Praying in Honesty and Humbleness

Daniel 10:12-13

New International Version (NIV)

¹² Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. ¹³ But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.

As we speak of prayer and the text from Daniel 10: 12-13, we speak of coming to God in honest prayer and the fact that we are always humble before God.  As we look back on one hundred years since the sinking of the Titanic, the story of Colonel Archibald Gracie comes to mind. 

Archibald Gracie relished his swim on April 14, 1912. The ships pool was a six-foot tank of salt water, heated to a refreshing temperature." In no swimming bath have I ever enjoyed such pleasure before." But his account went on to say, "How near it was being my last plunge. Before the dawn of another day I would be swimming for my life in a mid-ocean temperature of 28 degrees!"  After his swim that Sunday night aboard ship, Colonel Archibald Gracie retired to his cabin and fell asleep, only to be awakened by a "sudden shock and noise." Dressing quickly he ascended to the deck and learned the ship had collided with an iceberg.

During the same moments in New York, his wife's sleep was disturbed. Seized by sudden anxiety, she sank to her knees holding her prayerbook, "which by chance opened to the prayer 'For Those At Sea.'" She prayed earnestly until about 5 A.M. when the burden lifted. she rested quietly until eight when her sister "came softly to the door, newspaper in hand, to gently break the tragic news that the Titanic had sunk."

What happened in the meantime to her husband? I was in a whirlpool, swirling around and around, as I still tried to cling to the railing as the ship plunged to the depths below. Down, down, I went: it seemed a great distance ...(Ascending back to the surface) I could see no Titanic . She had entirely disappeared beneath the surface of the ocean without a sign of any wave. A thin light-grey smoky vapor hung like a pall a few feet above the sea. There arose the most horrible sounds ever heard by mortal man, the agonizing cries of death from over a thousand throats... Colonel Archibald Gracie later wrote: I no of no recorded instance of Providential deliverance, he wrote, more directly attributed to...prayer.

Brothers and Sisters as Daniel always went to his knees and humbled himself before God, the scripture tells us that his words were heard. The same being with the prayers of Mrs. Archibald Gracie as she fell to her knees in prayer for her husband. God loves, and requires our honesty every time that we communicate with him. Telling God what is truly on our hearts is the best way to make sure that our words are truly heard. 

Praying in Truth and Humbleness

Pastor Tim

Persistence in Prayer

The Gospel of Luke 18:1-5 has Jesus telling the parable of the judge that granted the woman's request, not out of proper decision or out of relationship with God. The judge granted the woman's request because of her persistence, and the knowledge that she would keep coming back until she was granted her request. Brothers and Sisters many times when we go to God in prayer, persistence is the key. As we approach the throne of God's Kingdom, we must understand that things occur in God's time and not our time and that every prayer that we lift up will be answered in God's time and in God's way. 

Evangelist John R. Rice one wrote, "I once imagined I was in Heaven. Walking with the Angel Gabriel, 'Gabe, what is that big building there?' "You'll be disappointed' he answered. ' I don't think you want to see it.' But I insisted, and he showed be floor after floor of beautiful gifts, all wrapped ready to be sent. "Gabriel, what are all these?' "He said, I thought rather sadly, 'We wrapped these things, but people never called for them." These gifts that were wrapped and never delivered were prayers that were never prayed, thus never answered, "because humanity asked not"!

Beloved, is there a prayer that you have been lifting up to God that you feel has not been answered? The key is the persistence to keep praying and to keep reaching out to God for his wisdom and response to our prayers. Last weeks sermon asked us about persistence in the question: What if the Israelite army would have stopped praying as they circled the walls of Jericho, would the walls have come tumbling down? 

My prayer for you this week is that when you go to the Lord, be persistent and understand that God will answer your prayers when God deems the timing, and that your prayesr may be answered in a different manner than you requested. God knows our hearts and knows what is best for his children, so be like the lady before the judge, be persistent and keep returning to his throne. 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhM6Rt2M96s&list=UUKS1O1disUEDGr0i-5pcJRQ&index=1&feature=plcp

A Pastor in Persistent Prayer.

