Swing The Bat Of Prayer

January 14, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Swing the batMy son Harrison plays high school baseball. Let’s just imagine that I’m his hitting coach. In order for this relationship to benefit him, a couple of things have to occur:

  1. He has to want to improve, and
  2. He has to want to receive instruction from me.

If he thinks he knows it all already, or if he wants to just hang out with the other guys on the team to try to pick up some tips by being around them, then my role of a coach isn’t going to benefit him much.

Let’s say that Harrison knows he needs to improve, and he’s willing to listen to my instruction. We head out for some batting practice, and he lets pitch after pitch sail by him without ever swinging at the ball. If he never swings the bat, there’s only one piece of advice I can give him: Swing the bat!

The same things hold true for us if we want to improve as pray-ers. We have to want to improve, and we have have to be willing to receive instruction from the Coach (in this case, the Holy Spirit). But we also have to give Him something to work with. If we let opportunity after opportunity sail by without praying about it, there’s only one piece of advice the Spirit can give us: Pray!

Jesus said the Holy Spirit would help lead us into oneness with Him—

The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. (John 14:26)

If we want to become better pray-ers, here’s how the Holy Spirit can help:

  • You have to admit that you need help in your prayer life.
  • You need to read your Bible (the everything that God says to you), and use God’s Word to help form your prayers.
  • Then, pray… swing the bat of prayer! 
  • As you pray, listen to the voice of the the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, helping you to refine your prayers.

Your prayer time can become more meaningful, if you will tune into the Holy Spirit, and give Him something to work with.

To check out the others messages in this series on prayer called Praying Circles, please click here.

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Praying The Word

January 13, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Dietrich BonhoefferI shared this quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer this morning in my message—

“Meditation lets us be alone with the Word. …In our meditation we ponder the chosen text on the strength of the promise that it has something utterly personal to say to us for this day and for our Christian life, that it is not only God’s Word for the Church, but also God’s Word for us individually. We expose ourselves to the specific Word until it addresses us personally.”

Using the Bible as your prayer guide will take your prayers to a whole new level!

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The Pastor & Prayer

January 11, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

E.M. BoundsMy fellow pastor, please consider these wise words from E.M. Bounds—

“No one having any knowledge of the existing facts, will deny the comparative lack of expository preaching in the pulpit effort of today. And none, we should, at least, imagine, will do other than lament the lack. Topical preaching, polemical preaching, historical preaching, and other forms of sermonic output have, one supposes, their rightful and opportune uses. But expository preaching—the prayerful expounding of the Word of God is preaching that is preaching—pulpit effort par excellence. For its successful accomplishment, however, a preacher needs must be a man of prayer. For every hour spent in his study-chair, he will have to spend two upon his knees.”

I believe God will be honored if we spend twice as much time praying our sermons as we do preparing our sermons. 

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Thursdays With Oswald—New Eyes Of Grace

January 10, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

New Eyes Of Grace

     Wherever the grace of God works effectually in a man’s inner nature, his nervous system is altered and the external world begins to take on a new guise. Why? Because he has a new disposition. “If any man is in Christ Jesus,” his nervous system will prove that he is a “new creature,” and he will begin to see things differently. 

Heaven above is a brighter blue,

Earth around is a sweeter green;

Something lives in every hue

Christless eyes have never seen:

Birds with gladder songs o’erflow,

Flowers with deeper beauties shine,

Since I know, as now I know,

I am His and He is mine. [Loved With Everlasting Love by George Wade Robinson] 

From Biblical Psychology 

There is so much more to see, if we’ll just let God open our eyes. One of the byproducts of His grace: Experiencing the world through our five senses which are now fully alive.

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God Chose You

January 9, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

Sometimes life is hard and we can lose sight of a very important fact. Through the trials, and the testings, and the difficult situations, and the valleys, and the times we’re tempted to throw in the towel, you must remember this one fact…

God chose to give you birth (see James 1:18).

You are not an accident.

You are not an after-thought.

You are not an unintended consequence.

God chose to give you birth.

He planned for you to be here.

Therefore He pours out His lavish gifts, including the greatest gift of all—eternal life.

Think about it: What greater proof is there that God chose you than He sent His Son to earth to make it possible for you to live with Him forever! 

Let those words sink in—GOD WANTS YOU WITH HIM FOREVER!

God chose to give you birth, and to give you a second birth—eternal life.

For God so loved you, that He gave His One and Only Son as a sacrifice for your sins. If you believe that, you will spend eternity with Him! 

God chose you!

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? My Patreon supporters get behind-the-scenes access to exclusive materials. Like some exclusive quotes from a book I just reviewed. ◀︎◀︎

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I Am Doulos

January 8, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

In this era of LinkedIn, Facebook, X, Instagram, and the like, we are so concerned about connections, friends, followers, and likes that it consumes our thoughts.

We self-promote and pray for popularity.

Well, I don’t think anyone is actually brazen enough to pray, “God, make me popular.” But we often live as if popularity was the answer to a prayer.

We gain our status by who we know, what we’ve done, what we are doing, the places we’ve worked, and the number of “friends,” “followers” and “connections” we have accumulated.

