It is Friday evening and I am sitting on the back patio at my in-laws home surveying an endless array of rocky hills and mountains listening to the sound of countless frogs and spying a bird in flight.  And from the towering palm trees to the sunset-painted, billowy clouds, I am yet again in awe at the creative genius of our God.  And even more moving is the knowledge that the God who cares for this wonderful world and the cosmos in its vast array, also cares for you and for me (1 Peter 5:7).

And it was the contemplation of God's care for us that moved me to conclude my evening devotional time by praying for our church.  In particular, my prayer was for Joshua, and for our elders, that God would grant them wisdom and strength in the task of shepherding His people.  My prayer was also for Josh and Sarah, and the rest of our worship team, that God would bless them as they lead our body before the throne each week.  And finally, I prayed for God's strengthening of the body of Christ at Renton Bible Church in unity, in spiritual maturity and in zeal for His kingdom work.

In reality, prayer for the church is one of the most basic responsibilities of the elders / shepherds / overseers of the church.  However, as is true for believers in general, church leaders often find themselves more consumed with "busy-work" than with the ministry of the Word and prayer.  Even the twelve disciples struggled with this issue in relation to making sure food was distributed to those in need in the early church.  As we read in Acts 6:2-4, "So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, 'It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.  Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.  We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.'"  Church leaders are faced with the temptation, just as much today, to allow the ministry of the Word and prayer to be marginalized because of the never ending list of things that need to be done.

Even tonight I was thanking God for this time of sabbatical in which I have been freed from busy-work so that I can give greater time to meditating on His Word and to prayer.  And, in fact, one of the lessons God has been impressing upon me during this sabbatical has been the importance of me prioritizing time, in the reality of day to day ministry, to be seeking His power and His provision in all I am doing.  Just yesterday I was reading the story of Daniel (yes, fellow members of my guys discipleship group, I am keeping up with our inductive study of Daniel!) when King Nebuchednezzar decided to kill him, along with all of the other wise-men in Babylon, because his astrologers could not tell him his dream.  (For the rest of the story, read Daniel 2.)  However, instead of going into hysterics or a deep depression, and instead of scheming a way to get out of this dilemma, Daniel turned to his three fellow servants of Yahweh God, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah and "urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven" (Daniel 2:17-18).  Not too surprisingly, God revealed to Daniel what Daniel needed to save the lives of the wise men.  And Daniel responded with a psalm of praise, saying, "I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers:  You have given me wisdom and power" (Daniel 2:23).  Daniel knew where wisdom and power were to be found - in God.

There is nothing new under the sun.  God's people at Renton Bible are as much in need of God's power and wisdom as were God's people in the time of Daniel.  The mission God has given us as a body at Renton Bible is an important one.  God has sustained this church for 80 years because He is using us for His kingdom purposes.  But to continue to be used by God, we must consistently, faithfully seek His wisdom and power in all that we do.  Every ministry, from special events like Vacation Bible School to weekly ministries like serving as greeters, needs to be bathed in prayer.  And if it is our desire to grow as a church and to be used more powerfully by God in our community and world, this too must be submitted to God in prayer.  As a pastor, I have been convicted, during this sabbatical, to be more diligent in seeking the Lord, just like Daniel did.  I pray that you will join me in an ever-increasing commitment to seek the Lord for His work in and through our body.