Faith Bible Blog

On Sunday at Kaleo, as we looked at Jesus’  teaching on persevering in prayer, and I mentioned my use of prayer cards.  I started using them this year after reading about them in Paul Miller’s excellent book A Praying Life (BTW: get and read this book!).  John asked me to post this here to share it with the rest of the church as well.

I became convinced that I needed some sort of lists if I was really going to persevere in bringing the same requests before God long term.  A small stack of 3×5 cards has many advantages over a big sheet of requests.  I find it less overwhelming to look at just one category at a time.  A stack of 3×5 cards with a clip also travels well in a pocket.

Some people asked on Sunday night for some sample categories.  Mine are:

• Spiritual Formation – These are areas in my own life where I want God to change my heart.  I pray over specific verses that describe what I’m after
• Areas of Surrender -On this card I put all the areas of my life that tend to cause me anxiety.  When I pray over this card I am surrendering these areas over to God’s care.  I will sometimes do this flat on my back, arms stretched out with palms up as a physical display of my surrender.  TMI? 
• Weekly Goals – These are specific things I want the Spirit-empowered discipline to accomplish every week, including: reading, praying through the cards, time with each kid, exercise, etc.
• My Wife and Kids – each has a separate card with specific requests for each
• My Parents, Brothers, In-Laws, Nieces and Nephews – listed with specific requests
• Extended Family – listed with specific request
• A Few Close Friends – each have their own card
• Kaleo People - if you ask me to pray for you, you’re on it
• People I’m Currently Discipling/Counseling – each has their own card
• Our Church Elders/Pastors – listed with specific needs next to their names
• Pastors/Writers – listed on one card – some I know personally, others are big names I don’t know personally – if they have had an impact on me they are on here
• Kaleo Leadership - listed on one card with specific needs next to their names
• Kaleo – specific things we would like to see God do  with us
• Work – for patients, clients, office staff and colleagues
• Kingdom – persecuted church, revival, the poor, human trafficking, church planting, stewardship of the environment, unreached peoples, end to abortion
• President Obama - for him personally, his family, for wisdom and protection
• Salvation – a list of people that don’t know Jesus but I’m praying God will save
• Missions – a list of specific missionaries and missions agencies that God has put on my heart
• Our Neighbors – listed on one card with specific needs next to their names

Here are Paul Miller’s general guidelines for using his prayer cards (pp. 225-226, A Praying Life):

1. The card functions as a snapshot of the person’s life, so use short phrases to describe what you want.
2. When praying, I usually don’t linger over a card for more than a few seconds.  I just pick one or two key areas and pray for them.
3. I put the Word to work by writing a Scripture verse on the card that expresses my desire for that particular person or situation.
4. The card doesn’t change much.  Maybe once a year I will add another line.  These are just the ongoing areas of a person’s life that I am praying for.
5. I usually don’t write down answers.   They are obvious to me since I see the card almost every  day.
6. I will sometimes date a prayer request with the month and year.

I set Google calendar to send me an email each day that reminds me to get through them at some point each day.

Using cards has really helped me a lot.  The goal is to become the kind of people that keep bringing the same requests before God like Jesus taught us to.   And I majorly stink at this naturally.

It has also been awesome to see how many things God has already done in response to prayer – something I would not have noticed without these cards.

Hope this helps you to pray more each day

Erick Bible Issues & Questions, Lifestyle prayer

Erick General News

I want to encourage you to use Facebook missionally. 

I have recently been surprised by the affect of having unsaved family and friends as “friends” on Facebook.  It’s cool how they are able to see on a daily basis how important Jesus and the Gospel are to me.  Consider how your unsaved friends and family are able to “spy” on you.  I find that I am able to put things on my statuses and notes that would offend them in person or if I emailed it them, but they can’t complain when they read it on their feed because after all they were kind of spying on me in the first place

Obviously this does not in any way remove the need for me to personally share the Gospel with them (or risk offending them).  But it does offer a supplement to the evangelism process.  It allows them to see into my life in a way that is not threatening to them and gives them extended exposure to the Gospel.

Anyway, the point is: 1.) Get a Facebook account if you don’t have one, 2.) Add unsaved friends and (especially) extended family, 3.) Make your statuses and posts strategic for the Kingdom.  They are watching…..  Facebook missionally!

For those of you who are new to Kaleo, FBC or Facebook, mine is at: http://www.facebook.com/erickcobb (I would be happy to add, so please request it), the Kaleo Facebook group page is here and the FBC Facebook group page is here (please become a member).

But more importantly do steps 2 and 3 above and let’s follow Paul’s lead and “become all things to all people, that by all means [we] might save some…and do all for the sake of the Gospel” (I Cor 9:22b-23a).  Including Facebook.

Erick Missions facebook

Question: What’s the difference between pride & self-esteem?

Answer:

Self-esteem is basically our culture’s word for what the Bible calls pride. It is commonly seen as a good thing in our culture to think highly yourself – to have high self-esteem. The Bible on the other hand advocates having a Gospel view of ourselves. As Tim Keller has put it:

“The Gospel shows us that we are more sinful and flawed than we would ever dare admit and yet – at the same time – in Christ we are more loved and accepted than we ever dared hope.”

