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Believe in the Gospel

Today’s readings on this Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, are all about reflecting and repenting. Jesus talks about repenting our sins and believing in the gospel and gathering followers (apostles). We saw this last week when Jesus picked up some followers in Andrew and Simon Peter.

However, the gospel today is more than just gathering followers. As I mentioned, it is about repenting and believing in the gospel. Believing in the kingdom. It may even sound like St. Paul and Mark’s gospel are at odds with each other as each passage today appears to contradict each other. I will get to that more a little later.

I would like to start with the first reading today from the prophet Jonah in Chapter 3. In the scripture, God tells him to warn the people of Nineveh about pending destruction God had planned for them because of their wicked ways. Jonah proclaims the news to Nineveh and the people believed and “proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth.” (Jonah 3:5) God then saw how the people repented and withdrew his promise of causing evil and repented from harming them. So in this, I believe holding on to faith and having a full prayer life is important to maintain a fulfilling existence. This in turn can help with having a perpetual belief and faith in the gospel.

In Psalm 25 today, the psalmist is repenting and asking God for guidance and security through life:

“Make known to me your ways, Lord; teach me your paths; guide me by your fidelity and teach me, for you are God my savior, for you I wait all the day long. Remember no more those sins of my youth, remember me according to your mercy, because of your goodness, Lord.” (Psalm 25: 4-5, 7)

St. Paul tells the Corinthians “time is running out,” (1 Corinthians 7:29) whereas, in Mark’s gospel, Jesus says, ‘”This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand.“‘ (Mark 1:15) How can the kingdom of God be at hand if St. Paul says the time is coming for fulfillment? I believe what St. Paul is saying, we may always have temptations and forget about the urgency of the gospel message and feel “the world in its present form is passing away,” (1 Corinthians 7:31) and that time may be running short. This, I believe, only perpetuates the need to believe in the gospel and to turn away from one’s sins to bring the gospel message to fulfillment.

In Mark’s gospel today, Jesus is referring to John the Baptist being arrested when he talks about the kingdom of God being here. For Jesus, John’s arrest meant the final moment when the old covenant was rejected, which now made room for the new covenant with Jesus. It is the good news Jesus brings in with the new covenant to bring about the new order of things. This of course comes to fulfillment with Jesus’ ministry, death and resurrection.

Do not worry about present worldly things. Think about the good things, such as sharing the gospel and making “fishers of men,” (Mark 1:17) and living the spiritual life within the glory of God through Jesus in God’s kingdom.

kellym40 General

Listen to the Call

This Sunday marks the second Sunday in Ordinary Time in the Catholic Church. Ordinary Time marks the period between the other holy seasons within the Church. Those seasons include Lent, Easter, Advent and Christmas. So there are two periods of Ordinary Time, the longest of which lasts from the end of Easter to Advent, and thus starts a whole new year in the Church.

Ordinary Time reflects on the life of Jesus and what it means to be a good disciple. Today’s readings reflect listening and responding to God’s call as a disciple and follower of Christ. How do we listen and respond to God? I believe the number one way is through prayer. After all, prayer is essentially a conversation with God. I have mentioned before in a series of posts about the importance of prayer and what a powerful tool it is, not only to intercede for others, but also just to listen and commune with God. The following is a link to my first in a series of posts about prayer. https://wordpress.com/post/kellymelies.com/818

Part of the faith is evangelizing. The gospel today illustrates this with John the Baptist, who is standing with a couple of his disciples. Jesus walks by and John says, “…Behold, the Lamb of God.” ( John 1:36, NAB) What did those two immediately do? They followed Jesus. Andrew, one of the two and brother of Simon Peter, found Simon Peter and brought him to Jesus.

This is how we evangelize, by introducing one person to another. In this case, it was Andrew introducing Simon Peter to Jesus. The disciples asked Jesus where he was staying and Jesus replied, “Come, and you will see.” (John 1: 39, NAB) This continued as Jesus gathered more followers as it is shown in the rest of Chapter 1.

