by Tim Cameron | Jun 27, 2015 | Intercession
Embrace Intercession as Your Calling
“And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing” (Genesis 12:2-3, NASB).
Why was Abraham blessed? So that he could be a blessing to many. Every one of us is blessed in such a way, just as much as Abraham. Blessed to be a blessing.
Let’s pray together that God’s people will live for the interests of His kingdom more than their own interests. If this were the case, the advancement of His kingdom would take place. We would have an army of intercessors.
Accept for yourself what you are asking for others. “And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He did upon us at the beginning” (Acts 11:15, NASB). Yield yourself to God anew in faith believing that the Holy Spirit will entire possession of your soul.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 25, 2015 | Disappointment
Disappointment may be the most serious problem we face as Christians, apart from sin. Through afflictions, hardships, personal failures, accidents, betrayal, unmet expectations and many other apparent negative experiences, we can lose sight of God’s purposes and plan. When we don’t see how the Lord weaves all of our experiences into His purpose in our life, we respond in disappointment. Disappointment leads to self-pity, disillusionment, depression, or even withdrawal from fellowship.
What is the Lord’s purpose in our lives through all of these disappointments? His purpose is to reproduce His character in us, for us to empty ourselves of our spirit and take in His spirit, fully. The word affliction in the Greek means to apply pressure, to rub together or “hem someone in.” In other words, to be so confined that we have no other options but Jesus. “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:17-18, NAS).
His plan is pressure. The dictionary definition of affliction is anything that causes pain or distress. All of these forms of afflictions, hardships, loss, illness, accidents and others, put great pressure on us. They thrust us into Jesus or we can choose to respond with disappointment. David said, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word” (Psalms 119:67, NIV).
The Lord gave thanks in all things. He gave thanks when there was not enough. He knew the character and spirit of God; that His Father was always at work. That is our destination, to come to a place where we can give thanks in everything because we trust our Lord. Whether it is illness, hardship, or any distress, we know our Lord will weave it into His purpose for our life. “For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:36, NIV).
by Tim Cameron | Jun 25, 2015 | prayer
Is It Sin Not to Pray?
Pray without ceasing. “As for me, I will certainly not sin against the Lord by ending my prayers for you” (1 Samuel 12:23).
We must pray for the power of the Holy Spirit in our fellowship.
It is a sin against the Lord to not pray for our fellowship, pastors, and missionaries. Every one of us needs to see how indispensable our intersession is. It is every bit just as much a duty as loving our Lord. I know we don’t respond well to duty and don’t want to do things out of duty.
However, look at duty in this sense: Duty is a term that conveys a sense of commitment. It is not a matter of passive feeling or mere recognition. When someone commits himself or herself to the fulfillment of a duty, they do it without consideration to their own self-interest. It requires the sacrifice of immediate self-interest.
Ask today for grace to fill the role of intercessor with joy and give your life to bring down the blessings of heaven on our fellowship, pastors, and missionaries.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 24, 2015 | Sin
Provoking Thoughts On Our Life in Christ
Sin
We approach our spiritual life in a rational way. We believe that if a man exercises self-control and is disciplined, and can educate himself spiritually, he can produce a life that will eventually become Christlike. But we forget to take into account one thing, sin. Sin has taken all rationality out of life and made it totally wild!
Sin is not a defect in character. Sin is all out mutiny against everything God stands for. One of two things has to die in us. Either the life of God or sin. The Christian life is not a twelve step self-help program for cleaning up the flesh. God has only one outlook on the sin in our lives. It must die.
If sin rules my life, God’s life in me will wither up and die. If God, through Christ, rules my life, sin will die. And yes, screaming, snotting, whining all the way.
Sin’s final climax was the death of Christ. What was true in history will be true in you and me unless we allow Jesus Christ to rule in our lives. We must deal ruthlessly with sin in our lives.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 23, 2015 | Cost of Prayer
- The Cost of Prayer
Yes, there is a cost.
BY T. M. ANDERSON
When I entered into the fellowship of prayer with Christ, I solemnly promised Him that I would not allow my plans and pursuits of daily life to infringe on my time to pray. I vowed to take sufficient time to commune with Him in prayer no matter what duties of the day demanded my attention. When I made this covenant with Christ I emptied myself of earthly possessions and concerns. I placed my ministry, my teaching, my writings, my vocation, my travel, and my home in heap before the Lord. I separated myself from them in death. I deliberately put these earthly concerns in a place of secondary importance in my life. I counted all things loss for the excellency of the knowledge of the fellowship with Christ in prayer.
I fully realize that Christ was speaking to me when He said, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” I was reminded of how much I had lost through the years because I had not known the value of fellowship with Christ in prayer. But, the Lord is a redeemer. He restores all things in His time.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 23, 2015 | Intercession
The Ministry of the Interior
James 4:8 “Draw close to God.”
Drawing close to God will give you personal rest and power in prayer. Draw near to God then it will be easy to pray in faith.
Let me remind you, when God calls you into the school of intercession, it is always more for your own benefit than others. Here’s the question of the day, month, year, and maybe for your lifetime: Am I trainable? You have to be trained by the Holy Spirit to be still, to love, and to pray and believe.
Each one of us must learn to give ourselves to the “Ministry of the Interior.” How are you doing stewarding this ministry?
by Tim Cameron | Jun 22, 2015 | prayer, T. M. Anderson
I was teaching in the department of religious studies in Asbury College when I entered into the covenant of prayer with Christ. It had been my purpose for several months to prepare some written messages on the Epistle of Hebrews. In order to have time to devote to this work it was necessary for me to arise early in the morning and do the writing before the hour I was scheduled to meet my classes. I began this work during the first week of 1950.
