Pray
Matthew 14:22-23
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him
to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed
them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he
was there alone, 24 but the boat was already a considerable distance from land,
buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
I can’t help but think of this from a pastor’s perspective.
Oftentimes when we pastors complete a sermon and “dismiss” the congregation, we
do so with a sense of hope settled within a silent prayer, “Lord God, work your
word on your people.”
We are not
interested in hearing, “God sermon.” Instead, we long for you, Jesus’ disciples,
to say, “Isn’t God grand? What a wondrous, glorious God we have! I am so
grateful to hear His Word today. I feel refreshed and renewed for the week
ahead.”
Then I think we
pastors need to learn a lesson from Jesus in regard to what we do after the
sermon. We should go to pray. That’s what Jesus does. He goes to the
mountaintop to pray, “My Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” And he would
have proceeded from there to address his praises, his petitions and his desires
to his Father. We pastors need to do the same, to pray for our church and our
own hearts to be faithful to the Lord’s great call on our lives.
So, you may be
asking, “What’s this have to do with me who’s not a pastor?” Well, I think this
lesson is for you, too. No, you don’t preach, but as Jesus’ disciple, you are
called to minister for him. A good thing to do after each day of “ministry” is
to pray, “My Father in heaven.” And then pray for your family, your friends—and
your pastor. This will change your life, and it will change your church.
LIFE Link: Prayer.
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