Together in Prayer

Vertical Prayer with Horizontal Impact

Prayers God Loves to Answer – Praying for the Church (pt. 4)

Holding to the truth Today is a day of confusion regarding truth, and that confusion has invaded the church.  Confusion reigns where the church fails to hold firmly on to the Word of God. The letter to the church at Pergamum starts this way:  “These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged […]

Prayers God Loves to Answer – Praying for the Church (pt. 3)

Perhaps no area of our walk with God is more challenged by our culture today than the area of sexuality.  Having strayed from the truth of God’s word, as a society we no longer even know how to define gender.  More and more, our culture reflects Paul’s warning to the Romans: For although they knew […]

Prayers God Loves to Answer – Praying for the Church (pt. 2)

A civil worker in Kentucky loses her job for refusal to issue a license for a gay marriage due to her religious convictions.  A baker on Colorado is sued for refusing to bake a cake for a gay wedding, again due to religious convictions.  Celebrities who are believers get criticized for positions taken by their […]

Prayers God Loves to Answer – Praying for the Church (pt. 1)

According to Christianity Today, the United Methodist Church’s General Session this weekend will be determining the church’s stance on LGBT/gender issues.  At stake are questions like whether to ordain LGBT ministers, whether to perform gay marriages, etc. (1) The stakes are high in all of this, and there are believers on many sides in this […]

Prayers God Loves to Answer

I watched a message from David Jeremiah today on the question of “Why Doesn’t God Answer My Prayers?”  He covered all the typical answers – cherished sin, praying with wrong motives, praying outside God’s will, lack of faith, etc.  Nothing he said was scripturally wrong, but I confess that I have difficulty with the hidden […]

Correctly Handling the Word of Truth (pt. 2)

Besides taking verses of Scripture out of their immediate context, we also sometimes take passages out of the wider context of Scripture and misinterpret God’s intent in a given situation.  We’re especially vulnerable to this tendency when we’re in the midst of a trial. We tend to look for a Scripture that shows God intervening […]

Correctly Handling the Word of Truth (pt. 1)

As we look to Scripture to teach us how to respond and how to pray in crisis, we must be aware of two common pitfalls. The first of these is taking Scripture out of context – whether out of its immediate context or out of the context of the Bible as a whole. A common […]

The Waiting is the Hardest Part

Why doesn’t God answer prayer immediately?  Why does he seem at times to hold back, to keep us in difficult circumstances when he could bring healing, relief, finances, reconciliation, and more – all with just a word? There is no “one-size-fits-all” answer to this question.  First and foremost, we must acknowledge and agree with God […]

Does God See? Does He Hear?

Crisis situations often make us wonder if God sees our suffering or hears our cries.  God can seem distant and unconcerned with our troubles.  But Scripture shows us over and over that nothing could be further from the truth. Joseph must have wondered if God cared about his ordeals as he was carried off into […]

What is Vertical Prayer?

Vertical prayer is prayer that is focused on God, on his glory, and on his kingdom. Vertical prayer aligns with Paul’s instructions in Colossians 3:1-2: Vertical prayer recognizes God’s sovereignty and at the same time bows to his will. It’s based on faith, hope, and a deep reliance on God’s love. Vertical prayer pleads for […]