Prayer

Prayer features biblical, practical help for a deeper prayer life. This category focuses on how to pray, what Scripture teaches about prayer, and how prayer shapes discipleship and spiritual growth. You’ll find devotionals, teaching, and guidance for personal prayer, intercessory prayer, and praying with your church, small group, or family.

February 27, 2020

Christian Standard

Genuine, Fervent Prayers . . . and the Alternative

S. S. Lappin served as editor of Christian Standard from 1909 to 1917, and he then wrote hundreds of articles for the magazine until his death in 1960. Here are excerpts from an essay he wrote about prayer. _ _ _ Praying and Saying Prayers Bible prayers are brief but they are genuine and fervent. Ours are too long and we “say” them By S. S. LappinMarch 2, 1940; p. 7 . . . When prayer becomes self-conscious it ceases to be a prayer; it is merely saying a prayer. A certain Pharisee could not make the grade with his

February 26, 2020

Brian Cook

The Power Room

By Brian Cook Three people gather quietly around a small table. Their bodies hunch forward as their lips move silently. The drone of electrical machinery whirs around them, punctuated only by the soft rustling of Bible pages and the gentle creaking of chairs. The sign on the door says Power Room. It is a cramped electrical closet situated on the far side of the stage in our worship center. Our churchs facilities have been updated significantly over the years, but its sturdy mid-century bones can still be seen amid the bulky circuit breakers and snaking wires that inhabit this secluded

February 22, 2020

Brian Cook

The Power Room

By Brian Cook Three people gather quietly around a small table. Their bodies hunch forward as their lips move silently. The drone of electrical machinery whirs around them, punctuated only by the soft rustling of Bible pages and the gentle creaking of chairs. The sign on the door says “Power Room.” It is a cramped electrical closet situated on the far side of the stage in our worship center. Our church’s facilities have been updated significantly over the years, but its sturdy mid-century bones can still be seen amid the bulky circuit breakers and snaking wires that inhabit this secluded

January 9, 2020

Christian Standard

'Will You Say a Prayer for Me?'

William S. Boice graduated from Cincinnati Bible Seminary, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and Harvard Chaplain’s School, landed at Utah Beach with the troops on D-Day, and was “the first chaplain on German soil with our troops” during World War II, according to newspaper clippings. The Army chaplain, who subsequently started First Christian Church, Phoenix, Ariz., in 1952, wrote about “Another Part of a Chaplain’s Life” for this Christian Standard article from 75 years ago. _ _ _ Somewhere in Germany Another Part of a Chaplain’s Life By Chaplain (Capt.) William BoiceJan. 6, 1945; p. 8 Gone are the pleasant days

October 22, 2018

Christian Standard

Prayer, Power, Purpose

J. Russell & Gertrude Morse and Four Generations of Ministry to Southeast Asia and Beyond By Russell Johnson Starting from humble beginnings, the Morse family has made an eternal impact in lands few others had ever tried to reach. The Morses’ journey has taken them through some of the highest mountain passes in the world, where they discovered dozens of tribes who had never heard the name of Jesus. The early years were often devastating and discouraging. Several of the Morses’ friends were buried on unnamed mountainsides halfway around the world from their families. In time, some of these missionaries

October 2, 2018

Christian Standard

Blessing a Barn Quilt

By Benjamin Stroup The smell of cow was new for me. I grew up in a city, and life is altogether different here in Maysville, Kentucky (population: 10,000 people, 40,000 cows). As a child, on those rare occasions when we would drive by cows, everyone in the car would throw back their heads and “mooooo.” Now cows live in the field across from my house. It’s definitely not Cincinnati! Many days, the essence of cow manure wafts across the road and regales us. It’s not the sound of cows (or humans) mooing that’s unbearable . . . except for those

August 27, 2018

Christian Standard

A Flickering Light

By Jacqueline J. Holness “I don’t know what to do,” she said, her voice nearly dissolving in muffled tears. The flow of cars surrounding me competed for my attention as I made my way into the confines of the city from the freedom of the expressway. A beat later, sniffles aside, she continued the phone call. “I can’t afford my children’s private school tuition anymore. I kept saying I would pay the bill, but now they won’t accept any more excuses. I’m trying to teach them at home, but I don’t know anything about homeschooling, plus I work. They’ve been

August 11, 2018

Christian Standard

A Garden Story

By Mel McGowan Mosaic Church in Winter Garden, Florida, opened their doors in 2003, but the church’s story began taking shape centuries before. In fact, it has the same origin we all do, the Garden of Eden, a paradise handcrafted by God for his beloved creations. Eden began as a perfect oasis that offered humankind everything we could ever need—and then it was broken by sin. And the shattered world that emerged was rescued by Jesus and restored for eternity. The heart of Mosaic’s story is summarized in three words: rescue, identity, and mission. And this story informs and describes

April 24, 2018

Christian Standard

Three Prayers

By Jackina Stark A few years ago, Anne Lamott wrote a little book on prayer titled Help, Thanks, Wow. Many of our prayers can fit those informal labels. It is not surprising that Help is first in the list. News outlets remind us the world is full of need. Help, Father. Children all over the world are being sold as labor and sex slaves. Help, Lord. Hurricanes and fires and earthquakes and mudslides and tornadoes and floods are taking homes; they’re taking lives. Help. Maniacs are shooting people at concerts and in churches. Help. Corruption and greed are ravaging the