The first reading today is from the First Book of Samuel, Chapter 3, where Samuel is sleeping in the temple where the ark of God was. Unknown to Samuel, God began to speak to Samuel and call out his name. Samuel, thinking it was Eli, went to him. Eli sent him back to bed. And then the Lord called a second and third time. At the third time when Samuel went to Eli, he told Samuel the next time to answer the voice, “…Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel 3:9, NAB)

When I read the first reading here, it reminds me of a couple of hymns that were chosen for mass today in my local church. “Here I Am, Lord” by Dan Schutte. The hymn opens up with the Lord speaking:

“I, the Lord of seas and sky, I have heard my people cry. All who dwell in dark and sin my hand will save. I, who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright. Who will bear my light to them? Whom shall I send?“

The servant replies:

“Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord? I have heard you calling in the night. I will go, Lord, if you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart.“

I feel that should be our response. Listen for the Lord and answer the call to follow and do what is asked of you. This is one of my favorite hymns. I remember in college at my time at The Newman Center on the campus of the University of Central Missouri (formerly Central Missouri State University – more on that at another time perhaps), this was one of the hyms we played frequently at our student masses, where I helped accompany the choir on guitar. The other hymn I was reminded of was by John D. Becker called “Lead Me, Lord.” It was another frequent hymn we played. The refrain of the hymn appeared to ask the Lord for guidance and to lead the servant on all paths:

“Lead me, Lord, lead me, Lord, by the light of truth to seek and to find the narrow way. Be my way; by my truth; by my life, my Lord, and lead me, Lord today.“

Both of these hymns remind me of good times filled with laughter, fellowship and faith. But I digress.

The Psalm today is another beautiful hymn of praise to honor and worship the Lord. The psalmist cries out, “…See, I come with an inscribed scroll written upon me. I delight to do your will , my God; your law is in my inner being.” (Psalm 40:8-9, NAB)

The second reading from the New Testament, I believe, brings the message home. Saint Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians that God loves us. We are called to love and be loved as God’s children. Father Mike Schmitz, of Ascension and The Bible in a Year podcast, says the God has a claim on your life. Paul’s first letter illustrates this as he writes:

“…The body, however, is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.” (1 Corinthians 6:13b, NAB)

The Church is the body of Christ. We all make up the parts of the body of Christ. When one member suffers, then we all suffer. Saint Paul talks about this later in Chapter 12:

“As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. … If [one] part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 26, NAB)

Paul states we have all been “purchased at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:20, NAB) God calls us to be with him in heaven. What we do here on earth should be in preparation for our spiritual lives in heaven for eternity with God. Therefore, it should be good practice to evangelize (as spoken in today’s gospel) to whomever you can reach for the glory of God.

Here I am, Lord, your servant is listening, waiting for you to lead me with truth and light through the narrow way.

Today’s Readings:
1 Samuel 3:3b-10, 19
Psalm 40: 2, 4, 7-10
1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20
John 1:35-42

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God Reveals, Manifests Himself to the Nations

Today, January 7, 2024, is the observance of Epiphany in the Catholic Church. This day is recognized as falling on January 6. Epiphany comes from Greek origin, meaning “revelation from above.” In 567, the Council of Tours set Christmas and Epiphany as special days in the Church on the dates of December 25 and January 6, respectively, and the 12 days in between became the Christmas season. In the Church, Christmas is celebrated more than one day. As mentioned, it is a season lasting nearly two weeks.

So, all the readings today have an interconnected theme or idea running through them. The day is a time when Jesus is revealed to the world to be the Son of God, who will become the savior of the world. At this time, Jesus is being revealed to Israel and the nations as referenced in the first reading. Through these readings, we discover the Gentiles will come to know the God of Israel.