Spiritual health would be to believe both of these things about ourselves. God’s love in acceptance is not based on our worthiness but on the worthiness of Jesus. This security gives us a humble confidence that self-esteem never can never produce. For more on this, read Tim Keller’s article on the Centrality of the Gospel.

Erick Bible Issues & Questions, Gospel, Lifestyle TXT Question

Question: If leprosy is contagious, then how was Namaan around people?

Answer: Leprosy is contagious and the laws in Israel strictly regulated lepers so that they were kept away from non-lepers. Naaman was a Syrian though, so it may be that they did not have the same kind of strict rules about leprosy. Also, it says in I Kings 5:1 that Naaman had great favor with the king of Syria because he was a successful military commander, so that may have kept him from being mistreated for his leprosy.

Erick Bible Issues & Questions TXT Question

In this age of tolerance, what is the most effective way to communicate an intolerant gospel?

Great question.  The Gospel message is of course the same no matter what age you are proclaiming it in, but in each unique context people will have different objections to it.  For example, the truth that there is only one way to God is offensive to people in our culture, but assumed by most people in the Middle East (as it was in the West before the Enlightenment).  Each time and context has it’s own set of objections to the Gospel.  By your question I assume that you are aware of this and you want to understand how to communicate the unchanging Gospel to the place God has called you.  These have been very helpful to me:

The Heart of Evangelism (book), Jerram Barrs (his free podcast with the same content)

The Reason for God (book), Tim Keller (audio book) – Great book directed to unbelievers where he explains the Gospel and answers objections

Who is This Jesus? (free audio) and Prodigal Sons (free audio), Tim Keller

The Prodigal God series (free audio), Tim Keller

Objections to Christianity series (free audio), Tim Keller

Erick Gospel TXT Question

A very good word here from Tim Challies. An excerpt:

I want to say a word today about watchblogs or discernment blogs or whatever you want to call them. I am referring to blogs that specialize in sharing bad news. They share stories and videos and anecdotes about Christians and churches and supposed Christians and supposed churches. Day after day they offer examples of all that is wrong in the church. They may vary what they offer a little bit, but what is true of them is that they offer a steady diet of negative content related to the church in general or perhaps related to just one person or one ministry. You know of some of these sites, I am sure.

I was thinking about such blogs a few days ago and arrived at a conclusion about them that actually rather surprised me. This is what I realized: these blogs are really little more than entertainment. And once I had these blogs filed in that way in my mind, their popularity and their draw began to make much more sense to me. They are really just a spiritualized form of YouTube or any other site that entertains by sharing what is gross and base and negative and that does so for the sake of entertainment. There is really no value in watching boys do stupid things on skateboards and laughing when they crack their ankle bones in half; there is really no value in watching the worst pastors in America preach to the worst churches in America. Such sites offer evil as entertainment.

Here’s the conclusion:

Filling our minds, our hearts, our computer screens, our blogs with all that is wrong in the church will do little to conform us into the image of the Savior. It can do little. My encouragement to you, whether you are a regular visitor to one of these sites or whether you simply visit them occasionally, is to examine your heart and to examine your motives. Do you visit such sites because they have information that you truly need to know? Or do you visit as a means of entertainment? Are you delighting in what is good and true and pure and lovely, or are you finding a strange, sick delight in all that is evil and ugly?

From: Between Two Worlds

Erick Culture & Politics, Internet Notables

Several of you have asked me to email what I read off the back of my Bible last night. Here it is:

“What do you want so badly today that it is making you depressed, anxious, covetous, bitter or angry? What is making you sick of soul? That is the idol you need to repent of today! Pray and confess it to your Father.”

I wrote that on the back of my Bible in a time of deep anxiety, depression and covetousness. It has been something I frequently use as a reminder to repent and receive the peace and joy that is should always be mine in the Gospel.

Enjoy!
Erick.

“Little children, keep yourselves from idols”
1 John 5:21

Erick Gospel, Lifestyle

I think it is really
important for our mission here and for our own spiritual growth that we respond
biblically to the election of Barack Obama as president.

The two
of you that voted for Obama won’t need this, but for the rest of you: please prayerfully consider your biblical obligations to
Barack Obama when he takes over the presidency.

1.)
 Submit to President Barack Obama as God’s Sovereign Choice for Our
Country

• Let every person be subject to the governing
  authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that
  exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the
  authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will
  incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad.
  Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is
  good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your
  good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in
  vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath
  on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid
  God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you
  also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to
  this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are
  owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed,
  honor to whom honor is owed.  Romans
  13:1-7

• Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human
  institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as
  sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. I Peter
  2:13-14

We are to submit to the
leaders God has put over us unless submitting to them we cause us to sin God
(Acts 4:19-20).  This command is actually much easier for us to do than it
was for the believers it was first written to.  Their emperor was Nero, who liked
to light Christians on fire and feed them to wild animals and yet they were
called to submit to him.  Surely, out of love for our God, we can joyfully
submit to Barack Obama as our president.  God has not given us a command
that is too difficult here (I John 5:3).

