Patience is a leadership builder, just as surely as impatience is a leadership killer. When leaders repeatedly make poor choices because of their impatience, there is only one way to fix this leadership killer—lengthen the fuse.
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” —Henry David Thoreau
“Christian sorrow leads to repentance; repentance leads to forgiveness; and forgiveness leads to true joy over one’s reconciliation with God.” —Henry Halley, commenting on James 4:9-10; c.f. Psalm 32:1
“People who were not Christians themselves helped me to Christianity. But usually it is those who know Him that bring Him to others. That is why the Church, the whole body of Christians showing Him to one another, is so important. You might say that when two Christians are following Christ together there is not twice as much Christianity as when they are apart, but sixteen times as much.” —C.S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity
“And so I labored hard to be a man of full integrity in all my dealings, being careful not to fall into temptation, lest the pagan should some pretext have to denigrate my good episcopate and to disparage me.” —Patrick of Ireland
With all the activity inside even the tiniest of cells, how do the cells keep their proper shape? Scientists have discovered a process called CorMR. “Researchers found that CorM, a protein inside the system, forms thin strands just under the inner cell membrane. CorR, another bacterial protein, helps place those strands in the right area. An additional system, MinC, helps keep them away from the cell ends and the division site.” This is just another example of the precise details our Creator superintends in all He has made!
Thomas S. Kidd writes, “Given the mixed personal record of the American Founders, what accounts for our nation’s impressive history of Christian devotion? The most important factor was the Lord’s providence working through thousands of churches to spread the gospel. A second essential factor in America’s robust religious history was the unusual freedom that churches and Christians enjoyed due to religious liberty.” Check out this thoughtful post about the story of Christianity in America.
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The psalmists of the Bible foresaw the coming of the King of kings, especially in the example they had in their King David. The Royal Psalms are the ones that look at the up-close example of David as a means of better seeing King Jesus.
I think our idea about our leaders can be summed up in this observation from Queen Victoria who said of William Gladstone, “When I am with him I feel I am with one of the most important leaders in the world.” On the other hand, of Benjamin Disraeli she said, he “makes me feel as if I am one of the most important people in the world.” We want strong, confident leaders that can lead us, but we also want humble leaders that care for us. We want leader who are for us.
This was the leadership of King David—
[God] chose David His servant and took him from the sheep pens,from tending the sheep He brought him to be the shepherd of His people Jacob, of Israel His inheritance.And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them. (Psalm 78:70-72)
Do you see the confident humility in this description? David remained a shepherd with a heart of integrity (humility) and skillful hands (confidence).
There is a power in these three words: God chose me. The “God chose” part gives me the confidence to lead because of God’s empowerment, but the fact that He “chose me” reminds me to be humbly grateful that He would use me!
David shows this humility and this confidence in Psalm 86, which is labeled as, “A prayer of David.”
Notice David’s humble reliance on God in prayer—answer me for I am poor and needy … Your servant who trusts in You … have mercy … I lift up my soul … hear my prayer … I will call to You … there is none like You (vv. 1-8).
I want you to also see how God-saturated this prayer is. All but three of the verses in this 17-verse psalm mention God by name:
“LORD” in all caps is YHWH or Jehovah—vv. 1, 6, 11, 17
“God” is Elohim = the Triune God—vv. 2, 10, 12, 14
“Lord” is Adonai = the publicly-used name for YHWH—vv. 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 15
What exactly is David praying for? It’s not for wisdom. It’s not for success in battle. It’s not for healing. I believe David’s desire is for all the kingdoms of earth to know the King of kings.
Look at the middle verse: All the nations You have made will come and worship before You, Lord; they will bring glory to Your name.For You are great and do marvelous deeds; You alone are God (v. 9).
Because of David’s humble prayer in vv. 1-8, we now see a confidence in his lifestyle—I will walk in Your truth … I may fear Your name … I will praise You … I will glorify Your name … grant strength to Your servant … for You, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me (vv. 10-17).
David is confident of his sins being forgiven (v. 5), of others coming to know this merciful King (v. 15), so that all nations will glorify God together (v. 9).
Remember that these royal psalms are to point us through David to Jesus.
