Preparing Ourselves for the Return of Jesus

In 2016 a man named Randy Wagner, in Rosharon Texas knew flood waters were coming. A news article stated: “Wagner was determined to find a way to save his home, after Brazos River Authority warned residents of the approaching floods that hadn’t been seen in decades.” So he went to Louisiana and purchased an aquadam, and surrounded his house with it. Neighbors laughed at him. But then the Brazos river overflowed, and his home was protected. Among the endless flooded home, Randy's home sat safe and protected by the tube-shaped aquadam.

Randy Wagner, could perceive that trouble was coming. He could sense an impending calamity. I think all of us in some form, sense something similar. 

We can feel it in our lives, on the cold winter days, on those autumn nights, in the twilight of summer we can sense it, as the news scrolls across the screens, we can feel it, every moment seems to whisper to us, quietly, cautiously, but continuously… all this will end.

This place is temporary. The clock is ticking. Before the clock stops on this planet, we know there will be a time Jesus spoke of, called the end times.

We should not be afraid. We should be sober. Expectant. Hopeful. Joyous even. Jesus will return. The time of the fall will end, and a new time will begin.

Do you long for that day? Or are you hoping you might have a bit more time.. because you know you aren’t ready? Maybe like Randy Wagner, and the flood, we need to make sure we’re ready too.

In our final message in the prayer series, we discuss the prayer of preparation. A type of prayer, that represents sober reflection, and self evaluation.

In Matthew chapter 24, Jesus outlines many of the signs of the end times. But today, we’re not going to look at those signs, we’ll look at how Jesus wants us to think about his second coming.

In these passages we will find seven symbols. One is a clock. The second an ark. Third a flood. Fourth a road. Fifth is a house. Sixth is a servant, and seventh is a prize. Let’s dive in, and we’ll examine their meaning one by one.

In Matthew 24, Jesus has been explaining all the signs of the end times, then he says in verse 36: “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.”



Our first symbol today is a clock, without hands. Meaning, we don’t know when Jesus is returning. Many believe he never will, it’s been so long. It’s been two thousand years. That seems odd to me, because there were two thousand between Adam and Eve and Abraham. And two thousand years from Abraham to the birth of Jesus. So is it so strange to see a long period of time pass? 

But we still don't know an exact date, and this is intentional for the Lord, he wants us to live our lives one day at a time. 24 hours at a time. Each day, when we wake up, we make a decision, who am I going to serve today? My challenge to you today is to choose prayer, every single day.

Next, verses 37-38: “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. 38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.”


The second symbol, the ark of safety. Noah’s ark represents to us today, Jesus Christ. When we run to Jesus, we find safety, safety from the judgment of God that is coming on the world because of sin.

The goal then is to abide in Christ, to remain in the ark, while we live on the Earth. Not everyone is in the ark, and not everyone who enters the ark decides to stay in the ark, some stay for a while, but then drift away, and go back to the ways of the world. Abide, is the goal.

Is Jesus first in your heart? Or have you slipped off into other things? Many things wants our heart’s first attention. It can be romance, work, money, politics, family, and it can be many other things. Examine yourself today.

Where is my heart? Does it belong to Christ alone? Or are other things starting to crowd out Jesus?

This is going to be a challenging message, but I hope it will also be a hopeful message, one that gives you a sense of excited expectation, that Jesus is coming soon.

Jesus says as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be near his return. The days of Noah are described like this: "every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil all the time" -Gen 6:5

And to virtually everyone it appeared like everything in the world was going in a certain direction. Very few people noticed Noah, and his ark.

So it is in our day and age. People pay little attention to us Christians. Instead there is a narrative that is generated all around us by television, news, social media, by the elites and those with power and money, and it’s not the agenda of God.

That’s why it’s so important to be led by the Holy Spirit, and in the Bible, otherwise we may be swept up into the beliefs of the world, and miss the agenda of God in the world.

There is an ark in our world, it is the gospel, the good news of Jesus death, and we are kind of like Noah, pointing people toward the gospel, declaring, “enter the ark of safety before time runs out!”

The ark of safety is Jesus Christ, and the good news of His gift to us of salvation. But given the world system all around us, we must pay the most careful attention to the word of God, so we do not drift away from it.

This is explained in verse 39, “People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.”


This brings us to our next symbol, the flood. What was the flood in the time of Noah? God’s judgment against sin. What is coming in the end times? The same thing, God’s judgment against sin. It was a surprise in Noah’s time, and I think it will be again in our time.

When the Son of Man returns, people will be so caught up in their latest technologies, virtual realities, AI generated content, advanced medical tech, whatever the world has come up with by then, that they will be absolutely shocked by Jesus’ return.

The key for us as believers is watchfulness, and preparation. Jesus has given each of us a robe of righteousness to wear as believers. But in Revelation we’re told not to dirty our garments. Are you careful as you walk through this world of multiplied evils, to repent quickly if you slip into a sin?

How? By asking His forgiveness, if we sin. When? Today. This is the prayer of preparation. Or you might call it self-examination.

Many of you I’m sure already do this. At the end of your day, you’ll be in a time of prayer, and you begin to ask the Lord, "Father, is there anything displeasing in me, that you want to deal with tonight? Any sin that I’ve committed recently?" And we may sense a conviction from the Holy Spirit, saying, you need to repent of pride, or of gossip, or of lust, or cussing, or whatever it might be.

And as the Lord brings up the issue, we again pray, and say "Lord, please forgive me for this sin. I repent before you now, I forsake this sin, I turn away from this sin, and I turn toward you Lord, Please Lord wash me afresh in the blood of your Son."

That is the prayer of preparation, of examination. God is faithful and just, if we confess our sins, to forgive us, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

Next, verses 40-41: 40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.”

We see such suddenness at the return of Jesus. Two men are working, one man is taken up, another is left behind. One woman is taken, another is left behind.

