Jesus Challenge: Spend time thinking about an outreach event that your cell could run to share the gospel with non believers. Brain storm ideas and thoughts. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box.
When you come up with an idea, list the steps that would be necessary to get that idea into motion.
Try to set a date for this event to actually happen.
If you are planning to use the church facilities please let the office staff know as soon as possible.
Use the rest of this page for notes etc.
Read 1 Thessalonians 3:5, 1 Corinthians 10:13
Experience teaches us that temptation from the evil one is most intense and focused just before, or soon after, a person becomes a Christian. Satan will do anything to stop a person from becoming a Christian and to lead a new believer off the track. When I witnessed a young lady give her life to Christ it wasn’t long afterwards that her de-facto husband went on a rage and stopped her from attending church. Satan wanted to destroy her faith. A young adult male gave his life to the Lord on the door step as we doorknocked a particular area. Immediately he found old friends from his wayward lifestyle calling him, encouraging him to join them in drinking binges and drug-fests. Satan wanted to destroy his faith.
Satan will use temptation to draw new believers away from Christ. He’ll deceive them and use that deception to stop them praying and fellowshipping and reading the Word.
More stable converts though are not immune to temptation. Satan will deceive long term believers into thinking that prayer is pointless. He’ll try to convince them that intercession is impotent and that meeting together is a waste of valuable time. He’ll do anything to stop our fellowship, our praying and our reading of the Word.
But you and I have a valuable arsenal in our fight against the adversary. God has promised us that when we are tempted He will strengthen us and allow us to stand up under the weight of that temptation. God doesn’t necessarily promise to remove the temptation immediately. He promises to strengthen you and to give you a way out so that you can stand up victorious through the temptation.
If we have such a promise then we need to be praying for ourselves and our brothers and sisters. Jesus taught us to pray such a prayer in the Lord’s Prayer. He told us to pray, ‘Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one’.
Given that we have a promise and a prescription to pray, we should be praying for each other and ourselves to stand firm against temptation. Missionaries need prayer that they will not be given over to depression or apathy about their mission work. Elders and teachers need prayer that they won’t be tempted to skimp on teaching preparation time or that they won’t just regurgitate someone else’s teaching. Men in the church need prayer against the temptation to lust. Women need prayer against the temptation to find their security in things rather than in God. Youth need prayer against the temptation to chase image or sexuality or careers and to leave God out of the picture. Children need prayer against the temptation to forget God and to let their mums/dads worry about that kind of stuff!
Paul was concerned that the Thessalonians would give way to the wiles and temptations of the evil one. What did Paul do? He prayed for them and did his utmost to encourage and strengthen them. Let us take a leaf out of his book.
Prayer:
Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.
Adoration:
Confession:
Thanks:
Supplication:
V Pray for those who teach in your congregation - Sonday school teachers, youth leaders, elders, pastors and preachers. Pray that they would know God’s hand upon them leading them in truth and victory. Pray that God would strengthen them and guide them through times of trial and temptation. Pray that each one would stand strong and be victorious in their hour of temptation.
V Ask God to strengthen the men in your congregation to be men of integrity. Pray that men would be encouraging one another and putting aside addictions, temptations and lustings to focus on the Word of God, fellowship and prayer. Pray that these men would lead valiantly in Christ.
Discussion Questions For Families and Groups
1. Who do you know in your church that might be facing temptation? Spend time praying for them today.
2. What do you think praying against temptation will achieve?
3.
No comments:
Post a Comment