Forerunning prayer
It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. Luke 1:17
For every move of God there is a “back story”.
John the Baptist played a key role in the back story to Jesus’ miraculous time upon the earth. His calling? To prepare the way of the Lord. To be a forerunner before Him.
Did you realize that the preparatory work of the forerunner didn’t stop with John? It’s a calling that has appeared in every generation ever since Jesus walked the earth.
This weekend marks the 110th anniversary of the outpouring of God at Azusa Street which began falling on April 9, 1906. This move came upon those souls suddenly—but it didn’t take all of them by surprise. No, concerted prayer on the part of a couple of local black congregations combined with those of others, including a white man named Frank Bartleman. Fervent prayer preceded this iconic move of God; without it, the Azusa outpouring would have never happened.
When you read about the various moves, revivals, renewals, awakenings, and sweeping reformations, they share one commonality—forerunners in prayer. Often for months or years—even decades—before the first trickle of the miraculous begins to rain down, these intercessors labor in the shadows, interceding before God on behalf of souls.
Preparation for a move of God typically requires that someone intercede on behalf of men, and Luke 1:17 reveals three specific thrusts of such preparatory prayer.
- To turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children
- To turn the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous
- To make ready a people prepared for the Lord
Preparatory intercession occurs during times of spiritual drought. It happens during times of spiritual famine. It also takes place during times of chaos, turmoil, and trouble. It’s going on right now, and I fully believe that the Lord is seeking to enlist you and me in this work. Will we hear—and heed—His call?
For the next few blogs, I plan to put a magnifying glass upon each of the three thrusts of preparation found in Luke 1:17. Hope you’ll join me.
Dorothy
I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land…. Ezekiel 22:30a
Read MoreApril Fools
Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. 1 Corinthians 3:18
I never would have planned it this way, but I was water baptized on April Fools’ Day. The last thing I would have ever dreamed of doing was to make such a serious act of commitment to Jesus on a day associated with pranks and practical jokes. But God sees things differently.
I had been saved barely three months; yet every time I turned on my newly-discovered Christian radio station, all I heard them talking about was water baptism. I soaked it up, but was utterly perplexed. How do I get someone to baptize me? I pondered. I didn’t go to a traditional church; my church was the Tuesday/Thursday night dorm Bible study. My pride was kicking in—I didn’t want to be laughed at for my ignorance about baptism—but nevertheless, I sought out a seasoned saint in the dorm. She was the ripe old age of 21 and about as learned as Moses. Sheepishly, I asked her to explain it to me.
Instead of teasing me for my limited knowledge, her face lit up. She got on the phone with Rick, the leader of our Bible study, and said, “We’re having baptism tonight. Get everything ready!”
The only problem: I was mortified that it was April Fools’ Day! Wouldn’t I dishonor God and open Him up to ridicule if—of all days—I was baptized on April Fools? I almost backed out.
When my wise counselor perceived my dilemma, she assured me that God would not be offended if I got baptized on April first. In fact, she shared, I was obeying Scripture—I was allowing myself to be foolish so that I could become truly wise (see 1 Corinthians 3:18). It was settled. I was getting baptized—that very night.
This was the first of many baptisms I attended while in college; every one of them was an event full of love, joy, camaraderie, and the first blush of commitment to Jesus Christ as new believers obeyed the command to be baptized in the name of Jesus.
Before I was saved I had watched this motley crew of Christians trek back to the dorm more than once after water baptisms late at night—that’s how I knew who the believers in the dorm were when I needed them later on—and here I was—on April Fools’ Day, 1975, doing the same thing. Who would have thought?
The group of fifteen or so of us hiked down to the rock quarry across campus. Some of the guys had gone ahead of us to build a huge bonfire on the bank. Several of the ladies were carrying towels and blankets. I invited three very special friends who didn’t attend our Bible study to witness my “burial and resurrection”—Linda, who was unsaved; Miriam, who was from a prominent family in her mainline Protestant church; and Carla, who was backslidden.
Rick shared on water baptism from the Bible: “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). By the light of the fire, I saw joy and expectation on everyone’s faces—except for Linda’s, Miriam’s, and Carla’s. Their heads hung low; none of them gave eye contact either to Rick or to me.
It was time. Around 8:30, with stars twinkling in the sky, I followed Rick (another Moses-type to me—he was nearly 22 and had been saved most of his life) into the quarry. The water took my breath away, it was so cold, but the joy I was experiencing warmed me to the core.
“Dorothy, have you received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” Rick asked.
“Yes,” I responded.
“Then in front of these witnesses, I baptize you in the name of Jesus!” And with that, he dunked me under the nearly-freezing water and pulled me back up.
On the bank, I heard whooping and hollering, followed by guitar and the sound of loud, jubilant singing:
“Break forth into joy, oh my soul! Break forth into, oh my soul!
For in the presence of the Lord, there is joy forevermore;
Break forth, break forth into joy, oh my soul!”
As Rick and I emerged from the water, both of us were greeted with blankets wrapped around our shoulders; and as I stood by the fire, I received joyful hugs all around. Everyone was beaming ear to ear, worshiping around the crackling bonfire—everyone, that is, except Linda, Miriam, and Carla. All three of them—the unsaved, the religious, and the backslider—were weeping uncontrollably.
God was touching each one of them, very deeply, that April Fools night.
Linda got saved less than a year later, getting baptized in the quarry herself in the dead of winter when we had to break the ice covering it—and now she is a prominent businesswoman in my area; Miriam wrote me a beautiful letter describing how the Scriptures came alive to her that night and how “newness of life” meant something new to her now, as well; and Carla went on to return to her first love, Jesus—and she has been winning souls to Him ever since.
