The baseline of prayer

Dear Kidstown Friends,

It’s a few minutes after 3am. It’s been a long travel day – about 28 hours – flying from Vancouver, BC to Hong Kong, then on to Bangkok, then finally to Calcutta – my destination and launching pad for the next 11 days of outreach here in India.

Some of you have been to India, and can attest to the vastness and complexity of this country. India is home to incredible geographic, ethnic, belief, and economic diversities. It is a country of great potential, making headlines in the areas of technology, medicine, and industry. But at the same time India is a country of great challenges, both social and spiritual. And that’s why we are here – to engage on those latter fronts – participating in the extension of God’s Kingdom by way of compassionate care and the sharing of the Gospel.

We live in an age of “we can do it”. Whatever we put our mind to, society says, we can achieve. There is no limit except what we place on ourselves. Unfortunately, this deception has also crept into the church, and we find ourselves (at least I do) focusing more on what I can do than looking to God to do the “doing” for me. The Bible is pretty clear that when it comes to Kingdom endeavors, God’s the integral part. He opens doors. He softens hearts. He is the provider, sustainer, and enabler. It’s His Kingdom, His strategies, and once all is said and done, He gets the glory. That’s just how it is.

But a great thing is that God invites us to participate with Him in this work. He gives each of us a job to do (giving, praying, serving, etc) and what He asks from each of us is faithfulness in carrying that out. Since it’s His work, doesn’t it seem reasonable to turn to God in prayer, asking Him for guidance, help, encouragement, and provision? Prayer acknowledges that God “can” and that apart from Him we “can’t”. Prayer acknowledges that it’s God’s work, not ours. Prayer aligns us correctly so that the “horse always precedes the cart” and not vice-versa.

Earlier today, I received an email from one of our Romanian orphanage leaders. As he wrote I could hear the emphasis that he placed on prayer, and how he is raising up his orphans to believe and do likewise. May this be an encouragement for all of us. As we endeavor to help orphans and to share the Gospel in places like India, Nepal, and Romania, may the Lord continually increase our awareness and need for prayer…for apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Putting it into practice: will you take some time to pray for the following things?

1. That God will move on behalf of all our orphans, helping, healing, saving, and preparing them to become all that He has planned for them?

2. That God will bless the orphanage leaders, granting them joy and wisdom, providing for all their needs, and helping them to carry out this important work?

3. That God will use orphan ministry to accomplish His purposes here in India.

Thank you for being willing to participate in the advancement of God’s Kingdom – through prayer.

Sincerely,

Matthew