Troubled by leadership – civil or ecclesiastical? Pray. It is not an idle exercise like complaining is. Go to where something can actually be done. Pray.

I fear that many Christians in our day, think of prayer more as a formality than practical. We know we should do it. Scripture both commands and models it. But how many of us truly believe God is hearing and answering? How many of us truly believe that there are practical, tangible results from our prayers? And especially as regards matters like either ecclesiastical or civil leadership?

Sadly, many in our day imagine the greatest changes in society must be produced by activism and the voting booth. Our prayers are more akin to wishful thinking. We do them but we do not consider them true agents of change. We disregard the reality that in prayer, we have been granted an audience with the only One who can truly effect righteous and lasting change.

Beloved, do not relegate prayer to the mere performance of religious exercise. Pray as though God hears. For He does! Pray as though God cares. For He does! Pray for the ends you believe are best, committing the concern into His hands for the wisest and best disposal – and believe that He will answer accordingly. For He does!

“He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” Rom. 8:32 It is true that He might not answer in the precise manner we would have preferred. But He can be trusted to answer more wisely, lovingly and carefully that we can pray. He is about more things than only those which we perceive by our narrow understanding. But He is never deaf to our petitions.

That said – pray. No leader’s heart is any less in the Father’s hand than any other. In the Church or in the World. No person or institution is outside of His watchful eye. “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” (Prov. 15:3)

Pray. Watch. Expect. Our God IS at work.

If there is any passage of Scripture I can say was my Dad’s favorite over all others – it is today’s section of Romans. It stands out as the pinnacle of comfort and security of Believers. It is truly unparalleled. 

But one aspect of this portion which seldom gets its due, either in preaching and teaching or even in the ordinary Believer’s mind -is 26-30 -and the ministry of the Holy Spirit in intercession.

The ministry of the Holy Spirit in intercession for the Believer is a most neglected doctrine. Neglected to the genuine loss of much comfort in our pains, trials, sorrows and griefs. And, it serves as a grand template as to how we might best pray for one another. When you don’t know how to pray from someone else, the 3 ways He intercedes for us give us a marvelous pattern to follow.

So first, know this Christian, if no one in all the world knows your needs and prays for you, the Holy Spirit does. And as indwelling you, He knows your needs with the searchlight of infinite, intimate knowledge, and infinite compassion.

He knows you better than you know yourself.

Second, What is this great WILL of God for us which the Spirit must assist us in praying for? This thing which is labeled here – as an intercession “according to the will of God?” It is the answer as to why is it that all things work together for the good to those who love Him. Because we are called according to His PURPOSE which is: TO BE CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON.

In this, He wants better for us than we want for ourselves. Our pleas are often so temporally located, so immediately. His, deeply, spiritually and eternally.

Third, note how this is an indication of the depth of the Spirit’s groanings on our behalf, not ours. These are not our utterances but His. And this cannot be connected to the gift of tongues – for these groanings are too deep for utterance – and tongues is an utterance. But this is how He so agonizes on our behalf. He knows our real needs, we do not. He knows how desperate we are, we do not.

He loves us better than we can love ourselves.

When we don’t know our need well enough even to groan, He does. And can any imagine that the Spirit who was sent from the Father and the Son to us and for us will not be heard when He groans on our behalf? Indeed He will. And we will bear all of the benefits. 

This then, because the Spirit intercedes for us is why:

1 – We can be assured that all things the Christian faces will ultimately work together for our good. (v. 28)

2 – We can be assured that God’s goal of ultimately conforming us to the image of His Son WILL be accomplished. (v. 29)

3 – Why we can be assured that if He is for us, nothing can ultimately be against so as to conquer us. (v. 31)

In rising from the dead, Christ ascended to send us His Spirit. And if He so loved us as to die for us, ascend for us and send the Spirit for us – how is there any possibility those ransomed by His blood might be lost and condemned? (v. 34)

Impossible!

And then – as if this is not enough – Jesus Himself in His resurrection is at the right hand of the Father – in the place of absolute power and authority – and He too WITH THE SPIRIT, adds His own intercession on our behalf.

Weak, weary and discouraged Christian – look up. You are well provided for. You temporary woes – as great as they may be in this moment – are in no way comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us in due time. (v. 18)

Trust Him.

What a contrast we see in this verse.

When one is devoid of the righteousness of Christ – even what they try to give God in their worship – even sacrifice, is detestable. When for those in Christ – not only is their worship acceptable, but as opposed to giving a sacrifice to God, their desiring things FROM God is His very delight. One seeks to give and is disregarded. The other seeks to receive and is delighted in.