The Old Testament prophecies tell us about Jesus: There was nothing beautiful or majestic about His appearance, nothing to attract us to Him (Isaiah 53:2 NLT). Indeed, Jesus came to earth in confident humility—
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage,rather, He made Himself nothingby taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (Philippians 2:6-7)
David’s prayer begins this way in the NLT: Bend down, O LORD, and hear my prayer.
Jesus bent down to serve those He loved—He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him (John 13:4-5).
He also stooped to the most undignified form of execution (Matthew 26:39; Philippians 2:8).
The well-known Christmas carol The First Noel says, “Then let us all with one accord sing praises to our heavenly Lord, Who hath made heaven and earth of naught, and with His blood mankind hath bought.”
Jesus said it this way: For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).
As a result Jesus is exalted (Philippians 2:9-11) and all nations can serve Him (Revelation 5:9, 7:9), just as David prayed and believed (Psalm 86:9).
We need to live with the same confident humility that God chose me—In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5). Like David, we make prayer to our King unceasingly for all people to see the glory of Jesus, and for our confidently humbled lives to help point the way for them—
Do everything without grumbling or arguingso that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky. (Philippians 2:14-15)
Let us use the pattern of this Royal Psalm to help us pray and live in a way that helps others see the King of kings for themselves!
If you would like to check out the other Royal Psalms we have already unpacked, please click here.
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Hate is not the opposite of love—apathy is. Those who love something will hate anything that attacks what they love. On this Father’s Day, I’m calling for men to show their strength on behalf of what they love—to shake off apathy and move into action!
I will warn you up front that this is not something you can work up on your own because the Bible says that “human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:20). Instead, we will need some really strong guardrails to keep us from going off course.
Those in government are doing whatever they can to keep themselves in power, and the church isn’t much better. As a result, families are at each other’s throats and among neighbors it’s hard to tell who’s an enemy and who’s a friend. I’m describing Judah about 840 BC, but I’ll bet you thought I was describing today. Even though I’m going to tell you about a righteous father who came on the scene 2800 years ago, we will learn some lessons that we should apply today.
Look at the plight Judah is in:
King Jehoram died to no one’s regret (2 Chronicles 21:20)
The only heir to the throne left alive is 22-year-old Ahaziah, who was so evil and inept that he only reigned for one year (22:1-9)
Since there was no one in the house of Ahaziah powerful enough to retain the kingdom, his mother Athaliah ruthlessly grabbed control and hung onto it for six long years (22:10)
There is a psalm written by the Sons of Korah, which may have been written during this time (Psalm 42:1-4, 9-10).
This Psalm has a glimmer of hope in v. 5. Indeed, in Judah at the height of Athaliah’s reign of terror, there was a small light still glimmering. God had made a promise to King David: “If your descendants watch how they live, and if they walk faithfully before Me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel” (1 Kings 2:4).
But was there such a successor, or had the line of David been snuffed out? There was one heir that had been rescued from Athaliah’s slaughter (2 Chronicles 22:11-12). And this is the passion that burned hotter and hotter in one father’s heart.
Do you remember the cartoon character Popeye saying, “That’s all I can stands; I can’t stands no more”? That is what was said about Jehoiada: In the seventh year Jehoiada showed his strength (23:1).
The AMPC says: Jehoiada took strength and courage
The NCV says: Jehoiada decided to do something
Jehoiada finally reached a place where his internal fortitude overcame his fear of external things. The Hebrew word gives the sense of being bound to something which makes me stronger than I am on my own.
The same Hebrew word is used over 30 times in the Book of Nehemiah for all the parts of the walls and gates that were repaired—they were made stronger because they were attached to the brick and mortar around them. Nehemiah uses the same word when he said, “I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me” (Nehemiah 2:18). And the same word is also used when he wrote, “Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other” (4:16-17).
Jehoiada had to come to a place where he trusted God’s promise more that he feared Athaliah’s wrath. He gripped God’s promise and clung to it unswervingly, and God held Jehoiada as His weapon. This is what gave him strength and courage to act righteously—not in his own power.
The outcome was by no means assured. He had no idea how the leaders would respond to his plan. But despite the odds stacked against him, despite the uncertainty of the outcome, Jehoiada was going to cling to God and move forward.
