Devotions

Every pastor, preacher and evangelist needs helpers in prayer who will intercede for them continually. I have been carried in prayer by faithful servants.

Scripture says that when Peter was bound in jail, "Constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church" (Acts 12:5). God delivered Peter with a miracle through helping prayers.

Paul not only asked for prayer helpers but was a helper himself. He knew this was part of his calling as a minister of the gospel. He wrote to the Philippians, "To all the saints . . . with the bishops and deacons . . . I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you with all joy . . . because I have you in my heart" (Philippians 1:1, 3–4, 7).

Likewise, Paul wrote to the Romans, "God is my witness . . . that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers" (Romans 1:9). The word "mention" means, "I recite your name and needs to the Lord." In short, Paul didn't ask others to undertake something he wasn't willing to do himself.

Are you aware of a brother or sister who is in turmoil of some sort? If so, do you merely tell others about it or do you bring up their names to the Lord and strive for them in prayer?

Do you desire this ministry of being a helper in prayer? Mighty deliverances take place when God’s saints seek him diligently with childlike faith for the needs of their brothers and sisters. 

Some Bible teachers claim we are walking in unbelief if we ask God for the same thing over and over. That is heresy! God commands us to ask, seek, knock — to cry out in effectual, earnest supplication (see Matthew 7:7-8). From the very beginning, true servants have turned God's promises into prayers:

• Jesus knew his Father had promised all things to him before the foundation of the world. Yet Christ spent hours praying for God's will to be done on earth. He even told a parable illustrating persistence in prayer, about an "importunate widow" who kept demanding justice from a judge until she got it (Luke 18:1-8).
• God gave Ezekiel wonderful prophecies about Israel's restoration, promising the nation's ruins would become as the Garden of Eden. Yet the Lord said his word would not be fulfilled without prayer: "I will also let the house of Israel inquire of Me to do this for them" (Ezekiel 36:37). In other words, "I've made you a promise, but I want you to pray it to pass. Seek me with all your heart until you see my Word fulfilled. I will deliver, but first you must ask."
• God promised Daniel that after seventy years Israel would be restored. When Daniel saw the appointed year arrive, he could have waited in faith for God to fulfill his word. Instead, Daniel fell on his face and prayed for two weeks until he saw the Lord bring everything to pass (Daniel 9:24-27).

In the Old Testament, Israel's priest carried on his breastplate the names of all the tribes of Israel. This signified that the people's needs were continually on the priest's heart in prayer. What a wonderful image! It represents Christ carrying us in his heart and presenting our needs to the Father. Yet it is also a picture of every Christian, a royal priesthood, carrying the needs of others in our hearts.

In the Psalms, David extols God’s greatness in blessing those who trust him.

"Oh, how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men! You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues" (Psalm 31:19-20).

When David exclaims, "Oh, how great is God's goodness!" he is saying, "I am overcome by all the goodness God has in store." He is celebrating the incredible storehouse of mercy and kindness that God has set aside for us. David testified, "I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living" (Psalm 27:13).

God's goodness and rewards aren't stored up for "someday" in heaven — they are meant for his people now in their present trials.

God says he will reward our faith. And he wants us to seek him for those rewards now in the midst of our crises. Are you looking for a sign of hope for a rebellious son or daughter? Do you need to see just one break in the clouds of your financial storm? Call on the Lord in faith; he will come to you with comfort and strength. He wants to reward you with renewed hope and to supply you with all strength in your current flood. His voice rises above every floodwater!

God's Word makes it perfectly clear that we are not to worry about current world crises. We are not to worry about the economy. He wants to remove all stress about our loved ones, our families, our hurts and trials. And he has given us the reason for this great comfort and assurance: Our God is great and greatly to be praised!

“He who began a good work in you is faithful to complete it until the final day. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart” (Philippians 1:6-7).

You can see the love Paul has for the Philippians here. And because of this great love, he is hurting with them because of difficult circumstances they are going through.

A couple of years ago some dear friends of ours both lost their jobs and had to move into a small apartment with their children.  

Of course, I hurt for them and like a father with a child, I wanted something better for them. But what do you do when you’re hurting for others? In this situation, my prayer for those friends went something like this: “Lord, why? What’s wrong? Lord, can’t you help them? Give them each a job.” I admit I was very troubled over their situation.

Contrast that with Paul’s prayer: “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy” (Philippians 1:3-4).

There was no anxiety, fear, stress, or lack of confidence. Paul was very thankful and prayed with great joy! Where does that come from? Let’s look at what Paul tells us in verse 6 one more time.

“And I am sure of this.” Sure of what? 

“That he who began a good work . . .” Paul is saying the reason he can be sure and the reason he can have joy is HE . . . Jesus! He gives boldness and confidence.  

The confidence comes to believers in Christ Jesus when they can say this phrase: “I am sure of this, that HE. . .”

The emphasis is on HE. It’s HE who has done this. It’s not the doctor. It’s not the financial wizard. It is Jesus who began that good work in you and he will be faithful to complete it!  

Most of us started our Christian lives with the belief that God was all we needed. Period. Certainly we knew we had no part in gaining acceptance with God. His salvation was a free gift — all we had done was to believe and receive. But then following Christ got a little more complicated. Aware of our failings, we turned not to him but to ourselves! And that’s why Paul summarized his teaching to the Galatians in these words: “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25, emphasis added).

We are born again through the Holy Spirit in us, and we live by the Spirit. Having begun that way, should we now revert back to self-effort in our pathetic attempts to live good lives? Paul’s directive is to keep in step with the Spirit — the living presence of God dwelling in our hearts. As we submit to the Spirit of God, he peels off layer after layer of stuff displeasing to him.

In our own strength, we can never act like Jesus Christ. That is why he sent us a Helper. The Spirit of Jesus within us wants to tenderly and lovingly manage our days. This isn’t a bad thing. He wasn’t sent to rain on our parade and hinder us from enjoying the best of life. Just the opposite! He is ready and able to lead us out into the clean, fresh air of Christlike words, thoughts, and actions.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1).

“Lord, we want to be holy like you.”

Jim Cymbala began the Brooklyn Tabernacle with less than twenty members in a small, rundown building in a difficult part of the city. A native of Brooklyn, he is a longtime friend of both David and Gary Wilkerson.