Today we recognize Jesus is the Son of God and how that revelation came about on the day of his birth. This revelation came to the magi on their visit to the baby Jesus. The day also recognizes this epiphany at Jesus’ baptism at the Jordan River as well as the miracle at the wedding in Cana (turning water into wine).

First I will dive in to the gospel reading for today. The idea of the revelation about Jesus is reflected in the other readings today. The gospel is the account of the magi visiting the Christ child. It is from Matthew, Chapter 2. The magi first go to King Herod and inquire about the newborn Jesus. The magi recite, more of paraphrase a passage from the prophet Micah, because Matthew’s passage also references another passage from Samuel:

“And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, since from you shall come a ruler, who it to shepherd my people Israel.” (Matthew 2:6, NAB)

This passage also goes back to King David, since Jesus was born from the line of David. 2 Samuel says, “…you shall shepherd my people Israel…” (2 Samuel 5:2, NAB)

Upon arriving, the magi offer gifts for the baby Jesus. The gifts of the magi – gold, because Jesus will be King; frankincense, because he will be a high priest; and myrrh is for the prophetic nature of Jesus being the Lamb of God – says they realized he was a newborn king and were prepared with the gifts they offered. Jesus is the sacrificial lamb for the redemption of the world. Jesus (God) not only reveals himself but he manifests himself to the nations. This is represented by the magi that come to visit. They made the choice to follow the star, bring gifts and pay the new king homage.

In the first reading from the Old Testament, the prophet Isaiah proclaims that a light will come to Zion to bless the people. Darkness has come over the people through paganism, idolatry and such. Jesus will be the light. This should give us faith and hope in what God is doing for the chosen people, and for us now. Verse six states, “Caravans of camels shall cover you, dromedaries of Midian and Ephah, all from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and heralding the praises of the lord.” (Isaiah 60:6, NAB) This is in reference to the magi.

The psalm is from Psalm 72, and is a beautiful hymn of praise to the king of Israel, asking for the king to rule with justice and fairness. During this time, people were known to intercede for the king, offering prayers and praises because the king is human, giving only what he has received from God. The people realize God is worthy to be praised and offers the same for the king of Israel to rule with goodness on its people.

“O God, give your judgement to the king; your justice to the king’s son; that he may govern your people with justice, your oppressed with right judgment. … May the kings of Tarshish and the islands bring tribute, the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts. May all kings bow before him, all nations serve him.” (Psalm 72:2, 10-11, NAB)

The second reading from the New Testament today illustrates further God revealing himself to the Gentiles (the world). In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he writes the revelation of Jesus as the Son of God to his apostles is written in the gospel. Paul states even the Gentiles are “coheirs, members of the same body…” (Ephesians 3:6, NAB) It is Paul’s point, at the beginning of the letter, everyone who believes and follows the gospel is a son or daughter of God:

“…if, as I suppose, you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for your benefit, (namely, that) the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly earlier. … which was not made known to human beings in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” (Ephesians 3: 2-3a, 5-6, NAB)

How has God manifested himself to you? How do you respond with such a revelation? Take time today to reflect on this epiphany of Jesus as the Son of God, and always take time for God to give him his rightful honor and praise.

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A Reflection For The New Year

Wow! It’s been nearly three and a half years since I’ve last posted. I’ve had a few periods where I have gone without posting anything. I think that has to change.

I always mean to get back to writing after one of these seemingly long breaks, and sometimes I do get back after a while but then it only lasts for an apparent predetermined amount of time, and them before I know it, I’m not writing and then a few days become a week, then a week turns into a month, and then in this case a month turns into almost three and a half years!

The last time I posted was in August of 2020. As near as I can recollect, that was when some things were returning after the big shutdown from COVID. At the time, I was working at the local newspaper as the sports editor. Everything was shut down in March and through the summer. Word came out schools were going to open and sports, among some other things, were going to resume. So just like that I had to get back to my busy routine, with the intention of continuing my posts. That obviously didn’t happen.

