In 1891, David McIntyre, the son-in-law of the well-known Dr. Andrew Bonar, and Scottish pastor and professor, wrote a little gem of a book called The Hidden Life of Prayer: the Lifeblood of the Christian. The book is short, succinct, and simple, and opens up to the reader the delightful gift of prayer given to the believer by the God of heaven. The book is broken down into eight chapters as follows:

1.       The Life of Prayer

·         McIntyre lays out the Scriptural implication that God’s people will pray as their new natures cry out for the living God.

·         It is the mark of a true believer to pray to his Father through the Son by the Holy Spirit.

2.       The Equipment

·         The equipment for prayer consists of

·   a quiet place,

·   a quiet hour,

·   and a quiet heart.

·         The quiet heart is confident in the acceptance

·   before the Father

·   through the sacrifice of Christ,

·   the enabling grace of the Holy Spirit,

·   and the steadying text of Scripture.

3.       The Direction of the Mind

·         Our attitude as we approach God is to

·   realize the presence of God,

·   deal honestly with Him in His presence,

·   draw near to Him in faith

·         believing no miracle is impossible

·         and believing we are praying to our Father in Christ’s authority.

4.       The Engagement: Worship

·         Our prayers are to praise the Lord in

·   acknowledgment of daily mercies,

·    thanksgiving for the great redemption,

·   or contemplation of  our Father’s perfections.

5.       The Engagement: Confession

·         Confession of sin is the first act of an awakened sinner and the first mark of a gracious spirit.

·         Confession is explicit and balanced with the love of Christ that swallows up sin in a measureless ocean of peace and grace.

6.       The Engagement: Request

·         The prayer of faith that has been brought into conformity with the mind of Christ is

·   subject to the Father’s will,

·   restrained within the interest of Christ,

·   instructed in the truth,

·   energized by the Spirit,

·   interwoven with love and mercy,

·   accompanied with obedience,

·   so earnest it will not accept denial,

·   and seeks an answer.

·         The prayer of faith is restricted to the Word of God and rests on the character of God.

7.       The Hidden Riches of the Secret Place

·         Fellowship with God discovers the excellence of His character, and by beholding Him the soul is transformed as the habit of prayerfulness produces

·   a peace in our trusting spirit.

·   an obedience of our life according to the will of God,

·   and a richer influence and wider usefulness as we ouch other lives.

8.       The Open Recompense

·         When we reach the end of our lives, we should be able to say, “There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised.”

·         Every gracious work that has been accomplished within the kingdom of God has been begun, fostered, and consummated by prayer.

The doctrine of Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone) means that the food that is to feed our souls is to be the Word of God only. You may notice that there is much Scripture in our worship service and when the time to listen to the sermon arrives, the Word of God is usually presented verse by verse from whole books of the Bible. Occasionally there will be a topical sermon, but the general diet of our family's spiritual feeding time is expositional preaching and teaching. There is many reason for this. Timothy Witmer lists ten reasons for preaching verse by verse through books of the Bible in his book, The Shepherd Leader:

1. It identifies exactly what is the heart of the Christian message. (The sheep need the food the Good Shepherd gives in the inspired Word.)
2. It requires that the shepherd concern himself with the intent of the Divine author for every text. (God had a purpose for each part of Scripture.)
3. It respects the integrity of the textual units given through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. (Teach each books as it was meant to be taught rather than chopping it up.)
4. It keeps the pastor from riding his favorite hobby horses. (Provides a balanced diet.)
5. It challenges the pastor to preach through the "difficult" or obscure texts and "challenging" truths of the Bible. (Christians need to learn how to think through passages that people like to avoid.)
6. Expository preaching will encourage both pastor and congregation alike to become students of the Bible. (Working through books of the Bible helps to know what to look for and how to apply the Word in our on lives.)
7. Expository preaching gives us boldness in preaching, for we are not expounding our own fallible views but the Word of God. (God's promises are linked to His Word and not our 'wisdom.')
8. It gives confidence to the listener that what he is hearing is not the opinion of man but the Word of God. (God has spoken. Our job is to declare what God has said.)
9. It is of great assistance in sermon planning. (Breaking down the book into connected units of thought takes a lot of pressure off of planning a series.)
10. It provides the context for a long tenure in a particular place. (It takes a long time to preach through the whole counsel of God.)

Last Sunday evening I shared from Ephesians 1-3 what God has done for us through the work of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. We then looked in Ephesians 4 to see why He has done this for us; the reason he has saved us. At the end I mentioned an article I've recently read by Colin Marshall called "The Ministry of the Pew." It would be beneficial for you to read the article below and ask how you can better serve others in a simple way on Sunday morning. Obviously we are to be servants all the time, but here's some specific applications for our Sunday morning time together. 

Jonathan Edwards preaches in his sermon The Excellency of Christ that a feeble infant could conquer Satan:

His infinite condescension marvelously appeared in the manner of his birth. He was brought forth in a stable because there was no room for them in the inn. The inn was taken up by others, that were looked upon as persons of greater account.

The Blessed Virgin, being poor and despised, was turned or shut out. Though she was in such necessitous circumstances, yet those that counted themselves her betters would not give place to her; and therefore, in the time of her travail, she was forced to betake herself to a stable; and when the child was born, it was wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger. There Christ lay a little infant, and there he eminently appeared as a lamb.

But yet this feeble infant, born thus in a stable, and laid in a manger, was born to conquer and triumph over Satan, that roaring lion. He came to subdue the mighty powers of darkness, and make a show of them openly, and so to restore peace on earth, and to manifest God's good-will towards men, and to bring glory to God in the highest, according as the end of his birth was declared by the joyful songs of the glorious hosts of angels appearing to the shepherds at the same time that the infant lay in the manger; whereby his divine dignity was manifested.