This is where we get the concept of a rapture, the idea of being taken up to heaven by Jesus. There are many perspectives on this, some believe that just before the end times, the church will be raptured off the Earth, and the unsaved will be left behind to go through a time called the great tribulation. Others believe that the church will be raptured halfway through the tribulation, still others believe the church won’t be raptured until after the tribulation. Whichever view you hold, one thing is clear, we need to be ready.

As Jesus says in verse 42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming.”


This is the symbol of the road. We each walk a road through life, not knowing when our last day will come. It doesn’t have to be the return of Jesus, it could be a car accident, or an illness, or any number of things. The road we walk is a road of watchfulness, not fear or panic, but watchfulness.

It is a road of prayer. One thing I’ve learned in the Christian life, is that if I have a vibrant prayer life, and I’m deeply connected with my Father, I’m abiding. And those that abide, will stand the test of the road.

The prayer life, which we’ve discussed across this series, has so many facets, so many different ways we can pray, but, it really does come down to one simple fact: It’s love.

We pray because we love our Father, we love to be with Him in prayer. And as we pray, and spend time with our Father, it causes us to love Him more and more. And it’s like a snowball rolling down a hill, it keeps growing bigger and bigger.

Every time we pray, we fall more in love with Him, and every time we pray, he gives more of His love to us, like a waterfall of Love coming down from Him to us.

It’s praying in the morning, praying the armor of God, it’s little prayers in our heads to God throughout the day, prayers over our meals, prayers for our loved ones and the lost, prayers with our spouse and family members and friends and church members, and those precious prayer times where we get alone with God for long periods, basking in His presence, seeking His face, hearing His voice, and feeling His love for us.

It is a prayer road. To cultivate that, keep pushing forward, don’t get stuck on the prayer road at a certain limited space, keep pushing past your comfort zone to deeper forms of prayer, and you will abide on this road we travel together.

Next verses 43, gives us a new picture to consider: "Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into."



We come to the symbol of the house. If someone knew ahead of time, someone is coming to break into their house at 7:15 tonight, they would call the police, and be ready to prevent it. But we don’t know when the end will come for us.

So as it says in verse 44:"You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected."

How can we guard our house? Our house is our soul. It’s you. And you can guard your house, your soul, with the prayer of self examination.

But do you know where this prayer is really found? It’s in the Our Father. “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us, lead us not into temptation, deliver us from evil.” Those are four requests, all centered around self examination. Make it your daily prayer.

But I think over time we learn to repent immediately. Within an hour, even a few minutes, we feel convicted, we pray, and make amends to anyone we’ve wronged. But, sometimes we may miss something, so the prayer of preparation is still important.

The word of God tells us to judge ourselves, so that we won’t face judgment (1 Corinthians 11:31).

But brothers and sisters, fear not. Jesus has paid the price for our sins. His blood covers us. His Spirit fills us. We have only one job and it's simple: Live by the leading of the Holy Spirit. And if the Holy Spirit tells us to repent of a sin in our lives, we do so. Self examination is led by the Holy Spirit. Don’t try to do it alone.

Guard your house in the Spirit. Don’t allow your house, your soul, which the word calls a temple of the living God, to be polluted with active sins in your life. Repent quickly. We as Wesleyans believe in holiness before the Lord. We believe we can live pure lives. That is the essence of holiness theology. But, we don’t believe we can do this ourselves, we believe by the Holy Spirit, and the love of God, we are able to overcome any sin, not necessarily by fighting it, but by surrendering and repenting in God’s power. Praise the Lord!

Last two verses, 45-46: “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward.”

Here we find our last two symbols. First, the servant.


Jesus is the master, and we are the servants. Do you see yourself that way? A servant of God. That’s what we are. 

We are workers in His field. And he is the landowner, returning to examine the work we’ve done. This is the idea discussed in John 15, of bearing fruit. If we abide in the vine, as a branch, we will bear fruit, if we don’t, we will shrivel up, and be cut off. How do we abide? Prayer and obedience.

And final symbol, the shining reward. 


If we are cautious to be prayerful, to be obedient, awaiting His return, and on that day, Jesus finds us at work in his vineyard fields, we will receive a generous reward. A reward that is explained as an inheritance. It's explained as receiving God’s kingdom… a plot of land, a home, belonging to us, in His eternal kingdom. Now that is an inheritance that can never fade away or disappear. It is worth every effort we make toward that goal.

So let’s review today, the 7 symbols we discussed briefly and their meanings.

There was the clock without hands. We don’t know when our last day will be, so we live one day at a time.

There was the Ark of safety, which is Jesus, whom we abide in through obedient and prayerful self examination.

There is the flood. We know God’s judgment will come upon the world during the end times, a time when God’s wrath will be poured out on the Earth.

Fourthly, there is the road. Each day we walk with Jesus through a sinful world, and we find prayer in it’s various forms helps us keep on the path, avoid sin, and repent quickly when we stumble.

Fifthly, the house, is like our body, we guard it carefully to avoiding polluting the temple God has given us.

Six, the servant. We are the servants, Jesus is the master, and our job is to produce fruit for him and tend His vineyard fields, until he returns.

Seventh, the reward. For the faithful servants, Jesus will reward us with authority, an inheritance in the kingdom of God.

So as we close, let us prepare ourselves in this prayer of self examination.

Prayer: Father, fill us with your Holy Spirit, we judge ourselves, and we ask, that if there is anything in us that displeases you, please God reveal it, and grant us the grace to repent of it. We repent Lord Jesus, wash us in your blood, forgive our sins, and help us to overcome them by the Holy Spirit within us, in Jesus name, amen.

