This week's chapter in this book, is called 'The Focus of Prayer in the Fight for Joy'. Piper makes two interesting points I wanted to highlight.1. What we pray for exposes what our hearts desire
Piper writes:
Prayer is the revealer of the the heart. What a person prays for shows the spiritual condition of his heart. If we do not pray for spiritual things (like the glory of Christ, and the hallowing of God's name and the salvation of sinners, and the holiness of our hearts, and the advance of the gospel, and contrition for sin, and the fullness of the Spirit and the coming of the kingdom, and the joy of knowing Christ), then probably it is because we do not desire these things. Which is a devastating indictment of our hearts.2. Prayer is the 'indispensable remedy for our hearts when we do not desire God the way we ought'
We need to pray for joy. Jesus told us to pray "that your joy may be full". Praying for joy doesn't mean praying for 'emotional pampering'. When Paul 'works' for the Corinthians joy, (2 Cor. 1:24) he does this in order for them to stand firm in their faith. We need joy in Christ as preparation for radical, Christ-exalting sacrifices of love.
Piper goes on to provide a list of things that the early church pray for (as shown in the Bible) and shows us how they all relate back to joy. He also shares the way he tries to pray for joy.
I felt very convicted when reading this chapter, that what I pray for does reveal that I have the wrong desires. How I long to see things the way that God does!
1 comments:
I have finally caught up to you in reading this book Nic. I found the first couple of chapters a bit hard to get into (probably more a reflection on my headspace at the time than the book itself!), but I am now reading the rest quite compulsively. I am finding it to be a compelling combination of encouragement and challenge.
Piper's challenge to pray for God to give us a heart inclined to him and his word was a relief - knowing that my indifference is not a condition that is unusual and that our great God can fix it.
"Prayer...is also the indispensable remedy for our hearts when we do not desire God the way we ought" (p153)
I also liked the way he quoted "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" at the end of the chapter, since we have all been singing it around our house for the past week,(thanks to Mars Hill Church, Seattle)
While I am at it, our Easter was much more fun and meaningful thanks to your posts - Playdough mountain (still being used daily), memory verse etc. Thankyou!!
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