In a previous blog post I encouraged us, as His Church, to lay aside our differences and stand as one voice in Him especially as we see the liberal and immoral influences and agendas in our world increase. 

The world so desperately needs us
to live as salt and light.

In looking at Matthew 5:13-16, I was struck by how Jesus said we are the salt and light — present tense.  He didn’t say we should be or could be.  The tense of the verb “are” in the original language is present indicative which indicates a simple statement of fact.  We are inherently salt and light because of our life in Him.  It is part of who we are as His children.

Now it is possible for salt to lose its saltiness and for light to be covered over so it is not seen.  But, salt is still salt and light is still light.  Remember, we are salt and light in Him. 

The question then becomes, whether we want to be an influence for good in our world.  The only way that will happen is if we live as the salt and light that we are, reflecting the Lord in all His fullness before others.  Because we are salt and light, we already have what we need to to live that way.  As 2 Peter 1:3 informs us, we have “everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him.”  — No exceptions!  No excuses!

In the next two blog posts I will give some thoughts on what it looks like for a believer to not just BE but to LIVE as salt and light in today’s world.

As we consider the condition of the world today, how can we not pray?  Let me encourage each of us to make prayer our first response.  Let’s turn first to the Lord before complaining or giving in to fear or despair.  And, let’s continue in prayer. 

If we as Christians would practice the truths in even the following six verses on prayer, we would see such difference. 

1. Be devoted to prayer.  When you are devoted to prayer, things happen.  Pray and then watch for what God will do.  And, be sure to thank and praise Him for it.
   

   “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” (Col. 4:2)

2. Be willing to sacrifice in order to pray. The psalmist likens prayer to a spiritual sacrifice when he refers to it as incense. As such it rises up to heaven and fills the throne room of God.
   

   “May my prayer be set before you like incense.” (Ps. 141:2a)

3. Fully trust God as you pray. If you feel safe and secure with Him, such confidence will take you beyond the rote or token prayers to spilling out your guts to God.
   

   “Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge. Selah.” (Ps. 62:8)

4. Be in a constant attitude of prayer, praying for fellow believers everywhere.  To have such a perseverance and passion in praying, you need help.  Look to the Spirit of God who lives within you.
   

   “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” (Eph. 6:18)

5. Go on the offence as a prayer warrior.  You cannot be pulled in so many directions that you fail to pray. Instead, purposefully plan to pray.  Prioritize it into your busy schedule.
   

   “The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and self-controlled so you can pray.” (1 Pet. 4:7)

6. Don’t get discouraged if you can’t see results.  Notice the small but encouraging word “is” in the following verse.  Your prayer “is” effective — present tense. It doesn’t say might be or will be but “is,” right now, powerful and effective.
   

   “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16b)

If the truths in these verses take root in your heart and are put into practice, you will begin to notice a difference in the way you process life.  Even if the world around you doesn’t change the way you wish it would, you will be able to cope and be at peace.  You will find renewed purpose as you work in cooperation with a Sovereign and Almighty God through prayer.

These six verses form the basis of 30 different devotions in the Prayer Bits Devotional.   Each devotion contains a small bit about prayer based on one of these verses but conveys big truths that truly will make a difference.

 
More:  Difficulty praying? – Why We Don’t Pray

Did you know that July is National Anti-Boredom Month?  I’m not making it up!  It got me to thinking about the Christian life and how some people think being a Christian is boring.  If that’s the case, then perhaps they aren’t taking any risks for Jesus.  Let me illustrate:

Somebody doing a bungee jump might dive off of a bridge plummeting toward the river below.  Just before impact, the elastic cord yanks him back.  He/she put total faith in that bungee cord.

As ”bungee jumpers for Jesus” we wouldn’t be bored!  We would be willing to leave our comfort zones and step out for Jesus … to take that leap of faith.  We would obey Him in all situations, especially those that are out of our control.  We would trust Him fully.  We would act on what we say we believe.

Think of the “bungee jumpers” in Scripture:  Noah, Abraham, Moses, Joseph, David, etc.  I highly doubt if they were bored.  They went to the edge and took the plunge, being confident that God would hold on to them even though they didn’t see or feel like it.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.  This is what the ancients were commended for.  (Heb. 11:1-2)

Think about these questions:

• What are some low risk plunges for you as a Christian?
• What are some higher risk plunges for you as a Christian? 

A sure cure for boredom in the Christian life is to take some faith risks, to make a difference.  If we never take risks, we will have little need for faith.  We can start with the lower risk plunges.  As we do, we will find God to be totally reliable.  We will find Him to be all-sufficient.  Then we will be ready to take some higher risk plunges for Him . . . and be bored no more!

What plunges have you taken recently?