The Prayer of the Impossible

When Hudson Taylor went to China, he made the voyage on a sailing vessel. As it neared the channel between the southern Malay Peninsula and the island of Sumatra, the missionary heard an urgent knock on his stateroom door. He opened it, and there stood the captain of the ship. "Mr. Taylor," he said, "we have no wind. We are drifting toward dangerous reefs, near an island where the people are heathen, and I fear they are cannibals." "What can I do?" asked Taylor. "I understand that you believe in God. I want you to pray for wind." "All right, Captain, I will, but you must set the sail." "Why that's ridiculous! There's not even the slightest breeze. Besides, the sailors will think I'm crazy." But finally, because of Taylor's insistence, he agreed. Forty- five minutes later he returned and found the missionary still on his knees. "You can stop praying now," said the captain. "We've got more wind than we know what to do with!"
-Unknown. 

Hudson Taylor and the crew of the Dumfries found themselves in an impossible situation, but through determined prayer, and bold faith, the impossible, became possible.

Today, we speak of the impossible prayer. And to learn more about that, we look to Jesus.

We come to a moment in the life of Jesus, when he had just been teaching a great crowd, and famously multiplied fishes and bread to feed a crowd of thousands. Next we come to a moment that has caused wonder and amazement for endless millions throughout history.

Our scripture today is in Matthew 14:22-33.

Matthew 14:22 says, “22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.”

They were located near the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Chelsey my wife has actually swam in the waters of this very lake. It’s about 8 miles wide and 13 miles long. Still there today. Good reminder that we aren’t studying fiction, but real events.

But today as we focus in on a powerful form of prayer, we’re going to be talking about doing impossible things. Doing things beyond. Doing things that we aren’t presently capable of doing. And we’re going to see that we serve a God who makes the impossible, possible.

So Jesus sends the disciples in a boat, to cross the lake. God often also sends us upon the waters, in uncertain places, to do things we’ve never considered before as well.

Next, verse 23: “After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone,”

Jesus goes up high on the mountain, to spend time with the Father, late into the night Jesus prays.

It reminds me how Jesus is always interceding for us, before the throne of God. He is always before the Father, in the glory of heaven, making the case for us, helping us, stepping in for us. He is guiding everything in our lives.

It reminds me of a film, a sci fi film with Will Smith, where his young son has to go through dangerous terrain so they can be rescued, and the son is guided by his father who can’t go with him, so he must continuously trust his father’s guidance in a dangerous situation. (After Earth - 2013)

So too we travel a difficult world, and we must trust our Father’s guidance, even though we can’t see him, he is like a voice to us, as we travel this world.

God is not far off, he is with us, and yet, we can’t see Him, so we must rely on His voice in our lives, and His leading, and make the choices he moves us toward. That isn’t always easy.

But today I want to address not just difficult situations, but doing impossible things. Things that are simply beyond what we could imagine that we’re capable of.

Next, the disciples face a challenge on the waters.

Verse 24 “and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.”

A great storm hit the disciples as they traveled together. The wind was against them, and the waves were crashing against the boat. They could not make progress as they traveled on the waters.

They had struck out to do their master’s will, but, the storm had hit, and caused them to be trapped and in danger.

In my life in ministry I’ve faced numerous situations where I felt trapped in a storm and unable to make it through. So many situations where I felt, I simply can’t do that.

One example, math. I had completed every class for my bachelors degree, did about half at university of Wisconsin, other half at Liberty university, I was down to 116 credits, needed 120. But, I was so afraid of the math requirement, I kept avoiding it, until finally, it was the last class, I was about to enter seminary, but I had tested so low in the math pre-tests, that I would have to take 3 other math classes to get to the math class I needed. And I said Lord, what do I do? I’m in big trouble.

God made a way. I petitioned the board of mathematics at the college, and they allowed me an exception to attend the base requirement, and I passed, by God's grace!

Next, verse “25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.”

Jesus comes to rescue the disciples, walking on the surface of the water.

As we pray and cry out to the Lord, Jesus comes to us, walking toward us, on the water of our troubles. He walks on the water of our troubles with complete ease, they have no power over Him, instead he has authority over them.

Picture that thing in your life, that problem that troubles you, whatever it might be, a secret addiction, a health problem, a sin in your life, a family problem, picture it as turbulent waters. And now, picture Jesus walking on those waters toward you. And picture him speaking over the waters, and calming them completely.

Now this has taken us as far as what we discussed last week, seeking God in our sufferings, and finding His help and rescue in those times. That’s a very good and beautiful thing. But today we’re going to take it one step deeper.

Praying through suffering and struggle is a beautiful thing, and it is amazing how God comes and helps us, amen? I love that. He has delivered me so many times I can’t even count and every time I’m amazed.

Jesus shows up, and he comforts us. As it says in verse 27…

27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Fear is the key issue here, fear is what disrupts our faith, and disrupts our ability to trust God.

I’ve been learning through some wonderful mentorship that long ago when I was mistreated as a child, I began to embrace a lie that I can’t feel safe, and that I must be anxious and afraid. But that is a lie from the devil. And the Lord is helping me to embrace a new core belief: I am safe in Him.

Fear is the enemy. That’s why the Bible says over and over, “Fear not!”

We must overcome our fear and dare to believe: Jesus is capable.

I was talking to Darlene about her surgery and Pam asked her if she was afraid before going in and Darlene said no, not at all, I know God has me.

We were amazed. But Darlene really believed it so completely, fear simply had no place there. It was just trust and peace.

Is Jesus real in your life? Or does he seem distant? Do you believe you can really trust Him? Or does fear still dominate? God can deliver us from fear.

Take courage, Jesus says, It is I. He’s saying take this courage I’m giving you by my Presence with You. It’s yours, take it. And put it on as your armor. Courage. Reject fear. Look into the eyes of Jesus, and see you’re perfectly safe. Look down at your hand and you’ll see another hand in yours, nail-pierced, the hand of Jesus.

