Live Out The Word
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada, your friend who loves to sing. And if you know this old hymn, sing along with me, would you?
“Sweet hour of prayer, Sweet hour of prayer
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne,
Make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief;
And oft escaped the Tempter’s snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.”
I love those words; I treasure them. But sadly, I have romanticized those words; I have poured so much nostalgia over those words, that those lyrics do not reflect the facts in my life. Come on, an hour of prayer? I mean, really, Joni? And when do you actually pray for sixty minutes? Is it in fact a “sweet” hour of prayer when you do? I mean, isn’t it more like a battle to keep your focus, your concentration? Like, come on, here; we’re talking about a whole hour of prayer!
The same thing hit me last Sunday during worship service when our church recited together Psalm 40. I’m sure you do the same at your church, you maybe read Scripture responsively; your pastor reads the bold print and you all read the light print. Churches do it all the time. So, there I was, sitting next to Ken and reading Psalm 40 out loud with everyone else, “I proclaim your saving acts … I do not seal my lips, O Lord … I do not hide your righteousness in my heart. I speak of your faithfulness and your saving help. I do not conceal your love … from anyone.” And even as I’m repeating those verses, I had to stop and think: do I daily speak of God’s faithfulness and saving help? Do I always proclaim the savings acts of the Lord? Yikes. There are plenty of times I have sealed my lips; plenty of times I have concealed God’s love. Everybody else kept reading, but man, I had to stop; I was so convicted. But isn’t that often the point of Scripture: to reprove, convict and correct us. Let’s not just be hearers or reciters of the Word; let’s be doers! God’s Word is a mirror that reveals who we are and we cannot just walk away and forget about it! And so, right there in church, I asked the Holy Spirit to keep me faithful, keep me true, keep me from saying that I speak of God’s faithfulness, when I often don’t. And singing this hymn today, “Sweet Hour of Prayer?” Tonight, when I lay my head on my pillow, I know what the Holy Spirit’s going to be whispering, “Hey, Joni, you got a free sixty minutes here?” Honestly, I know the Holy Spirit, and I know that’s what He’s going to say! So, I better be ready to pray and pray long and pray sweetly!
Oh, friend, today, when you pray or do your Bible reading, make sure you are doing what you are reciting from Scripture. Please, let’s have our walk match our talk and, in my case, may my walk match what I am singing! Tonight I’m going to give God a good sixty minutes; a sweet hour of prayer. Focused, concentrated, and sincere and from the heart. Hey, I’ll be so bold as to ask if you would but join me, would you? An hour of prayer. And make it sweet!
© Joni and Friends
Suffering in 3-D: Connecting the Church to Disease, Disability, and Disorder
Suffering in 3-D, by Dr. John Kwasny, is a book to guide and encourage ordinary believers to get practically involved in meaningful relational ministry to all who are suffering. The church is called not merely to tolerate or endure sufferers in its midst, but to welcome, pursue, and embrace them as full members of the body of Christ. As you work through this book, you will be guided and inspired to engage in a holistic and practical ministry to those who suffer with disease, disability, and disorder.
