Relentless Asking  “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God, and did not respect man.  And there was a certain widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ And for a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her lega...  Read More

Search Me  “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.” Psalm 139:23-24  Fasting has a way of revealing things about ourselves that we have ignored.  As an avid sports fan, several years ago I undertook a three day “sports fast.”  For three days, I would not watch any sports, I would not w...  Read More

Our Prayers Have Been Heard  “Then he said to me, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words.” Daniel 10:12  It can be easy to for us to wonder if our prayers are making it past the ceiling.  We have prayed, and prayed, and prayed some more, y...  Read More

Keep It Simple  “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” Matthew 6:7  One of our biggest hindrances to prayer, I believe, is our tendency to overcomplicate it.  We’ve made the simple act of coming before the Lord such a complex thing that we feel intimidated about praying.  We fear that we won’...  Read More

Freedom Through Fasting“Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke?”Isaiah 58:6Fasting has a way of setting us free.  Indeed, freedom is one of the purposes for fasting found in Isaiah 58.  What we are not told, though, is how exactly fasting brings about freedom in our lives.  We may...  Read More

First Things First “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”Matthew 6:28Prayer, by its very nature, is nothing less than seeking the kingdom of God.  This can be seen most clearly in the model for prayer given to us by Jesus, where the first request of that prayer is, “Thy kingdom come.”  While we most certainly have needs, and it is fitting to...  Read More