James wrote a book of the Bible. As he opened the letter he introduced himself. He could have said:

  • I am the half-brother of Jesus
  • I am the leader of the Christian Church
  • I chaired the Jerusalem Council

Instead he simply said, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Not even the servant, as if he were distinguished among others, but the indefinite article a servant. The Greek word here (doulos) means:

  • A slave
  • “One who gives himself up to another’s will for Christ to use his service to advance His cause among men” (Strong’s Greek Dictionary)
  • Devoted to another to the disregard of one’s own interests

Any connections, friends, followers, skills, talents, or opportunities I have are wholly God’s. He gave them to me so I could serve Him and serve others. I am merely a steward of what He’s given me—I AM DOULOS.

(To see a negative example of this, check out my post Trading Truth for Popularity.)

My desire for my eulogy and my tombstone is for it to simply say: “He was a servant.”

I am living to hear my Master say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? My Patreon supporters get behind-the-scenes access to exclusive materials. ◀︎◀︎

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Jesus: A Theography (book review)

January 7, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Jesus A TheographyVery rarely do I say what I’m going to say about Jesus: A Theography by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola: This is a must-read!

Jesus does such an amazing job of showing Christ in all His fullness throughout the entire Bible, that I cannot recommend it highly enough. It’s a weighty read covering a weighty subject. At over 300 pages of text, 20+ pages of quotes from imminent theologians, and nearly 100 pages of end notes, this book gives you so much to contemplate. As much as I enjoy speed reading my books, this was a book that I had to read and digest slowly, as there was so much to process in each paragraph.

Far too many people think Jesus “showed up” in the New Testament. But Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola do a masterful job of weaving together the Old and New Testament texts (or, as the authors call them, the First and Second Testaments), to show Christ in all His fullness. If you are among those who have only seen Jesus in the New/Second Testament, you are about to have your paradigm totally rocked!

Let me restate my opening paragraph again—If you want to know more about Jesus Christ, Jesus: A Theography is a must-read!

I am a Thomas Nelson book reviewer.

Check out some quotes from this book here.

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Keep Striking

January 7, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

Keep strikingThere is an unusual story in 2 Kings about King Jehoash. Elisha the prophet was on his deathbed, Israel was morally bankrupt and on the brink of defeat. The entire Israeli army had been reduced to fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand infantry. It was in this hour of desperation that Jehoash sought out the counsel of Elisha.

Elisha said [to Jehoash], “Get a bow and some arrows,” and he did so. “Take the bow in your hands,” he said to the king of Israel. When he had taken it, Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.

“Open the east window,” he said, and he opened it. “Shoot!” Elisha said, and he shot. “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Aram!” Elisha declared. “You will completely destroy the Arameans at Aphek.”

Then he said, “Take the arrows,” and the king took them. Elisha told him, “Strike the ground.” He struck it three times and stopped. The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.”

What made Elisha angry is what I believe makes God angry. Jehoash came to God when the situation seemed impossible, but he wouldn’t pray it through. It’s almost as if he felt like three times was enough to pray, and then he needed to take it from there.

God wants us to pray BIG, but He also wants us to pray LONG.

We need to keep striking the ground (or as Mark Batterson would say, keep drawing the circle) until God answers. God gave Jehoash a promise of victory, but Jehoash didn’t pray long enough to see it through.

What are you praying for? What promise has God given you? God is glorified when you place your request in His hands, and leave it there. Keep on praying. Keep on striking. Keep on circling until God brings about what He has promised!

To check out the others messages in this series on prayer called Praying Circles, please click here.

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Exhortation To Prayer

January 6, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

William CowperThis morning I shared one stanza from this wonderful poem by William Cowper (I have highlighted that stanza below) called Exhortation To Prayer. Here is the full poem—

What various hindrances we meet

In coming to a mercy-seat!

Yet who that knows the worth of prayer,

But wishes to be often there?

Prayer makes the darken’d cloud withdraw,

Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw,

Gives exercise to faith and love,

Brings every blessing from above.

Restraining prayer, we cease to fight, 

Prayer makes the Christian’s armor bright; 

And satan trembles when he sees 

The weakest saint upon his knees.

While Moses stood with arms spread wide,

Success was found on Israel’s side;

But when through weariness they fail’d,

That moment Amalek prevail’d.

Have you no words? Ah! think again,

Words flow apace when you complain,

And fill your fellow-creature’s ear

With the sad tale of all your care.

Were half the breath thus vainly spent

To Heaven in supplication sent,

Your cheerful song would oftener be,

“Hear what the Lord has done for me.”

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Week Of Prayer Activities

January 6, 2013 — Craig T. Owens

2013 Week of Prayer headerThe church moves forward on her knees. So I can think of no better way to start the year than with this renewed call to prayer.

Join us each Sunday in January as we learn about Praying Circles.

Join us each day January 6-11 as we dedicate ourselves to a week of prayer. You can download a prayer guide by clicking here → Week of prayer – prayer guide ←

Join us at the church on Friday, January 11, for a prayer concert. We’ll be praying from 6-7pm, and then our worship team will lead us in singing our prayers and praises to our God.

Consider these wise words of E.M. Bounds…

Sacred work—church activities—may so engage and absorb us as to hinder praying, and when this is the case, evil results always follow. It is better to let the work go by default than to let the praying go by neglect. Whatever affects the intensity of our praying affects the value of our work. …How easily men, even leaders in Zion, be led by the insidious wiles of satan to cut short our praying in the interests of the work! How easy to neglect prayer or abbreviate our praying simply by the plea that we have church work on our hands. satan has effectively disarmed us when he can keep us too busy doing things to stop and pray.

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