One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Buddy Cremeans, Pastor, Northway Church.tv
1 Timothy 2:1-6 (NIV)
1 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all men — the testimony given in its proper time.
I have a repeated pattern in my life of misplacing simple things. Simple stuff like my keys, cell phone, or sometimes even my wallet! My bride calls it, “Man’s disease.” I call it, “rationalization recollection”…it sounds so much better. What is rationalization recollection? I have defined it as, “the ability to rationalize overlooking the simple so you can focus on the important.”
In this letter to the next leader of the Church, The Apostle Paul enlightens Timothy on the important for God’s Church.
• There is only ONE GOD.
• There is only ONE WAY to GOD. JESUS CHRIST.
• GOD’s heart desires for every person to be FREE from sin through CHRIST.
• Leverage your life to share THE IMPORTANT.
The important captures my heart! I want to leverage my life for the important. However, Paul makes clear that the simple is the prerequisite for the important. In other words, if the simple doesn’t happen, the important of God’s Church will never be accomplished. Think about that…what a tragedy!
I believe the Church today suffers from, “rationalization recollection.” The Church has misplaced and overlooked the simple. What is the simple? The simple is …
Prayer.
Nothing fancy about it. However, Paul says prayer is the prerequisite for God’s power. We get it backwards. We work hard for God and then ask Him to bless our work.
Imagine what would happen in the Church universal if you and I would return to focusing on the simple. What steps can you take in your life to shift your focus to the simple…prayer?
Join the conversation
Daily Devotional by Clark Mitchell
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Clark Mitchell, Senior Pastor, Journey Church
Ephesians 4:2-6 (NIV)
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
As you read the writings of Paul, you see the balance that we should all strive for between doctrine and duty. I have found that it is easy in our everyday lives to lean towards one or the other based on our personality, but the challenge is that you have to have both to live an effective life as a follower of Christ. I love what Paul does in this passage as he scripts out for us how to walk in unity and what to base our unity on.
As we live out our faith in our everyday lives, our goal is that people will see Christ in us. Christ was the perfect model of a person who made every effort to build us up.
As Paul continues, he paints the picture of what the common ground of unity is. He lays out the essentials, encouraging us to focus on them rather than all the little things that we might see differently.
Question: Who is it in your life that you need to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit with today? Are you focusing on the essentials that Christ has called us to or are you allowing the non-essentials to distract you?
Join the conversation
Daily Devotional by Tim Stevens
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Tim Stevens, Executive Pastor, Granger Community Church
Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Wow. That is a huge statement. Do not be anxious about anything. With war and sickness, tornadoes and flooding, high gas prices and economic uncertainty in the headlines every day, how is it possible not to be anxious? Even small things can trip me up, like how many emails I still haven’t answered—or how I’m going to get through the pile on my desk so I can get to my kids track meet.
Is this an unrealistic expectation? How in the world are we supposed to never be anxious about anything?
It’s pretty cool that God gives us the answer in the same verse. I think He is acknowledging that there will be plenty to be anxious about. We can carry the load if we want, but He wants us to talk to Him about it. There is an unexplainable peace that comes when we lay our requests at the feet of Jesus. The problems don’t go away, but we have the strength to face them, and Jesus protects our hearts and minds from an overwhelming anxiety.
Could it be that God is binding our churches together to show the world a different way to respond to the problems around us? Perhaps our One Prayer today could be, “God, give me the grace to rely on you every minute today, whatever happens or doesn’t happen, that I will experience your incomprehensible peace.”
What are you turning over to God today?
Join the conversation
Daily Devotional by Stovall Weems
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Stovall Weems, Lead Pastor, Celebration Church
Ephesians 4:11-13 (NIV) It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
God gives us spiritual gifts not for ourselves, but for others. It’s good to have an ambition to see the kingdom of God thrive and expand. However, Godly ambition expresses itself through servanthood, not through selfish promotion. Many people believe that the church is given to them as a platform to find expression for their gifts, when really God has given them their gifts to build and enrich the church. Christ gives us spiritual gifts so that we can labor alongside Him as He builds His church, bringing her to full maturity.
