Author: Danny Panter

Re:Verse passage – Mark 11:22-25 (day six)

When Peter marveled at the withered fig tree, Jesus responded with, “Have faith in God.” His response was intended to affirm that God moves and acts in the world.

Generally, we tend to live day to day as if we are in a closed system, like an ant farm. If we are honest, even when we pray, we don’t often think God will actually intervene. When we tell others, “my thoughts and prayers are with you,” we believe the words themselves may provide comfort, but we rarely believe God will act.

Jesus is telling Peter, “God still acts in the world.” Whether seen or unseen God is the mover of mountains, if he so wills.

That’s the kind of God we pray to. Believe it.

Re:Verse passage – John 17:20-26 (day six)

The High Priestly prayer in John 17 is the longest recorded prayer of Jesus in the Bible and is glorious. His heart is heavy and full as he thinks about what is ahead, along with a deep affection for the men entrusted in his care. It is here that Jesus prays. With the cross ahead of him, he first prays for glory. He then prays for his disciples as they carry his story in a hostile world. Lastly, with a much longer gaze, he prays for his church.

It shouldn’t surprise us that Jesus would cast a vision for his church before she was even born. His very incarnation embodied a vision of what humanity should be. It only makes sense as he ignited a movement of the new creation that he would look beyond the twelve to his church, the fruit of their faithful witness.

And Jesus’ vision for us is glorious; that we would share in his new creation glory with such clarity and unity that the world can’t help but see him.

Now that’s vision.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 3:14-21 (day six)

So please don’t lose heart…Ephesians 3:13

Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. 1 John 4:18

To know and experience the love of God is to live and love without fear. Fear, or losing heart, leads to self-preservation. Love leads to freely giving of ourselves to others. Fear dehumanizes. Love restores our humanity. Fear leads to trusting our instincts. Love leads to trusting Jesus.

That is how Paul was praying. The only way they could not lose heart was to know and experience the love of Jesus more deeply, and it is there, and only there that they can know the fullness of God (all that he purposed them to be).

Re:Verse passage – Luke 18:1-8 (day six)

We can feel like God doesn’t care when our prayers go unanswered. We wonder if he hears us or even cares about our struggles. After teaching about the suddenness of his return, Jesus then reaffirms that God hears their cries and cares about justice.

Jesus concludes if an unrighteous judge, who could care less about God and people, can get it right some of the time, then a God who loves his people and guarantees justice will get it right 100 percent of the time.

Our persistent prayer is not begging God to act on our behalf, it is the fervent agreement with God’s holy decree against injustice and a joyful anticipation of the Son’s sudden return.

Re:Verse passage – Luke 11:5-13 (day six)

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Psalm 37:4

Heavenward prayer and delight in the Lord are cousins, or as Scott Lane might say, two sides of the same coin. Persistence and trust spring from a heart that is enamored with God’s Kingdom (Luke 11:2) and certainty of its reality. Or said another way, you only keep knocking if you are certain of the reward.

Heavenward prayer flows from a heart that delights in the Lord. God promises to answer that kind of prayer; any other is a clamoring gong.

Re:Verse passage – Romans 8:26-27(day six)

For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. Psalm 103:14

We tend to suffer disappointment on our worst days. We wish we could be more hopeful. We think if only I had more faith, I wouldn’t be so anxious or discouraged. Most often, we don’t stop there but project that disappointment onto others and even God. We can’t imagine him being anything but disappointed in our lack of faith.

BUT instead of disappointment from God, we receive help from him on those worst days.

Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. Jude 24

Re:Verse passage – Acts 2:42-47 (day six)

“They devoted themselves to…the prayers.” Acts 2:42 (ESV).

Most other translations drop the article, “They devoted themselves… to prayer.” That’s okay, but the most literal translation is “the prayers.” The more literal translation gives us a better idea of how they were praying. Jewish tradition provided the earliest Jewish Christians with daily formal prayers, along with many other formal prayers for special occasions. It is almost certain that it was these formal prayers that they were praying together during their fellowship. Most, if not all, the earliest Christians had been faithfully praying these prayers all their lives, every day.

It is encouraging to me that these early Christians did not abandon their Jewish faith and practice but recognized Jesus as the fulfillment of their faith. Their prayers were part of a deep and old tradition from a people trusting God would fulfill his promise of sending a messiah.

BUT while “the prayers” were deep and old, they had to have resonated with new and glorious meaning. Imagining their fellowship and their praying “the prayers” renews and strengthens my own faith as we await his return.

Re:Verse passage – 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5 (day six)

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Perhaps the most basic reason for prayer is that God does; he does all the work. He strengthens, he guards, he does. Paul believed that God had a vested interest in preserving the Thessalonian church-the full expression of God’s love resulting in the spread of the Gospel.

Remember, we pray because God is faithful. He is faithful to do above and beyond what we ask for his namesake. There is no greater commitment than that.

Church, we pray because we are in good hands. God does. He is committed to finishing what he has started.

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 6:17-20 (day six)

Did you notice what Paul didn’t ask them to pray for? He asks them to pray for words and boldness, all while he is imprisoned in Rome. Why doesn’t he ask them to pray for his release or to end his suffering? But Paul makes no mention of these personal needs.

It’s not that Paul didn’t want out of prison, but that he believed God was using him in the midst of his suffering. Paul doesn’t lose sight of God’s Kingdom purpose in his life, regardless of his circumstances.

I ask myself, will I look through my circumstances to see what God is doing, or will my circumstances keep me from seeing what he is doing?

Praying it’s the former.