May

03

2012

Scotty Smith|5:12 am CT

A Prayer for the EVERY Nation Day of Prayer
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     After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Rev. 7:9-10
     Dear heavenly Father, on this “national day of prayer,” it’s easy to think of several things to bring before your throne of grace, with joy and gratitude. First of all, I praise you for heavenly citizenship. Thank you for making me a citizen of the only unshakable kingdom—the kingdom of God. Though this standing in grace came freely to me, it cost you the life of your beloved Son, Jesus. Thanks be to God for this “indescribable gift.”
     Already reigning as King of kings and Lord of lords, we eagerly await Jesus’ return, by which all evil will be eradicated and the transformation of all things will be complete—including a renewed and whole me. I can barely imagine the day when, not only will I never be tempted to sin again, I will be unable to sin forever. That Day cannot come one day too soon!
     Secondly, as broken as our country is, I’m very thankful to be an American citizen, Father. I praise you for the many freedoms we still enjoy and the multiplied privileges that go with being a citizen of this great nation. We bring our sitting president before the occupied throne of heaven, and we ask you to be at work in his heart and through his hands.
     As with all “kings,” you set them up and you sit them down at your discretion, so we trust you, Father, for the accomplishment of your sovereign purposes through our president. Grant him wisdom, and prove yourself to be the God who opens doors no man can shut, and the One who closes doors no man can open. Our ultimate hope is not in our country, but in your Christ. We don’t look for a “lasting city” here, but for “the City whose builder and maker is God” (Heb. 11:10).
     Lastly, Father, as I grow in my understanding of the gospel, I find great joy to pray in view of the  apostle John’s vision of the “every nation” day of prayer (Rev. 7:9). Oh, for the Day when men and women from every nation, tribe, people, and language will be wearing the white robes of grace-secured salvation while waving palm branches of praise and shouting in perfect harmony, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Rev. 7:10).
     Because that Day is coming, free us to be good citizens right where you’ve planted us—without naiveté, fear or cynicism. Until the kingdom of God arrives in fullness and King of Glory arrives in splendor, help us to “love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king” (1 Pet 2:17). So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ sovereign and saving name.
 
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May

02

2012

Scotty Smith|5:35 am CT

A Prayer about Living in Line with the Truth of the Gospel
A Prayer about Living in Line with the Truth of the Gospel avatar

     When Cephas (Peter) came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray. When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs? Gal. 2:11-14
     Heavenly Father, what a painfully beautiful confrontation. What a great picture of friendship, faithfulness and freedom—one apostle holding another apostle accountable for applying and demonstrating the gospel in a very concrete situation. Multiply these kinds of stories in our churches and friendships. For you haven’t just called us to tell, but also to show the gospel by everything we do. Indeed, the gospel is the most important “show and tell” we’ll every be involved in—one we’ll never outgrow.
     By the gospel you’ve set us free from legalism, moralism and pragmatism—from every notion that we can earn a relationship with you or that you are a god we must manipulate into action. You’ve set us free from the tyranny and arrogance of performance based acceptability, for which we offer you eternal praise. But you haven’t just freed us from stuff; you’ve also freed us for stuff, and the main “stuff” you call us to be about is living in line with the truth of the gospel.
     Father, show us what this looks like in our marriages. We’re not to live by rigid rules but by radical grace. At times the gospel feels a lot more demanding than legalism, for you’ve changing our hearts, not just assigning us roles. What but grace can enable us to think of each other more highly than ourselves? What but grace and enable a husband (like me) to find more joy in serving than in being served?
     Father, show us what the “gospel line” is for our parenting.  Help us parents, and grandparents, not to get seduced by the values of our culture, more so than we’re shaped by the treasures of your kingdom. What but the gospel can enable us to want more than virginity-till-marriage, high paying jobs and “success” for our kids?
     Father, show us how by live by the truth of the gospel in our friendships. What does a real “gospel posse” look like? Show us how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, and not just free each other from a guilty conscience about our failures. Show us how to be iron sharpening iron, and not just butter knives polishing butter knives.
     Father, enable our elder boards and deacon boards to live by the truth of the gospel. Bring so much grace to bear into their meetings that non-believers would find the gospel attractive, as they see your servants doing hard work to your glory. Forgive us when we contradict the gospel by our attitudes, conversations and deliberations. Bring revival and wisdom, boldness and kindness to your servant leaders, we ask.
     Increasingly, Father, may our passion be to do all things in line with the truth of the gospel. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ exalted and loving name.
 
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May

01

2012

Scotty Smith|4:04 am CT

A Prayer in Response to the Fierce Good-bye of Suicide
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     And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he [Jesus] said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch for one hour?” Mark 14:32-37
     Gracious Lord Jesus, we come before you today on behalf stunned communities and grieving friends in a state of shock—those who begin this day responding to the fiercest of all goodbyes, suicide. O, mighty and merciful Lord, bring your loving heart and presence to bear in profound ways.
     Twice in a year would be sobering, twice in a month would be shocking, but I will never forget the week we had two families in our community of faith lose a loved one to suicide. We felt then, what many feel now in similar circumstances. How could this happen? What did we miss? What are we to do now? As the questions multiply, multiply your mercies even more.
     We to run to you, Jesus. Where else can we go with our disbelief, numbness, shock, and profound sadness? No one has suffered overwhelming sorrow like you. What you sustained in Gethsemane and endured on the cross makes the path into your presence so very welcoming.
     There are so many things we don’t understand about suicide. We feel guilt. We feel fear. We feel vulnerable. Please comfort those in the middle of profound shock and swirling confusion.
     Oh, holy and glorious mystery—that you, Lord Jesus were made sin for us, the victim and agent of sin. No one understands, like you, how disintegrated and distressed the heart can become, even to the point of losing all desire to live. No one understands, like you, the guilt and shame of sin. No one understands, like you, betrayal, loss, forsakenness, emptiness.
     And no one knows how to love in the most broken of all stories like you, Jesus. Because you drank the cup of God’s judgment, you now give us the cup of your grace. Show us, your people, how to care for those who now face what feels like an inconsolable loss. What will being present and keeping watch look like?
     Though you were abandoned by sleeping disciples, you will never abandon us. Jesus, help us know how to love in the darkness. Again we cry, bring your limitless, tender mercies to bear. No one can offer tears of hope and a tear-wiping hand like you, Jesus.
     We also pray for a greater sensitivity towards our friends who are struggling with depression and the loss of hope. Let us take nothing for granted. A call, a check in, just letting them know they care. And lastly, Jesus, for those of us feeling encroaching darkness in our own souls, for your name’s sake and glory, give us enough grace to collapse on you today and to get the help we need. Meet us where we are and take us into your provision. So very Amen we pray, in your solace-laden name.
 
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Apr

30

2012

Scotty Smith|4:23 am CT

A Prayer about the Promise of Perfect Peace
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     You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock. Isa. 26:3-4
     The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:7
     Most kind and trustworthy Father, you haven’t promised us a storm-less, hassle-free, disappointment-empty life. You offer us no formulas for decreasing the probability of sad things happening around us or disillusioning things happening to us. But you have promised something that transcends the uncertainty and the predictable unpredictability of life. You’ve promised to keep us in perfect peace, no matter what happens or who threatens. Hallelujah, several times over!
    “Being kept by you”… what price tag can we possibility put on such assurance and hope? What bullion can compare what that currency? Father, I treasure the promise of being kept by you. I’ve been convinced afresh that I cannot keep myself. I’m out of bootstraps to pull up; there’s no magic happy pill to take, no fix-it button to push. Thank you for being a Father who will never forget or abandon your children—who will never forget or abandon me.
     But you’ve promised even more: you’ve promised to keep us in perfect peace. All we have to do is mine the riches of the gospel and keep in mind the wonders of your love. For you are the Lord—the everlasting the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Rock that is higher than me; the Rock of refuge that offers shelter found nowhere else: the Rock of ages from which eternal life flows freely to us.
     Because the gospel is true, because Jesus is the precious “living Stone” (1 Pet. 2:4-8), I will not despair when I am weak in concentration and focus. Indeed, Father, you’re not calling me to trust in my ability to trust, but to trust in you—in your trustworthiness. For you’ve even promised your children a peace that passes, surpasses, and at times even bypasses all understanding. Hallelujah!
     What a God you are! How great are your mercies, how profound your kindnesses, how more-than-sufficient your grace. So very Amen we pray, in the name of Jesus—the Prince of Peace.
 
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Apr

29

2012

Scotty Smith|3:06 am CT

A Prayer about Loving God’s Law because of the Gospel
A Prayer about Loving God’s Law because of the Gospel avatar

     The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the statutes of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much pure gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Ps. 19:7-10
     Holy and gracious Father, apart from the gospel, there’s no way I would be able to join King David in singing this robust praise song about your law. Indeed, if Jesus hadn’t offered his law-keeping as my own, and if he hadn’t taken my law-breaking as his own, I would not be singing; I would be despairing.
     For apart from the gospel, the law didn’t revive me; it condemned me. Apart from the gospel, it didn’t give joy to my heart; it brought terror to my soul. Apart from the gospel, the law wasn’t like the sunshine lighting my way; it was only a searchlight exposing my sin.
     The law didn’t lead me to fear you with an affectionate reverence but to be afraid of you with a guilty conscience. Apart from the gospel, I didn’t value the law like precious gold; I avoided it like a deadly plague. It wasn’t sweeter than honey from the comb but more bitter than zest from a lemon.
     But Father, when the law drove me to Jesus—when you gave me faith to trust Jesus as my forgiveness and my righteousness, everything began to change. I’m now learning to love your law as fatherly instruction to your beloved children, as a revelation of the good, the true, and the beautiful, not as a formula for merit, acceptance, and favor. What a difference—what a life-giving, liberty-fueling difference!
     May the gospel continue to free me from “cheap grace” which ignores your law and from graceless legalism which ignores your Son. I want to continue growing in the obedience of faith and love until the day when Jesus, who has perfectly fulfilled the law for me, perfectly fulfills the law in me. So very Amen I pray, in Jesus’ holy and loving name.
 
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Apr

28

2012

Scotty Smith|3:23 am CT

A Prayer about Why God Loves Us
A Prayer about Why God Loves Us avatar

     The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers. . . . Know, therefore, that the LORD your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stubborn people. Deut 7:6-8; 9:6
     Dear Father, I’ve been thinking about our future life in the new heaven and new earth a lot lately. The more aware I am of my brokenness and the brokenness all around me, the more I long for the amazing future you’ve promised your children.
     Indeed, the more I ponder images of the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:1-22:6), the more I experience “doxological overload.” A life devoid of chaos and evil and a world permeated with goodness and grace has never looked so good. However, I need to be reminded all the time that our present relationship with and our coming life in heaven, are ours by inheritance, not wage—it’s what you freely give us, nothing that we could ever earn. Eternal Hallelujahs we shout!
     Forgive us when we’re still tempted to believe there’s something we can do to make you love us. Forgive us when we think there’s something we can do to make you to regret you chose us and make you renege on your promises. Our arrogance and unbelief have infected every cell of our being.
     We’re your treasured people because you chose to make us your treasure. We didn’t choose you. Apart from the gospel we’d still be hating you, rebelling against you and trying our best to ignore you. But you set your love upon us in eternity and revealed this great affection when you sent Jesus to be our Redeemer. And we wouldn’t love Jesus unless you’d given us a new heart by the Spirit and the faith we need to receive eternal life.
     The only reason we’ll enjoy life in the ultimate land—the new heaven and new earth—is because of the righteousness of Jesus. Apart from Jesus’ righteousness, we have none. We’re still a stubborn people, in desperate need of more and more grace. Our stubbornness is seen most clearly in our refusal to believe the gospel; in the ways we still give our hearts to other gods and saviors; and in our multiplied failures to love each other as Jesus loves us. We need the gospel of your grace, everyday and every hour.
     Father, we are thrilled and grateful to affirm, that by the same grace you justified us, you’re sanctifying us—you’re making us like Jesus. From beginning to end, this whole journey is by grace alone to your glory alone. You will complete the good work you began in us.
     Until the Day Jesus returns to finish making all things new, we’ll seek to give you the praise you deserve and the obedience of love. So very Amen we pray, in Jesus’ beautiful and bountiful name.
 
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Apr

27

2012

Scotty Smith|4:30 am CT

A Prayer for a Teachable Heart
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     Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. Acts 18:24-26
     Lord Jesus, there are many things I love in this story. Your mercy and grace can be seen everywhere. Apollos was useful in your service long before he got every theological “t” crossed and Biblical “i” dotted just right. The same is true with us. Ultimately, it’s not how much we know but Who we know that wins the day. I praise you for your patience and persistence, and your joy in revealing more of yourself to us. You are such a wonderful, merciful Savior.
     And, Jesus, I treasure the picture of Priscilla and Aquila offering hospitality and ministering the gospel together. What a great thing it is when a husband and wife are both captured by grace and freed to serve in your kingdom along side of one another. It reminds me of the life Adam and Eve enjoyed before the fall—vice-regents in your reign of grace
     Oh, that more of us, who are married, would live as partners in the gospel and co-saboteurs of the kingdom of darkness, rather than frittering our years away on less noble pursuits and passions. There are so many different story lines clamoring for our marriages—so many distractions and seductions. A marriage, just like singleness, is too precious a gift to spend on non-intentional living. Bring more gospel sanity to our marriages, Jesus. Rescue us, resuscitate us, refresh us and release us into kingdom service.
     Lastly, Jesus, I’m convicted and drawn to Apollos’ teachability. Make and keep me that kind of man. I don’t want to suffer from “hardening of the categories” as I get older. Intensify my love for the Bible and for finding you everywhere in the Scriptures. Continue to explain to me “the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26) through whomever you choose—children, PhDs, married couples, my wife, saints of old long since in heaven. Free me from my provincialism, prejudices, and presumption.
     Whatever you teach me, Jesus, may it result in my living more “in line with the truth of the gospel” (Gal. 2:14). Don’t let me ever again confuse more knowledge with mature spirituality. Until the Day when knowing in part gives way to worshiping you in full, keep me hungry and humble. Show me more and more of yourself, Lord Jesus; for to knowing you is eternal life. So very Amen I pray, in your all-sufficient and glorious name.
 
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Apr

26

2012

Scotty Smith|5:12 am CT

A Prayer for Serving Our Friends Who Struggle with Depression
A Prayer for Serving Our Friends Who Struggle with Depression avatar

     Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Ps. 43:5
     Heavenly Father, today my heart goes out, and my prayers reach up, on behalf of those who struggle with depression, in one of its many forms. I have friends who live all along the axis from mild melancholy to the relentless pangs of suicidal depression. And my family tree has roots in clinical depression—with many loved ones who’ve struggled with emotional fracture and darkness as a way of life. Father of mercies, grant all of us greater compassion and wisdom for loving those whose mental health is under siege.
     Thank you for rescuing me from simplistic views of depression. It’s not as simple a condition as I used to think. I grieve the ways I used to counsel the depressed, and it saddens me to realize how much pressure I put on them get better and “get over it.” Happiness is not always simply a choice.
     David asked the right question in a season of duress: “Why, my soul, are you downcast?” (Ps. 43:5). Indeed, Father, what are the various reasons for a downcast, disturbed soul, and what does hoping in you look like for each?
     Father, for friends who are depressed for no other reason than living with a graceless, gospel-less heart; keep them miserable until they rest in the finished work of your Son, Jesus. May they despair of their own unrighteousness and their “wannabe” righteousness, until they are driven to the righteousness that only comes from faith in Jesus. Sometimes misery is a great mercy.
     Father, for friends who suffer from depression generated by chemical complexities, lead them to the right kind of medical care. And help us in the community of faith to be patient and understanding of the complexities involved in their care. The risk of abusing medications is always there, so give us wisdom.
     Father, for friends who suffer from depression fueled by the demonic, grant me humility and wisdom. A part of me doesn’t even want to acknowledge that this is an issue at all, but how can I read your Word and dismiss the demonic so lightly? His condemning, blaming, and shaming voice, alone is enough to generate the deepest forms of darkness and a disconnected self. Yet his schemes are multiple (2 Cor. 2:11). Show us, in the Body of Christ, how are we to care for those under the spell and sway of our cross-defeated, fury-filled foe (Rev. 12:12).
     Father, for those of us whose downcast-ness is little more than the fruit of blocked goals, idol failures, self-pity or the consequence of our own disobedience, smite us, yet again with the gospel. May we cry, “Uncle!”, that we might cry, “Abba!”
     By your great and sufficient grace, I make King David’s affirmation mine. I do and I will yet praise you, my Savior and my God. My hope is in you, Father—for me and for all of my brokenhearted downcast friends. The gospel will win the day. So very Amen I pray, in Jesus’ compassionate and victorious name.
 
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Apr

25

2012

Scotty Smith|4:56 am CT

A Prayer for Taking Hold of Why Jesus Took Hold of Us
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     I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. Phil. 3:12-15 
     Gracious Jesus, it’s good to be free from the “paralysis of analysis”—an unhealthy, navel-gazing preoccupation with ourselves. But it’s equally good to be free to examine our lives through the lens of the gospel. I have a new exciting season in front of me, and I really don’t see the theme of “ramping down” or retiring anywhere in the Scriptures. Prepare my heart for what’s next in the kingdom story you’re writing for your glory and my growth.
     Though it’s hard to say, for sure, how old Paul was when he was when he wrote these words—maybe in his sixties or seventies, nevertheless, it’s obvious that with an increase in age came an increase in gospel astonishment—being overjoyed at who you are and what you’ve done for us. He never grew bored exploring the unsearchable riches of your grace, and he never seemed to tire of wrestling with the kingdom implications of the gospel.
     Jesus, make me that kind of man. Give me this kind of maturity in the gospel. Increase my hunger and thirst for knowing, loving and serving you. I’m thankful that it’s your grasp of me and not my grasp of you that defines this way of life. Hallelujah, I’m in your palm, you’re not in mine!
     Sometimes I lift my hands in awe and gratitude for the way you love me. Sometimes I shake my fists at heaven like a pouting, demanding child. Sometimes I wring my hands in anxious unbelief, like a hapless orphan. But I live and I will die secure in your palms and written upon your heart.
     Jesus, I praise you that as with Paul, you’ve given me a prize to win, not a wage to earn. I never earned my way into a relationship with you, and I don’t maintain a relationship with you by my efforts either.
     What do I want for the rest of my days? I cannot say it any better than Paul, Lord: I want to know you, Lord Jesus, more intimately than ever. This is the one thing I want more than anything else. And I want to experience more of the power of your resurrection, for I have no power in myself to love others as you love me.
     I want to enter more fully into the fellowship of sharing in your sufferings—living out the birth pangs of new-creation life in this broken world—a world which groans for its release from the bondage to decay, a release that is sure to come (Rom. 8:18-25). Our labors in you are not in vain, Jesus (Phil. 3:10-11), for they are your labors in us and through us.
     These are few of the things on my heart for this next season, Jesus, and really, for the rest of my oxygen-sucking days in this world. Help me to be less distracted with lesser things and be far more preoccupied with the things which matter most to your heart. So very Amen I pray, in your most glorious and grace-filled name.
 
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Apr

24

2012

Scotty Smith|4:25 am CT

A Prayer Expressing Our Intense Longings for Jesus
A Prayer Expressing Our Intense Longings for Jesus avatar

     And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” Rev. 19:9-10
     Dear Lord Jesus, it’s easy to understand why John fell down and began worshipping the messenger angel of this vision. For our oldest longings, greatest cravings, and deepest yearnings are claimed by what John saw: the wedding supper of the Lamb—the fullness of your lavish love for us, your Bride. What do we really want, more than anything else? It’s you, Lord Jesus. We yearn for “the already” of our grace established relationship with you to give way to the consummate “not yet.”
     We show the depth of our brokenness and the degree of our foolishness when we’re even tempted to think there’s some set of circumstances, some person, some relationship, some paramour, some lover, some change in our world, some sensual experience that can satisfy the restlessness in our hearts.
     But we’re made singularly for you, Jesus; we’re designed to be fulfilled and completed only by you. Never let us forget this, and allow us to come more fully alive to an insatiable thirst that you alone can meet. You are the most loving and tender bridegroom who cherishes a most unlikely and ill-deserving bride.
     Jesus, because we’re called and guaranteed a place at this banquet; because you’ve set your affection upon us and find great and unwavering delight in us; because we’ll spend eternity celebrating the only love that was ever enough—the the only love that would never let us go… O Lord, for these incomparable gifts, we too fall down and worship you, for you alone are God and you alone are worthy.
     Jesus, until that Day when you consummate your marriage with us, help those of us who are married to love our spouses as you love us. Free us from unrealistic expectations of one another and free us from having no expectations of one another. Free us from thinking you cannot renew broken, boring, passionless, purposeless marriages. In these temporary marriages of ours, bring grace-full kindness and playful tenderness to bear once again. So very Amen we pray, in your merciful and mighty name. Amen.
 
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