May 21, 2017
Prayer is not getting ready to serve. Prayer is service.
I was preaching a revival meeting in Jacksonville, Florida, years ago with a college friend of mine named Ernie Harvey. It was his home church. Ernie said, “Adrian, I would like you to meet my mother.” We went to a little thread-bare flat where his mother lived. This little woman slowly walked toward us—her joints swollen with crippling arthritis. She could hardly stand up straight. And she said, “Boys, how was the meeting last night?”
I was the young evangelist going to college to play football, and I was full of myself. I said, “Wonderful. Wonderful. God came down. It was glorious.” And I began to tell her all the things that happened. The tears sprang to her eyes. She said, “I knew it, I knew it. Adrian, the whole time you were preaching, I was on my knees praying for you.”
I thought, Adrian you numbskull, you ignoramus, you lout. What pain it must be for this lady to even get on her knees. She was serving. She was laboring for the salvation of souls on her knees!
Do you have a calling on your life? You do, if you are praying. Friend, you are called into the ministry.
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I try to unplug each morning with Jesus with just my rocking chair, my Bible, and a pen.
Having a secret place is very important because I know that Jesus is always there waiting for me. I know where I can find Him! His presence is everywhere, but there are places where it is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You may not even have a front porch, but there is a secret place for you as well. God’s invitations are for anyone who will respond. There is no more important request than the one found in Psalm 27:8: “My heart has heard You say, ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming.’”