The same Hebrew word for being gripped by something that makes us stronger was used by David when he wrote, “Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord” (Psalm 27:14 AMPC).
Jehoiada told the people to stay close to the king (2 Chronicles 23:7), to declare their allegiance to the one true king (v. 11), and to remain in covenant with the rightful king no matter what (v. 16).
Men, this is what we must still do today:
Take hold of God and let Him take hold of you—Philippians 3:12-13
Remember that Jesus took hold of God’s promises for us—Hebrews 6:17-20
This Christ-gripping empowerment means we can fight the good fight—1 Timothy 6:12
Jesus speaks to one of the churches in the end times—
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of My God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from My God; and I will also write on them My new name. (Revelation 3:11-12)
I’m intrigued about the promise to be a pillar in God’s temple, because that is what Jehoiada became—
Now Jehoiada was old and full of years, and he died at the age of a hundred and thirty.He was buried with the kings in the City of David, because of the good he had done in Israel for God and His temple.(2 Chronicles 24:15-16)
Men, will you rise up?
We need you to take hold of God’s promises. To let His Spirit stir up in you a righteous strength against the evil that comes against your wives, children, friends, and culture.
Don’t swing the sword in your own strength; instead, let God grip you and use you to be a pillar in your family, in your community, and, ultimately, in His temple.
Let me repeat what David said: “Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord”!
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Because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance (James 1:3).
Dr. Henry Halley noted, “Perseverance here transcends the idea of bearing affliction; it includes the idea of standing fast under pressure, with a staying power that turns adversities into opportunities.” The opportunity is to allow my life to be valuable currency for my King to use for His pleasure and purpose.
The Greek word for “testing” has several aspects to it, but all of them point to this truth: God desires purity, and He is the final Judge on the value of my purity. It has been said that the only faith that can be trusted is a faith that has been tested—and passed the test!
James in this verse, and Peter in 1 Peter 1:7, are the only New Testament writers to use the Greek word dokimion, which means testing for purity and genuineness.
These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. (1 Peter 1:7 NLT)
These verses insist that God has a loving and specific purpose in His refining process. The Septuagint uses dokimion when David declares the absolute purity—and the standard of all purity—that is found in God’s Word: The words of the Lord are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times (Psalm 12:6).
James says this purifying process “produces perseverance.” Paul takes this a step further in saying that perseverance produces character (Romans 5:4). This word for character is the word from which dokimion comes: dokime. This is defined as a proven character, or having received the the stamp of approval from God. Paul uses this word again…
Another reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand thetest and be obedient in everything. (2 Corinthians 2:9)
But you know [Timothy’s] proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel. (Philippians 2:22)
All of this testing and refining and proving is to make me valuable for God’s use, and to be one who points others to Him.
Dokime comes from dokimos, which James uses this way: “Having stood the test” (James 1:12). Other translations of this phrase read:
When he has been approved (NKJV)
The man who doesn’t give in (TLB)
Proven to be genuine (NET)
Dokime means beings pleasing, acceptable, and valuable to God and men. It is money of undiminished value—currency of the highest purity. Just as monarchs would have their image stamped into the metal of the official coinage of their realm, the stamp of approval on my life comes from God but is seen by men and valued by men—
Because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval (Romans 14:18).
Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test (Romans 16:10).
For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends (2 Corinthians 10:18).
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15).
This is why I must “consider it pure joy” (James 1:2) when God puts me through His purifying process. He sees value in me that is not yet currency that can be placed into circulation. He wants my life to be spendable for His glory, so He loving removes anything that would diminish His image being seen in the currency of my life.
As the Christmas hymn captures: “Adam’s likeness now efface; stamp Thine image in its place”!
Make me valuable and useful for You, my King. Purify me and put me into circulation for Your glory.
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The baptism in the Holy Spirit brings an empowerment that nothing else can—You will receive POWER to be My witnesses (Acts 1:8).
I remember sitting with a group of leaders who were discussing personnel issues that was slowly becoming nothing more than a gripe session. I shared a story from the Book of Acts about some disagreements between some saints, and then made an application that caused all of these leaders to look at me in wonder. One said, “I had no idea that was in the Bible,” and another added, “I knew that story was there, but I never thought of applying that to this situation.” That wasn’t me, but the Holy Spirit who opened up His Word to that situation.
