From the Heart of the Pastor

What role does prayer play in you life?  What role does prayer play in the life of Oak Crest Baptist Church?  I hope your response to both of those questions is:  a crucial role.  If prayer is not at the heart of all that we say and do, we are in grave danger of charting our own course, rather than following the course God has set for us.  We need a revival of prayer in our lives and in our church.  May God make us a praying people.
          I just conducted a search of the word “prayer” on amazon.com.  There are over 118,000 books available on the subject of prayer.  By that fact, it seems there are a lot of people who have something to say about prayer.  The truth is that you can read all the books and listen to all the sermons, but until you experience the life changing power of prayer in your own life you will never really know the difference it makes.  I am certain you already know that power in your own prayer life, but we could all stand to be reminded from time to time.  The disciples understood the importance of learning to pray in a God honoring way.  After witnessing Jesus’ consistent devotion to private prayer, they said, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples” Luke 11: 1b.
          In the next few articles, we will be reminded of those very same principles Jesus taught his disciples.  We are going to examine the “Lord’s Prayer” in Matthew 6: 9-13.  In this particular prayer, Jesus provides his disciples and all of us, the perfect model prayer.  All the essential elements of a healthy prayer life are found in the words of Jesus.  As we examine the phrases of the prayer, we will see clearly that we must pray acknowledging both God’s Glory and God’s Grace.
          I can say to you without any hesitation -- God wants Oak Crest Baptist Church to be a praying church.  If we neglect prayer, all is in vain.  My great desire is that our church be saturated in an atmosphere of prayer.  May God guide us all into the truth of His Word.
 
In Christ,
Blain Craig

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