{"id":229665,"date":"2024-05-23T15:06:56","date_gmt":"2024-05-23T19:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/?p=229665"},"modified":"2024-08-06T11:45:46","modified_gmt":"2024-08-06T15:45:46","slug":"ringing-reminders-to-pray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/ringing-reminders-to-pray\/","title":{"rendered":"Ringing Reminders to Pray"},"content":{"rendered":"

The traditional function of a town\u2019s central bell tower was to encourage residents to practice the presence of God. In AD 604 Pope Sabinian officially sanctioned the ringing of church bells to announce times of daily prayer.\u00b9\u00b3 For centuries, bell towers sat in the center of towns across the world, ringing to remind believers to lift their hearts to the Father multiple times per day, ringing out the reminder of God\u2019s love and presence hour by hour. \u201cEvery hour I need thee\u201d was not just a poetic hymn: It was a concrete reality built into the center of towns throughout the Christian world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Those who practice the presence of God have learned to build \u201cbell towers\u201d in the center of their daily life. Certain tasks, moments, people, and even landmarks serve as \u201cbells\u201d throughout their day to prompt them to stop and pray, lift up a praise, or whisper a prayer to the God of heaven.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the prayer lives of the leaders we interviewed there were many different kinds of bells prompting these leaders to return to Jesus, but some of the more common prompts were meals,\u00a0 meetings, moods, and moments.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meals<\/b><\/p>\n

In the same way that Jesus looked up to heaven and prayed at meals, all the leaders with whom we spoke use meals as a prayer prompt.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meetings\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen many ministries that pray before meetings. This is quite common. But our interviewees tended to also pray during meetings, pausing to listen to God when they lacked clarity or needed wisdom. Mark Zhou, who is the second-generation leader of a major church planting movement in China, said:\u00a0 When we start a meeting, it\u2019s so natural. You start with prayer. As the meeting progresses, we\u2019ll say, \u201cLet\u2019s pause a little bit to experience another perspective. Let\u2019s pray in the middle of meetings and see if the Lord\u2019s given the favor to do [the thing you\u2019re discussing].\u201d\u00a0 People will experience that and say, \u201cThere\u2019s definitely a change.\u201d\u00b9\u2074 The reason for integrating prayer during meetings is clear: The Spirit exists, the Spirit speaks in ways we can understand, and God has insight into the situations addressed in our meetings that we do not. For Mark and many other praying leaders, it would be unsettling and unusual to not address the smartest, wisest One in the room.<\/span><\/p>\n

Moods\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Feeling a big or deep emotion is a prayer prompt, both for praying leaders and in Scripture. Here\u2019s a partial list of the moods that Scripture identifies as prayer prompts:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 In trouble (James 5:13)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Happy (James 5:13)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Sick (James 5:14)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Stuck in sin (James 5:16)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Concerned about politics (1 Timothy 2:1\u20132)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Anxious (Philippians 4:6-7)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Mistreated (Luke 6:28)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Facing persecution (Matthew 5:44)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 Unsure what to say (Romans 8:26)<\/span><\/p>\n

Mark Zhou acknowledged that it isn\u2019t just good things that should prompt us to prayer:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I learned that part of our prayer is to talk to God about our disappointment.<\/span> Lord, why? Lord, I put my trust in You.<\/span><\/i> But then, through brokenness, I learn a new perspective. God brings us into\u00a0 alignment with Him.<\/span><\/p>\n

The apostle Paul makes a similar point in Philippians 4:6 when he says, \u201cIn <\/span>every situation<\/span><\/i>, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God\u201d (emphasis added). Prayer and petition. Why did Paul use two words here? In Greek, the word for \u201cpetition\u201d is what we often think of as \u201cprayer\u201d: asking for things. When we run through our \u201cprayer list,\u201d those are petitions. The other word here is actually the more common Greek word for prayer, <\/span>proseuchomai<\/span><\/i>, which has two parts: <\/span>Pr\u00f3s<\/span><\/i> means exchange. It\u2019s a market place word, like trading money for chickens. The second part, <\/span>euxomai<\/span><\/i>, means \u201cto wish.\u201d Prayer is an <\/span>exchange of wishes.<\/span><\/i>\u00b9\u2075\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We hear it in Jesus\u2019 prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane: \u201cNot my will, but yours be done\u201d (Luke 22:42). <\/span>God, here\u2019s what I want, but what do You want?<\/span><\/i> The most common word for \u201cpray\u201d in the New Testament isn\u2019t about prayer lists and endless requests. The truer, deeper concept is \u201ctrade my wishes for God\u2019s wishes.\u201d Regardless of our mood or how we might be feeling, we are invited to exchange wishes with God in prayer.<\/span><\/p>\n