As for me, I was through with trying to appear wise. I realized that the wisdom of the world was absolute foolishness to God; if I truly wanted to be wise, I must become foolish first—with the foolishness of God. And then—and only then—would I become wise.
And that’s no April Fools.
Dorothy
Read MoreOffenses in election season
Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” Luke 17:3-5
Have you noticed recently how touchy our society has gotten? Everywhere I turn I’m seeing verbal slap fights between all kinds of folks!
It’s gotten more intense lately because of the hotly contested primary season and soon-to-come presidential campaigns.
Even among believers: “I like this party and you like the other”. If you and I aren’t careful, we can come to blows verbally.
Or perhaps you and I share a general party preference. I like one primary candidate and you like another. Well, I’ve felt the “wrath of God” pour out against my audacity/stupidity/dullness-of-heart in supporting one person over “God’s chosen candidate”—and this from dear believing people! But one such friend confided in me that she’s feeling the same “righteous indignation” directed at her from Christians who support the candidate I like. Oi vey!
Jesus told us to be on our guard. Life is weird, and there are many potholes and pitfalls along the way. And some of the most deceitfully dangerous snares to be found occur in our everyday interactions with each other—especially with those we love or are more closely connected to.
Why? Because none of us are perfect. You can rub me the wrong way with your words, attitude, or ways, and Lord knows I can do the same to you! Thoughtlessness happens; and you and I are both capable of sinning against each other in word or deed.
What is Jesus’ input when someone messes with your peace? Blast their credibility? Give them the cold shoulder? Brand them as a despicable reprobate?
No; Jesus directs you to go to them personally and address the sin (by the way, disagreeing on candidates is not included on the list of verifiable offenses). If they repent, then let it drop. Don’t hold it over their head for all of eternity.
And if they sin again, forgive them again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again.
And here’s the crux of the whole forgiveness deal:
The disciples didn’t say in response to Jesus’ forgiveness admonition, “Easy peasy; piece of cake.” Instead, they cried, “Increase our faith!”
In other words, the hardest thing to overcome won’t be a natural obstacle—a financial, material, or physical need; the hardest thing you’ll face is dealing with offenses! And trust me: Offenses are a dime a dozen—and they pile up, bloat, and stretch out with gluttonous tentacles that wind around the life of the person who refuses to let them go.
Back to the campaign trail. If you witness or are assaulted yourself by the zeal of political zealots during this election season, and you are determined to hold your own and refuse to give up ground…remember this: You live in an imperfect world with imperfect—albeit loved-by-God—people.
And although you have the right—and even the responsibility at times—to state your opinion about all matters politic, you are beholden only to One, the Lord Jesus Christ—not to Ted Cruz, not to Donald Trump, not to John Kasich, not to Bernie Sanders, not to Hillary Clinton.
If you feel the wrath and righteous indignation of others rising up against you—and your own rising up against them in return—step away for a minute, take a breath, look to Heaven and whisper, “Lord! Increase my faith!”
And because of the intensity of our current political climate, I want to offer a prayer for all of us:
Lord, help us as we navigate this weird, wacky, windy, wind-fest of an election season! Lord—Increase our faith!
Dorothy
Read MoreWhy I value the US Constitution
Navigating the vote wisely
A couple of weeks ago I shared about an odd word that kept coming to me as I prayed about the upcoming election season: Obfuscation.
Although I was unfamiliar with the word, I knew its definition would reveal specific direction concerning strategies used to skew the November election in an ungodly way. Therefore, if I was to pray about this election, I needed to have a clearer picture of what we were up against.
Obfuscate means to darken, to put into a stupor, to bewilder, and overall, to confuse.
And as I’ve read about, watched, and discussed the specifics concerning each candidate and his or her platform, ideas, temperament, and insight, I know one thing: Obfuscation is in the atmosphere.
Yes, I am leaning strongly toward a certain candidate, and I am glad he is still in the race for the Missouri primary on March 15. (OK—that gives you a clue about which candidate I won’t be voting for.)
But as I observe and engage in conversations about the candidates, I am struck by the level of deep, gut-level emotion—and at times, downright animosity—that lies just beneath the surface; emotion that at times lashes out at dear friends, relatives, and anyone else within earshot…and I’ve even caught myself at times in the role of “lasher”.
Whatever your viewpoint, this election is pivotal. Its outcome will affect generations of Americans to come; how you vote—and whether you vote—will have lasting repercussions.
“But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil” (I Thessalonians 5:21-22).
If you lean more heavily on feelings or gut impressions, study the positions of the candidates before you make your final, prayerful decision. If you are a more cerebral individual who intellectually weighs out all of the facts, then amp up your prayer over all the information you’ve gleaned.
Thankfully, you are not alone in your decision; you have a Helper—the Holy Spirit Himself—to assist you as you navigate all the info and myriads of video, soundbites, and analyses of talking heads. He is faithful to direct you in your vote as you lean on Him and take advantage of His guidance. He will help you to discern between truth and error, soul and spirit, wisdom and folly, and prudence versus group think. And perhaps most importantly—and most difficult of all—be willing to let Him redirect you if your thoughts concerning this election have not been His thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8).
And trust God. He is the Good Shepherd. He cares about this nation; He cares about the outcome of this election. As you seek Him and proceed accordingly in your civic responsibility to vote, I believe He will direct your steps and have His way.
Dorothy
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