02/03/2024
Faith, prayer, and the promise... Often we are busy doing so many other things around the church, or exercising our various gifts in our everyday lives, that we neglect what is central to the mission of our faith. E.M. Bounds reminded me in my morning devotional reading that "Today, as much as at any time, we need followers of God to have great faith and powerful prayer." He went on to say "These are the two most important virtues that make men great in the eyes of God."
“And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:” Hebrews 11:39 KJV
The point here is that all of our deeds amount to naught without both faith, and prayer being coupled together in them. The reward of these is a deep relationship with God, and Jesus Christ, but the gift is the promise of eternal life for which we praise, and give God all the glory. Being a moral person is good, but it won’t save us, and it is not enough to make us righteous. Without them we will not experience heaven nor an eternity in the presence of God.
Eight years ago I sent to the CIO of the company where I work an email containing my recollections of the reasons why I had given thirty years of uninterrupted service to our company, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA). The driving desire that motivated me was to give myself in service to those in need. This was paramount in my making that decision, and it was more than a worldly choice, it was a spiritual one as well. Yet, despite that spiritually based choice, and giving all my effort and dedication over the years, it would have been a shallow accomplishment, and meant little to nothing, without the underlying faith and prayer that strengthened me in it.
Scripture instructs us to pray for our leaders, and as I prayed for mine, it became apparent to me that unlike many who pray for their company leaders I was praying for men and women who were leading an effort to care for many hundreds of thousands of hurting people. I pray today that they understand the godliness of this endeavor and find the faith that is so engrained in it, and which is interwoven into the very heart of what is being accomplished by their efforts. All of us should likewise search our job or endeavor for the thread of faith in it, and pray as we work.
“Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people, 24 knowing that you will receive the reward of an inheritance from the Lord. You serve the Lord Christ.”
Colossians 3:23-24 ESV
I was with my son in an operating room staging area a few years ago. He was preparing to go into surgery to have a hernia repaired. His surgeon came into the room, went through the pre-op instructions, and asked the required questions, then she asked him if she could pray with him. This goes on in hospitals around the world every day. People's lives and faiths are bound so tightly together, and the miracles of life are so awe inspiring, that our jobs, like medicine and faith, can't be easily, nor naturally, separated from them and this holds true of whatever profession we have chosen. Patients pray, families pray, pastors pray, healthcare workers pray, doctors pray, workmen pray, and their friends pray. Looking at my chosen line of work I came to the conclusion that other than in the church, or many prayer closets, more prayers are offered up in the world's hospitals than anywhere else.
How many prayers are offered up where each of us works? Shouldn’t we be able to say something similar about our workplaces? So as I read Bounds' words today regarding faith and prayer I couldn't help but tie both of these to my life as a whole; including not only my home and my church, but also my job.
We have determined that most jobs have a component of faith if people would just search for and acknowledge this. Great faith and powerful prayer begin wherever we are, and since we spend so much of our waking time at our jobs; then isn't it appropriate that we would bring both of these with us to work? Psalms speaks of praying three times a day, but we are also told in the New Testament to pray without ceasing, and so we should easily see that for this to happen, many prayers must be occurring in our workplaces too. Do we pray regularly at work?
“But I call to God, and the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.”
Psalm 55:16-17
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV
God blesses us in our faith, and prayers, so I pray that each of us will receive this blessing today, may the Lord be with you throughout your workday, and may His promise of eternal life await you as a result.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the faith and prayer that you inspire in us as we seek out our salvation, and your promise of eternity with you. Thank you Lord for whatever job we work at, because you are there with us. Teach us that we are serving you each day, and every hour, that we spend toiling for our employers, and help us to be filled with faith and offering up our prayers to you as we do so. Your presence brings joy and accomplishment to every task we engage in, and our faith and prayers strengthen us as we work. Holy, Holy, Holy are you our God who not only walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death, but down each assembly line, into every concert hall, through all the hallways that lead to our desks, and in the love and care we provide to each hospitalized patient. Father, open our eyes so that we can see what others see in us as we work for you wherever we are employed. Circumcise our hearts Father so that the routine, difficult, and often distasteful, jobs we must do become bearable, and are a joy to us as we do them for you. Hear our prayers, and strengthen our faith as we present ourselves Christ-like before you and to our workmates. In this way we hope to show you our worthiness in Christ, and what it means to be righteous people of faith to those around us. We strive to please you Father, and will praise you, and give you the glory in all we do forevermore.
Rich Forbes