You are safe.

But now, let’s take it deeper. Peter is going to help us see the key truth we want to discover today.

Verse 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

The rest of the disciples are terrified and relieved, at the same time, to see Jesus coming to help them, in the midst of the storm. They’re happy to sit back and let Jesus do whatever he needs to do.

And often those are the kinds of prayers we pray. Lord, I give it all to you, Lord you’ll fight for me, I’m just gonna sit here quietly, I’ll just be still and know. And there are moments for that, for sure. There are seasons for that. But there are also seasons where we need to strike out, move toward what God calling us toward.

When Moses was leading the people out of slavery in Egypt, God led them along a path that seemed to lead to a dead end, and there they were, with a great sea in front of them, and the Egyptian chariots chasing behind at full speed. And the people began to cry out to Moses saying why have you led us here to die in the desert!

And we get that famous scripture, Exodus 14:13-14:

13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

The Lord will fight for you, be still! And that’s true. But, notice the next two verse in that scripture.

Verses 15-16: Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 16 Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.”

Yes, they stood still as the water was parted, but Moses needed to lift his staff over the sea, and be God’s instrument. Similarly, the people could not just stand there, they needed to begin moving down the pathway God provided.

Get moving!

This is the kind of prayer we’re talking about today. I’m going to call it the prayer of abandon, or the impossible prayer. It’s a prayer that says, Lord, I don’t see a way through, I feel like it’s impossible, but, I believe in you, I abandon myself to you, and I’m going to start moving in that direction you’ve told me to go in, that seems as impossible as walking on water. I can’t see a way, but I trust my Father, so I start moving.

For the Israelites, they could at least see the path form in the waters, to walk on the dry ground. But Jesus wants more from us.

Peter only sees water. And a storm. But, he also sees Jesus walking on that water. And he gets a fundamental truth about the Christian life, he gets it, with Jesus, I can do the things Jesus does, and even greater things. I can walk on water if Jesus commands it.

I can do the impossible, if Jesus commands it.

Does Jesus rebuke Peter, say what are you talking about, only I can walk on water I’m God your not? Nope. Jesus says one word.

Verse 29: “Come,” he said.

Brothers and sisters he’s saying the same thing to us today. Come out on the waters. Believe for the impossible. Strike out and he will see you through. Abandon yourself to God.

“Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.”

Peter began walking on the water, above the waves, above the storm, above the obstacles and struggles, Peter, by faith walked, his eyes locked on Jesus, and by faith he walked above the waves.

We can do the same thing. We can walk on the waters.

Peter understood something so simple: I can trust Jesus. And I can walk in that trust.

Many of us trust and wait. That’s good. But can we also trust and move forward in trust?

Yet despite our best efforts to walk in trust, we will sometimes fall short. And so it was for Peter that night.

Verses 30 says, “30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Peter took his eyes off Jesus and begin to look at the danger around him, he began to focus on the problem, instead of the solution. He centered on his fears.

We must keep our eyes on Jesus, the solution, the one with all power.

No judgment on Peter, it’s not easy to focus on Jesus with a storm spinning all around you! But even though Peter became afraid and began to sink, he cried out to the Lord, the most simple request, God please help me!

Next, verse 31: 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

Jesus immediately rescued Peter.

He doubted Jesus, but Jesus still rescued Him. God does the same for us. Sometimes as we strike out in faith, doubt begins to seep in, but God helps us in those moments as well. But I think the goal is that we would learn to walk in such faith, that fear simply has no access. It’s locked out. The faith is so strong, we walk upon the water of that impossible task before us.

This is a key reality of the Christian life, that we will face situations that seem beyond our ability. Why is that? Because God is training us to trust in Him and his ability. But also, to walk forward in His strength, abandoning ourselves to Him.

As Peter took those steps forward of faith, God did the rest, he made sure the water held Peter, as Peter held his faith in God and kept his eyes on Jesus.

Next, verse 32 “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down.”

The storm ceases at the coming of Jesus. It reminds me of how, after we’ve struck out in faith, and walked in the strength of God toward whatever impossible thing it is in our lives, we see the victory. The storm is defeated. And we find that the impossible has now become the accomplished victory. And that is such a reward.

I want you to see this in regard to your walk with Christ: What is that thing that you’re afraid to do? That thing that seems just a bit too big for you?

Maybe you’re afraid to pray out loud. You feel embarrassed. But what if you abandoned yourself to God and said you know what, I’m doing it.

Maybe it’s giving your testimony: It feels overwhelming, but you start to pray, and say Lord, I abandon myself to you, and move toward it.

Maybe it’s doing a special song at church, again same thing, abandon yourself to God.

Perhaps the Lord has been tapping your heart to start a ministry, or to serve in some way.

Maybe the Lord has been challenging you to witness to one of your coworkers, time to pray, take a deep breath, and head on over to speak the word.

Maybe it’s something else in your life, something that seems too big, but you can sense God calling you toward it. Make use of the prayer of abandon.

Maybe it’s fasting, you know what, let’s go for it.

It’s a prayer of faith, of trust, a prayer of boldness, a prayer of you, know what, I’m diving in, like the kid at the edge of the pool and he dips his toe in and it’s too cold, but finally he says you know what, let’s go, and he dives in.

You may just find that as you dive in, and get to work, and do your best, the storm around you, that the devil brought to try to scare you away from God’s will, turns out to be much smaller than you thought, and it simply disappears.

These fears we face are prisons often, and they are prisons of lies and deception. They are lying to us, and we don’t have to believe the lie. Jesus can break us from the prison of fear. And he'll help us to walk on the water with Him.

Verse 33: Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

The disciples believed. They saw Jesus walk on water and they knew: He is the Son of God.

Jesus is capable my friends, entirely sufficient.

Therefore we are capable, if Jesus calls us to it.

