| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Mighty Prevailing Prayer” Our Bible verse for today: “I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day.” 2 Timothy 1:3 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Prayer strengthens us” There is strength to be found in prayer. Yesterday we considered the example of young Titus, as he faithfully served as the pastor of a church in the midst of a corrupt and contentious society. Titus needed to be praying so he could stay strong as he confronted evil and proclaimed Biblical principles. Often in such cases, the victory that comes with persistent prayer is that we have the strength to carry on in the face of so much opposition and difficulty. The victory may turn out to be simply that we stood strong and firm when others might have caved in and given up. That’s certainly the example we read of in Hebrews chapter eleven (the Faith Hall of Fame). Many of the people mentioned in that chapter struggled their entire lives and never seemed to have had the victory they prayed for. And yet, they are in the Faith Hall of Fame. I believe it was their persistent prayers that enabled them to stay strong and stand firm. It was indeed mighty prevailing prayer – prayer that persisted and therefore prevailed, in that it gave them the strength they needed to carry on. In today’s passage we read of another example of the strengthening power of persistent prayer. In this case Paul reports that he prayed constantly for his son in the faith, Timothy, as Timothy faithfully labored as the pastor of the church in Ephesus. In verse 3 Paul said he prayed for Timothy constantly. In verse 4 he said he did so with tears and with a longing to see him again soon. In verse 5 he wrote that in those prayers he warmly remembered Timothy’s godly upbringing by his mother and grandmother. In verse 6 he reminded Timothy of his calling and anointing for ministry; and then in verse 7 he offered this powerful word of encouragement, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.” Evidently, those were elements of the prayers Paul prayed for Timothy. I’m sure Timothy was blessed, encouraged, and strengthened to hear that Paul was praying for him like that. It reminds me of how blessed and encouraged I feel when people tell me they pray for me. I had a young man tell me just last week that he and his wife pray for me every morning. Every morning. I’m on someone’s daily prayer list? Wow. How special is that? I have a suggestion about this that I want to share with you. I’ll tell you about it tomorrow. In the meantime, I encourage all of us to pray for others. And then, tell them that you’re praying for them. God Bless, Pastor Jim |
| Copyright © 2021 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. |
-
Follow
Following
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
Oak Hill Baptist Church 
Very nice. I love this post, but sure…..why did ya have to leave us on a cliff hanger? lol God bless. Looking forward to tomorrow’s word. 🙂