Who has power?

Who has power in Egypt? The demonstrators fear that President Morsi has become a tyrant.

Who has power over the Press? Our Parliament will be trying to tackle that one, after the Leveson Enquiry has reported.

Today, 30th November, is St. Andrew's Day, and many Christian people mark this day as a day of prayer for the missionary work of the Church.

Prayer may appear to be a quiet activity that brings benefit for those engaged in it - because it is may clear the mind or calm the soul. 

But few people see prayer in the way that the Bible sees it.

Some famous quotations may reveal what assorted Bible writers think of prayer.

St. James, the brother of Jesus, writes, 'The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.' (James 5.16-18)

Earlier he said this, 'Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.' (James 5.14-16)

For James, the place of prayer is the place of power. 

Yet we pray so little with any understanding of the effectiveness, the power of prayer.

Jesus spoke often of our need to be people rooted in prayer. 'I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.' (John 15.15-16) If we want to be fruitful in our mission & ministry, we can only be like that if we are deeply rooted in prayer. 

These effective prayers are all connected to our relationship with God through Jesus, and His mission in and through us. Our prayer, at its simplest, is 'Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven'. Unlike our usual prayers, which seem to focus on our comfort and problems, these Jesus-focused prayers are on God's glory. 

So today, St. Andrew's Day, let us give ourselves some time and space to pray for the mission & ministry of our Church. I am attaching the prayer bookmark which was available last Sunday, to help us use our time wisely and well. For we are in the place of power when we pray.

'Let us pray'

Best wishes,

Richard