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University SDA Church- East Lansing

The Power of Prayer

David Shin

The Power of Prayer- Part 1

The Power of Prayer- Part 2

On the screen I have a picture of a painting, an artist's depiction of a woman, and I would argue that this lady, this woman, is 1 of the most influential women of the 17th century.

She would, in the world's estimation, not be a significant figure, but this is a painting of a woman by the name of Susanna Wesley.

1 of her biographers wrote this, and I quote, although she never preached a sermon, or published a book, or founded a church, she is known as the mother of Methodism.

Because 2 of her sons, John Wesley and Charles Wesley, as children, consciously or unconsciously, as children consciously or unconsciously will, applied the example and teaching and circumstances of their home life.

I remember a quote that says, next to God, a mother's influence for good is the strongest known on earth.

And here is a woman that raised 2 spiritual giants that changed England.

She prayed for her children and she had this philosophy.

This is a quotation from Susanna Wesley herself.

She says, whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, takes off your relish for spiritual things, whatever increases the authority of the body over the mind, that thing is a sin to you, however innocent it may seem in itself." This is a godly woman that raised up these spiritual giants and 1 of them is John Wesley, a reformer in England.

And there's another biographer commenting on John Wesley's life.

Wesley wore plainclothes, preached 40, 000 sermons during his lifetime.

That's more than 1 a week if you do the math.

Traveled 250, 000 miles on horseback preaching.

At the age of 83, he was angry because his doctor wouldn't let him preach more than 14 times a week.

At the age of 86 written in his journal are these words, laziness is slowly creeping in.

There's an increasing tendency to stay in bed after 530 in the morning.

He was raised by a godly praying woman and he stood up in the breach at a point in England's history when England had fallen to its lowest depths of degradation and depravity.

It's out of print, a rare copy, and I was able to obtain it by the grace of God.

It's entitled, England Before and After Wesley.

England before Wesley, depraved, degradation, morality had declined to the lowest depths of any Christian nation, 1 historian had wrote.

And then Wesley comes on the scene and he was in college at Oxford University.

Him and a few of his friends got together and said, we have a burden not only for Oxford, we have a burden for England.

George Whitefield, another Reformer, was a part of that group And in that close-knit community of fellow believers, they started to pray.

They started to pray for revival and reformation.

They started to pray that ethics would return to British society.

And from that place of prayer, England was shaken to the very foundations.

Historians argue that before Wesley was on the scene, England was at a low point of morality, and after John Wesley's ministry, this is what happened.

England was revived, prisons were reformed, slavery was abolished, The educational system was rehabilitated, Christian ethics were reinserted into society, and England found its soul.

1 man stood in the gap, prayed, and England was shaken to the very foundation, and I remember this quote from Review and Herald, April 23, 1889, by your fervent prayer you can move the arm that moves the what?

And so we continue in our two-part series on prayer.

Another quotation before we get to the heart of today's message.

When Knox prayed, Scotland was refreshed.

When the Sunday school teachers of Tannenbrook prayed, 11, 000 young people were added to the church in a year.

Whole nights of prayer have always been succeeded by whole days of soul winning.

And I believe what you're witnessing today, the baptism of Phil, These things do not just happen, friends.

It's not as though someone's walking along and they fall into the baptistry.

Oh, they're getting baptized this Sabbath.

There is a series of events that took place up to this moment, and I believe that 5 years ago, when a group of individuals started to pray in this church for revival, that the fruits of what you're witnessing today came from a place of prayer.

Because at the heart of every spiritual revolution is a group of people or a person of prayer.

I'd like to talk a little bit about personal prayer this morning.

The Bible says in 2 Thessalonians 5.17, pray without ceasing.

The implication of this passage tells us that we're not only to pray in the morning, but we're to pray throughout the day.

This is not to say that we're always to be in the posture of prayer on our knees.

It's telling us that we're to be in the attitude of prayer as we go throughout the day.

Another Christian writer wrote, prayer is the breath of the soul.

It is so essential that it's like breathing physically and I want to read this quotation from Gospel Workers 254.

It says, prayer brings the heart into immediate contact with the wellspring of life and strengthens the sinew and muscle of the religious experience.

Neglect the exercise of prayer or engage in prayer spasmodically now and then as seems convenient and you lose your hold on God.

The spiritual faculties lose their vitality, the religious experience lacks health and vigor.

We know that prayer is necessary, but I find that in my personal Christian experience, especially early on, I didn't know how to pray.

Furthermore, I found that many times I would pray the same prayer.

Or sometimes I would even pray for a meal and pray twice because I'd forgotten that I'd prayed before.

Or how many of you have experienced this in the morning?

You get up and you start praying and then you fall asleep and you wake up half an hour later.

Prayer is a challenge for the Christian and here the disciples ask Jesus the fundamental question, Lord teach us to pray.

We need to be taught, instructed and today I want to invite you to turn or open your bulletin and take out your study guide.

This is a brief outline of today's presentation.

Up to this point, that was just the introduction.

So this is a study guide and I want to model for you or go through a brief outline of 1 way of praying that gives structure to our prayers.

If you don't have a study guide, raise your hand.

Sophie has 1 for you in the back, and raise your hand.

And this is not the only way to pray, but I found that this model of praying helps us get all the pieces together in our morning devotional life.

Now you'll see in your study guide that there is a model of the sanctuary.

And I want to read the first sentence right under the heading, praying through the sanctuary.

1 mental picture some have put into practice is using the various parts of the sanctuary as a way to meditate and pray.

So you can add that in if you're following along in your study guide.

For those of you that are watching online, we'll be posting a link of today's study guide so you can wait for it there.

1 mental picture some I put into practice is using the various parts of the sanctuary as a way to meditate and pray.

So here we have on the screen a picture of the sanctuary.

Now you enter the sanctuary from the right-hand side and go and proceed into the left-hand side from the right.

So you enter the sanctuary through the gate.

The first article of furniture is the article of burnt offering.

Then you go to the second part of the sanctuary and that is the holy place.

And the holy place has 3 different articles of furniture, has a table of showbread, the lamp stand and the altar of incense.

And then you go to the next compartment of the sanctuary, and that is the most holy place where you have the Shekinah glory and the glory of God, the ark with the mercy seat, and the 10 Commandments, which are in the most holy place there.

So you go from right to left and this gives us a picture of how we are to approach God.

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Series

The Power of Prayer

The Power of Prayer- Part 2

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

As For You

39m

The Will of God, Part 2 - the Purpose

1h

Ambassadors for Christ

37m

Delicious Grape Juice

36m

The Embrace of Identity

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The Truth Seeker’s Journey

55m

Revelation Made Simple

8. Revelation Predicts the Time of the End

43m

Plenary Session

A Family Outpost Changed My Life

51m

Morning Devotionals

The Sabbath

29m

The Great Reset: The Love Factor

01 The Great Reset: The Love Factor

56m

Dental Track

Beyond Drilling, Filling and Billing, from a Christian POV

59m

Just Shall Live By Faith

37m

Sound Doctrine