HT: DG

In his book, Radical, David Platt recounts his experience teaching in the underground church in China:

“…Then finally you round the corner and walk into a small room.

                Despite its size, sixty believers have crammed into it. They are all ages, from precious little girls to seventy-year-old men. They are sitting either on the floor or on small stools, lined shoulder to shoulder, huddled together with Bibles in their laps. The roof is low, and one light bulb dangles from the middle of the ceiling as the sole source of illumination.

                No sound system.

                No band.

                No guitar.

                No entertainment.

                No cushioned chairs.

                No heated or air-conditioned building.

                Nothing but the people of God and the Word of God.

                And strangely, that’s enough.

                God’s word is enough for millions of believers who gather in house churches just like this one.His Word is enough for millions of other believers who huddle in African jungles, South American rain forests, and Middle Easter cities.

                But is his Word enough for us?”

We’ve been blessed with many wonderful things.  However, is his Word enough?

Here’s a challenge to you from Pastor Jamie to prepare your heart for the focus of our Messiah in December:

Grasp the overall sweep of the story of God in the Bible in 2 weeks. 

 Week 1

Sunday - Genesis 1-3 
Monday - Genesis 12-17
Tuesday - Exodus 1-3, 12
Wednesday - Exodus 14, 19-20 
Thursday - Joshua 23-24; Judges 1-2
Friday - 1 Samuel 8, 16; 2 Samuel 7, 11; Psalm 105 
Saturday - Isaiah 7, 9, 11, 35, 52-53, 65

Week 2

Sunday - Jeremiah 30-33; Ezekiel 36-37, Zechariah 9; Malachi 3-4 
Monday - Matt. 1:1; Mark 1:1-15; John 1:1-18; 5:39-46; Luke 24 
Tuesday - Mark 14:1-16:8 
Wednesday - Acts 1-2; 13:13-49 
Thursday - Rom. 1:1-6; 16-17; 3:9-31; 5:12-21; 8:18-23; 1 Cor. 15:1-23 
Friday - Heb. 1:1-4; 10:19-12:2 
Saturday - Revelation 1; 20-22

We’ve been blessed with much, so we have much to be thankful for. Gratitude is more than an attitude—it is also an action. One of the ways our attitude of thankfulness becomes an action is by blessing others. 

I stopped by Care Net in Rockland a couple of weeks ago and asked the director what things people can be involved in and help with. Carol Green sent me a list of tangible things as well as ministry opportunities that you could do to bless others. If you're looking for a way to be used, there are many opportunities of service for both men and women. Much of the tangible things such as repairs or donations the men can be involved with. Note especially the volunteer services toward the end. I'll post what she sent below:

Care Net needs

(Please check with center before giving or purchasing any items.  Gift certificates for lowe's, home depot, walmart, target, etc.  are welcomed and encouraged!)   ♥ indicates urgent need
 materials needed:

•   ♥Update furniture for waiting room and counseling  room: New  or reupholster existing (couch, loveseat, two chairs)
• New Front door: (est. $600)
• Dehumidifier for cellar (est. $159)
• New table for conference room: 6-foot table, wood ($70)              

materials & services

• ♥Remove and replace unsafe steps
• ♥Paint client entrance (labor and supplies)
• ♥Walkway 1 and 2:  replace UNSAFE paved walkways at entrance and back yard with SAFE walkways
• Paint house trim, porch, and garage (labor and supplies)
• Complete kitchen remodel: floors, countertops, cabinets, wall covering, possibly appliances  
• Ceiling fans with lights (2 @ est. $75 each)
• Back deck railing remove and replace with legal railing
• Pressure washing for exterior walls and roof areas. 

blessing shed

• Shelves for baby clothes, accessories, diapers (cost: $200.00) 
• Racks for maternity and children's clothing (2) round clothing racks  
• Bins to organize clothing, shoes, etc. (need $200 to purchase 20 bins)
• Dehumidifier (cost: $159)

volunteer services only

• Parenting instructor: 5 hours per week instructing young mothers how to raise their children – curriculum will be provided
• Landscaping: Weeding, mulching, planting, trimming, snow shoveling, salt/sand for ice            
• Electricians: needed to be "on call” for center emergencies
• Mechanics: needed to help clients with their cars            
• Window Washers: people to wash exterior windows (upstairs & downstairs)
• Porch screens installed

♥ GREATEST NEED: PRAYER♥

I'm reading an excellent book on Christian ministry by Paul Tripp called Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change. The author reminds us from 2 Corinthinans 5:20 that we are called to be ambassadors for Christ (see passage below). The implications for an ambassadorial life are tremendous if we would take the time to think about them. Here are a few I've thought of:

1. The ambassador is not the king.                                                                                                                                                                                  He doesn't set the agenda, but lives for the impulses of someone greater than himself.
2. The ambassador is to reflect the values of the kingdom and king as a representative.                                                                                               He is to live out something greater than himself.
3. The ambassador's work is never done as a representative.                                                                                                                             He must always represent the kingdom.
4. The ambassador is intentionally looking for opportunities to share the glories of the king and his kingdom.                          He doesn't just work on the church campus or on Sunday. He does his most important ambassadorial work during the week wherever he happens to be.
5. The ambassador must be in communication with the written will of the king.                                                                                                He understands the agenda and the desire of the king and seeks to pursue obedience.
6. The ambassador depends on the resources of the king and kingdom to do his job of representing.                                   In a foreign land he will run out of resources quickly and needs to appeal and request from the king the promised resources to get the job of representing in his life and words completed.

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." 2 Cor. 5:17-21


Think of some other things things an ambassador has to know or do to represent his king and add them to the comments below.

"I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: “I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.” That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."
-C. S. Lewis