And may our hearts grasp this truly. When we ask “what does God want from me?” We can answer with this bold assurance.

I had a position once where I reported directly to the President of a small company; and the man was impossible to read in regard to whether or not he was happy with my performance. It seemed no matter what I did, I never got an affirming hint.

One day, I went into his office and just asked – “are you happy with my performance? because I don’t know where I stand.” Puzzled, he looked up at me and said: “Until I tell you different, everything is fine.” And that was the way it was my entire tenure there. But it wasn’t comfortable.

Then I married Sky. Me, being me, and somewhat insecure, I was telling her constantly how much I loved her. Multiple times a day.

One day, she told me to stop doing that. That it felt like manipulation. Then she said: “look, I love you. That stands until further notice.” That blew a hole in my head – but when I finally simply settled into trusting her love, I found it a far more sweet and simple relationship.

Now unless I miss my guess, there is something of this dynamic which informs the relationship many Christians have with God. Some are looking for some sort of ongoing affirmation or assurance. Especially if we have actually or imagined that we’ve have sinned against Him. How do we measure our acceptance with Him?

And rather than fixing our gaze continually on the Cross – we fix it upon ourselves and our performance.

Did I read the Scriptures enough today? Pray enough? Was I kind enough, spiritual enough, did I “feel” His love? Did I tithe enough? etc. As though the word “enough” is even useful here.

This impacts above all – prayer.

In prayer, this insecurity often shows itself in how we feel we need to butter God up before we make any petitions. Like He needs us to somehow make Him feel good about Himself before we can get to OUR stuff.

We start off addressing Him with all kinds of titles and accolades to get Him in the right frame of mind to hear us.

The problems with that approach are too many for us to address here, but essentially, it is approaching Him as pagans do their idols.

If you find that factor has crept into your prayer life – it is a mark that there is a trust issue afoot. That we do not trust His love and the nature of our relationship together is not truly grace based and sealed in the Cross.

It springs from the unspoken insecurity that we just don’t know what God really expects from us. How can we be sure He’s on our side? And doesn’t this hit especially hard when go through some unexpected and severe trial or temptation?

Additionally, it is why both legalism and rituals are so attractive. If I have this specific list of do’s and don’ts, I can take my comfort based on how well I’ve ticked the boxes.

The result is, that when things seem to go awry in life, we start probing: Where have I missed the boat? Where did I fall down? Why is He letting this happen to me if everything between us is OK? I am missing the key metric. The key to knowing the nature of His love and attitude toward me. 

As our text here says: “The prayer of the upright is his delight.”

What pleases God most? It is that God is believed in all that He has said, done and revealed, and trusted accordingly.

Let me repeat that – God wants above all else – to be believed, in all that He has said, done and revealed – and then trusted accordingly.

This is the faith He desires, and that pleases Him.

And this is basis of all prayer. That as we look to him in everything, he is delighted.

Would you delight your God today Christian? Look to him with your every need. And you will dwell in the warmth of his glorious smile.

Believe him. Trust him. Pray. This is ours, because of Christ Jesus.

As a reminder, I began this series by noting that these “Principles” are things which have stood out to me over my many years of walking with The Lord. That by no means makes them infallible, nor absolutely correct. But they are, upon reflection, core ideas which I believe have helped me in having a solid framework for a Christian and Biblical mindset.

I pray you may find them helpful too.

Now ever Christian knows well that prayer is an essential aspect of our relationship to The Lord. Every relationship requires communication if the parties are to truly walk in love and fellowship.

And while we all know this in theory – in truth, I’ve never met anyone who has told me their prayer life is all they would like it to be. Most, I think are pretty dissatisfied with theirs. The reasons are many.

For one thing, we tend to think of spiritual exercises in terms of metrics. In other words – “how much is enough?” Over the years I’ve often heard people talk about being “prayed up.” What’s that? How can one say they have interacted with God enough? How does one measure such a thing? In truth, you can’t. The phrase itself is nonsensical since it implies that there is an “enough” to be had.

Says who?

A second issue in spiritual disciplines is how they can deteriorate into mere rote labor. Ticking off the boxes? Bible reading today? – check (with my pre-programmed number of chapters, verses, etc.) Prayer time? – check (though I have no idea how much, how long, or what to cover). Sunday worship? – check. Additional Bible Study? – check. Devotional reading? – check.

You get the picture.

And it isn’t long before each grows stale and perfunctory. Ultimately, there is little true refreshing or vibrancy.

