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In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. In a very practical and insightful chapter, Miller addresses the pitfalls of prayer. Jesus highlights in the Sermon on the Mount that there are pitfalls when we engage in prayer. He warns to not be like the hypocrites who pray to be seen (Matt. 6:5-6). He warns against heaping up empty phrases (6:7-8). He warns against putting on a dramatic show to be seen by others (6:16-18). Miller follows Jesus’ lead, and other Scripture passages, to provide five pitfalls to avoid when praying. Avoid Over-Spiritualizing We over-spiritualize our prayers when we use different language or vocabulary than our normal speech. For example, we might think we need to pray using King James language, employing “thees” and “thous.” The problem is that this language is often fake, not reflecting our hearts. Miller comments, “Too often our public prayers are for show and pious effect. They don’t come from the heart. That creates cynicism, which mocks the good. The bottom line is that when pietism does bad, it gets cheesy… Be real. Be yourself. Be careful of a ‘prayer language’ when talking to God. Let prayer be part of the warp and woof of your life” (p. 157). ... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. Like Paul Miller, I find Paul’s doxological prayer in Ephesians 3:20-21 to be remarkable. The apostle Paul concludes the first half of his letter with a final statement of praise to God. Implied in his praise to God is an invitation for the reader to embrace a larger vision of God and what God can and wants to do in our lives. Here is Paul’s praise: “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” First and foremost, this is doxology, a praise of God. “With God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26), even things that are beyond our wildest dreams or imaginations. All glory must and will be given to God in the church throughout all generations. This is no room for human boasting. How does such a doxology impact our prayer life? Paul Miller contends that it draws us into praying big. I must admit that when I read the word “big” I stumble a bit. In our American context, we have a picture of what is “big.” Big equals more. More people. More money. More property. More followers. More technology. More amenities. More. More. More. ... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. We are still digging into the middle section of this book, titled “How the Spirit Reshapes a Praying Community.” The chapters I want to cover today address specifically the prayer life of leaders in the church. I want to grow in my prayer habits; that is one of the reasons I have chosen to read this book. But I also want to encourage you to grow in your prayer habits. This section applies to you as well, even if you don’t see yourself as a leader in the church. John Maxwell defined leadership as influence. We all have influence at some level, even if it’s just influence over our own lives. In our influence, we ought to let prayer be the backbone. Miller begins by addressing our management style or planning habits. Too often we make our plans and then turn to prayer, asking the Lord to bless our plans. Miller encourages us to flip that script. What if prayer was our management style? What if prayer was our strategic plan? Miller says, “A watchful, prayerful waiting should be the first part of any plan in a Jesus community” (p. 115). ... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. In part 3 of his book, A Praying Church, Paul Miller addresses the topic “How the Spirit Reshapes a Praying Community.” He has seven chapters diving into the work of the Holy Spirit. We will spend a few weeks unpacking his teaching on this topic. One of the causes of prayerlessness in the church, Miller contends, is a “doubt that the Spirit does anything substantial… The Spirit’s seeming elusiveness, which is anathema to management rationalism, contributes to the weakness of prayer in the modern church” (p. 95). If we do not understand how dependent we are on the Spirit for our spiritual life and well-being, or if we do not understand how the Spirit works on our behalf, we will not turn to prayer, seeking the Spirit’s help. Miller then explains how our prayers interface with the Spirit in seven ways: 1. Surprise; 2. Imagination explosion; 3. Repentance; 4. Dying and rising; 5. Hiddenness; 6. Mystery; and 7. The least of these (p. 100-102). What Miller is highlighting with these seven ways is that we do not control the Spirit, nor do we fully understand how the Spirit works. Reflecting on John 3:8, where Jesus compares the Spirit with the blowing of the wind, Miller says, “Clearly, the Spirit of Jesus is not our assistant. He’s not here to bless our plans. He the free Spirit of Jesus with his own plans and design. We don’t control the Spirit’s timing, method, or result” (p. 97). Therefore, when we humbly depend on the Spirit through prayer, we often will be surprised by the manner the Spirit responds. ... Keep Reading