My friend Greg and I are writing a series of books for the business community called Business by the Book, where we are applying biblical insights to every “box” of a typical corporate flowchart. People who have already reviewed sections of our book are having a similar response: “I had no idea these examples and applications were there!”
We are surrounded by messages right now—messages we cannot hear. There are some persuasive arguments, some angry rants, some happy tunes, and some special sporting events. But we cannot tune into those messages with having a radio receiver set to the precise frequency. The Holy Spirit does the same thing for Christians.
Check out David talking about the speech of Creation in Psalm 19:1-4.
Jesus used Creation too—telling us to look at the birds and flowers (Matthew 6:26, 28) or to consider the farmer sowing seeds (Matthew 13:3-9).
In Romans, Paul tells us that Creation is enough (1:19-20) but that God also gave us His Law (2:12) and a conscience (2:15). When men rejected these things, God sent prophets and then His One and Only Son.
Those without the Holy Spirit are deaf to this speech, unable to understand it nor apply it to their lives, as Jesus goes on to tell His audience in Matthew 13:10-12.
We have already talked about the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth (John 16:7-15), but notice that one of the first things He does is convict us of sin (v. 8). Without this conviction, we are unable to repent of the things which are keeping us spiritual blind and deaf (Ezekiel 12:1-2).
Oswald Chambers noted, “Spiritual insight is in accordance with the development of heart purity.” How true! And that’s exactly what Jesus went on to say in Matthew 13:13-15. Paul echoes this—
But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. (1 Corinthians 2:14 NLT).
One of the prophecies about Jesus included His reliance on the Holy Spirit—not His natural mind—to discern what God was doing and how Jesus would fulfill Scripture (Isaiah 11:1-5).
This Spirit-empowered insight was anticipated by Solomon: If you will turn (repent) and give heed to My reproof, behold, I Wisdom will pour out My Spirit upon you, I will make My words known to you. (Proverbs 1:23 AMPC)
We can then know the sayings of the wise and be able to understand and apply these truths (Proverbs 24:23, 32). See how Peter did this in Acts 10:17, 28.
Happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) is the man who finds skillful and godly Wisdom, and the man who gets understanding—drawing it forth from God’s Word and life’s experiences.(Proverbs 3:13 AMPC)
The Spirit-baptized Christian is empowered to understand God’s speech through His Word, His Creation, and their life experiences, and then to make Christ-honoring applications of that understanding!
Why would we settle for anything less than this?! So don’t stop at salvation, but press on to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
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There remains a Sabbath-rest for the people of God. (Hebrews 4:9)
The word Sabbath-rest (Greek: sabbatismos) is unique in all of Scripture. This is the place of total and complete contentment in God’s presence—uninterrupted and undiminished for all of eternity.
This is a unique word because it is a unique rest that only Jesus made possible for us.
This rest is exclusive to those who rest “from their works” (v. 10) and stand secure in their loving obedience of God. In other words, this rest is for those who realize that it is only faith in Jesus that can bring them into the Sabbath-rest.
This is a rest that was promised long before Jesus made His advent on earth. The Greek word katapausis is translated into the English word “rest” and appears eight times in the New Testament—with seven of those showing up in the Book of Hebrews (3:11, 18; 4:1, 3, 5, 10, 11). These references remind us of the frustration of not being able to obtain this rest on our own efforts.
The only other use of this word for “rest” is in Stephen’s sermon in Acts 7:49, in which he quotes God saying, “‘Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me?’ says the Lord. ‘Or where will My resting place be?’” Again, God is telling us that the place of Sabbath-rest is not within our power to construct on our own.
Of the seven uses in the Book of Hebrews, most of them are referring to an Old Testament passage in Psalm 95:7-11, echoing the failure of the Israelites to experience the Sabbath-rest because of their sin. But the Old Testament word for “rest” (menuha) keeps pointing to the hope of the Sabbath-rest of Hebrews 4:9.
Check out the other places menuha is used as it points to the culminating Sabbath-rest that Jesus makes possible.
