Acts 10:1-8

10 In Caesarea there lived a Roman army officer named Cornelius, who was a captain of the Italian Regiment. ² He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was everyone in his household. He gave generously to the poor and prayed regularly to God. ³ One afternoon about three o’clock, he had a vision in which he saw an angel of God coming toward him. “Cornelius!” the angel said.

⁴ Cornelius stared at him in terror. “What is it, sir?” he asked the angel.

And the angel replied, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God as an offering! ⁵ Now send some men to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. ⁶ He is staying with Simon, a tanner who lives near the seashore.”

⁷ As soon as the angel was gone, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier, one of his personal attendants. ⁸ He told them what had happened and sent them off to Joppa.

Acts 10:1-8

Dear God, I want more of Cornelius’s backstory. What was his “testimony?” How did he become a combination a captain of the Italian Regiment of the Roman army and a devout, God-fearing man. What motivated him to give generously to the poor and pray to you regularly? How did that happen? Which Jewish people did he know who not only explained who you were to him, but also made it make sense and attractive? What was his life experience like such that it made him willing to accept you, worship you, and then start living out the fruits of the Spirit that come with discipleship? I need to remember to look him up on the other side of death so I can hear his full story.

Next, his “prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God as an offering!” There is some deep theology here on this. I don’t want to get into spoilers and Peter’s thoughts on this later. I want to just sit in this statement for a while. There was some reality that allowed you to look at Cornelius and see who he was in you. You were able to hear his prayers. You were able to see his gifts to the poor and receive them as an offering.

Next, he sent to household servants, but also a “devout soldier.” I suppose he sent the soldier for the servants’ protection as they went on their journey. I’m sure no one would dare bother the servants with a solider traveling along with them, but this would certainly add some fear to whomever answer the door at the place Peter was staying. I don’t remember this part of the story for later, and I don’t want to read ahead again, but I wonder if there’s any indication that the soldier’s presence scared the person who answered the door.

This reminds me of The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis in the Chronicles of Narnia series. When the main characters get to the “New Narnia,” they find a Calormen soldier who errantly worshipped Tash instead of Aslan. When questioned as to how the soldier ended up in the New Narnia, Aslan explains that his good heart and works were credited to him righteousness. He basically said that Tash is all evil so there is no way someone can do good in Tash’s name. Aslan is all good, and there is no way someone can do evil in Aslan’s name. So when the soldier did all of the good he did, he was actually doing it as unto Aslan.

This isn’t an exact parallel because Cornelius at least knew he was worshipping the Jewish God. He just didn’t know about Jesus. But it feels like there is something to this idea that Jesus’s blood, sacrifice, and resurrection all combined to give us access to you.

Father, this is a reminder that the basics are simple: Love you with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves. That’s basically what Cornelius was doing–even in ignorance of Jesus–and it was credited to him as righteousness. Cornelius wasn’t perfect. Cornelius was sinful. I guarantee it. But you loved Cornelius and appreciated his love for you and others. Help me to really love you well today and to love others as well.

I offer this prayer to you in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

Luke 19:1-10

19 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. ² There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. ³ He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

⁵ When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

⁶ Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. ⁷ But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

⁸ Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

⁹ Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

Luke 19:1-10

Dear God, I almost deleted verses 6-9 because what I wanted to focus on what the connection between Jesus intentionally seeking Zacchaeus and his line at the end of this story: “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” This indicates that at the beginning of the story, Zacchaeus was definitely lost. He had gotten lost in selfishness and self-preservation. He was willing to be despised as long as it meant his life would be as comfortable and secure as possible. He didn’t care about others. In fact, he got his wealth by taking extra from others who needed it.

I had a woman come to my office this week looking for some help. I knew her as a donor, but I hadn’t made a connection in my head as to how large of a donor she is. As she told me her story, she shared with me how trying to help a loved one was draining her finances. And now she needs some expensive repairs done to her house. But still her real concern was how to effectively care for her loved one.

Later, I looked her up in our donor database and was surprised to see that all of her donations had been over $1,000 each year. She has seemingly been giving sacrificially all of this time. It was a reminder that people are trusting our nonprofit to be good stewards of their money.

So back to our story, Jesus noticed Zacchaeus in the tree, seemingly instantly knew who he was and what kind of man he was, and pursued him. He knew that Zacchaeus needed more than to just see him. Zacchaeus needed to know him. It is the knowing of Jesus that changes us.

This kind of feeds into the prayer I did yesterday from the video Fr. Mike Schmitz did on knowing Jesus. The question, “Do you know Jesus well enough to reject him?” is compelling. When Zacchaeus met and then got to know Jesus, it changed everything for him.