Many things occurred during that time I returned to the sports desk writing about the many great sports accomplishments from the area high school and junior high athletic activities. Fall came and went, and then another new year rushed in – 2021. By May of that year, I began the transition into a new venture at the newspaper – SALES. I did that for about the last two and a half years.

Currently, I am what you might call “in-between” jobs. So now I am taking this time to think, pray and reflect. I’ve been busy and life has gone so fast. I really believe it is time to stop and slow down. That’s exactly what I am trying to do with this time.

Before my hiatus, I was posting bible verses and commenting on scripture. I was trying to share some positive, good insight into the world, since it seemed the world was in a “dark place” during the pandemic. It would appear the world still needs some light to be shed. Hopefully soon there will be some more “light” shared through this space on a somewhat regular basis.

Starting Off In A New Year

This post is intended to be the ball to get things rolling. I just want to say over the last month and a half or so, not only a new calendar year came, but also a new liturgical calendar year began within the Catholic Church with the coming of Advent and Christmas. By the way, I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and celebrated the coming of 2024 safely. Let’s all try to put those New Year’s resolutions to the test and actually fulfill them this year! I personally didn’t really make any resolutions this time, I mean none verbally or none that I really committed myself too. I did have some thoughts and one of those was just to be a better man – spiritually, mentally – for myself and to those around me.

This, I believe, everyone could do. If everyone would smile, greet others with humility and kindness, and treat others as one would like to be treated as it says in the Gospel of Matthew:

“For I was hungry and you gave me good, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me … Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine you did for me.” (Matthew 25:35-36, 40 NAB)

We do unto others what we would like to have done to us. When the Magi arrived to see the baby Jesus and told Mary and Joseph all that had been spoken to them by the angel, Mary took those things and reflected on them in her heart. We should all be like Mary and think with our hearts before we act on something in a negative way. Because as John writes in his first letter, “No one who denies the Son has the Father, but whoever confesses the Son has the Father as well.” (1 John 2:23 NAB)

Let us all strive to do good, to be good and to have and keep the Holy Father within us.

Happy New Year!

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Ordinary Sunday

I have been sharing bible verses for the past several weeks. I even shared a series on prayer last month.

This week is a short message, reminding you to trust in God. He comforts you and loves you unconditionally. There is no impossible with Him.

In Joshua 24:15 it says, “And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Follow and trust God. Know that He is there to lift you up. And remember, you may not understand some things now, but God does have a plan. He says in Joshua 1:7, “Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.”

Joshua finished the journey that Moses started and led God’s people to the Promised Land. So hear God’s word and you may be blessed with the everlasting love and compassion and comfort of the Heavenly Father.

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There is No Barrier Between God and His People

This week I want to talk about God’s everlasting love. And more so, His all-powerful, unconditional love. I have said before about the almighty power and glory of God. He is available at any time, so as I said before in my prayer series just open up a conversation with Him.

So now I return to God’s love. I am taking today’s verse(s) from Romans. In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he talks about Jesus and the power of the Gospel. In Romans 8:38-39, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

When we dissect theses verses, we see three pairs of thoughts: death/life, things present/things to come, and height/depth. There is nothing in this life and nothing in death that can separate God’s love from faithful believers. We have His love in our eternal life. This holds similarly with nothing in the present or future can keep us from His love. Nothing in all of time. The use of height and depth here represents a place. In other words, there is no place where we can be that could cause us to be away from God’s love.

Romans 8 is about love and life in the spirit. At the beginning of the chapter, Paul talks of those who set their minds on the flesh will live in the flesh, but to “set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Life in the Spirit helps us be closer to God and His love.

One of my favorite verses comes from Psalm 63, “Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.” Again, we honor and praise our God because He is love. He created us so that we receive the never-ending, awesome love, and in turn we love and sing praises to our God. God’s love is also exemplified in this verse from Isaiah, “‘For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.”

