world,” that there is a great need and a deep hunger for the Gospel. We want to share this Good News with everyone—that God sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins, and that He is a living, loving God who meets us right we are at. I encourage you to be a part of sharing the Gospel in your workplace, school, neighborhood or in those random places when God brings someone into your life who needs to hear this great Good News! And don’t forget to invite people regularly to your church so they might experience worship, community, and Christ alive in your congregation.

Pray: Dear Jesus, give me a desire to share the Good News in my “sector” of the world—my neighborhood, my school, my workplace, on an outreach team, or within my own family. I count it a privilege and honor, Lord, to share the Gospel, and I pray for more and more opportunities.  I love you, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 59: Build each other up!

Read: Romans 14:1-23

Think: In today’s reading, Paul is calling “the church” to be lovers of the weakest, build each other up, never cause another believer to stumble, and live in harmony. Wow! He is giving very specific teaching that requires…maturity. In other words, he is asking believers to live sacrificially and unselfishly which will result in the following:
“…living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God and others will approve of you, too. So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.”

Act: Paul is challenging those in the church to help young believers live above the culture. His teaching is reflected numerous times throughout other New Testament books, including our upcoming readings in I & II Corinthians. In Romans 14:13, he writes, “…Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.” My goal, as a pastor, has been to encourage the strongest in our church to present to the youngest and weakest in our church, how to live joyfully above the culture! We have made it an integral part of our 100 Days of Faith in Action to have super fun nights with all ages in our church—with rowdy games, lots of food, and much laughter. Why? We not only want to provide an atmosphere of safe fun, but to show a church body that it is possible to have incredible joy without alcohol or drugs. By this, we allow the Holy Spirit to give us joy and we have no part in bringing temptation into a weaker person’s life. Read today’s chapter again. Ask God to bring anything to your mind that you do that might cause a younger, weaker believer to stumble. Prayerfully consider giving this habit to God.

Pray: Dear Jesus, show me any area of my life or any habit that causes another believer to stumble. Give me courage to live sacrificially, to let go of what I might want to do in order to keep another believer from temptation. Grant me an extra measure of Your Holy Spirit’s power, love, courage and joy! Oh, how I need You. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 58: Live Decent Lives

Read: Romans 13:1-14

Think: Paul, in Romans 13, doesn’t sugar-coat, mince words, or side-step the “holy” standards of God. He says, “…remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living or quarreling and jealousy. Instead clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.” Paul doesn’t appear to be making a suggestion, but instead, he is calling believers to live decent lives for everyone to see. He is stating the obvious—darkness opposes the light and evil opposes the holy. He is very specific about what a believer’s life should and should not look like (seeming to have taken this from a portion of Galatians 5).

Act: Could you imagine these verses plastered on a hallway sign on a college dorm floor in 2015? Almost 2000 years after Paul wrote Romans 13, his words are still applicable, relatable, even relevant. It is amazing how God’s Word is “living, active, and sharp” for every culture and every generation (Hebrews 4:12). How does today’s passage specifically relate to your life? Where do you find Paul’s comments relevant or applicable to your life? Spend time pondering the urgency of this message in your own life, as well as in your sphere of influence…then respond to God in prayer.

Pray: Dear Jesus, I live in a culture that is opposed to Your Word. Give me the courage to live a life that clearly represents you. Help me to draw nearer to You by clothing myself in Your presence and putting on the shining armor of right living. Oh, how I need You. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 57: Give Yourself to God

Read: Romans 12:1-21

Think: Romans 12, to many people, is a game-changer. Paul, in verses 1-2, delivers both instruction and conviction saying, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” In any culture, this would be radical advice: give your body to God and think differently than the ways your culture thinks! It is certainly countercultural in America!

Act: Recently, I had the awesome responsibility and privilege of speaking to Viewpoint Church on Romans 12:1-2. (Click here to listen, if you missed it.) These two verses were very significant passages to me and our church because it was the basis of an original series that I wrote last year for our parents titled, “Living Above the Culture.” As I delivered the message, I included a number of practical ways we might “give our bodies to God” and let God “transform us by changing the way we think.” I instinctively knew, as I was sharing, that I was speaking words of both instruction and conviction. At the completion of my message, I sat down next to my husband and…sobbed. I couldn’t stop crying for almost 5 minutes, and I continued to choke up throughout the rest of the afternoon. Roger and I talked about why I was (and many of us were) so emotional at the end of the service. He and I determined that, perhaps, we got a glimpse of God’s grieving heart for the way our nation is lured by the culture much more than we whole-heartedly follow after God. Today, ask God what it is that you can do to please Him rather than grieve Him…then do it.

Pray: Dear Jesus. I want to give you my body as a living and holy sacrifice. Even in this quiet moment, show me anything that I do, see, watch, or say that doesn’t please You. Help me to confide in a mentor, confess to them, what you showed me. Give me the courage to turn from these things today and everyday. Oh how I need You, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 56: How Great is Our God!

Read: Romans 11:13-36

Think: In Romans 11, Paul continues to refer to Old Testament verses to explain God. Quoting Isaiah 40, he writes, “For who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give Him advice?” Paul brings the reader face-to-face with his or her humanity in light of God’s sovereignty. Critical to Paul’s overarching explanation of God is the underlying conviction that God’s ways are beyond anyone’s understanding!

Act: In our busy daily lives, rarely do we stop to think about how great God is, how deep is His love, how unfathomable is His wisdom, and how enduring is His patience. In Romans 11, Paul wants every reader to stop and consider how great and how merciful is our God! If and as we consider God’s greatness, we would pray with more humility, love more sacrificially, and give our lives more fully to the One who sees all, knows all, and controls all things. Today, pray on your knees. Humble your heart before the living, loving God. Give Him the glory and honor that He deserves (Romans 11:36).

Pray: Dear Lord, I believe that “everything comes from You, exists by Your power and is intended for your glory—forever!” Today, make me more aware of your sovereignty. Grant me a new awareness of how powerful You are, not only in my life, but throughout the world. I love You, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 55: Faith Comes from Hearing

Read: Romans 10:14-11:12

Think: By now, the reader is convinced that Paul wants everyone to share the Gospel message with others. Paul, in essence, is enlisting an army of others who will, like him, take the Good News message (the Great Commission) to communities, cities and regions where the Gospel has never been preached. In today’s reading, you can almost hear his voice get louder and grow more intense as he says, “But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, ‘How beautiful are the feet of the messengers who bring the good news!’ But not everyone welcomes the Good News, for Isaiah the prophet said, ‘Lord, who has believed our message?’ So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.’” 

Act: Do you regularly share the Good News? Is it always on your mind to tell others about Jesus? Do you have an extra supply of Bibles on hand to give to people who are seeking God? Do you know how to share the Gospel using Romans Road (Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, and 10:9-10)? I hope so! God needs you on His team of messengers to bring the good news message to your neighborhood, workplace, community, or campus. What is one thing you can do today to become a more effective messenger of the Gospel?

Pray: Dear Lord, show me my “sector” in which I am to share the Gospel. Show me what I need to do today to become more equipped and effective as a messenger of this great Good News. And please give me more courage to articulate the Gospel anytime You need me to share with a friend or a stranger. I’m on Your team! Amen.

Be full of faith today!