September 16, 2017

Christian Standard

The Engine that Powers Our Progress

The Vital Difference Between a Church that Prays and a Praying Church By Derek Dickinson I thought planting a new congregation in Fairbanks, Alaska, was a terrible idea. The winters are brutal. It occasionally hits 50 degrees below zero! In the winter, it”s a place of darkness, with only four hours of sunlight per day. This “terrible idea” wasn”t mine, thankfully, but God”s. I was so opposed to planting a congregation here that I fasted from all solid foods for 30 days on two occasions and prayed that I could plant somewhere else. But God”s answer was clear: I was to be

April 27, 2017

Michael C. Mack

No Repeat Group Prayer

By Michael C. Mack Do your group or class members get so caught up in “saying a prayer” and putting it into the right format with the right words that they miss having a conversation with one another and Jesus? Do people refuse to pray aloud because they think they”ll get it wrong? Does your group take prayer requests and then pray them back to God as if he isn”t present? Do people give answers to people”s problems or try to “fix” them during prayer requests? These activities make it clear on whose power the group members are most reliant.

March 16, 2017

Christian Standard

Taxi Drivers, Refugees, and Other Good Reasons to Pray

By Kevin Dooley So what does the kingdom of Heaven look like when it shows up among refugees and immigrants in your town and mine? As followers of Jesus Christ, we are living in a unique time in the history of Christianity””a time when obeying the last commandment of Jesus to “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) may not include air travel, but rather taking a taxi home from the airport. For more than two decades my wife, Kim, and I have lived and worked cross-culturally seeking to honor God among the poorest of the poor in

July 5, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

Prayer for America

By Mark A. Taylor Last Sunday, the day before the Fourth of July, I had the chance to lead worship in my home congregation. While I don”t believe Sunday-morning worship is the place for patriotic rallies (I”ve written about this before), I do believe we should be praying for our country as Christians gathered. So I wrote the following prayer as a responsive reading for the service I led. Maybe it will encourage some readers today. And some might even personalize it to use in their own congregations. Leader: Dear God, as we think about the freedoms, privilege, and possibilities

April 17, 2015

Christian Standard

Could You Not Watch?

By Robert F. Hull Jr. In a powerful sermon, Fred Craddock points out that only the reader of Mark”s Gospel really sees Jesus in Gethsemane lying prostrate on the ground and hears him praying for the hour to pass from him (Mark 14:35, 36). Peter, James, and John are all asleep, and because we are awake and reading, we are tempted to be very hard on these three. How could they have fallen asleep, when all Jesus asked of them was to stay awake for a little time while he went away to pray? We can be unforgiving when we are

November 11, 2014

Mark A. Taylor

Prayer Made a Difference at ReChurch

By Mark A. Taylor The big man with broad shoulders and a wide grin greeted me as I headed toward my display table. I was about finished setting up for the annual leadership conference, “ReChurch,” sponsored by Indian Creek Christian Church in Indianapolis. Better known as “The Creek,” the church hosted the event last Thursday and Friday, November 6 and 7. He greeted me with a firm handshake and introduced himself as Kevin Hart, executive minister for operations at the megachurch. I told him my name, and he asked me, “Can I pray for you?” With others passing in both

September 1, 2014

Christian Standard

Five Steps for Leading a Neighborhood Prayer Walk

By Jon Weiner 1. Keep your eyes open as you walk! 2. Keep the eyes of your heart open for your neighbors” needs. 3. Keep moving””it may seem creepy to stand in front of a house praying! 4. Observe: What do you see that may provide clues for how you can pray for people? 5. Ask God to open doors to meet and connect with neighbors. Jon Weiner serves as neighborhood groups pastor at Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, Kentucky  

June 25, 2014

Christian Standard

“˜. . . And He Was a Man of Prayer”

By Randy Gariss It is easy to forget and neglect the main thing””it happens all the time. Sometimes it results in tragedy. Drivers should drive and not text. Train engineers should remain awake and not fall asleep. Babysitters should watch children and not TV. And elders should be men of prayer. Even a casual reading of Scripture clearly demonstrates the place prayer is to play in a leader”s life. Consider:   Samuel the prophet “¢ He told the Jewish people, “Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you” (1 Samuel

May 6, 2014

Mark A. Taylor

Four Ways to Enrich Your Prayer Times

By Mark A. Taylor Most Christians, especially mature Christians, tend to pray the way they”ve always prayed, worship the way they”ve worshipped for years, “do devotions” the same way week after week, pursue the spiritual disciplines””or ignore them””according to their longtime habits. Maybe that”s OK, but if you have a hunch that your prayer times could be richer, that your relationship with God could be closer, that your own spiritual growth could continue, then here are some tips from David Butts and Ken Read. “¢ Pray the Psalms. Butts tells what happened when he first decided to spend more prayer

April 9, 2014

Christian Standard

Praying by Design

By Casey Tygrett My research has convinced me of this: When our experience and temperament interact with the presence of God, something very special happens. When I”m teaching people how to pray, often they ask me, “What do I say?” In other words, people want to know what “counts” when it comes to prayer. What is prayer and what isn”t prayer? It isn”t a silly question, but it can be difficult to answer as we look at all the different kinds of prayer in the Bible. We have selfish prayers like those of Pharaoh (Exodus 8:8), sacrificial prayers like those

April 7, 2014

Christian Standard

Jesus: Man of Prayer!

By David Butts I”ll never forget the question, even though it has been 20 years since I was asked it. I had just settled into the easy chair in the living room of a pastor friend. I was there to talk with him about his church supporting our new venture, Harvest Prayer Ministries. Before I could begin my appeal, he startled me by asking: “So you”re starting a prayer ministry. What is your personal prayer life like?” It was a valid question. If you are going to teach on prayer, you had better be praying! That”s why it is so

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