God loves you. Take that. Hold on to that knowledge, trust, and walk on the path on which you have been called, as Paul tells the Ephesians, “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.”

Everyone have a blessed day!

kellym40 General

Creating and Sustaining a Life of Prayer, Part 4

This is part four of my prayer series. I hope you’ve enjoyed it and have been able to take away helpful information about your own prayer life. This series was built on the foundation of learning about prayer, how to use it in your daily life, and, today, learn to create and sustain a life of prayer.

A helpful way to do that is to break down the way in which you pray. Let’s take the word PRAY and make an acronym. By doing this, it makes praying more meaningful.

The first letter in our acronym (P) stands for PRAISE. Let praise begin your prayer. Be thankful. Psalm 100:1-4 says, “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into His presence with singing! Know that the Lord, He is God! It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name!”

For the third letter (A) we ASK. Ask God for good things. Matthew 7:7-11 tells us, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for brad will give hi a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” And remember, God wants you to ask. He will answer, but remember to give thanks to God, glorify Him. (John 14:13). Whatever you ask should be consistent with His word. (John 15:7). And what you ask of the Lord, should bring you joy. (John 16:23-24).

The second letter is (R) and stands for REPENT. Be sorrowful for whatever wrong you have done, even if you don’t know if what you did was wrong. Ask God to help you see whatever wrongdoing you may have done and be sorrowful and show remorse. Repent. Ask for forgiveness. Refer to Psalm 19:12, 14, where it says, “Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”

The final letter (Y) represents a time to be still. It means to YIELD. This is when you pause and stop talking, and you wait, listen, and seek to hear from God. How do you practice yielding to God when you pray? Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

So use PRAY when you pray. Let it help you continue your prayer life and you may see the goodness and wonders of God. Romans 12:12 tells us, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”

One of my favorite passages in the bible is from Psalm 63. In verses 1-4 it says, “O God, your are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirst for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands.” This also refers to another Psalm, as in Psalm 141:1-2, “O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me! Give ear to my voice when I call to you! Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!”

Again, I hope you’ve enjoyed this series. I will pray that you may keep that focus to Christ Jesus and the heavenly Father. Remember also that God hears us and knows what may be in the silence of our hearts. So take comfort in knowing that, as it says in Romans 8:26, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

Take care and God bless you!

kellym40 General

Creating and Sustaining a Life of Prayer, Part 3

This week is part three of my four-part series on prayer. How are you doing on your prayer life? Prayer is essential for our relationship with God. I have already said it is a conversation with God, so open up to Him about anything.

Last week, I talked about sin and confessing those sins to God. He is good and he hears what we have to say. If we are truly sorrowful, He will surely heal a contrite heart.

This week I want to talk about being thankful in your praying. So when you pray, you can also be intentional. Count your blessings to cultivate a grateful a heart. Some ways you can do that is to stop and smell the roses (thank God for creation), smile (thank God for what we have), don’t stop believing (remember what Jesus did for us, keep the faith).

Here’s a little exercise for you to do over the course of five days. In those five days, begin thanking God for your blessings. Do this by organizing circles of people to pray for. Divide them into three groups – Inner Circle, Middle Circle and Outer Circle.

Your Inner Circle should be your smallest circle and should consist of a close group of friends and family. Your next circle – the Middle – should be a little bigger and would consist of good friends, acquaintances and extended family. Your largest circle would be your Outer Circle. This circle is comprised of people we don’t know or have few interactions with. For example, these people could be a celebrity, delivery person, neighbor down the street, etc.

