Saturday, June 28, 2008
Prayer - The President's Points for July
I have been reading of late, a little book my daughter gave me, simply called "Prayer" by O. Hallesby. It was written in 1931, and she gave me an antique copy printed in 1964. She knows I have an interest in collecting old books. At the time she said she had been reading a later (non-antique) copy of the book, and had been finding it very helpful in dealing with some of the stresses in her life. Now there are probably lots of books that were written in 1931 that are not worth reading today, but somehow a book on prayer seemed to me that it could be worthwhile, since prayer itself hasn't changed since God created it several thousand years ago. Of course you might think you already know all there is to know about prayer, but having read a fair portion of Hallesby's book, I can tell you that you probably don't. Anyway, it is available at www.christianbook.com, and I think you will find it a blessing. Here then is a quote from my latest reading;
Note: Before this paragraph, he had just finished describing how a large number of lights in your house can be controlled by a small switch.
"When man fell into sin, his soul was not only cut off from God, but the whole wiring system was destroyed. To restore it, Jesus had to suffer and die. The wiring is now in order again. We may all re-establish contact with, and make use of, the powers of the heavenly world. And prayer is the mysterious little instrumentality whereby the contact is made, enabling the powers of His salvation to reach our souls and our bodies, and through us, to others, as far as our zeal and perseverance will permit."
The language may be a little dated, but to be clear, prayer is like the little switch that turns on God's enormous power in our lives, and his power flows through us out to everyone and everything around us, like flood lights on the world. I want to be a floodlight, I think it is time for some prayer!
Tom Zimmer ¶ 9:11 AM
I have been reading of late, a little book my daughter gave me, simply called "Prayer" by O. Hallesby. It was written in 1931, and she gave me an antique copy printed in 1964. She knows I have an interest in collecting old books. At the time she said she had been reading a later (non-antique) copy of the book, and had been finding it very helpful in dealing with some of the stresses in her life. Now there are probably lots of books that were written in 1931 that are not worth reading today, but somehow a book on prayer seemed to me that it could be worthwhile, since prayer itself hasn't changed since God created it several thousand years ago. Of course you might think you already know all there is to know about prayer, but having read a fair portion of Hallesby's book, I can tell you that you probably don't. Anyway, it is available at www.christianbook.com, and I think you will find it a blessing. Here then is a quote from my latest reading;
Note: Before this paragraph, he had just finished describing how a large number of lights in your house can be controlled by a small switch.
"When man fell into sin, his soul was not only cut off from God, but the whole wiring system was destroyed. To restore it, Jesus had to suffer and die. The wiring is now in order again. We may all re-establish contact with, and make use of, the powers of the heavenly world. And prayer is the mysterious little instrumentality whereby the contact is made, enabling the powers of His salvation to reach our souls and our bodies, and through us, to others, as far as our zeal and perseverance will permit."
The language may be a little dated, but to be clear, prayer is like the little switch that turns on God's enormous power in our lives, and his power flows through us out to everyone and everything around us, like flood lights on the world. I want to be a floodlight, I think it is time for some prayer!
Tom Zimmer ¶ 9:11 AM
