Prayer
People discussed it.
"You can do more than pray after you have prayed; but you can never do more than pray until you have prayed." A.J. Gordon
"Prayer strikes the winning blow; service is simply picking up the pieces." S.D. Gordon
"Prayer is where the action is." John Wesley
Jesus did it.
"Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." (Mark 1.35)
"But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." (Luke 5.16)
"I can't do a solitary thing on my own: I listen, then I decide..." (Jesus, in John 5.30 MSG)
Satan fears it.
"Satan does not care how many people read about prayer if only he can keep them from praying. Paul E. Billheimer
"In prayer we bring our spiritual enemies into the Presence of God and we fight them there." J. H. Jowett
"Satan trembles when he sees the weakest Christian on his knees." William Cowper
What are YOU doing with it?
Love your simple (and this is a compliment!) and to the point writing! Love the way you help us to think about what we already know, but clearly need to be reminded of! Thanks!
Posted by: Michael Joe Harvell | October 27, 2010 at 02:04 PM
Amazing quotes--so powerful! Thanks. One of them would be great, but all of them together in the way you presented it is very encouraging. Thanks Scott.
Posted by: jasonS | October 27, 2010 at 03:40 PM
Love the flow of the post bro' I try to pray wherever I am, traveling in the car, walking, whatever I'm doing I try to pray as I'm doing it. Still, I love those moments when I can hide away and pray...need more of those!
Posted by: Jay Cookingham | October 27, 2010 at 04:41 PM
Now...why did you have to go ahead and ask a personal response question? LOL What am I doing with it? Not as often as I should nor as intensely as I should. I know I need to be more "there" with it. Good thoughts. I agree with Jay. Like the way it flowed.
Posted by: bill (cycleguy) | October 27, 2010 at 04:58 PM
Hey, man! Thanks for the encouragement. Stay strong!
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | October 27, 2010 at 08:29 PM
Yeah, Jason. I couldn't just pick one. These are, for me, some wonderful, deep statements that I need to make part of my thinking.
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | October 27, 2010 at 08:30 PM
I've been guilty of JUST those "driving" prayers. Getting alone and just quietly listening has been, for me, something powerful everytime I do it (I seem to go in seasons, tho)
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | October 27, 2010 at 08:32 PM
HA! Personal response question, yeah. I think we all struggle with the kind of prayer life that was intended for us to have. Nevertheless, I hope the post encourages us all to renew our commitment to serving strong (which all begins with a sense of desparation before the feet of Jesus).
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | October 27, 2010 at 08:34 PM
Seeing those three scriptures together really struck me. We can't do a solitary thing unless we've spent some solitary time. I'm always amazed at how much more effective I am in less time after I've spent time with Him.
Here's another quote I love, attributed to Luther.
"Tomorrow I plan to work, work, from early until late. In fact I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer."
Posted by: Sandra Heska King | October 29, 2010 at 03:27 PM
I like your comment, "we can't do a solitary thing unless we've spent some solitary time." And I have heard of that other quote by Luther. Don't know about you, but for me that's a lot harder to tweet than to do. :/
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | October 29, 2010 at 03:58 PM