October 17, 2024
Dear Central Church,
We began the Hello, Neighbor sermon series last Sunday that walks us through a simple approach to sharing our faith and welcoming new people into this life-giving community known as Central Church. The B.L.E.S.S. acronym is not a “gimmick” or “schtick” for evangelism. Rather, it’s a way of life for followers of Jesus. This simple acronym stands for:
Begin in Prayer
Listen with Care
Eat Together
Serve Sacrificially
Share Stories
Like any great movement of God, seeing people come to Jesus should begin with prayer! John Wesley said this: “God does nothing without prayer and everything with it.” Do we pray like this statement is true? Do we pray like God does nothing without our prayers and everything with them?
I was thinking this week about reasons we fail to pray. At different times in my life, I’ve felt each of these. See if they sound familiar:
Sometimes we don’t pray because we don’t know how. Many of us learned to pray as children—mostly at meals and at bedtime. But how many people reach adulthood without any additional instruction? We know we should pray, but many of us aren’t sure how.
Sometimes we don’t pray because we’re too busy. Let’s face it... prayer takes time, it takes focus, it takes energy; and many of us feel like we’re running short on all of those things. Our busy lives crowd out a lot of things we know are important, and oftentimes that includes prayer.
And sometimes we don’t pray because we doubt it works. We think, “I prayed, I really did, and it didn’t seem to make any difference.” I’ve felt that way before. Maybe it’s led you to question whether you even believe in prayer. When we pray and nothing seems to happen, it makes prayer really difficult.
I’m sure there are other things we could add to this list, however, if you can relate to any of these, I invite you to join us Sunday as we “Begin with Prayer.” I will admit there is much about prayer I don’t understand. It’s a mystery to me that we have the ability to commune with God at such a deeply personal level that it actually makes a difference in the world. However, this is what scripture teaches us, and so many who have gone before us have proven this to be true!
Will you join me in a movement of prayer that focuses on God’s heart for lost people? Imagine what God could do if we were all focused on praying for people far from God. I know he has good things planned, but they will not be realized without his people praying!
Until He’s Finished,
Pastor Mark
PS. The BLESS approach is based on a book entitled, B.L.E.S.S. 5 Everyday Ways to Love Your Neighbor and Change the World by Dave Ferguson and Jon Ferguson. This will be available in the lobby for $10 beginning next week!