The church at this point in the book of Acts has witnessed persecution. They have witnessed the arrests of apostles (Acts 5). There has been a scattering of the people to escape the situation in Jerusalem. Stephen has become the first martyr of the church and James, the brother of John, has been arrested and beheaded. These major events lead to the testimony of the church as it sees another one of their own leaders (Peter) fall into the hands of King Herod. As Peter awaits his public execution it should be noted that because of the miraculous escape of the apostles in chapter 5, Peter is surrounded by four squads of soldiers (that is 16 soldiers). Two are constantly chained to him while the other two members of the squad stand guard. It is clear that Herod wants no escape this time.
However, we witness something here in Acts chapter 12 that is a beautiful picture of the church. Scripture tells us that they are gathering together in the homes and praying. They are praying constantly. Through their own experiences as a church they are taking the opportunity to communicate and plead with God for the release of Peter. They are focused. They are purposeful. They are praying with a sense of urgency. They understand the magnitude of Peter's arrest and do not want to see him suffer the same fate as James did.
Peter, on the other hand, is at peace. Scripture tells us in Acts 12 that on the night before he was to die, he was sleeping. In fact, he is sleeping so soundly that the angel of the Lord has to do more than nudge him to wake him up! He had to speak quite loudly and shake him a bit. It is a testimony of faith that no matter what happens that next day, that Peter is fully trusting in the Lord. Either he will be freed and delivered from Herod's prison, or he will be with the Lord in glory if he is martyred. The former occurs through a miraculous event and joins those (the church) that had been praying for him. If you have not read the account of this story, I encourage you to do so!
It is such an encouragement to read about the examples in Acts 12 that are set before us as a church today. There is no doubt that the church's testimony is to be one that resounds in our hearts as we strive to be a body of Christ that is a body that prays. Prayer is not a program. It is not just a meeting that we have. Rather it is an essential part of who we are as followers of Christ. We as a church in this day can grab ahold of the examples in scripture and have prayer be focused and purposeful. It should be something that is at the very core of who we are as believers. We can be the church that prays with urgency. An urgency that looks at our days and realizes that they are uncertain. An urgency that pleads with the Creator of the universe to accomplish his will here on earth. We can be a church that looks with great anticipation upon the predetermined gatherings to pray and comes with a peace that surpasses all understanding. God gave us the gift of prayer! He gave us testimonies of people long ago to be an example for us today. Let us pick up the torch that is being passed to us and run with it. I am excited to see prayer become an essential piece of everything we are not for our own glory but for the glory of God! For He is worthy to be praised!
The challenge is out there. Look for opportunities to pray with other believers and pray with passion, joy, purpose, focus and urgency! For you are communicating with your Creator and He hears your every word! What an amazing gift!
Be a blessing to someone today! God's peace be with you!
Humbly,
Ryan Zurbriggen
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Here we go!
I am hopeful that through this reflection and updates that you will be able to see my heart for the Lord and His people. This journey has been very humbling since the position was voted on and passed back in mid-July. I feel it is necessary and appropriate to communicate my thoughts as we move forward.
I firmly believe that we are doing some great things through the Church. With that being said, I feel very strongly that I don't want to create programs or do things just for the sake of doing them. Therefore, as I spoke with the deacons on this topic I communicated my desire for us to pray. Pray that God would give us the vision for family ministry through First Baptist. Pray that He would be the one directing our decisions and actions. Therefore, as we move through the early stages of this position, Renessa and I are praying and the deacons are praying. We also would ask to that you would pray with us in this venture. It is our hope that through prayer we would be given clear, focused visions for our family ministry.
Efforts are already being made to communicate more with you on this subject and others. I am providing a blog to anyone that would like to subscribe to it. This blog will be a link to thoughts, reflections, resources and encouragements to families on their journey with the Lord. If you would like to take a look it is at: A Life Worthy of the Call. The title is based off of Ephesians 4.1 where Paul is challenging the Ephesians that as they have came to Christ in faith that they live their lives worthy of that call that He placed on their life. It is a tremendous reminder for me that as a man, husband, father and just a person in this world that I am Christ's ambassador to those around me and for Christ's sake I am living my life in such a way that honors the sacrifice that He made out of love for us. In addition, the life that I live personally should spill over into my life as part of the body of Christ. The Church is called to live a life in a similar fashion. This verse and set of verses in Ephesians 4.1-16 drives me. I look forward to serving in the role of family pastor at First Baptist Church in Elgin but more importantly I am excited to see our church continue to live in such a way that is worthy to the call that He has placed on us. To Him be the glory!
In Christ,
Ryan Zurbriggen
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