The people vainly searching for rest: So they set out from the mountain of the Lord and traveled for three days. The ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them during those three days to find them a place to rest. (Numbers 10:33)
The realization that the place of rest wasn’t found: Since you have not yet reached the resting place and the inheritance the Lord your God is giving you. (Deuteronomy 12:9)
Learning that God’s rest is only available because God Himself will fulfill His promise of rest: Praise be to the Lord, Who has given rest to His people Israel just as He promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises He gave through His servant Moses. (1 Kings 8:56)
Jesus is portrayed as the Good Shepherd Who leads His people to His resting place: He makes me lie down in fresh, tender, green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters. (Psalm 23:2 AMPC)
Jesus is prophesied to be the One Who makes this resting place a reality: In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to Him, and His resting place will be glorious. (Isaiah 11:10)
Nothing can compare to this Sabbath-rest that Jesus makes possible! No one can create this place. Jesus tells us that if we will be yoked with Him, He will take us into His rest—
Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, andI will give you rest.Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find restfor your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their Shepherd; “He will lead them to springs of living water.” “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:17)
There remains a Sabbath-rest for the people of God. A rest that Jesus died to pay for, and rose from the grave to show that He alone has the power to take you from the grip of sin into His flawless, eternal, perfect, all-satisfying rest! Don’t miss out on this, but come to Jesus as your Savior and Shepherd.
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Last week we saw that the essential confession is not just, “I believe You are the Christ the Son of the living God,” but also, “I will take up my cross and follow You!” (Matthew 16:16-18, 24). Notice that these are “red letter words”—words spoken by Jesus. They are not “they say” words (like v. 14; Matthew 7:21-23).
Look at the very next red letter words in Matthew 7:24-27. Notice the two parts: hears and puts them into practice. That’s our verbal and our lifestyle confession. What are we hearing and putting into practice? “These words of Mine.”
Jesus is our Cornerstone. The dictionary defines this as, “something that is essential, indispensable; the chief foundation on which something is constructed or developed.”
Some sandy things to build your life upon:
what your family practiced
what your pastor preached
what your friends believe
You know how you will know how sure your foundation is? When the storms come! I recently heard a well-known scholar and Christian apologist in an interview. He was asked by a skeptic of Christianity if he had doubts, and he responded, “Sure, I have doubts. But I choose to believe what the Bible says.” And I thought, “How sad to live this way.” We have a reliable, unshakable foundation in Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:18-22; 1 Corinthians 15:58).
Religions and philosophies have come and gone.
Spiritual giants have stumbled, and fierce tyrants have growled and then died.
Traditions and societies have changed through the millennia.
Our Cornerstone remains unmovable and we can stand on Him unshaken. This foundation…
…was prophesied—Isaiah 28:16; Psalm 118:22
…was fulfilled—Matthew 21:42; Acts 4:11-12
…is still standing today—Ephesians 2:19-20; 1 Peter 2:4-6
…will still be standing for all eternity—Revelation 21:5; John 14:1-4
So there is no need to be afraid. There is no need to get frustrated. There is no need to engage in meaningless debates with the “they say” crowd. Stand firm on the red letter words—our Cornerstone.
“On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand!”
Check out all of the other messages in this “I Will Build My Church” series here.
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In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul. (Psalm 138:3 NKJV)
Prayer requires stick-to-it-iveness, which means it takes strength to pray.
Therefore, being physically or emotionally drained makes it challenging to be alert and attentive in prayer. When we’re tired, our thoughts often drift; it’s hard to stay focused.
Sometimes one of the most helpful things you can do for your spiritual growth is to get a good night’s sleep (or take a nap).
Jesus did this (Matthew 14:22-23). He was very aware of His physical and emotional levels. When He was tired, He took a nap; when He was drained from ministry, He got alone with His Heavenly Father for refreshing (Mark 1:35, Luke 5:16).
Jesus told His disciples to pray so they wouldn’t give in to temptation (Luke 22:40, 45-46). Prayer does strengthen us against the enemy’s attack, but physical and emotional stamina helps us too.
Notice the full cycle—we need physical and emotional strength to pray persistently and consistently, and prayer enhances our physical and emotional reserves to help us pray. So do all three:
When all three components of your being—spirit, body, soul—are alert and healthy, you will find your prayer life fully engaged. If one area becomes depleted, listen to the always-practical counsel of the Holy Spirit. Pray, rest, talk to a friend or a counselor so you can return to the optimal position of strength.
