Hanging Out with the Lord

Values. Everyone has them, whether they are expressed, or not. In the Old Testament, the word we translate as 'value' means heavy or weighty, referring to precious metals or the heavy wheat being separated from the lighter chaff. It is the important, weighty things; the things that matter.

When we talk about our values at ReachAcross, we are talking about the things that God has built into our work that reflects who He is. Our most important value is prayer. We have a personal God who makes it possible for us to connect with him constantly. To use modern slang, we’re ‘hanging out’ with Him all the time! We get closer to other people by spending time with them. The same is true with God. Because He has promised to be with us always(Matthew 28:20), we can always be spending time with Him in prayer. Through prayer, our relationship with God can grow deeper as we discover what is on His heart for us and other people. We can not only lay out our own burdens before Him, but those of others as well. The work of ReachAcross was born in prayer, and it is prayer that continues to make this service for Muslims possible.

Recently we experienced a very evident answer to prayer—a pretty hopeless visa situation suddenly changed, and only God could have done it. We were reminded again that it is He who opens doors. As the Apostle Paul wrote: 

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. (Col. 4:2-4)

Open doors are always a miracle, even when we don’t realize it. Whether God’s Lordship changes the life of an individual, or a family, or a whole clan—continued prayer is the key. That is where our partners have such a vital role to play.  Just like the men who brought their friend to Jesus, and let him down through the roof when there was no other way to get to Him, so our prayer partners bring Muslims to the Lord through their prayers.

“And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” (Mark 3:5)

It was not the paralytic’s faith, but the faith of his friends that impressed Jesus so much. Not only that, they wanted their friend to be in the presence of the Lord, so they went to extreme lengths to bring him to Jesus. We can do the same for those we care about, by praying for them. All of us, workers and prayer partners, are in this together.

Let us follow Paul’s advice and “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), continually lifting up our concerns and those of others to the Lord.

If you would like to pray with us for the Lord’s work in the Muslim world, please follow @ReachAcrossPray on Twitter for prayer updates.

ReachAcross U.S. Director