Friday, April 13, 2012

John 13:5, with the towel with which He was girded.

After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.
I love how Christ washed them with the very towel he wore.

There are probably many cultural aspects that I do not understand which would open this up in all sorts of other ways, in fact I'm sure of it, but the idea is still Biblical all the same of humbly serving others to the point of using one's own clothes, the little we have, to perform even the lowliest of tasks for them.

Amazingly though, Jesus did not do this solely as an act of service. It was a teaching moment. Christ did this not because washing their feet this one time would have a grand impact on the rest of their feet washing days, but he lowered himself to teach them something crucial to their faith and, not only their future as servants and children and heirs of their God, but for the faith and growth and life of all believers from then to the time of our Lord's mighty return and beyond.

Although it's not nearly so humbling as taking on the garb of a servant and washing the feet of those who look up to and follow me, looking to me as a role model and example, (more than all of these as the Christ and Son of God!) but when we return to our church I would really like to begin a prayer group with the high school and middle school ministries before Wednesday night service for those who would like to or would be able to show up early using a format that, rather than taking all prayer requests at once, opens with a prayer for the meeting and then continues with each request taken and prayed for one at time. In this format your thoughts are less prone to wandering, and overall I could imagine it feeling much less 'formal' to a group of young people who may not yet have a strong prayer life or understand the joy of simply spending time communing with God, or even more likely, how to do so properly. Jesus gave us examples, and many of the Psalms parallel prayer.

When you ask something of your friend or parent you don't simply make demands, and depending on the culture and home life you've come from there may be different ways to make a request properly. For instance, do you make requests in submission or domination? With a thankful attitude or one that expects the meeting of one's demands to be only what is right and proper.

So to with God, there is a wrong and a right way to ask him for things, and there are right and wrong things to ask him for. He wants us to come to him with all our pains and concerns, but he also wants us to come with a right attitude, and just because you don't like to study doesn't mean he's going to give you an A+ on that test coming up.

Please also read this study, very special to me, from Michelle.

Written April 6, 2012

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I want to pray to you my God
I want to pray to you always

I want to cry with my heart and soul
Lift up my hands and beg you bring me home

Call out to you

Jesus thank you

I will pray to you and you alone
I will cry to you for my everything
I will lift up my hands and worship you

Devotion and praise

Call our to you

Jesus

Thank you

2 comments:

  1. I agree with you, that the right attitude is so important. It's easy to pray for ourselves and fall asleep before we say Amen. Wink, wink. But I asked myself a question the other day. Are there many people praying for the college students? With so much debt, stress and even hunger. I know that it doesn't talk about college students in the Bible, but I want to pray for them. They are the people in humanity who are the future.

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  2. Wow, thank you. Not just for me, but I mean for everyone included in those prayers.

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