Spend time organizing your circles and make a plan to go to God on their behalf regularly. Once you make a plan to do this for five days, then make it part of your daily prayer routine. Keep this in mind as your are creating your circles and forming your daily prayer life, Philemon 1:4-6 says, “I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.“

Another note on prayer is that God answers our prayers. Sometimes, though, it may not seem like it. So the important thing is to remember to not be negative if it doesn’t appear your prayer was answered in the way you wanted. God has a plan. Change your “why” into “how.” Ask yourself, “How am I going to use this?” The objective, remember, is to have an intimate relationship with God. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

I will conclude this series next week. Be sure to follow my YouTube channel as I post a short video there on every topic that’s talked about here on my blog. I also post other short videos throughout the week and share a verse of the day. I usually post a new video on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Until next week, have a good week and may God bless you!

kellym40 General

Creating and Sustaining a Life of Prayer, Part 2

This week I am continuing my four-part series on prayer. Last week I introduced prayer as a communication between you and God. Prayer can take many forms, but it is essentially a conversation to have with God.

I stated last week in part one to go to God about everything. Use it as a way of getting to know God, communicating our desires to God, listening to God speak truths to our spirit, voicing our needs for God to help us, observing God in creation and praising Him, sitting with God in our pain and asking Him to comfort us, and expressing our gratitude by thanking God. And you can simply do this by keeping prayer as an open-ended conversation with God. Another important part of prayer is confessing our sins. So the topic this week will be about confession/sin as part of praying. Psalm 103:11-12 reads, “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.”

He does remove our transgressions. He cleanses us from our sins through the blood of his son Jesus Christ. We are not perfect. Therefore, we can come to God messy, in our impure, sinful state. C. S. Lewis said confession is like “the threshold of prayer.” We should confess first. Pray and confess for all sins and transgressions, be sorrowful, and ask for help to move away from those sinful ways.

If there is an issue that keeps tripping you up, what do you need to adjust, remove, or add to halp you turn from it?

I know in my life, there have been some things where I seem to keep repeating. I prayed to God for guidance and courage to break away from those sinful ways. I have also tried saying little prayers when I might have felt the urge to commit a sin. I ask for peace to flow over me so that I can turn away. It has helped. I know I just need to be persistent in my desire and need to change. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” We know that, through Jesus Christ, we have eternal life with God.

As it says in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We have a forgiving, loving heavenly Father. When we fall, he can pick us up. God gave Jesus as the final covenant for all mankind.

“Learning to pray doesn’t offer us a less busy life; it offers us a less busy heart.” – Paul E. Miller.
Praying helps us stay on track. It helps guide us in our ways. It helps us sustain our relationship with our God.

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Creating and Sustaining a Life of Prayer

Throughout this month, I am going to do a series on prayer and cover such topics as what prayer is, how we use prayer, how to create a consistent prayer life and more. This will be a four-part series.

In today’s lesson, I will touch on what prayer is and how important it is to us as Christians to have some kind of prayer life.

First of all, the definition(s) found in the dictionary are put as “A devout petition to God or an object of worship,” “A spiritual communion with God or an object of worship,” or “The act or practice of praying to God or an object of worship.”

Simply put, “Prayer is simply two-way conversation between you and God.” – Billy Graham.
It is the “most important conversation of your day. Take it to God before you take it to anyone else.” – Anonymous

You can also look at prayer as getting to know God, communicating our desires to God, listening to God speak truths to our spirit, voicing our needs for God to help us, observing God in creation and praising Him, sitting with God in our pain and asking Him to comfort us, and expressing our gratitude by thanking God. And you can simply do this by keeping prayer as an open-ended conversation with God.

Here are some questions to reflect on:
– What is your earliest memory of prayer/praying?
– What is a time when you might have been surprised because God answered your prayer?

Psalm 55:1 says, “Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!”
Prayer is vital to our growth as Christians. The Gospels are filled with moments with Jesus in prayer – when he was alone and with others, before and after healing someone, before meals, and even after being nailed to the cross and as he was dying. Prayer is connecting with and growing with God. Treat prayer as a close relationship you might have with another person. Prayer can be filled with moments of gratitude, praying for others, or just sharing our needs, fear, or insecurities. Just open up a conversation and go to God about everything.
“Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God.” – Mother Theresa

In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Paul writes about prayer, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”