Tim.

Pray in Circles For Us.

The Circle Maker:

Joshua 6: 1-16

What is your Jericho? That is what Pastor Mark Batterson asks in his book “The Circle Maker”.  What dreams do you pose as impossible? 

First Christian Church in Benton Kentucky began the Circle Maker ministry last week with the first sermon of four parts. We will also be having a leadership retreat this weekend that will involve much prayer and material, and learning as to begin small group bible studies. When this is completed we will begin small group visioning sessions in member’s homes, and once these visions are cast they will be circled in unceasing prayer.

As we go forward we will:

1.       Start with Prayer.

2.       Check our Motives.

3.       Think in Categories.

4.       Be Specific.

5.       Write it Down.

6.       Include Others.

7.       Celebrate along the Way.

8.       Dream Big.

9.       Think Long.

10.   Pray Hard

We circle your prayers for us as we move forward trusting and relying on God, and are excited as we trust as those that watched the walls of Jericho come tumbling down.

The Circle Maker Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=tg6ymCcIFDE#!

Pastor Tim.

  

1 Peter 5:7. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

The Strange Car In Front Of My House

When I was four years old my parents got divorced and my mother got re-married, when this occurred I would be lucky to see my biological father a few times a year. To understand this post you must understand that prior to my parent’s divorce, I was dad’s right hand man, his shadow.  After the divorce I could never understand why dad didn’t come around, what had I done, what happened to my best buddy dad?

When I was older we lived across the street from the grade school that I attended, and as I exited the school I could see the house that I lived in. On a few occasions I would see cars parked in front of the house that I didn’t recognize and in the past these different vehicles belonged to dad, you see dad went through cars like some people change their clothes.

 Upon seeing these vehicles parked in front of the house, my pulse quickened, by breath grew short and my pace went from walking to running to get to the house. As I ran to the house with the strange car parked in front of it, more than not it would be a friend of my mom’s paying a visit, or somebody just parking in front of our house.

When I would enter the house and find out that the strange car did not belong to dad, a wave of disappointment would come over me and a night of depression over a missed father. Brothers and Sisters, 1 Peter 5:7 tells us to cast all our anxieties upon him, because he cares for us.  Isn’t it great to know that we serve a God that we can always recognize and loves us during every emotion in our lives.

Life will have times of disappointments, and at these times God says: “Bring it to me” and this is where and when we are called to place these feelings at the foot of the cross, at the feet of Christ.  As I write this blog, my son Ben turns 24 and he knows that whenever he arrives home, the car that he sees in his driveway will always be recognizable and belongs to me.

Doesn’t that sum up our relationship with God?

He is always recognizable.

He is always present.

He will always care for us.

Blessed to be your pastor, always driving the same car

Pastor Tim

The long walk on a small campus.

 Joshua 6:1-16

When I was a student working on my undergraduate degree, I was required to fulfill math requirements.  As a person that has fought math all his life, college math was no different as I studied and still got less than stellar grades.

As I walked across campus after studying most of the night for my math final, my head was overflowing with what I had studied. Previous exam attempts had shown poor results and I was truly afraid of not getting a passing grade on the final.

As I walked I did the only thing that I knew how to do, which was go to the Father in powerful and serious prayer. As I walked the long sidewalk on campus, I prayed in a circle around the quad and told God the following: “God you have called me to be a minister and you have called me to be here, I beseech you to intervene in this exam, supply me with the needed knowledge to be successful “.

After my walk and this prayer, I felt the power and grace of the Holy Spirit come over me and give me the authority to do the following. I walked directly to the professors office and advised him that the knowledge was in my head right now at this very moment, and could he give me the exam now, and not make me wait. I told Dr. Jenson that my head was leaking and I needed the exam right now, with this he smiled at me and placed the exam in an envelope. He had me take the exam to the campus proctor for immediate test taking.