What to do?

4. The Lord’s prayer is essential for tuning the heart in all things. It is God’s paradigm.

I won’t go back over what I’ve already written in this regard in the “Tuning the Harp/Heart” series. You can go back and read those installments. What I will repeat from those is: As Jesus taught prayer, its very design is meant to bring our heart and soul and mind into such a frame of blessedness, that it truly becomes a joy, a refuge and a place of refreshing and renewing. Our sad neglect of what Jesus was after here has often led to prayer being just the opposite. When God gave the Sabbath to the Jews, He meant it for rest, renewal, rejoicing and restoration. They turned it into a burden to be scrupulously carried out. And I fear that we have followed suit with prayer. If that is our experience, we’re doing something wrong.

‌And I will but add here – that even if you do not use The Lord’s Prayer as a wonderful template for prayer – and the springboard to considering all we need most in coming to the Lord – I would beseech you to take some time each day, just to think about the implications of each of the phrases, and see if they do not lift you up in your soul. They will elevate your thoughts. They will turn your eyes from the mundane and the wickedness and brokenness of this present world – and set your eyes on high once more.

Visit the rehearsal of this prayer a regular means to reframe the heart and mind in tune with God’s own, and His universe. And that, if only to start here: Father, above everything else in life – let your glorious name – your reputation be restored in all the cosmos, that all may be restored to what it ought to be, with sin fully vanquished at last. Be bigger to me than all my concerns, woes, cares and trials. Let me sink into you sovereign, loving care in Christ. Hallowed be your name – to me, in me and through me.

Just those contemplations alone, will refresh your soul day after day.

Occasionally, when one preaches, the substance of the sermon addresses the immediate experience of the preacher himself. In truth, the preacher should always be preaching to himself and striving to live within the fullness of the truths he is expounding every time he preaches. But sometimes, the two coincide in a far more acute way.

‌It was this way for me this past Lord’s Day.

‌By God’s grace and in His providence, I was filling the pulpit for a local Church where I’ve had a long-standing relationship with the congregation, and deep personal fellowship and friendship with the pastor. He was going to be away for 2 weeks and asked if I might cover both of those for him. I decided upon a two part series on Jesus’ letter to the Church in Philadelphia found in Rev. 3:7-13.

‌As you well know, this letter is written to a Church which was enduring much trial due to natural disasters, governmental overreach and mismanagement and direct persecution from the local Jewish community. The context paints a small church, with few resources and no real power to change their circumstances. Bereft of natural opportunity and ability, nevertheless Jesus says He has set before them “an open door which no one Is able to shut.”

‌What is that all about?

‌It is most typical to identify that “open door” as an opportunity for Gospel witness despite their straightened circumstances. And while that concept is certainly true, I’m not convinced by the context and the Old Testament allusion Jesus employs here that that is His main point. Rather, (and I will not exegete the passage here, you can hear the entire sermon at https://www.youtube.com/live/JqtaYBmlCm0?feature=shared) it appears the open door is more in reference to the saints unfettered access to the throne of God that Christ has opened for them, and for us, especially by the vehicle of – prayer.

‌What I wanted to press on my hearers was the wonder of this open door into the presence of God in prayer. And not pressing prayer in terms of set times and lengths – though that can be a useful tool, but more: A habitual frame of heart and mind which brings all things before the throne, informed by the Word and trusting His holiness, love and wisdom to answer as He deems best.

‌This requires no special words. No special posture. No special time of day or length. An air of the heart consistently turned to Him, believing He hears, knows, loves, sympathizes, and lovingly answers with infallible wisdom. In fact, it may not ever require words at all.

‌Let me explain.

‌Just before I preached the 1st sermon on this portion, I contracted a nasty cold. I struggled with congestion and a very sore throat the first week. In the meantime, the cold worsened and developed into a severe sinus infection with much pain and little ability to talk at all comfortably. The intervening week was miserable. Poor and very interrupted sleep. Difficulty breathing. Constant coughing. Not comfortable.

‌But it was during this time, waking up multiple times each night, that I experienced the joy and wonder of simply having my heart and mind turned toward the Lord, and opportunities to lift up the names and circumstances of any number of loved ones and situations before Him. Due this mostly being in the dead of night, and both with speech quite painful and considering my dear wife’s need for rest – these times of prayer were mostly silent. Like Hannah in1 Sam. 1, I was speaking in my heart, only my lips moved, but my voice was not heard. But my God did!