Father, help me to know you more and more. More and more, help me to know your entire Triune nature. Help me to then reflect all of you into this world and to those around me.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

“Do you know Jesus well enough to reject Him?” Father Mike Schmitz

Dear God, I watched this video this morning, and I thought it was excellent. Yes, this is a Catholic priest, Father Mike Schmitz, speaking, and, yes, his messages is originally designed for a Catholic audience, but the foundation of the message is for anyone who has walked away from or intentionally kept themselves from Jesus. “Do you know Jesus well enough to reject Him?”

It reminds me of something I’ve heard Andy Stanley say more than once. When someone tells him that they have left the church, his question back to them is, “Who was it? Who was the person who offended you and drove you away? Because it probably wasn’t Jesus or God. It’s almost always a person who was not a good reflection of Jesus.”

In this case, Father Mike’s encouragement is pretty simple. Spend some time with Jesus for 30 minutes a day for a month. Read the red letters in the gospels. For Catholics who believe in the presence of the host, go to the tabernacle and spend 30 minutes praying to and reading about Jesus. Spend time in your presence. Get to know the real Jesus and not the poor imitations one might see in the people of the church.

I had a long text discussion with a close friend yesterday about our culture and its decline. He shared a Fox News story with me about how the pendulum has swung and two-thirds of the public is now in support of the right for women to have an abortion. I bring this up in this context, because it feels to me like so many on either side of the issue simply don’t know Jesus well enough. In my opinion, those who are pro-life don’t understand that Jesus never persuaded anyone through coercion, and those who are pro-choice don’t realize that Jesus really does care about each and every child throughout their entire life. But the more I personally spend time with you in these settings the more you slowly transform me into being more Jesus-like.

Oh, my Jesus. Oh, my Father. Oh, my Holy Spirit. Oh, my God! Help me to be a better reflection of you today. Help me to love to start by worshipping you well. Help me to then love everyone around me well, starting with my wife and children, but then moving to those around me who need help, those who are my friends, and those few who consider themselves my enemy. Help me to be a lover and generous to all of them. Do this for your glory. Do this so that your kingdom might come and your will might be done on earth as it is in heaven.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

Colossians 1:24-29

²⁴ I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church. ²⁵ God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. ²⁶ This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. ²⁷ For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

²⁸ So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. ²⁹ That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.

Colossians 1:24-29

Dear God, Christ lives in me. That’s the secret according to Paul in verse 27. Christ lives in me. Well, there are some days when I give him more space than others.

I lost a little bit of sleep last night. As I was in bed and had different things running around my head–the mother I talked with yesterday about her son and his addiction issues, issues at work, issues in the community, etc.–I found myself sometimes praying for people, sometimes complaining about them in my head, and sometimes just wishing I could go back to sleep. I was trying to make room for Jesus, but there was probably a lot of me in those thoughts and not as much Jesus. More judgment in me for others and the way they act, and not as much grace and trying to look behind the facade to see the pain.

Jesus, if you are to live in me then I am going to have to do better. Yes, you live there already. Your Holy Spirit is in me. The God of the universe is in there with me. But I am still more likely to judge others, get frustrated and lash out, or simply try to resolve issues myself instead of leaning into you. So help me Jesus. Help me, Holy Spirit. Help me, Father. Help me to completely submit to you and bring my being just a little closer to you. Oh, how I would love to be a little more Christlike today. I give myself over to you and ask that you help get me there.

I pray all of this in my savior Jesus, and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

1 Peter 1:17-20

¹⁷ And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” ¹⁸ For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. ¹⁹ It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. ²⁰ God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.

1 Peter 1:17-20

Dear God, verse 17 kind of reminds me of my prayer yesterday about hypocrisy. “[You] will judge or reward [us] according to what [we] do. So [we] must live in fear of [you] during [our] time here as ‘temporary residents.’” So I can’t just take this admonition by Peter to do good while I am here as a temporary resident, but I need to layer it with selfless earnestness.

But that’s not really what’s on my heart this morning. I had a long, sometimes hard conversation with a family member yesterday. I tried to show love, but I’m not sure I did. I tried to help them see the perspective of others, including myself, but I’m not sure I did. I tried to do some good, but I’m not sure I did. I can say without reservation I was honest and transparent. But I don’t know if any good will come of it or not.

Father, I guess my prayer this morning is that I will be as genuine as I can be in my love for you and the things that I do. Help me to be the man you need me to be in all situations. I pray that you will take any good that was done yesterday and use it to grow into something beautiful. And anything that was not good, I pray that you will throw it on the fire and let it burn like chaff. And as I go into four different important meetings today, help me to glorify you in all of it. Help me to decrease as you increase. Help me to be part of your will being done and your kingdom coming into earth as it is in heaven.