I was suddenly awakened about midnight on January sixth. Knowing that I had a full day of work before me, I felt it necessary to sleep a few hours lest I be too weary in mind and body to do the writing and teaching. At that moment the Savior spoke to me. He asked me if I were willing to sacrifice some sleep in order to give Him an opportunity to speak with me in the quiet hours of the morning. He told me that it was necessary to deny myself of sleep in order to prevail in prayer. I realized for the first time that denying myself of sleep was a form of fasting. For five hours I waited before the Lord in sacred worship and holy communion. My soul was greatly revived, and I felt refreshed in mind and rested in body.
After this remarkable manifestation of the savior I was constrained to examine my prayer life. I was impressed to consider the time spent in prayer during the average day. I was humbled before the Lord when I discovered how little time had been given to Him in prayer and meditation. It had been my daily practice from the day I was saved to spend some time in prayer morning and evening. I had established the family altar in my home. I had spent time in secret prayer during the years of my ministry. I had never knowingly overlooked the importance of prayer. I am now aware that I had never discovered the possibilities in prayer like they were revealed to me when I waited five delightful hours before the Savior that memorable morning.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 14, 2015 | prayer
LESSON TWO.
PRAY ABOUT ALL THE THINGS
BY T. M. ANDERSON
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made know unto God.” Phil. 4:6
This timely exhortation stresses the fact that God’s people should consult with Him in every matter pertaining to life. Unless they see the imperative necessity of prayer, and give it an important place in daily life, they cannot expect to be maintained by the ample resources of a generous Savior. It is apparent that we cannot obtain the things essential to life unless we make everything pertaining to life a matter of earnest prayer. It is impossible to live a consistent Christian life in the sight of God by praying occasionally. Praying intermittently is certainly not praying incessantly and importunately. Such careless praying is not consistent with the exhortation to pray without ceasing.
Praying spasmodically, we are like men that gorge themselves with food and drink on special occasions and starve themselves between feasts. We do not live from feast to famine when we enter into a partnership with Christ in prayer. We are not disturbed by doubts and defeats when we make everything a matter of earnest prayer. We enjoy an unbroken fellowship with Christ when we make our requests known unto Him in daily prayer. He imparts to us the necessary strength to cope with the temptations and trials incident to life in this benighted world when everything relating to life is made known unto Him in prayer. When the inspired Apostle said, “…Let your requests be made known unto God,” he was obviously emphasizing the importance of revealing to the Lord everything required to sustain us in life. We find it necessary to reveal both our spiritual and our temporal needs unto Him in prayer. Nothing pertaining to our life in this world is unimportant in the sight of God. He is interested in everything that concerns us in life.
by Tim Cameron | Jun 4, 2015 | prayer
LESSON ONE
GOD’S PEACE OBTAINED IN ANSWER TO PRAYER
“….Let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:7
When we make our requests know unto God by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving we are assured of receiving His peace through Christ Jesus. When we enter into the sacred Presence of the Prince of Peace, we enter into the place of perfect peace. The house of prayer is the sanctuary of peace.
Christ imparts a measure of His own peace to our worshiping hearts when we make everything pertaining to life a matter of prayer. It is not necessary for the children of God to enter heaven in order to enjoy the priceless possession of peace. It is obvious that Jesus has purposed that His own peace shall give His praying and believing people untroubled hearts in this world of trouble.
There will be times when our feelings will contradict our faith. Sickness can depress our emotions to such an extent that we are disposed to doubt even our relationship with Christ. There will be times when we stand on the brink of an impassible gulf which the human understanding cannot cross. But, the Savior has paid a great price to redeem all. He will not withhold His saving grace and mercy from any seeking soul longing with all the heart to please Him in all things. The peace of God will prevent us from becoming the hapless prey of distraught minds if we will pray without ceasing, and continue to believe on the name of Jesus. If we continue to make our requests known unto God by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, He will not suffer us to be moved by the forces of evil in this earth.
by Tim Cameron | May 21, 2015 | prayer
We must be “Devoted to Prayer”
Church history began with her disciples devoted to the Word of God and to prayer (Acts 2:43; 6:4). Every day the leaders gathered to pray and minister to the Lord (Acts 3:1). In this clarity of vision and simplicity of purpose, the church of Jesus Christ never had greater power or capacity to make true disciples. If we want to make disciples, we must be given to prayer. These men and women revealed the purity of the kingdom of God.
Today, however, our qualifications for church leadership include almost everything but devotion to God’s Word and prayer. Leaders are expected to be organizers, counselors, and individuals with winning personalities whose charms alone can draw people.
In Luke 18, Jesus challenges our modern traditions. He asks, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” (v.8). His question is a warning to Christians who would limit the power of God at the end of the age. Jesus is calling us to resist the downward pull of our traditions; He is asking us individually, “Will I find faith in you?”
Before we respond, let us note that Jesus associates faith with “day-and-night” prayer (Luke 18:7). He is not asking, “Will I find correct doctrines in you?” The Lord’s question does not so much concern itself with right knowledge as with right faith. What we believe is important, but how we believe is vital in securing the help of God.
Indeed, procuring the supernatural help of God is exactly the point of Jesus’ parable in Luke 18. His intent was to show that “at all times” we “ought to pray and not to lose heart” (Luke 18:1). To illustrate the quality of faith He seeks, He followed His admonition with a parable about a certain widow who petitioned a hardened judge for “legal protection” (v.3). Although the judge was initially unwilling, yet by her “continually coming” (v.5) she gained what was legally hers.
Jesus concluded by asking: “If an unrighteous judge will respond to a widow’s persistence, shall not God avenge quickly His elect, who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?” Jesus said, “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them speedily.” (See Luke 18:1-8.)