‌This! This was the reality and the joy of those physically distressing moments – that my God was attending, and His ear open to my silent but urgent pleas. At times, in exhaustion, even my lips failed to move. But every thought, ever care and concern that I inwardly brought before His throne, I know was heard. For you see in Christ, He has set before His saints, an open door which no one is able to shut. Which no circumstance is able to shut. A place of refuge which can be retreated to in the most straightened of times and places.

‌It was common to hear in my days growing up, that when schools stopped having public prayer – that prayer had been removed from the schools. Nonsense. There is no law, no circumstance, no prohibition by man, devil or demon which can shut the door to our Father’s throne. Jesus Himself has set it before us. O may we take continual advantage of it – knowing full well, that clothed in His righteousness and adopted into the Family, that we ever and always have access to our Father, God and Kind.

‌Praise Him!

Have you ever had someone burst into the room where you are and just start talking – without even saying hi, or asking if you are busy or without any kind of acknowledgment? I have. And its jarring. For me, a bit annoying. I’m not implying that God is that way in terms of being annoyed, but I wonder if we do not even extend the common courtesy we ought to extend to one another – to Him in prayer? Do we just dive in without any thought of relationship so that prayer never advances to true communion and not the equivalent of just dropping off our laundry list or visiting the “Complaint Desk”? Are we just hitting the cosmic panic button? Or are we conscious of coming into the presence of “Our Father who is in Heaven”?

‌Jesus’ pattern here helps us begin in a new starting place in prayer. In a place of both familiarity and intimacy.

‌Father, I want to stop for a moment and re-frame my own heart and mind before we get into the thick of things, by remembering that you are truly “our” Father; Jesus’ and mine and Father of all my brothers and sisters in The Faith. Father. Not just Lord or God or sovereign, but – Father.

‌Father, ruling and reigning over all as you are in Heaven, before anything else, help me remember that above everything else in all the world, what the world needs most, what I need most, what everyone I am about to discuss with you needs most – is for you to be seen, and known, and appreciated and relished for who and what you are.

‌And Father, by your Spirit I need my soul to be governed and supremely influenced by your indwelling Spirit above every external force, and to be consciously longing for Jesus’ manifest reign.

‌And so Father, knowing your love, mercy, grace, compassion, holiness and wisdom are perfect and infinite in every way – with that firmly in mind – grant me, grant US today, the wise supply for every need. For my every concern. And above all, satisfy my longing soul with a fresh portion of The Bread of Life. Make Him the sweetest most satisfying delight to me, and to my brothers and sisters. Open Him afresh to me by your Spirit. Make me to thirst only for Him. To hunger only for a greater and greater revelation of His glory and perfections. Fill me with Jesus. Remind my afresh how it is that your “divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.” (2 Pet. 1:3)

‌Lift my eyes up. Let me see Him, know Him, wonder at Him. Overwhelm me with contemplations of His glory. For then, and only then will all that I am about to seek you for will be seen in their right perspective. Give me, give us, this day, this day’s – daily Bread. I cast the whole of my needs, desires, wants and concerns upon you, because I know by your sending Christ, that you care for me beyond comprehension. (1 Pet. 5:7)

‌And now, Father, now with my heart and mind re-tuned, at least in part – let me pour out my heart to you in the full confidence of your love, understanding and power. Father…

We are considering the nature of what is termed “The Lord’s Prayer” from the sermon on the mount in Matthew 6.

‌If you haven’t noticed it yet, the way Jesus teaches us to pray, takes the focus of the soul away from ourselves, and places it back upon our God. This is by design. For when we consider ourselves first and foremost, and do not lift our eyes up to our God and Redeemer and King first, so much of our prayer can devolve into a mere self-pity session.

‌It is not that we are in any way hindered from bringing our needs to Him. Indeed, this is one of the royal gifts Christ has bestowed upon us. He has opened the door so that we may bring all to the Father, in faith, knowing His love, power, mercy, grace, compassion and tenderness toward us. But this God-first-focus draws our hearts and minds up above ourselves. It refreshes our souls and foments faith within because faith must always have an object. And when that object is the God of the universe, our trials and tribulations, as real, critical and even bearing the marks of emergency, are placed against the backdrop of His glory, and robbed of their power to overwhelm us.

‌I’ve quoted it before, but especially as we come to this 3rd petition, “your will be done as it is in heaven” – hear Thomas Aquinas: “It is clear that he does not pray, who, far from uplifting himself to God, requires that God shall lower Himself to him, and who resorts to prayer not to stir up the man in us to will what God wills, but only to persuade God to will what the man in us wills.”

