Pray About Everything

Hi, this is Roy Jones with ManTalk Radio podcast. Our mission is to break down the walls of race and denomination. Your chosen Truth Radio broadcast will be starting in just a few seconds.

Thank you. And now, here's James. Pray about everything. You know, that's the advice God's Word gives us in Colossians 3.17. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

James? My friend Lisa Samra wrote a great devotion about this in Our Daily Bread this past week. She talks about our tendency to look at some things as spiritual activities, like reading devotions or going to church, and other things as having little spiritual value, like doing the dishes after meal.

And she points out that everything we do has spiritual value. And then she shares this great quote from G.K. Chesterton. He writes, You say grace before meals, all right, but I say grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing, and grace before I dip the bed in the ink. Wow, sounds like Chesterton. Chesterton was, you know, the most interesting man in the world back in the day. He was definitely a believer in Jesus.

And this book, Orthodoxy, by the way, is one of the best works on apologetics out there, but that's another topic. But what his quote shows you is the kind of life Paul is talking about. You know, when he says, Whatever you do, whether in word or in deed, do it all for Jesus, basically. And those are challenging words for us, but they also present us with this great opportunity that is so helpful in so many ways.

You know, in order to do this, we have to live close. And what Paul is talking about is that continual communication with God that we often, you know, talk about on The Courage in Prayer, but it also brings in this component of our being servants. You know, I think sometimes as I'm living my life, I go off too quickly in my own direction without realizing, Wait a minute. Am I truly doing this for Jesus? Am I doing it in his name, if you will? That's what that means, to serve him. So everything we do is cleared through him first when we live like this, done intentionally for him, you know, staying with him in the moment. So yeah, I remember that Our Daily Bread piece. We read them as part of our devotions here at the station every morning, and I like the way she ended it saying that anything we do, any moment, can be empowered by God's Spirit when we live like that.

Yeah, that's just it. That's the thing I think we miss when we compartmentalize our lives. You know, some things are spiritual, some things aren't. This isn't about praying just because God is legalistic and demands that you do it, as some might think.

This is about praying because God loves us and has so much waiting for us that we'll just make the effort to live with him every day. Yeah, I like that. That's so true. Yeah, I like what you pointed out about being empowered by God's Spirit in the moment. I mean, just think about that.

The difference it can make when we live plugged in. God can break through any moment. We've all seen that and what can happen when he does, especially when you look that way. And I love this idea of no matter what you're doing, saying, Jesus, I'm doing this for you. Yeah, me too. I mean, it's a great check on our hearts and our motives, right? Can I sincerely do this for Jesus? And second, it consciously lets him in so that, right, his power can move through us. Yeah, yeah. And that makes me think of something that Spurgeon said about praying being greater than walking on water. Oh, really?

You have my attention. Okay, well, he basically said that walking on water is essential to faith, but prayer is. Prayer is how we come to Jesus, you know, how we live in a relationship with him. If you think about it, that's how Peter was able to walk on water, where he said, Lord, if it's you, tell me to come to you on the water.

And then later when he started to sing, he cried out, Lord, save me. So prayer made all the difference both times. Therefore, prayer is greater than walking on water. You've got to pray to be able to walk on water.

That's so beautiful. I love that because we tend to think about big sensational things, right? But it's simple, you know, things that starts everything greater small.

I mean, the simpler, the better. The simple place of leaning on God from the heart. Yeah, that's exactly it, Rob. And when we make a practice of going there, as we're talking about, you know, being with God and the simple things, we can look forward to seeing him move. We can expect it. And we'll become more accustomed to his ways.

We'll be able to hear his still small voice just more intuitively. And because God is great enough to care about even the simplest things in our lives, that's where it really gets good. I mean, remember what Jesus said about sparrows falling and hairs on our heads being numbered. God is so great, he cares about the tiniest details so he can be in them.

Oh, yeah. And when he gives, and when we give ourselves to him in those everyday moments, like you were saying, it's like focusing on the treasure in heaven. You know, that's what Jesus told us to live for.

Yeah, yeah. And the thing is, it makes our lives more effective for God on earth, not only because we're living more in prayer, but because when we do, again, we're able to hear him better. And that means we can go where he leads, you know? Thinking the thoughts that he gives us, being empowered, afresh. It's a way that his kingdom makes inroads through us in this dark world, and that makes me think about the people who really make a difference for God. Most of them are probably people we've never heard of, you know, who are just living out their lives faithfully. I think of a couple named Don and Diane Long, who live in Louisiana, who took that Prayers for Prodigals book and they started a prayer ministry in their church, and then it multiplied online and in other countries, and they have seen hundreds of prodigals come back to God as a result. And they're just, you know, doing it all for him in prayer.

That's so beautiful. You know, I think there are going to be a number of surprises when it's all said and done, don't you? Yeah, yeah.

Isn't that right? So, Robbie, do you have any thoughts about this? I remember I was on the G. Gordon Liddy show years ago, and he, you know, he was Jewish, and he was concerned about the Christian car guy name, and he said, Robbie, do you mean to tell me that God cares when you turn a wrench that he's like right there involved in that? You know, when you're in that position and ask a really difficult question, I went immediately to prayer. I'll never forget it. And God immediately said, oh, and there's nothing like turning a wrench when God's got, you know, the torque involved.

Oh, great answer. Well, let's pray for torque. Can we do that? Yeah, let's do that. Father, we do pray that you would just help us to move in your strength.

I mean, there's no greater torque than that. Just, Father, to do what we do for you, to thank you, to stay close to you, to stay plugged in, connected to you, in your grip, in Jesus' name. Amen. You can hear more from Pastor James by visiting his website, jamesbanks.org, or by visiting Peace Church in Durham, North Carolina. May God bless you and encourage you as you pray. This is the Truth Network.