Easy to say, harder when we are buffeted by fear and in this life we are buffeted by fear.

Dare to make your prayer, the prayer of abandonment to God.

With God with me, I can walk forward in faith.

With God, I can.

Simple, but not easy. Sometimes it takes an act of courage, I’m stepping out, I’m doing it, pray, and move.

Let’s make our closing prayer, a prayer of abandonment.

Prayer:
Father, we rise up in faith, we believe in your power, we believe you are with us, we believe are capable of doing all things in us, we do not stand still, we move forward in faith, give us faith, we renounce fear, give us courage, we take up courage, Lord, we abandon ourselves to you completely. We don’t doubt you. We believe in you, and we believe in our ability in you, so Lord we strike out in faith, toward that thing we’ve been avoiding, we strike out in faith, we surrender it all to you, guide us God, as we move toward that thing you’ve led us to, in Jesus name, amen.

Prayer in the Garden of Pressing

“From the magazine of the US Naval Institute, Frank Koch shares a story of a battleship assigned to a training squadron. They had been at sea on maneuvers in heavy weather for several days. Frank said, I was serving on the lead battleship and was on watch on the bridge as night fell. The visibility was poor with patchy fog, so the captain remained on the bridge keeping an eye on all activities. (NEXT)

Shortly after dark, the lookout on the wing reported, "Light, bearing on the starboard bow."

"Is it steady or moving astern?" the captain called out.

The lookout replied, "Steady, Captain," which meant we were on a dangerous collision course with that ship.

The captain then called to the signalman, "Signal that ship: 'We are on a collision course, advise you change course twenty degrees.'"

Back came the signal, "Advisable for you to change course twenty degrees."

The captain said, "Send: "I'm a captain, change course twenty degrees.'"

"I'm a seaman second-class," came the reply. "You had better change course twenty degrees."

By that time the captain was furious. He spat out, "Send: 'I'm a battleship. Change course twenty degrees.'"

Back came the flashing light, "I'm a lighthouse."

We changed course."
-Max Lucado, In the Eye of the Storm, Word Publishing, p. 153.

Today as we talk about praying through suffering, I think we’re going to discover that as much as we want God to change the situation, often God is like the lighthouse, saying to us, I want you to change your course, or perhaps more so, your perspective.

We as believers go through various forms of suffering here on Earth, such as chronic pain, mental anguish, grieving a loss, traumatic changes in life, and sickness, to name a few.

We are going to learn today from Jesus, how to pray through those sufferings in a way that we will not give up.

We come to a moment in Jesus’ life when he knew darkness was approaching, like the moment before a storm.

Jesus takes his disciples to a garden in Jerusalem, at night, to prepare himself and them for the ordeal ahead.

We look at Matthew 26:36-46.

Verse 36 says, “Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

Into the prayer garden, the garden of gethsemane. It was an olive grove. The word gethsemane actually means “oil press.”

It still exists in Jerusalem today, and the olive trees there are ancient, and mysterious looking. Though probably not the same olive trees as the time of Jesus, they give us a picture of what it might’ve looked like that fateful night when Jesus went there to pray.

Gethsemane was an oil press. Do you know how the olive oil was extracted from olives in ancient times? The olives were crushed into a paste, by a large vertical millstone, the crushed olives were then placed in woven baskets and placed under heavy wooden beam, pressed down with large stones on top of them, to squeeze out the oil.

It’s fitting that Jesus would pray in such a place, where he would be so pressed and crushed by thoughts of the ordeal ahead of him.

We too are called by God into the prayer garden, when we suffer. The pressing in our lives is real. So, let us travel together with Jesus, as he heads into the depths of that mysterious garden.

First point today, when you find yourself suffering, enter the "garden of prayer" as Jesus did. 

Next, verse 37: "He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled."

These are the same 3 that went with Jesus to the mountain, Peter, James, and John. He leaves the other disciples at the entrance, and they head in among the dark trees. It probably would’ve been bright that night, because it was a full moon, due to the fact that Passover always occurs on a full moon. If these events did occur in AD 33, on April 3rd, as some have speculated, NASA has indicated that there was a partial lunar eclipse that night over Jerusalem, which would’ve made the moon appear reddish.

But Jesus gathers his three closest friends, and begins to experience deep anguish and despair. He doesn’t avoid the emotions. He doesn’t pretend they aren’t there. He doesn’t stuff them underneath. He doesn’t try to have a few drinks to make them go away. Jesus simply allows the emotions to flow out of him.

We must learn to do the same, when we’re facing suffering, we have to let ourselves feel it. We can have a positive attitude, we can hope for the best, we can declare the scriptures, but at the end of the day, we have to let the tears flow, express the pain, and let it out.

Second point, once you enter the garden of prayer, let the real emotions flow from your soul, don’t hide them, or ignore them.

Next, verse 38: Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

Jesus doesn’t say, “I’m fine.” He tells them exactly what he’s feeling. Jesus is overwhelmed in his soul. Have you felt that yourself? You can’t cry hard enough. It’s overwhelming. You can’t stand how you feel. But it just won’t stop.

So he tells his friends. And he asks them to stay and watch with Him.

Third point today, bring your friends with you into the garden of prayer. If I’m struggling I’m asking my friends to pray!

Next, verse 39: Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

Jesus is going to enter a time of wrestling with His Father, on the topic of suffering. Jesus is so upset, he falls on his face, and he prays a prayer many of us I’m sure have prayed, “take this from me.”

Often suffering or judgment in scripture is pictured as a cup being drank from. Jesus knows he has this cup of suffering sitting on the table in front of him, and he is so overwhelmed, with what he knows is coming next, he asks that the cup be taken from him.

This is a very human moment for Jesus. We know Jesus is the son of God, the Lord, but sometimes we forget he was also fully human. And Jesus longs to be delivered from this suffering.

