Practicing His Presence-Free to Serve Part 2

As we consider the spiritual practice of serving God, we have to eliminate all preconceived notions about what servitude truly is in our Christian walk with Christ.

We live in a culture that long ago abolished the institution of slavery. As a result, our mind rejects the idea that we could be considered a slave or servant of Christ.

While the idea of forced slavery is abhorrent to our minds, the idea of being a servant to a great master has been part of human living since the beginning of civilization. The Bible itself does not discount servitude but rather uses the position as a way to view our relationship with Christ.

We are His servant and He is our Master. This isn't a forced slavery but rather a willing surrender to the One who has redeemed our heart.


Consider three thoughts on being a willing servant of Christ...

1. Serving God begins with an UPWARD LOOK to God.

I lift my eyes to you, O God, enthroned in heaven. Psalm 123:1 NLT

As a servant bows before the Master in submission, we bow before Christ and lay our lives at His feet. We raise our eyes and gaze into His radiant face. He is not our peer and thus is not found beside us. He is not ours to command and thus is not found below us. But rather, He is our master and is enthroned above us. We raise our hearts and eyes to the heavens and place our hope in Him.

This beautiful relationship then becomes the basis for my service to Him. I serve Him willingly and passionately because of what He has done for me. He is truly all encompassing Savior.

Questions: Do you view yourself as a servant of Christ? Have you willingly surrendered all to His authority in your life? What keeps you from giving Him your all?

Practicing His Presence-Free to Serve Part 1

We see in Acts 1 that the followers of Jesus were able to spend 40 days with Jesus before His ascension into heaven. These 40 days represent time spent in His presence. 

In our modern church culture, there is such a tremendous build up for Easter Sunday as we progress through the season of Lent. But then what? 

What will we do with these 40 days after Easter?

This past Sunday, we continued our look at ways that we can "Practice the Presence of God in these 40 days after Easter.  Using the analogy that walking with God is really learning a dance with intricate steps, we have been looking at different steps that should be included in learning to dance with God.

The steps (or spiritual practices) we have learn to this point include: Repentance, Worship, Bible Meditation, and Prayer. The next set of steps that we considered yesterday focused on Serving God.

Our main text was Psalm 123...

I lift my eyes to You,
O God, enthroned in heaven.
We keep looking to the Lord our God for His mercy,
just as servants keep their eyes on their master,
as a slave girl watches her mistress for the slightest signal.
Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy,
for we have had our fill of contempt.
We have had more than our fill of the scoffing of the proud
and the contempt of the arrogant.

Read this psalm again 3 times slowly asking the Holy Spirit to make a word or phrase stand out to you.

This psalm portrays the image of a servant who willingly serves a merciful and kind master. In the same way, we are willing servants of Christ.

Over the next few days we will consider 3 aspects of serving and 3 practical thoughts about how God has called us to serve.

Question to start the week: where and in what ways are you serving God these days?

Practicing His Presence-Guided By Prayer Part 5

When should we pray?

“pray continually…” 1 Thessalonians 5:17 NIV

1.     Each MORNING as we start the day.

2.     Each time we sense a NEED.

3.     With each BREATH we take.

Practicing His Presence-Guided by Prayer Part 4

What should we pray?

“This, then, is how you should pray:


“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one. “ Matthew 6:9-13 NIV

1.     Our own SINCERE words.

2.     SCRIPTURE.

3.     Prayers of OTHERS who walk with God.

Practicing His Presence-Guided By Prayer Part 3

How should we pray?

But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Matthew 6:5-8 NIV

1.     With a heart of THANKFULNESS and PRAISE.

2.     In the QUIETNESS of our own prayer space.

3.     From a posture of HUMILITY and DEPENDENCE.

4.     With a HUNGER to hear from God.

Practicing His Presence-Guided By Prayer Part 2

Why should we pray?

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 NIV

1.     To grow CLOSER to God.

2.     To CONFESS our sins and receive God’s forgiveness.

3.     To strengthen our faith in times of DOUBT.

4.     To bring others to the HANDS of God.

5.     To seek GUIDANCE from God.

Practicing His Presence-Guided By Prayer Part 1

Over the past few weeks, we have been exploring the idea that growing in our relationship is like learning the steps to dance we dance with God.

I was inspired to think this way when I read about an idea from the Eastern Orthodox Church called "Perichoresis". This term denotes the idea that the Trinity-God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit-exists together in such a relationship that is much like a dance. In turn when we begin to learn to walk deeply in our walk with God, we also "dance" with God.

This series, "Practicing His Presence", focuses on the idea that the disciples and followers of Jesus spent the 40 days following the resurrection enjoying the presence of the risen Lord Jesus before His ascension into heaven.

How can we do the same? By learning spiritual disciplines, or dance steps, that help us walk more closely with God. So far we have learned the steps of repentance, worship, and scripture meditation. This past Sunday, we explored the steps of living a life guided by prayer.

While prayer seems like the most obvious of disciplines, many have shared with me how difficult it is to push beyond shallow prayers filled with repetition derailed by distraction.

Follow throughout the week as we consider the why, how, what, and why of prayer.