Prayerlessness

 By Tim Challies at Challies.com

In her book A Place of Quiet Rest, Nancy Leigh DeMoss includes several chapters on prayer. In a chapter titled “The Privilege of Prayer” she discusses a period of prayerlessness in her life and her growing conviction that she had to get to the root of it. “As God opened my eyes to this matter of prayerlessness, I asked Him to let me see it from His point of view. Here is what I wrote in my journal one day when God first began to deal with my heart.” She does not attempt to provide a doctrine of prayer or prayerlessness as much as a reflection on what prayerlessness means in her own life. I found it very helpful.

Here is what she says:

 I am convicted that prayerlessness …

- is a sin against God (1 Samuel 12:23).
- is direct disobedience to the command of Christ (“watch and pray,” Matthew 26:41).
- is direct disobedience to the Word of God (“pray without ceasing,” 1 Thessalonians 5:17).
- makes me vulnerable to temptation (“watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation,” Matthew 26:41).
- expresses independence—no need for God. gives place to the Enemy and makes me vulnerable to his schemes (Ephesians 6:10-20; Daniel 10).
- results in powerlessness.
- limits (and defines)
- my relationship with God. hinders me from knowing His will, His priorities, His direction.
- forces me to operate in the realm of the natural (what I can do) versus the supernatural (what He can do).
- leaves me weak, harried, and hassled.
- is rooted in pride, self-sufficiency, laziness, and lack of discipline.
- reveals a lack of real burden and compassion for others.

 

I Love Witchcraft

By Michelle Angel (a very dear friend)

I love witchcraft.

Yes, in my heart is the sin of the love of witchcraft. Now before you envision me with a pointy hat dumping vials of animal organs into a boiling pot, let me expand....THAT *kind* of witchcraft is disgusting. Appalling. Forbidden!

What I confess to loving is the subtle, sweet, princess fairy tales where Cinderella is turned into a princess through witchcraft and *gentle* sorcery from her fairy godmother, Belle lives in a magical castle that is cursed, and Rapunzel utters demonic incantations with her magical hair.

But wait! Aren't those just kid movies? Yes. Yes they are.

And I grew up watching them.

And I loved them.

And because of my lack of discernment, my kids grew up watching them.

Awhile ago we lost Tangled. It was a gift we received at Christmas, (possibly purchased by me) and I wasn't sure where it scampered off to. Well, a few days ago the kids found it and my daughter started singing along to the magical song. I was HORRIFIED.

I said "Mikayla! Honey, you can't sing that! She's using witchcraft and a demonic incantation to heal Eugene. We can't watch this any more."

In fact, we couldn't watch almost ANY of our Princess movies anymore, as we couldn't think of ONE that didn't use magic, spells, incantations or curses to promote the girl to royalty. And how many more promoted witchcraft? It's one thing if the Villain is using sorcery and they are evil, and the children know they are evil...but what about when the hero/heroine is using it? We just can't have these types of movies anymore.

But THROW THEM AWAY??? That's just crazy.

Extreme.

Unreasonable.

Or is it? The Lord strictly forbids witchcraft of any kind. FORBIDS. So why do I find it so easy to overlook my favorite Disney movies and make an exception for those? Aren't we self proclaimed Christians?? Don't we profess to Love Jesus with our whole hearts? Then why in MY heart do I find it so difficult to rid our house of our love for godless, pagan, magical movies, like....Sword in the Stone? Peter Pan? Beauty and the Beast?

What IS witchcraft, anyway?

Simply put, it is wanting to be a spiritual "mover and shaker" without submitting to God. James 3:15 Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.

Revelation 22:15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

Witchcraft is one of the tools Satan uses to lure people away from God. And in my case, it has already worked, since "giving up" several childhood movies seems downright impossible, maybe even unnecessary. Why is it so hard to give up something so meaningless anyway?

All the rest of the day I wrestled with God about our childhood Disney movie collection. My conversation went something like this:

"They're *just* kid movies. They *just* have a little bit of witchcraft/magic/sorcery in them! That's harmless, right?

Right, God?

God?

.....It's sin? Well, can't I just keep a little bit of it?"

And God says, "Are you really asking ME, the HOLY LORD GOD if it's okay to keep a little bit of your sin?" "Please God, won't you just let me keep a LITTLE BIT of my sin? It's warm and soft and comfortable here...with my childhood nostalgia, my popcorn and my sorcery filled Disney movies...that mock Your Holiness and are opposite of Your ways..."

And so the conversation went down with the kids the next day.

There were tears.

There were questions.

("Why did you even let us HAVE those movies if you knew they were bad, Mom?")

There was repentance

...As the children and I got down on our knees before the Lord and asked for forgiveness.

For placing things as an Idol before Him.

For being a willing party to witchcraft which is despicable in the Lord's sight.

For aligning ourselves with Satan in the form of our entertainment and nostalgia.

For not discerning these things SO MUCH SOONER.

The kids rid our collection of MANY movies.

Even the utterance of any "magic words", MUST GO, my kids decided.

I confess, they were more strict than I was... which shames me.

Our idols will be dealt with.

It is no sacrifice.

The Lord is gracious and merciful to us as we seek to purify ourselves before His Holy throne, so that others may see us and proclaim that He is the Lord.

He forgives our sins!

He heals our brokenness.

Joy comes with the morning.

And so does new movie shopping.

 

Congress Overturns Military Ban of Gays Serving Openly

Proverbs 14:34 "Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a disgrace to any people."

WASHINGTON -- In a landmark vote, the Senate on Saturday ended the Clinton-era ban on gays serving openly in the military, marking a major triumph for President Obama, liberals and the gay community.

The final vote to end the Pentagon's 1993 "don't ask, don't tell" policy was 65-31, drawing support from eight Republicans.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/12/17/senate-faces-historic-vote-military-gay-ban/#ixzz18WphiKRl

Sin

"As a very little dust will disorder a clock, and the least sand will obscure our sight, so the least grain of sin which is upon the heart will hinder its right motion towards God." (chapter 25)

—A Plain Account of Christian Perfection by John Wesley

Sin and Their Consequences

Balloon Sermon Illustration from David Whiting on Vimeo.