I think we can all relate to that. That’s often the first thing we do, we begin to pray, and ask God, please Lord heal this, change this, remove this, take this away.

There is nothing wrong with initially praying and praying for God to take the suffering away. Many times God will take it away, he removes the suffering, he heals us, he changes the situation suddenly, and the suffering is over. Though I think that's the exception, not the rule. 

But for Jesus we know, this cup he will have to drink. He does ask for the cup to be removed from him, but he also says, yet not what I will, but your will be done Father.

That is a great way to pray, make your request, but include the heartfelt statement, 'not my will, but yours be done God.' We aren’t in control, God is. When we pray in this way, we surrender control to God.

Jesus is wrestling and the wrestling is occurring in His heart. His heart longs for the situation to change, but if it can’t, he declares: God’s will be done.

Begin to wrestle with God about your situation, and about the suffering you’re experiencing. Pray, and pray again, be honest, be real, lay it all before the Father, seek His face, weep and mourn before Him, and just bring it to Him. Maybe its as simple as praying: Father help me! Cry it out, let your heart declare it to God!

Next, verses 40-41 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

I want to hone in on this topic of watch and pray. What does that mean exactly? He wanted the disciples to watch and pray for one hour.

I don’t think Jesus was telling them to watch for Roman guards or something. He was referring to a different kind of watching.

I’m going to get a little deep, but I think we’ve all experienced this sort of thing before.

The Lord prompts us to pray for someone. Seemingly out of nowhere, even in the middle of the night. Someone comes to mind, and you start to pray. And honestly, you’ll begin to pray things out that you shouldn’t even know, yet something inside tells you, “pray this.”

So we go into the prayer realm, and receive data from the Spirit, and we pray out that reality into the real world.

Particularly if I’m fasting, these realities will be strong, and I will know, something is going on in the spiritual realm for this person and I need to pray, right now. And then I begin to pray, and the Lord will eventually say, OK, good, that reality has been dealt with in prayer.

That’s deep, but it’s the idea of fighting for someone in prayer, when we feel prompted to, and really running with that, until we sense the victory in the Spirit.

Notice, also, the classic phrase “The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

As we pray out these suffering prayers, we will face the battle between the flesh and the Spirit. The flesh doesn’t want to pray, the flesh wants to be entertained, but when we push into prayer ,even in suffering, we begin to feed the Spirit within, and the flesh begins to submit to the Spirit.

Notice Jesus says, watch and pray so that you won’t fall into temptation. Temptation is connected with the flesh, and if we pray, we strengthen our Spirit to be in control, instead of the flesh.

When we allow the flesh to lead us when we suffer and not the Spirit, our flesh reacts selfishly. But if we can learn to suffer in the leading of the Holy Spirit, we can bear up under the suffering with steadfastness, calmness, and strength. And the flesh will submit to the Spirit. 

So next point today, praying strengthens your spirit, and helps your flesh submit to the Spirit.

Next, verse 42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

Many times I try and try to pray for the suffering to stop. But, at some point, the Lord will make it clear, like Paul’s thorn in the flesh, this suffering isn’t going to stop immediately. It is going to continue for a season.

We’ve tried to escape it, but now face a new reality. We must accept the situation as it is now.

Jesus in this prayer, he accepts the cup of suffering offered to him. He says alright Father, if it’s not possible for this cup to be taken away, then may your will be done.

And as we pray through our suffering season, we wrestle with God toward the moment of acceptance. We wrestle in prayer, until finally one day, we say, Lord, I finally accept this suffering, as my reality right now.

We see the cup sitting before us, we realize it’s not going to be instantly removed, and we take the cup in our hand, and submit to God, and drink from it.

Often times, simple acceptance of the reality of the situation, can alleviate a lot of the confusion and frustration around it.

Now, if God is prompting you to keep seeking a solution, please do, if he’s telling you don’t accept this, fight it, listen to God. But, I think God often says to us, accept this as it is right now, as you work on a solution.

Now, this is not to accept defeat. 

It’s not to get depressed and say well I lost.

But it is to accept the reality of the season you’re in, til it passes.

God’s will be done, not mine. I will glorify Him through this suffering. 

He will see me through it.

This point is simple: Accept the situation as it is right now. Simple, not easy.

Next, verses 43-44: "43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. 44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing."

These trials become harder and harder when we lack prayer. And for the disciples, their lack of prayer during these key moments will have real world results. As we know from history, the disciples fled, and went into hiding, and Peter denied that he even knew Jesus. I believe, if the disciples had been diligently praying that night the outcome might’ve been very different.

But even if we do fail to pray like we should, in suffering, the disciples were restored, by Jesus, Peter was forgiven for denying Jesus, the story didn’t end there, there is grace even if we fall in our time of trial.

So Jesus leaves the disciples, and goes and prays again, the same thing, Lord your will be done, not mine. He submits to God’s will completely. He accepts what is about to come. His heart has been shaped in prayer to a place of acceptance, and submission to God’s purpose.

Lastly, verses 45-46: Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

The time has come. The moment has arrived. The son of man, Jesus, will be betrayed and crucified.

Jesus says let’s go, we’re going to meet it head on.

This last point is simple: Face it. Don’t ignore it, don’t pretend it’s not there, march toward it boldly.

Just like Jesus, he knew he would suffer. He got his heart ready in the garden of Gethsemane, the garden of pressing, so he would be able to endure everything he would face. He was in submission to the Father’s will. Jesus was ready, he endured ultimate suffering, he even walked through death. Yet he rose from the dead. He won the victory.

Thankfully, our season of suffering does not often lead to death. It’s almost always a season with a time limit on it, a season where we endure, die to self by submitting to God, drink our cup of suffering, and then rise from the ashes, a new person. You’ll find yourself a new, better version of yourself, and that’s the whole reason why God allows it.