‌While at first blush praying that His will be done before we even make our desires known may seem counter-intuitive. It isn’t. Why? Because here, we begin to frame our personal desires in the most faith-filled way possible.

‌Here is the dynamic. I am bringing my pleas and petitions before Him, while at the same time recognizing that even my personal concerns are not isolated from His eternal plans and purposes. It makes me pause to consider how in salvation, He has intertwined the whole of my life with His cosmic redemptive work. So my aches, my sorrows, my confusions and my deepest felt needs, are not just about me. In prayer, I get to bring those things to Him, and ask Him to consider His answers to me in light of what He is doing in me personally, in those around me my life touches, in His Church of which I am a part, and in His fathomless plans.

‌So here is my need, now you know better than I what is wisest and best and of most use in the hallowing of your name and the advancing of your Kingdom in your answer to it. So Father, I bring it to you for the best possible disposal. Yes, I may prefer X be handled a certain way – but more – I know you love me more than I can love myself, I know you cannot sin against me, I know your wisdom is perfect and that you have only my absolute and eternal best at heart – so while I want X – YOUR will be done in this earth, in this circumstance, in this situation, the way it is done in heaven.

‌And how might we imagine His will is done in Heaven? With no opposition. With no hesitation. With the agency of the angelic hosts. With perfect wisdom. In all holiness. In all perfection and in harmony with what He has purposed for me – the greatest blessing of all – to wake in Christ’s likeness.

‌Here is the prayer of faith beloved – trusting Him to always answer better than I can ask. And with the absolute conviction, that He will!

So that we do not get too esoteric about it all, let me try to boil down what I am after in prayer – and as it relates to the first petition Jesus taught to consider in prayer.

‌And by way of introduction to this portion, I am reminded of Jesus’ summarizing words in 6:33 – “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” There is in this a look into an extraordinary exchange which cannot be ours until we digest this first petition well. The idea is this: if we will make seeking the hallowing of God’s name, the advancement of His Kingdom and the doing of His will as our chief priority in prayer – He promises to make sure our personal needs are met in the process. It isn’t that we ignore our needs in prayer – we’ll get to that more in due course. It is rather that He brings us into His own cosmic plans and purposes and promises that in taking those on – He’ll take ours on.

‌So let me break this down into 4 things.

‌1 – Seek first that the Father’s name be restored to its rightful place – IN YOU.

‌Nothing so breaks the yoke of doubt and fear in your own circumstances, as having your heart and mind filled with the wonder, glory and awe of the greatness and goodness of God. This one who spoke the cosmos into existence, and who can in no wise sin against you, because in Him is no darkness at all.

‌Don’t know how to pray aright in confusing and monumental circumstances? Pray this: “Father, let my soul be over-awed once again by who and what you are as over and against all that troubles my heart and mind. Be who you are to me in all your fullness, afresh.”

‌2 – Seek that the Father’s name and reputation come into full view in the hearts and minds of the lost.

‌You can pray no great thing for your unsaved loved ones than that they too come to see Him for who and what He is. How do you pray for that erring child, that unsaved spouse, that perishing friend caught in destructive sin? “Father, let them see you. Let them come to know you as I know you. Let them be overwhelmed by your love, your grace, your mercy, and your holiness, so that they fall to their knees before you. Hallowed be your name, to them.”

‌3 – Seek that the Father’s name and reputation be restored to all sentient beings in the universe.

‌Nothing can be set to rights in this fallen world until all come to see Him and know Him and reverence Him for who and what He is – especially as revealed in Christ. “Father, the World is awash in confusion, degradation, sin, bondage and destruction. We need more than revival as a religious movement in our Church, our government or nation – we need true, cosmos shattering revival in the revealing of your glory to all – so that “at the name of jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to your glory.”

‌4 – Seek that the Father’s name and reputation be restored and reveled in, by your brother or sister in Christ as they face their trials, tribulations and even death. Nothing will do them in better stead.

‌“Father, I do not know how to pray in specificity and wisdom for this my brother and sister in their trial today – but this I know, they need to see you for who and what you are. They need their hearts lifted up out of their circumstances. They need to see you high and lifted up – ruling over all – and reminded that “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” Let them glory in you anew. Let your sacred name be truly hallowed to them today.”

‌Beginning prayer in this way beloved, you tune your E string to Him. And everything else will be brought into its right relationship to it as you continue. Don’t know how to pray and what to pray for? Start here. And watch what happens.

‌