I pray this through Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

“Hypocrite” Part 2

Dear God, I had a weird kind of thing happen yesterday that I think was orchestrated by you. First, someone “liked” one of my prayer journals from last summer called “Hypocrite.” I went back and read it because I had forgotten about it. It was a good reminder.

THEN, the Bible Project Podcast did an episode this week called “What did Hypocrite Mean to Jesus?” It blew my mind, and it made my prayer journal from last summer appear to be so ignorant and uneducated. It humbled me, but in a good way (maybe being humbled is always good). So what did they say that changed my mind? Well, they redefined hypocrite for me, and it changed my perspective on Jesus’s use of the word.

I looked up the definition of hypocrite on Merriam-Webster and found this:

1: a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion

2: a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings

Typically, we use the second definition, but the guys on Bible Project said the first one is what Jesus meant when he used it. It is not the “do as I say, not as I do” definition, but the definition where they hypocrite intentionally displays righteous acts for the honor that people will give them. They made several points, but a couple that stuck were:

• The person who does good deeds for the praise of people will get that reward, but not the reward from you, while the person who does the good deeds purely out of love and obedience for you will get the reward from you.
• Only you are able to judge the level of hypocrisy in me.

I said “level” there because there is always some level of wanting recognition from others in me. When I sit down and do these prayers on a public blog, I am here with you and not thinking about others. These are part of my worship. At the same time, I check the stats from time to time to see how many people view the site. I like affirmations when someone likes what I’ve written. I set this up to inspire people to spend their own time with you, journaling and praying. That motive is pure. But it does feed the hypocrite in me as well. But I would imagine this is a struggle that any author, preacher, singer, etc. has. And only you can judge my heart.

Father, help me to be completely here with you. Help me to point to you for all of the glory exhibited through my life. Help me to do more privately to worship you than I do publicly. And forgive me for my hypocrisy. I am sorry for my vanity and how it claims and craves glory for myself. Oh, and thank you for overlooking my ignorance. My prayer about Jesus and hypocrisy from last summer was seemingly fundamentally flawed. I am sorry for that as well. But I thank you for understanding my limitedness, my foolishness, and my true desire to just learn more and worship you.

I pray all of this through Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

Romans 1:18-23

¹⁸ But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. ¹⁹ They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. ²⁰ For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

²¹ Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. ²² Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. ²³ And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

Romans 1:18-23

Dear God, when I first read the Bible Gateway verse of the day today (Romans 1:20), I started singing “How Great Thou Art” in my head. “Oh, Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the worlds thy hands have made. I see the stars. I hear the rolling thunder. Thy power throughout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, my savior, God, to thee, ‘How great thou art. How great thou art.'”

Here’s what scares me to death: verse 21. “And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.” Yeah, that terrifies me. Do I do that? Do I remake you in my own image? Do I justify my own actions or the actions of others to fit my own desires or sense of justice, and denigrate how you see everything? To I claim to be wise and yet allow myself to evolve into a fool?

I talked with a man a couple of nights ago at a party about the idols we all set up to put our certainty in besides you. I do it too. My bank account. My marriage. My children. My job. The government. The economy. The church. Whatever it might be, it can be easy to let any one of those things slowly take over my heart and attention. I am sorry for that.

Father, I am here this morning to do my best to worship you and you alone. To strive for the purity you have for me that you know is best for me. To repent for the things I do that fail you and myself (and others). Oh, Father, forgive me. Forgive me for any part of me that tries to fit you into the box that is most comfortable for me. I am your servant. Guide me today.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

Acts 4:1-4

4 While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees. ² These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead. ³ They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning. ⁴ But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of men who believed now totaled about 5,000.

Acts 4:1-4

Dear God, this goes back to the winning and losing thing again. The Sadducees and priests felt like they were losing to “The Way,” so they imprisoned Peter and John. They needed to feel like they were getting control of this. Like they were winning. But what happened? More and more people believed. Maybe they made Peter and John more sympathetic figures and softened people’s hearts towards them. Either way, in the moment, Peter and John might have felt like they were losing and they weren’t. The leaders of the temple might have felt like they were taking back the momentum and power and starting to win, but they were only digging themselves a deeper hole.

