A DEVOTIONAL GUIDE FOR “THE TEN
TIMELESS VALUES FOR DISCIPLESHIP”
Word: “Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the
mountain to pray. And while he was
praying, the appearance of his face changed . . . .” Luke 9:28-29
“Do not
worry about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
No spiritual practice is more
commonly associated with religion than that of prayer. The words pray, prayer, prayed, or praying
are found more than five hundred times in the Bible. Prayer is not only a regular part of worship
services, but also meals and bedtimes, ball games and congressional sessions. In fact, sometimes it seems that we pray or
talk about prayer so much it seems a perfunctory practice, something we do out
of habit or tradition. I love Philip
Yancey’s book, “Prayer”, but I especially love the subtitle, “Does it make any
difference?” These four devotionals will
explore prayer as a critical practice for discipleship. I have saved it for last because I would
argue it is THE critical practice for discipleship.
Jesus came to offer us a revelation of a heavenly Father, a personal
God, who created us for and desires an intimate relationship with us. Like any intimate personal relationship,
communication between the participants is critical. We have to get to know one another as we risk
opening our hearts. St. Augustine once
said, “True, whole prayer is nothing but love.”
Jesus not only offered us a revelation of God, but also a model for how
to live in an intimate relationship with God.
Over and over again we find Jesus not just teaching his followers the
importance of prayer, but more importantly modeling for them the importance of
prayer through his own prayer life. It
had such an impact on the first followers that they eventually asked him
specifically not to teach them how to preach, teach, or heal, but rather to
teach them how to pray like he did.
Phillip Yancey says, if for no other reason we ought to pray because
Jesus did. In other words, if Jesus
needed prayer, how much more do we.
Discipleship is a process of being changed or transformed and in the
process becoming more and more like Jesus.
What Jesus revealed was that a religion focused primarily on obeying
God’s rules has little power to change us, but growing in an intimate
relationship with God could not help but change us. In that light, it seems that the purpose of
prayer is not so much to change things (circumstances, outcomes, etc) as it is
to change us. On the Mount of
Transfiguration, Luke tells us that “as Jesus prayed, his face changed” and as
he left that mountain he “set his face on Jerusalem”. Later in the garden, facing the end of that
journey to Jerusalem and his own impending death, it was while praying that his
heart was changed and fear overcome.
Paul reminded us that in the midst of life’s trials our worry is
overcome as we pray. So why pray? Because prayer draws us close to God and in
his presence there is “faith, hope, and love” and in the end they are all that
matters.
Practice: Take
an honest look at my prayer life this week asking if I pray, why I pray, what I
am expecting and experiencing. Then
commit myself to a designated time to pray each day for the rest of this week.
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