Not that we will ever fully agree on every fine point of doctrine. I Corinthians 13:12 (http://www.youversion.com/niv/1Cor.13.12) says, “Now we see but a poor reflection, as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am known.” As long as we see only part of the picture, we will tend to fill in the gaps with our own idea of what the whole picture should look like—and that will inevitably lead to disagreement. But I do believe that as the church continues to grow in her knowledge of Christ, we will learn to move together in that rhythm of grace and servanthood which characterizes spiritual maturity.
How can you promote unity, even when you don’t see things the same way? How can you build an attitude of servanthood in your life and in the lives of those you influence? Share some of your ideas below!
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Benny Perez, Pastor, The Church at South Las Vegas
Make us ONE body not multiple members
Romans 15:5-7
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
The apostle Paul commissions the church to be of one mind, one voice, and one heart! He compels the Christians in Rome, who are predominately comprised of Jew and Gentile converts, to stop contending, competing, and clashing with one another. Much like today’s church body, the early church wrestled with jealousy, pride, strife, and yes, factions. The result was a disabled body that was crippled of Christ’s power. Believers focused too much on trivialities with each other rather than the incredible glory of God, and as a result some lost focus spiritually. Paul graciously restores their sight by focusing on Christ, and encourages believers to be truly unified as one body, to be in “one mind” with others of the faith and not in strife over things that have no eternal value. The apostle compels us to be in “one accord,” so that we can speak glory with “one voice” to God the Father.
Our spiritual walk should be Christ-centered and not self-centered. We must learn to die so that He can live through us. This can only come through a consistent relationship with God. The absence of intimacy will find us presenting personal agendas before the throne that are self centered. Much like the Jews and Gentiles in Paul’s day, we lose sight of what the focus should be—Christ, not us! To be like Jesus is to truly desire nothing for ourselves outside of Him.
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Fernando Gutierrez
Pastor, Healing Place Church, Spanish Campus
Living Life To The Max
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
There are three things that God speaks to us through the Apostle Paul. The first is to rejoice always. We live in a world where circumstances change from moment to moment, and it is easy to become emotionally undone. Our joy does not depend on circumstances nor is it produced by our circumstances. This does not mean that we will never confront sadness or pain. What God is saying is that “no matter what happens, I know what is going on, I am in control, I will sustain you. I am close by to rescue you, to alleviate the pain, to heal you, to do whatever it is that you need for me to do for you.”
The second thing that Paul speaks of here is to pray without ceasing. This means that we should have a continual connection with our Heavenly Father. Prayer is simply being in agreement with God. It is saying “Yes and Amen” to what He has already said He is going to do. When we see and understand prayer in this way, then it is much easier to believe in God’s promises because we are asking according to His will.
Lastly, we are to give thanks to God in everything. Thankfulness is a result of acknowledgement. Life is a school in which we are tested. We are able to enjoy the good things that God gives us, yet we learn from things that seem adverse and negative.
If we practice these three exhortations in our relationship with God, then we will celebrate victory and we will live life to the max!
What do you need to be celebrate and thank God for in your life? Share your praises with the One Prayer community by commenting below!
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Mark Batterson, Lead Pastor, National Community Church
Matthew 5:44-45 (NIV)
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
It is much easier to act like a Christian than it is to react like one. Most of us are good actors—we can play the part. But our reactions reveal who we really are. And maybe that is why Jesus focused so much of His teaching on reconditioning reflexes.
Pray for those who persecute you.
Love your enemies.
Bless those who curse you.
If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
What is the natural reaction when someone slaps you? You feel like slapping him back, right? But the supernatural reaction is both counterintuitive and counter-reactive. Jesus taught us to turn the other cheek. Think of it as spiritual aikido. We absorb the sinful energy of others and convert it into a righteous response. So hatred inspires love. We convert curses into blessings. And anxiety becomes a catalyst for prayer!