He allows it, so it will mold our character into something holy and beautiful, humble, and lovely. There is nothing like coming out the other side of suffering, still hot like iron fresh from a forge, molded and shaped, into a stronger, better version of ourselves. And the way through is simple:

Pray, and then accept your time in the garden of pressing.

Hearing God's Voice

How do I make the right decisions in life? What does God want me to do or not do? Where should I live? Where should I work? Who should I be friends with? Who do I stay away from? Where is he leading me? The questions of life are difficult to answer. Many seek wisdom in the word, as they should, but still wonder, what is God really saying to me?

In our prayer journey, we come to a topic of prayer, that can help us answer these difficult questions of life. But first, we must head up the mountain.

Have you ever gone up onto a mountain to pray? That sounds pretty amazing actually. Pack a few bags, get your hiking gear on, and start climbing. And I love the purpose behind it, not necessarily to sight see, or for exercise, but the purpose is spiritual, to meet with God.

The scripture we’re going to look at today, as we continue our prayer series, is going to lead us up a mountain side with Jesus, and three of his disciples, to have an encounter that will change them all forever.

We’ve examined different forms of prayer in this series, prayer as relationship, prayer as intercession for others, praying in faith, and praying in power.

Now today, we come to a moment when the spiritual reality of our universe becomes so very clear. Often in prayer we are doing the talking, but today we examine the moment when God speaks back to us.

Today we examine Luke 9:28-36. Previous to this moment, Jesus had explained to the disciples that if they wanted to follow Him, they would have to take up their crosses and follow Him. Remember that? But Jesus hinted, some of those who were listening would see God’s kingdom in power.

So begins our scripture for today. Verse 28: “28 About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray.”

Jesus takes his inner circle up the hill. When I think about Peter, John, and James, they are three radically different people. Peter was outspoken, extroverted, loud, inspiring, and bold. John was introverted, more quiet, deep thinker, creative, contemplative. James was outspoken, firm, intense, and fiery. Which reminds you of yourself?

Just like Jesus brings these three disciples up the mountain, God may from time to time call you into a time of deep prayer. It doesn’t have to be up a mountain, it could be in the bedroom or living room.

But you’ll get a sense that the Lord wants to speak to you. And I encourage you, if you sense that hunger from the Lord, to speak to you, go into a time of deep prayer.

For many of us today, that may be a bit of a foreign concept. For some here today, our prayers may be kind of short. But I want you to consider the possibility of a deeper prayer time. Maybe you feel you don’t have the time, but, consider time spent scrolling on the phone, or watching television. Maybe we have more time than we might realize.

That’s the first key for today, watch for a call from God, that he desires to meet with you. You’ll feel the hunger and draw in your heart, obey it.

So Jesus and his three disciples are climbing this mountain, getting higher and higher, the sun is shining, the wind is blowing, and up they go. Finally Jesus finds a place, and he kneels down and begins to pray. He prays and prays, as the disciples watch.

Verse 29: “29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.”

Can you imagine this moment? They’ve been with Jesus for a while now, they’ve seen him heal people, multiple the bread and fish, and they’ve wondered, who is this man? But now, this moment comes, when they see something none of them will ever forget.

For a brief moment, they see Jesus as he truly is. When Jesus put on flesh his true glory was veiled. But in this moment, the disciples see behind the veil.

His body glows like lightning. I was at a coffee shop with my friend pastor Josh, and we were talking and suddenly there was a lightning strike out the window, and I saw it! If you’ve ever seen lightning, it lights up the sky. Jesus’ glows with brightness!

How does this relate to us? When we pray, we enter a different world.

We begin to see true reality. This world is filled with many deceptions, and our perceptions of situations we face are often skewed, or completely wrong. Our desires get in the way, and we can’t see clearly the right thing to do.

When we enter prayer with God, God begins to speak to us, and our perception is adjusted to match with actual reality.

You ever been upset with someone and you meet with them, and by the end you realize it was all just a misunderstanding? You weren’t perceiving reality accurately, and the encounter with the person adjusted your perspective.

This kind of prayer we’re talking about today is all about encounter with God. Shane and I were talking about this at prayer meeting, you might say it is like meditation as we approach God, we meditate on His word, but at some point as we approach in deep prayer, it becomes encounter.

As we encounter the real God, we perceive things we couldn’t otherwise know. And then we leave the encounter changed.

As Jesus transformed into shining light, something else suddenly happened.

Verse 30-31, “Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. 31 They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.”

Moses and Elijah appear there with Jesus, also appearing in glorious brightness. Can you imagine this moment? The two greats of the old testament, Moses and Elijah, speaking with Jesus face to face!

And the disciples get to hear a very special conversation, for they are speaking to Jesus about his soon coming departure, the word in Greek, is 'exodos.' The time was quickly coming, that Jesus would be taken from this world, into the world beyond our world.

Too often I think we view this current world, planet earth, as the most important place. But really, our travel through this earth is very brief, compared with infinite time, in either heaven or hell, this life is nothing more than a short bus ride to a destination we can’t yet imagine. Too often I worry we mistake the bus ride for the main reality, when it’s simply a passage to the permanent place.

When we pray, and we learn to listen for God’s voice, we also, like the disciples will get to “overhear” important information. The disciples get to listen in on a conversation between Jesus and Moses and Elijah, about Jesus’ coming departure from the Earth.

If we’re listening carefully. But the disciples were having some issues.

Verse 32, “Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.”

As Jesus was praying, they fell asleep. And they wake up, to see Jesus shining like a star, and the two greats of the old testament standing there with him. I love how scripture doesn’t shy away from some somewhat embarrassing moments for the disciples.

In talking about hearing God’s voice in prayer, I must admit that it’s tricky. Particularly if we are desperate for a particular answer to the prayer.