As I sat down and took the exam I felt the knowledge leak from my head and into the pen as it marked the exam. Upon completion of the exam, I left the proctors office with a peace that flowed like a river, and passed the test and the class.

Brothers and Sisters I encourage you to walk and pray large serious prayers  before God, the God of all love and power wants to answer prayers and is not afraid of powerful prayers. Make your circle and pray your prayers before the Lord this very day.

The receiver of answered prayer

Pastor Tim

Can You Go Home Again?

John 14:2

 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you^?

Hello from the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary, where I am currently attending Alumni Spring Renewal. As I write this article, I sit in the seminary chapel preparing for morning worship. As I sit here in contemplation of the day’s activities, the phrase “You can’t go home again comes to mind”  As I sit here this morning as one who is worshipping, there is a sense of filling in the fact that I am free to just worship and be filled with the word of God.

As I sit here, I contemplate the six years that I spent on this campus and in this chapel preparing for ministry. The last year I have had three homes, Seminary, Moline Illinois, and for the last ten months Benton Kentucky. I find myself carefully thinking about where to call home, and where to tell people where home is when asked.

As we enter our first week after Easter, the promise has been fulfilled and the empty tomb celebrates and promises the fact that with Jesus Christ we have come home, and through his promised fulfilled the home is eternal.  As we contemplate this week after Easter and as we go into the future, let us not worry about where we call our earthly home.

Next time somebody asks you where home is, tell them this: “I live with Jesus Christ with all of my heart, all of my soul and with my entire mind”. Living with Jesus is a home where furniture never needs moved and the mortgage never needs paid. Jesus Christ has paid our eternal mortgage and we have been given an eternal address with him.

So as I sit hear preparing for worship and I hear the piano being played and the hand bells being practiced, I have the knowledge and the promise that you can go home again and my home resides in the loving and promise fulfilled arms of Jesus Christ.

Home Is Where Jesus Resides.

Pastor Tim Polley

Reverend Timothy Polley is the Senior Minster at First Christian Church in Benton Kentucky and a 2011 graduate of Dubuque Theological Seminary in Dubuque Iowa.

Lent Day Forty

Good morning, Brothers and Sisters: Today ends the forty days of our journey through Lent together, and I would like to thank everyone that has read my blog. The journey through Lent has taken us to several topics, as well as several emotions. As we gather together this Easter, know that you and I have both been made anew. And every Sunday since the resurrection has become the day of Sabbath for all Christians. When we gather to worship every Sunday, it is called the "Lord's Day", because our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ rose on this glorious day. 

The Resurrection of Christ Jesus, is what truly unites we that call ourselves Christians, and every day that we take a breath on this earth we are called to bear witness to this fact. We all know that Easter is not a one day gathering, a one-day celebration, but Easter is to be lived out daily and truly remembered anytime when we gather to worship God. The Gospel of John 8:51 tells us that those that worship Christ and keeps his word, will never see death, and John 14:15 tells us that if we love Jesus, we will keep his commandments. 

Many have asked me the following question: "Preacher why do I have to go to church to worship, can't I worship by myself anywhere?"  And my answer is the following: "Christ has called all of us into personal relationship, thus we can we with him at any time and any place." But worship is also about community, in the fact that as God wants to be in relationship with us, he also wants us to be in community and family with like-minded people." "This worship community that gathers on the first day of the week (Sabbath) to worship God, but to also strengthen one another and encourage one another to do the ministry that God calls each of us to do." 

Beloved, my prayer for you this day is that you embrace your church community, your church family. Share Sabbath together, strengthen and embolden one another to do the work that Christ asks us to do. As you worship the Risen Lord in community and wonder if you are being fed spiritually, maybe that is when God is telling you to do some feeding in that community. Church community is not looking for the next big thing, and being fed spiritually is not by being entertained in worship. Church community is about the love that Christ has given us for one another, and the fact that we are called to journey together and not individually. 

All My Love and Shalom.

Happy Easter. "He has risen. He has risen indeed"

Pastor Tim.