2.)  Respect President Barack Obama

• Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God.
  Honor the emperor.  I Peter 2:17

We are to respect Barack
Obama.  During the Clinton years it was far too common for Christians to
disparage their president through bumper stickers, t-shirts, and the comments
they made.  If that is your impulse, please grow up.  God commands us
to show honor to our leaders.  It is unacceptable for Christians to speak
disrespectfully of their president.  You can (and should) speak out against
his policies, you can even get involved in four years to remove him, but while
he is president you must speak respectfully of him.  

Once again the emperor
Peter was talking about here was Nero, who by the way was not an elected
figure, they had no say in who the emperor was.  In obedience to God,
watch how you talk about our president.

3.)  Pray for Barack Obama Daily

• First of all, then, I urge that supplications,
  prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for
  kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and
  quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is
  pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be
  saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.  I Timothy 2:1-4
  

If you have never been in
the habit of praying daily for the president, this would be an excellent time
to start.  President Obama has a lot of challenges ahead of him.
 Pray for him everyday.  Pray that God would reveal himself to him,
bless him, give him wisdom, and keep him safe.  We are teaching our boys
to do this every day.

It is
interesting that when Daniel found out that judgment was going to come upon
Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4:19) he was visible shaken and declare that he
wished it would happen to the king’s enemies instead.  And Nebuchadnezzar
wasn’t really the king you would want, now was he? – trying to BBQ Daniel’s
friends and all.  And yet Daniel cared about him and wanted him to be
blessed, not judged.  You can have that same spirit towards Barack Obama
as you pray that God would reveal himself to him, bless him, give him
wisdom, and keep him safe.

For the
next few days as you talk with believers and unbelievers about the outcome of
this election you have an opportunity to be refreshingly biblical – and truly
counter-cultural.  Let’s show the world (and other believers) that
Christians are not a bunch of cry babies and sore losers who put all their
hopes in having political power.  Whining, fear, and bitterness are not
fitting for us who believe God is up to something in all that he ordains.
 Let’s show the world (and other Christians) that we have a happy trust in
God’s sovereignty.  Let’s show them that we are prepared to joyfully
submitting to, respect, and pray for Barack Obama, out of a deep trust in and
love for our God.  Or…..you can do just what the culture expects you
to. 

Keep in
mind our cause, the spread of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, does not depend
on having political power.  In fact, our cause has most often thrived when
it had no such advantages!  The Kingdom is breaking in even now, the
fullness of it will soon appear!

Read more…

Erick Culture & Politics

When is the last time you recieved a friend’s, coworker’s,
or family member’s rejection because you shared the Gospel with them?
Have you gone weeks without being rejected for Christ?  Months?
Years?  Being faithful to Jesus is not just about living morally and going
to church – Jesus says it must also includes being frequently
rejected by those we share Christ with (Luke 9:23-26).  This passage
is not just for those who live in “hard places”, it describes the
normal, faithful Christian life.

One of the biggest reasons we fear rejection and are silent
about the Gospel is because the acceptance of others has become our functional
justification.  We may say that we know all is well with our souls because
we have been justified before God in Christ, but the truth is that we
really only know all is well with our souls when everyone approves of
us.  Human approval, not approval before God in Christ, has become our
justification and when something threatens that approval we are
terrified.  The thing is that you have already been justified before God
in Jesus.  You can never be rejected by God, because Jesus was credited
with your sin and was rejected by God and condemned in your
place.  If that is true (and it is) who’s approval matters?  Who’s
approval matters enough to be ashamed of such a Savior?

So if the pattern of your life has been to avoid the
rejection of family, friends, and coworkers by not “pushing it”
or waiting for the perfect opportunity (which never seems to come) here is a
simple way to start Gospel conversations even if there is presently
no open door:

1.) Download and listen to “Who is This
Jesus?“  Make a CD of it.

2.) Think of 5 people you could give the CD to
this week – don’t overlook those with a church background that don’t
go to church – they are a big part of our mission field.  If they aren’t
regularly going to church, consider them unsaved and include them in your
evangelism.  They may be saved but radically unhealthy – either way they
need the Gospel.

3.) Pray for them.

4.) When you give them the CD just
tell them that you heard it recently and you thought it was a very good
historical case for the resurrection of Jesus and that you really want to hear
what they think of it.  Tell them you will buy them lunch, breakfast, or
coffee to hear their thoughts on it.

5.) When you get together, really listen to them.
Write down their objections.  If you don’t have an answer, don’t make one
up.  tell them you will get back to them with an answer and then ask one
of us and we’ll point you to the best resources.  Sometime in the next
couple of weeks we will have a meeting to discuss how we can better facilitate
one another in this.

You don’t have to do it this way, but you do have to do
it.  We cannot be ashamed or silent about the Gospel, Jesus has not left
us that option (Luke 9:23-26).

How are you the most of the contacts God has given you
(at home, work, school) to communicate the Gospel?  This is what it means
to follow Jesus.

I’m doing this with you.  Let’s step out and trust him!

Erick.

Read more…

Erick Gospel