Moments\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

A prompt that has deeply affected me (Ryan) personally is merely seeing strangers in crowds. When I\u2019m in a line, I\u2019ll pray for those in front of and behind me. In an airport, I\u2019ll pray for whoever is around me. I\u2019ll pray silently for my Uber driver. I\u2019ll pray for people around me on the street. And sometimes I\u2019ll practice just listening to see if the Holy Spirit shares with me something specific to pray for these strangers.\u00a0 Commuting, waiting in line, and walking down the street are all opportunities to pray for others. Sometimes I\u2019m deeply moved to love those around me, but most times it helps change my mood from annoyed to a bit less annoyed and more loving .. . and more connected to Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

Leaders use particular moments to prompt themselves to pray: like hiring a new team member or making a major financial decision. One leader shared, \u201cI wouldn\u2019t make any decision without prayer. When in a meeting, I ask God to guide me. When you\u2019re doing the right thing, your heart is light, not heavy and slimy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Another leader, when writing his task list, begins each line with \u201cBILJ,\u201d as a reminder that everything he does is \u201cBecause I Love Jesus.\u201d One leader of a Canadian petrochemical company explains that he\u2019s praying on a minute-to-minute basis. \u201c \u2018Father, what do You think? Father, what do You want?\u2019 That sensitivity to the Spirit is so central for me.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Staying in tune with the Spirit is often not about doing different things but just doing them <\/span>with <\/span><\/i>God. Brother Lawrence wrote that becoming more like God \u201cdid not depend upon changing our works, \u00a0 but in doing that for God\u2019s sake, which we commonly do for our own.\u201d\u00b9\u2076<\/span><\/p>\n

One-Sentence Prayers\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the most famous examples of the power of a few brief words comes from the Hemingway Challenge. Ernest Hemingway, the groundbreaking twentieth-century author, was known for packing intense meaning into tight, punchy language. According to literary legend, Hemingway once bragged to a group of fellow authors that he could write a story in just six words. They reflexively balked. Then Hemingway uttered the words: \u201cBaby shoes. For sale. Never used.\u201d The group was awed by this six-word story that evoked incredible emotion.<\/span><\/p>\n

If a six-word story can pack such power, imagine the power of a similarly brief prayer. One-sentence prayers help us practice the presence of God amid busy days, in the middle of meetings, or absolutely anywhere we find ourselves. Brief prayers may seem trivial, but research and practice show that a single sentence can reorient our mind, will, and emotions, pointing them back to Jesus.\u00b9\u2077<\/span><\/p>\n

The leader Nehemiah offers a biblical example of a one-sentence prayer. He was far from his Jewish homeland, working as cupbearer to the Persian king, when word reached him that Jerusalem\u2019s walls had been broken down and its gates burned, leaving his cherished city defenseless.\u00a0 He wrote that he \u201cquickly prayed to the God of heaven\u201d in the seconds before answering an important question posed by the king (Nehemiah 2:4 NET). We imagine this wasn\u2019t the time for verbosity, yet the prayer was noteworthy to Nehemiah, and out of that moment with God flowed the conviction and courage Nehemiah needed to make a bold request to return to and restore the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Again and again, Jesus Himself changed lives and history through a single sentence:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cFather, forgive them\u201d (Luke 23:34).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cFather. ..not my will, but yours\u201d (Luke 22:42).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cLazarus, come out!\u201d (John 11:43)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

attribute <\/span><\/i>\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cBe healed!\u201d (Luke 5:13 NLT)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cCome out of him!\u201d (Luke 4:35)\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a0\u00a0 \u201cLittle girl .. . get up!\u201d (Mark 5:41)<\/span><\/p>\n

One-sentence prayers drawn from a deeply rooted relationship with God carry the power and grace of heaven.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking for help in their own leadership,\u00a0Skoog<\/span>, Greer, and Doolittle spent three years researching and logged over one hundred hours of interviews with leaders in six continents who collectively serve in over one hundred countries. They researched or spoke with global entrepreneurs and business executives as well as some of the most influential pastors and ministry leaders in the world\u2014leaders such as Joni Eareckson Tada, Francis Chan, John Mark Comer, Christine Caine, David Green, Mark Batterson among many more. Check out their book Lead With Prayer here<\/strong><\/a> to be encouraged!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The traditional function of a town\u2019s central bell tower was to encourage residents to practice the presence of God. In AD 604 Pope Sabinian officially sanctioned the ringing of church bells to announce times of daily prayer.\u00b9\u00b3 For centuries, bell towers sat in the center of towns across the world, ringing to remind believers to\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":343,"featured_media":229666,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,400,434],"tags":[],"coauthors":[393],"class_list":["post-229665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life-advice","category-lo-library","category-prayer"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/343"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=229665"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229665\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":229670,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229665\/revisions\/229670"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/229666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=229665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=229665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=229665"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liveoriginal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=229665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}