Moving Mountains

He can’t see the boy from inside the house, behind a closed door; he must have been out on the porch, searching the horizon for the first glimpse of the returning boy. Do you come to prayer knowing that God is already expecting you, looking for you with longing?

E. M. Bounds, that legendary nineteenth-century prophet of prayer, wrote, “The entire man must pray. The whole man—life, heart, temper, mind, are in it . . . it takes a whole heart to do effectual praying.

“But I’m a Christian—aren’t I always under the rule and protection of Jesus?” Yes . . . and no. I wish it were as simple as, “I gave my life to Christ once, so I am forever and always in an unbroken intimacy with him.” But you know from your own experience this isn’t so. That’s a bit like a man saying, “I told my wife I loved her the day we got mar

But that is not the kind of life we want to live; we don’t want to come into heaven by the hair of our chinny-chin-chins. We want fruitfulness; we want breakthrough! Then let us soberly take note that in terms of daily practice, and enjoying the full blessings of God’s protection and provision, yes, you can wander. The vine and branches metaphor is

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” (Rom. 8:15)

But when they come home, they get to feast. The refrigerator and pantry are theirs to pillage and they don’t have to ask permission.

Apparently, our greatest need is for his kingdom to invade our lives and our worlds.

Held high, repeated ritually, but rarely understood. Have you ever wondered why the Lord’s Prayer begins with us praying, “Your kingdom come . . .”? The man who knew best how to pray is telling us to invoke his kingdom. We are, after all, partners in this mission. And this is what he wants us to begin prayer with. The obvious implication is that hi

Because one of the most crippling convictions held by believers today is the idea that everything that happens is the will of God. It is a poisonous belief that will destroy your confidence in God; you will end up believing terrible things about him. The news report about a pack of teenage boys who repeatedly raped a little girl with Down’s syndrom