Here is a lesson I’ve learned over the years. If you want to know what you should pray for, just figure out what you’re anxious about. There’s your prayer list! And by the way, the more things you have to worry about the more prayer potential you have.
Is there somebody in your life who brings out the worst in you? When you’re around her, you react in ways you later regret. Or maybe it’s someone who gets on your nerves or under your skin. Here’s my advice: pray for these people. Nothing reconditions our spiritual reflexes like prayer. Start praying for the difficult people in your life and it will change the way you feel about them. The peace of God will guard your heart.
What are you worried or anxious about today? List it here and let your One Prayer family pray for you!
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Dr. Mark Beeson, Senior Pastor, Granger Community Church
We’re participating in One Prayer, but how are we supposed to pray?
Should we be loud, assuming God suffers hearing loss? Must we increase our volume to get God’s attention? Should we modifying our words and cadence for a more impressive prayer performance?
Do we believe we should approach God with drama and flair, or honest humility? Are we trying to impress God with role-playing or connect with God in spirit and truth?
Maybe we’ve misunderstood. Maybe God isn’t impressed by our displays and posturing intonations. Maybe we’d be better off trusting God’s love than relying on babbling formulas like pagans, or thinking we’ll be heard because of our many words.
Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6:6-8 (NIV):
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
We are dealing with our Heavenly Father, not some distant stranger. God is not distracted. God is not far-off. We don’t have to role-play when we speak with God; He loves us as we are. We don’t need to shout to get God’s attention; we already have it! We aren’t required to recite our prayers according to a script, or impress the people who may hear us; we’re not praying to them anyway!
As we join in One Prayer, remember God hears our heart-felt prayers, even when no one else does.
Heart-felt prayers can be expressed in multiple ways. What does going “into your room, clos(ing) the door and pray(ing) to your Father” look like for you?
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Dino Rizzo, Lead Pastor, Healing Place Church
Just Be Nice
Colossians 3:12-14 NLT
Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony.
Sometimes it can be as simple as just being nice and compassionate. I mean, “real-deal” compassionate. When you think about what happens during the course of a day—the frustrations that pound away at us and the challenges that that come our way in the form of people and pressures—it can be a pretty rough scene at times.
But if we can remember what Paul told the church in this passage, that we should be wrapped up in mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience—wow! What a different picture life can become. Rather than let circumstances dig away at you, just be nice. Remember that people around you, every single one of them, are precious to God. So precious that He is thinking about them at that very moment and is giving you an opportunity to show them His mercy.
Just be nice. It sounds so simple but is actually very powerful, because when a person hurts you, the kindest, and often most difficult, thing you can do for them is forgive them. Forgiveness is also the kindest thing you can do for yourself. It releases you from the hurt and burden of unforgiveness, which no one can bear. When you do that, you are being nice to yourself as well.
So today be generous with your kindness. Be generous with your forgiveness. And be extremely generous with your love—because the more you give these gifts away, the more your capacity for them grows. That, my friend, will be a well-lived life.
As we fast together today, remember it’s not just about denying ourselves food, or caffeine or tv. It’s also about being nice even when it hurts(Isaiah 58). How can you incorporate being nice into your fast today?
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Steven Furtick, Lead Pastor, Elevation Church
Mark 11:24-25
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.
This promise is powerful! Practically speaking, how can we pray with this kind of bold belief?
I’ve studied many of the great prayers of the Bible and discovered three components of faith-filled prayer that emerge again and again.
Audacity
God is not intimidated by our large requests. He’s insulted by our puny ones.
The highest compliment we can pay God is to ask Him to do something so enormous that we have to blame the results on Him.
Accuracy
Our theme verses describe the process of requesting something very specific from God. When we pray vague prayers like: “God, just be with me today,” it’s very hard to engage our faith and quantify the results.
