Supplemental Prayers

I am between books right now and haven't found anything that has caught my interest, so today I found myself picking up the old Kindle and browsing selections there.  I ended up rereading a section of David Platt's "Radical Together".  I often find that it's dangerous to read what Platt writes!

Here's what I came across:
"Over the last couple of years, I have been convicted that prayer has been supplemental, not fundamental, in my life and in the church I lead.I began to ask myself, If someone were looking from the outside at the Church at Brook Hills, would they see a people desperate for the Spirit of God?"

A bit later, he quotes a passage from Isaiah: "I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night.  You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth."

He calls special attention to the phrase "give him no rest till."  But my eye was caught by "give yourselves no rest."  It made me think of the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane and how Jesus was so disappointed that they couldn't stay awake to pray with him. 

Daily prayer and Bible reading was one of my New Year's resolutions and, at least on the surface, I have kept that resolution with few exceptions.  But how deep is my prayer life?  I confess that praying makes me sleepy.  VERY sleepy at times.  And I have a nagging fear that my sleepiness means I am not doing it correctly!  Too often my mind wanders. Too often my prayers are lacking in conviction and focus and passion.  And that is why Platt's supplemental/fundamental dichotomy caught my eye - and my heart - today.  Too many supplemental prayers.  Too few fundamental prayers. 

Today was Easter.  And that means we celebrated the resurrection of Jesus.  But it also means I consumed untold deviled eggs, too many helpings of ham, and - worst of all - PEEPS.  (I fell off the diet in a big way today!)  So around 8:00, I decide I was going to run off a few of those extra calories.  I managed to do 2.5 miles around our neighborhood and, as I often do when I run, I prayed for much of that time.  (It's hard to fall asleep when you are running!)

David Platt's words came back to me towards the end of my run and I felt like God was saying, "Prayer is the next chapter in 'Things Steve Needs to Learn before Leaving for Haiti'". (The last chapter was "Overcoming Fear" ... and I haven't even finished that one yet!) 

I was circling past the house with about a third of a mile left to go and Melissa popped her head out the door and yelled, "When you're ready for your cool down walk, let me know and I will walk with you!" 

So as we walked along together a few minutes later, I told her that I was feeling convicted about the lack of consistency and fervor in my prayer life and she said she had been growing in consciousness about prayer lately too. 

So it turned into a prayer walk!  And for over a mile, we walked and prayed.  We prayed for our small group, for our kids, for our funding, for James and Loni (our missionaries in Greenwood) and for Beka and Lauren (missionary friends in the Philippines), and many other people and situations.  It was, hands down, the highlight of my Resurrection Day.  What an awesome time of trusting in the Lord! 

Would you be willing to join with us and pray that this would be the start of something great, the turning of supplemental prayers into fundamental prayers? I would gladly pray the same for you!  You may already be on my prayer list, but if you are not, I would feel privileged to add you - just let me know.  (sgross@onemissionsociety.org or message me on Facebook or leave a comment here!)