Father, as I go into this day, help me to let go of the idea of winning and losing. Help me to simply not care. If it seems like I’m decreasing, my influence is waning, or things are going badly for me, help me to just sink into worshipping you more. On the other side, if I find myself getting praise, having influence, or things are going well for me, help me to deflect all glory to you and sink into the joy of worshipping you and loving you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

“Sunday’s Coming” by Zach Williams

When your week feels like a beat down
And you can’t tell the night from day
And you’re tired of fighting battles
When all you feel is pain, oh
It’s a heavy weight
There’s hope on the horizon
‘Cause the cross was not the end
Let joy come in the morning
And, child, lift your head
Don’t you give up yet

Keep on holdin’ on
There’s gonna be a breakthrough
Keep on holdin’ on
Don’t stay buried in that grave
If He can roll the stone
He can send the darkness runnin’
Might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’
It might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’

So let your soul start singing
And dry those tear-stained eyes
There’s a new life and you can breathe in
You’re gonna see the light on the other side

Keep on holdin’ on
There’s gonna be a breakthrough
Keep on holdin’ on
Don’t stay buried in that grave
If He can roll the stone
He can send the darkness runnin’
Might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’
It might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’

Oh oh, Sunday’s comin’
Oh oh, Sunday’s comin’

For the mama’s praying for their family
Your Sunday’s comin’
For the daddy’s struggling to make ends meet
Your Sunday’s comin’
And if addiction’s bringing you
To your knees your Sunday’s comin’
Oh, if anybody here wants to be set free
Your Sunday’s comin’

Keep on holdin’ on
There’s gonna be a breakthrough
Keep on holdin’ on
Don’t stay buried in that grave
If He can roll the stone
He can send the darkness runnin’
Might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’
It might feel like Friday
But your Sunday’s comin’

Source: LyricFind

Written by Ethan Hulse, Nick Schwarz, Zach Williams

Dear God, I sat down to spend this prayer time with you this morning, but I didn’t feel like doing scripture. I felt like freshening things up a bit by looking at a song. I was going to do a worship song, but I came across this one on my “Christian” playlist. Then I thought that maybe I should spend some time praying for friends and family. My wife. My children. My parents, siblings, nieces and nephews. My coworkers, my friends. Our leaders, from world leaders on down to city employees. The patients at our clinic. The volunteers at our clinic. The other nonprofits in town that serve and love others. The churches in town, some of whom are seemingly struggling and some of whom are seemingly striving. My friends who are mourning the loss of a child or a spouse. I guess we can throw me on there as well, although it is always harder to know how to pray for myself except that I want to just be completely yours.

Looking back at these lyrics, I do think I take issue with this song in just one little way. Sometimes, I might never see that Sunday. There are some things that I want that might never resolve on this side of death. I just might have to learn to live through the pain, confusion, and ignorance of Friday and Saturday with faith in you and peace in the idea that none of this is about what I want, but about what you want.

Father, I’m holding on, and I am certainly expecting you to do amazing things. In fact, I expect you to do things that are beyond what I can imagine. And to me it might look like losing, just like the cross looked like losing to everyone who loved Jesus and lived through those two days. And I trust that one day, whether it is this side of death or the other, I will live to see the glory of everything you have done. Not that I’m complaining about my current reality. I have it better than I have a right to. I have so much joy in my life. And there is some success too that I attribute to you. I just don’t want to think that my life has to look like winning in my eyes to prove to me that you are winning in the heavenly realm and doing your will in this world. So I worship you. I praise you. I thank you. I ask that you lead the leaders, comfort the mourners, teach the ignorant (I’m in that camp), draw the rebels to you, and heal the wounded. Do all of this for your glory and the joy you have in communing with your creation.

I offer this prayer to you in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 

Acts 9:1-9

9 Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest. ² He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them—both men and women—back to Jerusalem in chains.

³ As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. ⁴ He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”

⁵ “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked.

And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! ⁶ Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

⁷ The men with Saul stood speechless, for they heard the sound of someone’s voice but saw no one! ⁸ Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. ⁹ He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.

Acts 9:1-9

Dear God, somehow, I’ve never thought about the men who were with Saul before. What were they like before, during, and after this experience? What happened to them after this? Did they become part of The Way? Did their families think they were crazy? What did this seemingly routine trip to Damascus do to them as well. We know what it did to Saul, but what did it do to them?

I guess this is a reminder to me that none of us, including Paul on that fateful day, go through life alone where what happens to us doesn’t impact others. I had my unique experience with you in the summer of 1987 at an FCA Leadership Conference, but it didn’t stop with me. It dominoed into some of my friends’ lives too, one of whom became an international missionary. Almost exactly 24 years ago, I had another significant moment with you at Laity Lodge when I was inspired by you to start doing these prayer journals. These have changed how I relate to you, and I know they have touched some others as well. And Paul’s life and his experience that day not only touched the men who were with him, but then Ananias later, and then the world. Amazing. In the words of Kurt Kaiser, “It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all those around can warm up to its glowing. That’s how it is with God’s love once you’ve experienced it. You’ll spread His love to everyone. You’ll want to pass it on.”

Father, help me to pass you on to others today.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen