The Battle Plan (1)
Scott Bayles, pastor
Blooming Grove Christian Church: 4/3/2016
There was a pastor who had a pet parrot. All the parrot would say was, “Let’s kiss. Let’s kiss.” The pastor tried to teach him to say other things but to no avail. He learned that one of his deacons had a parrot. The deacon’s parrot would only say, “Let’s pray, let’s pray.” So the pastor decided to invite the deacon and his parrot over to his house, hoping that his parrot could learn from the more spiritual parrot. When the deacon arrived they put the parrots into the same cage to see what would happen. The pastor’s parrot says, “Let’s kiss, let’s kiss.” And suddenly the deacon’s parrot shouts, “Thank you, Lord. My prayers have been answered.”
Prayer works, doesn’t it?
Sadly, prayer has been on the decline in recent years. While a majority (55%) of Americans claim to pray at least once a day, the share of adults who seldom or never pray has increased from 18% to 23% since 2007. Even those of us who try to make prayer a priority tend to struggle. Many of us have good intentions when it comes to prayer. But we get so busy and distracted that our prayer-life falls by the wayside. For some of us prayer is a last resort, when all else fails. Wouldn’t you like to pray more? Better? Stronger? Deeper? With more fire, faith and fervency?
The problem is—many of us don’t know how to pray or even what we should be praying for. It may help to know you’re not alone. Let me share a clip with you from Christian comedian Michael Junior about his experience with prayer.
• Video Clip: Michael Jr. – Pray with Your Neighbor
Maybe some of you can relate to Michael Junior. A couple of weeks ago, we showed the movie War Room here at the Grove and the Girlfriends Bible Study group is doing a study all about prayer right now. So I’d like to piggyback on that idea for just one Sunday. To be really effective in prayer, we need a plan. A strategy. In Colossians 4, Paul provides us with a clear, concise battle plan for prayer. Here’s what he says: “Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart” (Colossians 4:2 NLT).
In just 11 words Paul provides us with a three-point battle plan for a powerful and prosperous prayer life. First, Paul tells us to be persistent in prayer!
• BE PERSISTENT IN PRAYER
Paul begins by saying, “Devote yourselves to prayer…” The word translated “devote” implies unrelenting persistence. It’s the opposite of “hit and miss.” The Amplified Version translates it: “Be persistent and devoted to prayer” (Colossians 4:2 AMP). Another translation says simply, “Keep praying” (GWT).
In other words, don’t bail. Don’t give up. Be consistent and committed in your prayer life. You may have dry times and days when you don’t know what to say. You may moments where it feels like your prayers aren’t reaching past the ceiling, but keep praying anyway.
Jesus actually tells a parable about the importance of persistence in prayer.
“Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence.” (Luke 11:5-8 NLT)
Now don’t misunderstand. Jesus isn’t comparing God to this grouchy neighbor. In fact, just the opposite—He’s saying that if persistence paid off as a man beat on the door of a reluctant friend, how much more would persistence bring blessing to us as we pray to a loving Heavenly Father! Jesus then concludes, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9 NLT).
Believe it or not, God actually wants to meet our needs. He wants us to keep coming to him in prayer. D.L. Moody once commented, "Some people think God does not like to be troubled with our constant coming and asking. The way to trouble God is not to come at all." By praying persistently we not only get answers to our prayer, but more importantly we develop a richer and deeper relationship with our Heavenly Father. Persistent prayer isn’t about changing the mind of God; it’s about drawing near to the heart of God.
This persistence might look different from person to person. Maybe you have a special place in your home that you go to pray for twenty minutes a day. Maybe you pray in the car on the way to work, or in the shower in the morning. I prefer to pray short, simple prayers several times throughout the day. So regardless of where or when you pray, just keep praying. Make prayer a priority every day. The first point of our battle plan is to be persistent in prayer.
Furthermore, Paul urges us to be perceptive in prayer.
• BE PERCEPTIVE IN PRAYER
That reminds me of Big Ed. Big Ed is this good ol’ boy who goes to a revival and listens to the preacher. After a while, the preacher asks anyone with needs to come forward to be prayed over. Big Ed gets in line. When it’s his turn, the preacher asks, “Big Ed, what do you need me to pray about?” Big Ed says, “Preacher, I need you to pray about my hearing.” So the preacher sticks one finger in Big Ed’s ear and one hand on his head and shouts, hollers and prays a while. After few minutes, he removes his hands and asks, “How’s your hearing now?” Big Ed says, “I don’t know, Preacher, it ain’t until next Wednesday at the County Courthouse.”
I’d say that preacher wasn’t praying very perceptively. Paul tells us, however, “Pay attention when you offer prayers…” (Colossians 4:2 GWT).
I’ll be the first to admit I’m not the best at paying attention during prayers. As soon as my eyes close my mind wanders. My train of thought derails rather quickly. But I don’t think that’s exactly what Paul is talking about here. The New Living Translation says to pray “with an alert mind.” Other translations say to be “watchful.”
In other words, we need to be looking for opportunities and occasions to pray. Paul puts it this way: “Pray in the Spirit in every situation. Use every kind of prayer and request there is. For the same reason be alert. Use every kind of effort and make every kind of request for all of God’s people” (Ephesians 6:18 GWT).
No situation or circumstance is too insignificant to pray about.
When you see car accident on the road ahead of you… pray about it.
When you have a test coming up in biology… pray about it.
When you’ve got big meeting with an important client… pray about it.
When you’ve got a small meeting with a not-so-important client… pray about it.
When your crops need more rain… pray about it.
When you’re stressed out and overwhelmed… pray about it.
When your kids get on the school bus in the morning… pray for them.
When someone gives you a hard time… pray for them.
When someone shows you kindness… pray for them.
When someone you know is struggling… pray with them.
Pray for our government, our nation, the community you live in, the homeless, children without parents. Pray for your employees or employer. Pray for people who don’t know Christ and those that have run away from God. Pray for those struggling with addiction and temptation. Pray for our congregation, for preachers and missionaries in other parts of the world. Pray for wisdom to make good decisions. Pray for strength to stick to your convictions. Pray that you don’t fall into temptation. Pray for boldness to share your faith. Pray that we might become a people of prayer!
Use every kind of prayer and request there is in every situation. There is nothing you can’t pray about. It only takes a moment to pray about someone or something. But as we become more alert to the needs around us and perceptive in our prayers, God will begin to transform us from prayer wimps into prayer warriors.
So our first task is to be persistent in prayer. Furthermore, we need to be perceptive in prayer. Finally, Paul instructs us to be praiseful in prayer!
• BE PRAISEFUL IN PRAYER
You may recognize the name Rudyard Kipling as the author of The Jungle Book. He also wrote several other books and poems in his lifetime. He enjoyed great success as an author and poet and made quite a bit of money while he was at it. One time, during an interview, a newspaper reporter told him, “Mr. Kipling, I’ve heard that somebody has calculated the money you make from your writings amount to a hundred dollars a word.” Kilpling raised an eyebrow and said, “Really? I certainly wasn’t aware of that.” The reporter reached into his pocket and pulled out a hundred dollar bill, gave it to Rudyard and said, “Here’s a hundred dollars. Now let’s hear one of your hundred dollar words.” Rudyard Kipling accepted the money, put it in his pocket, looked the reporter right in the eye and said, “Thanks!”
He was right, wasn’t he? Thanks is a priceless word that’s too seldom heard and too rarely spoken. It’s also a vitally important part of our plan for prayer.
Again, Paul writes, “Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart” (Colossians 4:2 NLT).
Prayer is about praising God—thanking him for all He’s done and all He is.
Just the word thanks lifts the spirit. To say thanks is to celebrate a gift. Something. Anything. It doesn’t matter what it is. To say thanks is to cross the tracks from have-not to have-much, from grumbling to gratitude. Thanks proclaims, “I’m not disadvantaged, disabled, victimized, scandalized, forgotten, or ignored. I am blessed.” Gratitude is a dialysis of sorts. It flushes the self-pity out of our systems.
In Scripture the idea of giving thanks is not a suggestion or recommendation; it is a command. Time and again, the Bible issues commands like this one: “Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever” (Psalm 106:1 NIV). More than a hundred times, either by imperative or example, the Bible commands us to be thankful. If quantity implies gravity, God takes thanksgiving seriously.
We occasionally sing the song Count Your Blessings, but how often do we actually do that? Sure, we’re usually good about giving thanks for the obvious things—family, a roof over our heads, and food in our stomachs. But there is so much more to be thankful for:
• Ashley.
• Basketball. I play poorly, but I enjoy it immensely.
• Chocolate chip cookies.
• Dollar General.
• Exercise. I love it and hate it at the same time.
• Friendships.
• Giggling.
• Hot showers.
• Ice Cream Cones.
• Jesus!
• Kisses.
• Laughter.
• Music.
• Netflix.
• Oxygen.
• Pepsi! Which for me, is almost as important as oxygen.
• Quality time with family or friends.
• Running water.
• Superheroes.
• The Grove.
• Umbrellas.
• Vacations.
• Waking up before the alarm.
• X-Boxes.
• Yoga pants.
• Zombie Apocalypse.
Your list may be different than mine, but I would encourage you, rather than catalog burdens, itemize blessings. The next time you bow your head to pray, make sure to count some of your blessings. You’ll never run out of reasons to say thanks!
Conclusion:
So here’s Paul Battle Plan for prayer:
• Be persistent: pray every day, don’t give up, don’t quit. Just keep praying.
• Be perceptive: pray about every situation and circumstance.
• Be praiseful: give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
As we put Paul’s plan into practice it will not only totally transform your prayer life; it will totally transform your life. Because persistent, perceptive, praiseful prayer doesn’t just change your circumstances; it changes you.
However, prayer is only half the battle. In the next couple of verses, Paul goes on to lay out a battle plan for sharing our faith in Christ effectively. We’ll take a look at those verses next Sunday.
Invitation:
In the meantime, perhaps your prayer-life needs to be a little deeper, stronger or more frequent? The best solution is to just start praying. While the rest of us stand and sing, I want to encourage you to stand and pray. Open your heart to God and let the conversation begin. If you’d like someone to pray with you or the church to pray for you, come forward while we stand and sing.
