Prayer

Castaway

/ pastorpete51 / 5 Comments 
Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. Hebrews 10:35 KJV

The film, Castaway, starring Tom Hanks, tells the story of a pilot who after crash-landing his airplane in the ocean, ends up on a desert island. As the slow plot line dragged on, I found my mind wandering and wishing that something dramatic would happen. Just about anything would do! But the reality was that until help came, there was nothing for this guy to do but talk to a soccer ball he named, Mr. Wilson. In today’s verse God urges us not to do this with our faith. Don’t give up! Don’t lose hope! Don’t become a castaway talking to a soccer ball! Yet when we face what appear to be never-ending challenges to our faith, we are tempted to do just that. But the confidence we have in God is a hope that doesn’t just sit around wishing for rescue; it is spiritual reality with a great reward! “That sounds great,” I can imagine you saying, “But where do I begin?” I suggest we start by another kind of casting.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 1 Peter 5:7 KJV

If we were thrown overboard in a storm, I am pretty sure that none of us would unsnap our life preserver and cast it away. Yet when we face hardships and the very real problems of life, we are sometimes tempted to think that letting go of our faith and trust in God will bring us some relief. The Apostle Peter urges us to do just the opposite. Instead of casting away hope, He tells us to cast away our cares. In the middle of trials, we need to remind ourselves that God still cares for us. His mercies never fail and are new every morning: even mornings that dawn in emergencies rooms or on battle fronts.

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. Psalm 55:22 KJV

In the middle of the pressures of life we can have confidence because God cares for us and He carries us, and just as He did for the multitude on a hillside one day, He gives us multiplied bread to provide for our need. Now He is waiting to see what we will do with the bread of His compassion and mercy. Will we just gobble it all own for ourselves, or will we do just a little more casting?

Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days. Ecclesiastes 11:1 KJV
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Standing Out In the Storm

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 I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 
Psalm 18:3 KJV

Here in Florida, we have more than our fair share of hurricanes, at least passing by if not hitting us. This leads to many of us staying glued to latest the weather reports, wondering whether this is the time we will need to evacuate. Being now a veteran of worrying and watching these storms, my wife and I have often asked ourselves, “Why in the world are they sticking that poor weatherman (or weather lady), out in the middle of the mess?” As we were watching the luckless weather-beaten reporter on day, a sizeable branch blew down the street, sideswiping them and sending them scurrying for cover. Thankfully they were okay, but it got us to thinking and we decided that they were showing us those people out in the storm, so we would take their forecast seriously enough to prepare for it.

In today’s verse, King David is standing out in the storm. He is surrounded by enemies who have less than happy plans for the end of his life. The men who are out there are five times as many as he has on his side. Adding to the imbalance of numbers, the army looking to kill him is better armed, better trained and better fed. It would appear they are all about to be slaughtered, but in his quiet times while watching his father’s sheep, David has prepared for this storm. He knows what to do: Call out to the Lord! I share this morning’s meditation with you because these last several weeks I have been going through a few health-related storms of my own. Besides a bad bout of strep, I also have some long-term issues with my vocal cords that has me seeing a specialist. But this morning I remembered this verse and the song we used to sing with these words, when I was a twenty-something. In those days, nothing hurt for long, my energy seemed limitless, and I could blithely sing that verse, because I was not standing out in the storm. But I am glad that while things were easy-peasey in my life, I learned this promise, because today I was able to pull it out of my storm preparedness kit and use it to good advantage. God knows the forecast for each of our lives. He is not taken by surprise, nor swept off His feet by the branches blowing down the streets of Heaven. Whatever kind of storm you might be standing out in today, be sure to call with all your heart to the Lord. He is listening for our cry and is as ready to deliver us right now, no matter where the hurricane makes landfall!

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The Gift of the Holy Spirit

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If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:12 ESV

My personal search for the Holy Spirit began in Lutheran catechism class. There I learned about the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. Now I was pretty sure the Father was the one who was our creator, and Jesus also seemed familiar, since I had been coloring pictures of him with children and sheep since I was four, but the Holy Ghost had me stumped. So as any religious minded eight-year-old would do; I asked the best theological source I knew of: Louie and Wally: the guys who walked to school with me! Wally went to a different catechism class than me, but he also had no answer, so together we asked Louie, hoping that maybe the Catholics knew, but to no avail. Finally, one night while we were all camping out in our back yard, we decided to settle things by sneaking into the Catholic church around the corner from us. Being Summer, and in the days before air-conditioning, a small window had been left open and we quietly climbed in. We had no mischief in mind, we just simply tiptoed up to the front, wondering if the Pope was there and what he might say. Though the lights were on, the beautiful little church seemed empty, and after dipping our fingers into what Louie told us was Holy Water, we climbed out the way we had come in wondering if God was watching.

Today the Holy Spirit is still one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented topics in Christian circles. For some, the mere mention of the Holy Spirit will bring an entire room to a hushed silence. I fully understand that due to abuse of the topic that care must be taken, but we must not allow our fears to keep us from God’s promised gift. In hopes of casting some clarity let’s begin at today’s verse, where Jesus tells us that God has promised His Holy Spirit to those who ask Him. Notice that the Holy Spirit is God’s Promise for everyone. This gift is not just for Apostles, Prophets and the first century church.

If we back up just a few verses, it is interesting that asking for the Holy Spirit is the culmination of what Jesus teaches about prayer. Jesus begins because His disciples have seen Him praying and are so impressed that they ask Him to teach them how to pray. Here in Luke, Jesus begins by giving a shortened form of what we call “The Lord’s Prayer”, and the first word in His prayer is, “Father.”

And he said to them, “When you pray, say: 
“Father, hallowed be your name.
 Your kingdom come. Luke 11:2 ESV

First it is vital to understand that the Holy Spirit is only for God’s children. Receiving God’s Holy Spirit is not for unbelievers. No amount of outward emotional display, miraculous signs or enthusiasm can change that. We must come to God in humble repentance, putting our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Secondly, Jesus tells us we must ask, and He goes into great detail about asking, “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.” Luke 11:9

It is interesting that while we use this promise for all kinds of requests, Jesus’ focus is on our asking for and receiving the Holy Spirit. So, let’s look again at this verse. First, “Ask and you will receive.” Here is a promise for a greater fullness that comes when we ask, not for material things, success or even healing, but for God Himself. Second, comes a time seeking. God allows us to pass through a space between asking and receiving, to test whether we will continue. Mary and Joseph had to travel 90 miles on foot to Bethlehem. The wise men came from over a thousand miles, but Jesus came all the way from Heaven to earth to seek for us. We have only to journey to the cross to find Him waiting there for us. Last of all comes knocking. When we have come as far as we know, and yet there appears to be a closed door at the end of the road, Jesus tells us not to turn away or sit outside in despair. The door is closed, but not locked and our Heavenly Father waits inside, eagerly listening for our knock. Do we desire Him more than anything else, or will we turn aside for something more easily obtained? Do not be afraid to bruise your knuckles on the door! God has promised bread and not a stone to hungry children, and an egg and not a scorpion for those who thirst for the living water of His Holy Spirit and all the fullness of Christ when He opens His door for us!