We are in a war. The Bible tells us that “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Eph 6:12). If we can keep this in mind, it will help us to be vigilant, sober, and awake to the fact that our adversary is seeking for ways to minimize or completely disable our usefulness in advancing the Kingdom of God in our generation.
And it seems that unlike any day prior, mostly due to the explosion of always-on, always-accessible technology combined with the neverending buffet of addictive media intentionally designed to keep the viewer coming back for more, there are formidable forces at work that are battling hard for our attention, our affections, and our time.
Unfortunately, this is also affecting our ability to communicate the Gospel to the rising generation. A generation that is increasingly unable to sit still, listen, focus, meditate, contemplate, or worship.
But as pastors and church leaders, we must come to terms with the reality that we are not immune to this same problem. Do we find it difficult to spend an hour in prayer? Is it increasingly difficult to spend protracted periods of time meditating on God’s Word without interruption? If it isn’t our devices, it’s the legitimate cares and concerns of life and family, or the continual stream of updates that feed us news of what others are saying or doing. All these distractions demand our attention.
So, what is the solution?
When the early church faced its own encroaching distractions, the response of the Apostles was, “we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:4). The Foundations Group seeks to encourage the church to take up this challenge of giving ourselves whole-heartedly to extraordinary applications of prayer and the Word—the very foundations of ministry.
Jim Elliott once said, “Wherever you are, be all there.”
Let us learn to “shut the door” of our prayer closets. Let us shut down every distraction, every diversion, and even every device that competes for our time and affections. Let us take a step of faith. Let us give ourselves to prayer, preaching, and the pursuit of God.
“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13.
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Speakers
Primary Speaker: Steven LeeSteven Lee is the founder of SermonAudio, a website started with a desire to give faithful churches a larger voice on the Internet. Today, SermonAudio is the largest and most trusted library with millions of free audio and video sermons from conservative... | more..
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