Yes, it takes strength to pray, but in prayer your strength is renewed.
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Prayer can unleash God’s miracles. Sometimes the most visible miracles are the changes that are seen in us—our attitude, our expectation, our focus, and our maturity.
Maturity is not stuffy and stodgy. Those folks actually become quite childish when others around them don’t “act right,” according to their standards. The most mature people are the most childlike.
Do you want proof for that last statement? The most mature Person to ever live on earth was Jesus, and He loved being around kids and having children around Him (Mark 10:13-14).
His teaching examples were frequently quite simple—farmers, birds, flowers, trees, and even going to the bathroom!. He knew their songs (Luke 7:31-32), and many of His interactions with the overly-mature religious leaders were quite playful and childlike (Mark 11:27-33).
Jesus wants us to come to our Father like children (Mark 10:15-16). “Like a little child” means childlike, which is the exact opposite of childish. Those who think they are too mature for such simplistic things are actually the ones who are childish.
Jesus uses the Father-child relationship over and over to teach us about praying to a Father who is desirous of giving us the best things (Matthew 6:7-9; Luke 12:32).
One of the Psalms of Ascent written by David strikes this childlike note (Psalm 131). Verse 1 describes the childishness he’s giving up, and verse 2 describes the childlikeness he is taking on:
“my heart is not proud”—not focused on me (v. 1a)
“my eyes are not haughty”—overly grown up (v. 1b)
“I don’t concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp” (v. 1c NLT)
instead I am stilled, quieted, trustingly at peace (v. 2)
and then David calls all of us to this same childlikeness (v. 3)
Jesus taught about persistent prayer in Luke 18:1-8 and then used a scenario from the temple to illustrate His point (Luke 18:9-17), contrasting the childish pseudo-maturity of the overly-religious man and the childlike maturity the childlike man. And then, as directed by the Holy Spirit, Luke includes the same exchange Mark used about Jesus taking up children in His arms to bless them.
Childlike is loving dependent; childish is fiercely independent.
Childlike is trusting someone wise; childish always knows best.
Childlike is imaginative; childish is realistic.
Childlike is persistent; childish is whining.
I love the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem called The Children’s Hour. As you read through this, imagine our Heavenly Father as Longfellow and yourself as his three daughters.
Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day’s occupations,
That is known as the Children’s Hour.
I hear in the chamber above me
The patter of little feet,
The sound of a door that is opened,
And voices soft and sweet.
From my study I see in the lamplight,
Descending the broad hall stair,
Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra,
And Edith with golden hair.
A whisper, and then a silence:
Yet I know by their merry eyes
They are plotting and planning together
To take me by surprise.
A sudden rush from the stairway,
A sudden raid from the hall!
By three doors left unguarded
They enter my castle wall!
They climb up into my turret
O’er the arms and back of my chair;
If I try to escape, they surround me;
They seem to be everywhere.
They almost devour me with kisses,
Their arms about me entwine,
Till I think of the Bishop of Bingen
In his Mouse-Tower on the Rhine!
Do you think, O blue-eyed banditti,
Because you have scaled the wall,
Such an old mustache as I am
Is not a match for you all!
I have you fast in my fortress,
And will not let you depart,
But put you down into the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.
And there will I keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away! —Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
We mature by trading childishness for childlikeness. We mature best by coming to God our Father in prayer as a child comes to his father.
Let prayer change your maturity!
If you’ve missed any of the other messages in this series on how prayer changes us, you can find them all here.
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
Sometimes when Christians get anxious about a situation, it appears that they have forgotten that God is just as loving and strong today as He was in the good ol’ days. We need to guard against this misunderstanding.
Let’s use this prayer to remember that God isn’t just the God of the good ol’ days, but He is still just as loving and powerful today as He has ever been—
“God, You have been faithful—You have rescued me. Now help me to see that You are still Sovereign over this current situation—You are doing something in the midst of this crisis.”
Patience is a leadership builder, just as surely as impatience is a leadership killer. When leaders repeatedly make poor choices because of their impatience, there is only one way to fix this leadership killer—lengthen the fuse.
Craig T. Owens 