chapter 14
"The deep sure ground of answer to prayer is God's forgiving love. When it has taken possession of the heart, we pray in faith. But also, when it has taken possession of the heart, we live in love. God's forgiving disposition, revealed in His love to us, becomes a disposition in us..."
"In that love, not inded the love of perfect attainment, but the love of fixed purpose and sincere obedience, faith can alone obtain the blessing. It is he who gives himself to let the love of God dweill in him, and in the practice of daily life to love as God loves, who will have the power to believe in the Love that hears his every prayer."
I enjoyed this chapter because it did a wonderful job of tearing down the walls of the prayer closet and connecting devotional life to real life. All to often, the temptation is to put on your holy face while in prayer and to act accordingly because it's time to be as Christian as possible. Then, once it's over, we can go back to being normal. A.W. Tozer has a brilliant chapter on this subject about not dividing the sacred and the secular. We simply cannot learn principles of prayer, apply them in short bursts of intercession, and hope to see our lives, as well as others, change. Life in Christ is not the sum of some good prayer slots; it's His life in ours, 24/7.
Amen brutha! I loved this chapter. It made me feel alive.
ReplyDeleteYour life with God is not just a prayer hour.
Whenever I struggle with some sin or whatever I assumed I was finished with I am slyly thankful. It is such a reality check, like, I fall back down to earth and realize my limitations, and then I am more thankful for the God who sees past them, and I am able to see past them in other people with greater understanding. Faith for God, love for man. I think it is the greatest way to search your heart and kind of the downfall of the current Christian church. When I see Christians who won't even talk to a family member who is gay, or snub someone who smokes, or rolls their eyes at someone who gets wasted I just want to smack them. Does ignoring someone look like LOVE to you? Does judging someone? Not allowing them to be in process? Is it bad that I want to judge people who judge others? Looks like I should just smack myself :) slash get on my knees n pray...