Throughout the year, there are countless opportunities to share the hope of the gospel with the people around us who may not know Christ (Matt. 9:37). The seasons of Advent and Easter are often natural opportunities before us. As we approach Easter weekend, let us seek out opportunities to share the hope that is within us with others (1 Pet. 3:15). We have various opportunities during our Good Friday service, Easter egg hunt, Easter reception, and Easter Sunday service to connect with visitors who may not know Christ or who may not have a church home. My prayer is that God would enlarge our hearts and give us eyes to see any new faces this coming Easter Weekend at Oak Hills. I’ll be honest, it can be daunting to intentionally initiate a welcome to new visitors. I want to encourage and challenge us to intentionally seek out the opportunities to connect with visitors to the glory of God this weekend. SMALL TALK TO THE GLORY OF GOD Let’s be honest, no one really likes small talk. We often view small talk as conversation to pass the time by. But, small talk is a glorious opportunity that the Lord gives and helps us to see the unique image bearer directly in front of us. General conversations about life, work, family, sports, books, music, all things Kansas, and even weather can help us to hear and to see the person in front of us as the unique image bearer of God they are and to begin a relationship to His glory. God often uses small talk conversations to begin opening doors to deeper conversations, especially about faith and life. Two questions that naturally open up conversation with a new visitor can be simply asking how long they’ve lived in the area and how they came to hear about our church. ... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. How we view the church and how it functions directly impacts the prayer life of the church. That is what Paul Miller is explaining in Part 2 of his book, The Prayer Church. Last week, we saw that when we think of the church more in its institutional nature, rather than its organic nature, we diminish the value of prayer. Miller wants us to think of the saints (i.e., the individual believers) when we think of the church. The church institutional exists to equip and feed the church organic. Miller contends, “Feeding saints church as an end in itself leaves them starving and weak, while praying Christ into saints energizes them for ministry” (p. 73). Building on this view of the church, Miller expands the normal understanding of what ministry is. Again, he looks to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians as a guide. He says, “What do saints do? They love. So love defines what they do and how they do it. We’ve not gone from theology to application, but from doing faith (Eph. 1-3) to doing love (Eph. 4-6). When doing love becomes mere application, it weakens the church, relegating love to a backwater” (p. 75). Miller does not want us to think of “love” as a tack on for Christian living. Love is a defining mark of true Christians. And all ministry is an outflow of love.... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. Paul Miller’s book, A Praying Church, is broken into five parts with four to six chapters in each part. Part 1, which I covered in my first two articles, addressed the question, “Why Pray Together?” In a nutshell, Miller answers that question by stating, “Prayer accesses the Spirit of Jesus” (p. 30). The Spirit of Jesus brings the power of the gospel to bear on the church and the saints. In Part 2 Miller addresses the question, “What is the Church?” He contends that the church’s “current way of functioning makes it prayer resistant” (p. 47). He explains that when we think of the church more in its institutional nature, rather than its organic nature, we diminish the value of prayer. Miller writes, “So, what is the church? What’s the point of contact of the Spirit’s power with reality? Paul’s answer: the saints!... When the church’s power train (prayer -> Spirit -> Jesus -> power) empowers the saints, the whole church comes alive. People experience a reality of the risen Christ that kills unbelief and cynicism. The Spirit’s energy empowers the little people, allowing the kingdom to come in real time. Jesus is enfleshed” (p. 52-53). When we think of the church as a building and institution, we tend to think of ministry only happening through the weekly worship gathering and its programs. By placing the saints at the center of our answer to the question, what is the church, we begin to elevate the ministry of individual believers taking place in the normal activities of life. Ministry happens when we take time to listen to a neighbor, comfort a hurting coworker, read the Bible with our children, cook a meal for a family recovering from a hardship, share the gospel with a friend, pray for a fellow church member, etc. This cultivates the praying church. “When we see and celebrate saints at work, praying together comes alive in vibrant and fresh ways. Prayers are enlarged from purely personal needs (health, safety, success) to tuning into what the Spirit is doing in multiple lives” (p. 52). ... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. Why pray? Why is prayer so essential for the Christian and the church? Why do authors like Paul Miller say, “Prayer is the very breath of the church,” as if the church cannot survive without praying? It is to these foundational questions that Miller gives attention in chapters 3 & 4 of his book A Praying Church. He gives a theological answer that carries an urgency. He explains, “We’ll take a closer look at the connection between prayer and how the Spirit of Jesus works in his church” (p. 23). Miller says that every Christian operates with some sort of blueprint for a church. The typical blueprint places some core, essential activities at the center, or foundation, of the church, activities like preaching, worship, mission, and even prayer. The weakness of this blueprint, argues Miller, is that compartmentalizes prayer as just one activity to do. He then explains that a healthy church has the Spirit of Jesus at its core, all activity flows from the Spirit, and prayer is essential because it ties all activity to the empowerment of the Spirit. He writes, “Prayer becomes central because the Spirit, who carries Christ to us, is central. An attentiveness to the Spirit of Jesus is the missing key to the church’s prayerlessness” (p. 24).... Keep Reading

In this series of articles, I seek to unpack the teaching of Paul Miller’s new book, A Praying Church, and apply the principles to our church. As we grow in our prayer habits, may we become people of hope in a discouraging world. In my mind Paul E. Miller is the prayer guy. My first introduction to the author was through his earlier book, A Praying Life. That book is an excellent tool to encourage Christians in their practice of the spiritual discipline of prayer. So, I was naturally interested to read Miller’s latest book, A Praying Church. This book goes beyond the individual practice of prayer to encouraging and equipping Christians to pray together in their church communities. He writes, “Praying together is not a luxury, nor is it something just for ‘spiritual’ Christians; it’s the very breath of the church. Most of us don’t have the faintest idea of what that means. That’s what I hope to show in this book: how integral prayer is to a Jesus community” (p. 7). Miller opens his book by sharing about three of his prayer meetings, the first with his wife to start the day, the second with his special needs daughter, and third with his ministry staff of seeJesus. He describes these by saying, “The feel of the prayer time is resurrection. We pray boldly and expectantly, not just because that’s what resurrection people do but because we’ve seen God work in so many amazing ways. Prayer fuels prayer” (p. 5-6). He hopes to allure the reader into desiring that same experience by praying with others.... Keep Reading

From the beginning of the Bible, when God said, “Let there be light,” words have been powerful. When God made us in his image, we have come to share in his creativeness and ability to create through words. Since the Fall, however, the power of our words tend more to tear down than to build up. James highlights the power of words in chapter 3 of his letter. He first makes the point that, even though words seem inconsequential, they have huge impact. He draws the comparison between a large ship and its rudder with the human tongue, which is the primary instrument of word creation. He writes, “Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things” (3:4-5). You and I both know the old children’s rhyme, “Stick and stones may break my bones, but words shall never hurt me,” is one of the biggest lies told to children. As James explains, words have huge impact on others. From the same mouth we can build up people and we can tear down others. ... Keep Reading