Get out of the realm of generalized, bless me, help me, be with me prayers. Develop a prayer vocabulary that is vivid, expressing your heart’s desires and most urgent needs to God.
Action
If the desire you’re praying about isn’t enough to move you, why would it be enough to move God? God always requires us to step out in faith before He steps in.
In Mark 11:25, Jesus contrasts our willingness to do the spiritual work of prayer with our willingness to take a practical step of obedience by forgiving someone. Prayer is useless without corresponding Christ-centered action.
One Prayer is our unprecedented opportunity to unite in Christ worldwide, praying faith-filled, audacious, accurate, and active prayers for the glory of God.
Let’s make the most of it.
How can you change your prayer life to make it more audacious and accurate, and what faith step do you need to take to get God to step in?
Join the conversation
Daily Devotional by Gary Lamb
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Gary Lamb, Lead Pastor, Revolution Church
Romans 12:12 (NIV)
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
I love this verse from Paul! It is so rich in context that there is no way to cover all my thoughts in one short devotion and come anywhere close to doing it justice. Since we are a part of this unbelievable thing called One Prayer, let’s focus on the last part of the verse.
Paul encourages us to be faithful in prayer. Sounds like a pretty simple principle, but I’ve got to be honest and say for the longest time this was hard for me. In my Christian walk, faithfulness in prayer was one of the hardest disciplines to master because I had such a false idea of what prayer truly was.
I thought prayer was something you could only do in a quiet place, down on my knees, head bowed, and talking in King James English. However, this is actually the type of prayer that Jesus teaches against. The mindset I had towards prayer was turning prayer into some religious activity instead of something that comes from a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Prayer is simply an outflow of relationship. Every relationship involves communication and prayer is the way we communicate with God. This simple understanding changed my prayer life. The Bible says we are to pray without ceasing, we are to be in constant communication with God at all times. Prayer doesn’t end because we say Amen.
We are to be in a constant attitude of prayer. Faithfulness in prayer comes when we realize we can communicate with God at anytime, anyplace, about anything. As thoughts pop in our heads, we have a direct line to God to talk about those things. God is not interested in the length of our prayers, the elegant language, or what we are doing when we are praying. He is simply interested in our faithfulness to communicate with Him.
During One Prayer, make it a point to start the discipline of being faithful in prayer. It isn’t how much or how long you pray, it is just the discipline of being faithful when the Holy Sprit lays something on your heart to communicate with God about it.
Think for a few minutes about circumstances you could begin lifting up in prayer. Share your ideas below!
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Jason Boucher, Lead Pastor, Lifecentre
Every story starts the same, as a blank page.
Imagine the opposite. You are given a series of jumbled words on a page and then instructed to organize these words to write your story.
Which task would you prefer?
Blank page or jumbled words?
Acts 2:42 (NIV) says…
They devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
While there are many words that we could highlight from this text, ones with equally profound meaning, there are three “key words” that are essential for the rest of the words to have their full effect.
“They devoted themselves.”
Central to the word devoted is this word vow.
As a minister I see many couples profess vows one to another during the marriage ceremony. What makes this moment beautiful is the depth to which these vows are expressed wholly and freely. One can be forced into a marriage, but no one can be forced to love. That is something that one must make the choice to give.
Just as in any relationship, the same is true in your life with God.
None of us come to God as a blank page. Rather, if we were totally honest, we resemble those jumbled words on a page. This one truth I know – all of us hunger for God to write a story with our lives that is a page-turner.
While I don’t know what the next chapter of your life will look like, what I do know is that if we devote ourselves to God wholly and freely, we will also see a demonstration of God in us and through us equal to what was experienced in the Acts 2 church.
Demonstration is God’s part, devotion is ours. Lord…..make us wholly and freely…..devoted.
Many of us have been challenged through One Prayer to be more devoted to God through fasting and prayer. What has your experience been like? What have you learned that you can share with the rest of the One Prayer community?
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Perry Noble, Senior Pastor, NewSpring Church
Matthew 21:21-22 (NIV)
Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
If God is huge—and we say and sing that He is—then why do we struggle with doubt?
I remember when we were six months into NewSpring Church and—WHAM—a financial crisis hit us out of the blue…seriously, we NEVER saw it coming.
So, I did what any pastor would do…I freaked out. I allowed the enemy to surface feelings of insecurity and unbelief—and for a while I felt like I was going to be completely crushed by the pressure I was feeling.
Then it hit me—why not pray about this? After all, Jesus did say it is HIS church!
So, I called the staff together and asked them to pray that the next month (July) would be the best month of giving our church had ever had. (July usually stinks for most churches.) And we didn’t throw around wimpy prayers—WE PRAYED, believing God was going to do incredible things.
And He did—seriously, that next month our offerings were doubled from the previous month. There is no explanation…attendance didn’t increase, no one hit the lottery…it was just the result of a few people refusing to believe that God was going to allow the church to go under financially…and so we BEGGED God to do the impossible.
What “impossible” thing are you begging God for?
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Wayne Cordeiro
Senior Pastor, New Hope Christian Fellowship
All That Matters
Psalm 133:1 (NIV)
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!
During the span of my 34 years in ministry, I have had the honor of sitting with many in their final hours. As the curtains draw their brief lives to a close, nothing except the vital remains. And each time, without fail, everything else pales in comparison to their desire for healthy relationships.
In the end, our vertical relationship with Christ and our horizontal relationships with people will be all that matters.
Sometimes we don’t recognize what’s most eternal until we are face to face with it. But why wait?
Jesus reminded us that the greatest commandment in Mark 12:30 is to love God with all we’ve got, and then do the same with those around us. He then concludes with these words: “There is no greater commandment…”
Living in unity…
It doesn’t mean we always agree. It does mean, however, that we always support. We always speak well of. We always love, and we always stay on the same team. We’re one body.
My heart doesn’t do what my liver does. Nor do my kidneys do what my lungs do. They can’t really get together and just chill. They don’t compete. They don’t try to be like each other. Instead, “unity” in my body is defined by each part doing what it is assigned to do to the best of its ability, and the other parts?
They cheer and support!
When God sees that happening in His family, He leans over the banister of heaven, and with a sigh of delight, says, “It just doesn’t get any better!”
What can you do today that will promote unity with your brothers and sisters in Christ?
Join the conversation
One Prayer Daily Devotional
By Chris Hodges, Senior Pastor, Church of the Highlands
Isaiah 58:6-9
Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
Do you know what is so amazing about this One Prayer campaign? We are all doing something together that has never been done before—more than 1,400 churches participating in a simultaneous message series. It’s going to be a great series but I have to admit, part of me loves One Prayer just because I like the challenge of breaking new ground.
If you like the challenge too, here’s another challenge for you—and for many of you, this is something that you’ve never done before. Fasting. That’s right. Prayer coupled with fasting is absolutely one of the most powerful tools available to the believer—and for the most part is a lost discipline in the church. In fact, most Christians have never even heard about fasting or attempted to fast.
For me, fasting and prayer is the best way to hear the voice of God and tap into His power. Do I like to fast? No, I hate it. Because I hate being hungry. I’m from Louisiana. I consider eating one of my spiritual gifts. But I love the intimacy with God that it facilitates —and I love the results.
The question is, “how do you fast?” Isaiah 58 makes it clear that fasting is more than just starving yourself. True fasting is about denying your fleshly desires (not just food) so that your spirit man can come alive. When that happens, you’ll touch the heart of God and develop a burden for others.
Go ahead—take the challenge!
Check out these great fasting resources:
How to Fast
7 Steps to Successful Fasting and Prayer
Jentezen Franklin’s Fasting Resources
Please tell us if you are fasting with us. Feel free to ask any questions about fasting.
Join the conversation