If I’m praying for a sick friend, and I’m asking the Lord, are they going to be ok? I might be tempted, as I wait for an answer from the Lord, to fill in the answer for God, and say to myself, yes, she will be fully healed. That is the danger.

When we reach a quiet time in prayer, and we begin to listen for God’s voice in silence, how do we discern God’s voice from our own voice?

I try to remind myself, that the most important fact is this: I want to know what God is saying, even if it’s not what I want to hear. Because what God says is always right.

Next, verse 33: “As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)”

Peter expects that Moses and Elijah will stay. As Luke the author notes in parentheses, Peter didn’t really know what he was saying.

It’s a good reminder, we can’t bring God down to Earth, we can only engage with Him in prayer, and then continue to live our lives.

We can’t live in the moment of encounter forever, one day we will, when we’re in heaven, the joy of encounter will never end there, but for now, we spend time with God in a different way. As we travail through the Earth his full presence is veiled to us.

Next, verse 34: “While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.”

Long ago when Moses had climbed Mt Sinai to receive the law, he entered into a cloud of God’s glory. And now in this moment, the disciples are surrounded by a cloud of God’s glory.

And they were afraid, can you imagine a cloud of God’s glory surrounding you? Truly amazing!

The cloud symbolizes God’s presence. It begins with the fear of the Lord, as they enter, they tremble before a holy God. And I’m sure they are filled with amazement.

Something similar happens when we pray. As we go deeper and deeper, seeking God’s face, and drawing near to Him, we begin to sense His presence, like a cloud of glory all around us.

This all takes time. It takes patience, as we talk to God, and declare His word, and worship Him, and we begin to pray for people we love. But then we must seek His face.

That’s probably the biggest issue with hearing God’s voice. We have to seek His face. If we begin to seek God’s face, quietly, simply in prayer, we will begin to hear His voice.

Next, verse 35: A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”

The disciples, surrounded by a bright cloud, stunned, amazed, shocked, standing there with Jesus in the midst of this cloud of God’s glory, hear a voice speak within the cloud.

God the Father speaks about Jesus, saying of Him, he is my son, I have chosen Him, listen to Him.

The disciples no doubt are amazed, and realize, Jesus really is the Son of God. He is not just a man, he is God almighty. We’ve gotta listen to Him.

For us today, we don’t often hear God’s actual audible voice. It’s not impossible, many have. Though I think that sort of thing is rare.

But what I’m talking about with hearing God’s voice, appears in a different way.

And I want to be clear, when we talk about hearing God’s voice, it doesn’t just happen in prayer. It can happen in church, while reading the Bible, even while we’re going about our day, and God desires to communicate something to us. He can speak to us through another person, or an internal nudge or sense.

God speaks to us in numerous ways and one of the treasures of the Christian life is learning to listen for those unique ways in which God speaks to us.

But in regard to hearing God’s voice in prayer, most often, when I’m in deep prayer, and I’ve gotten past the initial stages, and I’m in deeper, seeking God’s face, and I’m starting to get quiet, most often the way I begin to hear God’s voice is through an internal reality.

Most often it appears in one of two ways, first, an internal knowing. It’s hard to explain, but you just sort of know something that you didn’t know before. God reveals it to your heart. It’s a revelation from God, a truth God places in our hearts, and suddenly we know.

I’ll give an example, sometimes we will think of someone and have an instant knowing that we need to pray for them.

When I’m having a hard day, I’ll get several text messages from people, God has sent a heart-knowing to them, and they reach out to see if I’m ok, and they pray for me.

Similarly in hearing God’s voice in prayer, we may receive a heart revelation, a heart download, of knowing. Suddenly, we know.

Secondly, God may speak in a soft, quiet internal voice. You may even see the words appear in your mind. This I think is a bit less common, but it does happen.

The still small voice that Elijah heard in the cave whispered gently to him, that he ought to continue his mission, despite all the hurt he had been through.

So be open to a soft internal voice, from the Lord.

One thing to be aware of is, God’s voice will always align with His written word.

If God’s voice told me to go hurt someone, I can know that’s not God’s voice, it’s the enemy, and I’m going to rebuke that. Also, if God’s voice just so happens to keep telling me to do whatever I want, I can know that’s not God’s voice, but my own internal voice, trying to be in control instead of letting God.

God’s voice will always guide us in the right direction. Be cautious, if you’ve felt you’ve heard something from God, take it to the Lord in prayer, take it to scripture, and take it to your pastor and friends. Because sometimes we can mishear God.

When Chelsey and I felt the call to leave The Salvation Army and join the Nazarene church, yes we heard God’s voice, but we took huge steps to confirm, through prayer and fasting, consultation, and testing of the word, to see if God would open doors. And God kept confirming His word to us.

So the plan is simple. We go into prayer, we seek God’s presence, we get quiet with Him, and we listen for His voice. We may not hear anything, but if we do, one of the best things is to write down what you perceived from the Lord, and then begin to seek confirmation.

Once you've received the word, you'll get a sense of conclusion. The moment has passed, and now it’s time to come down from the mountain.

Lastly, verse 36: “When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves and did not tell anyone at that time what they had seen.”

The disciples heard God speak. Now they return to the lands below, changed forever by the things they experienced.

Sometimes after I’ve heard a word from God, I’ll try to stay there longer, and I begin to shoot question after question to God, trying to get more information, but that is not wise. Don’t keep trying to gain new details, simply accept what was shared, and begin to chew on it.

But now comes one final factor to consider about hearing God’s voice. Whatever you heard from God, you now have a duty to use that information in the right way. Sometimes that's a blessing, sometimes it can feel like a burden. But don’t hide what you’ve learned, use it for God’s glory. He told you for a reason.

Let's review the process of Hearing God's Voice:

We pray.

We wait.

We listen.

We encounter.

We hear His voice.

We are transformed.

We leave changed.

Now we use what we’ve learned for His glory.