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Presence Weekly: Waiting with Effective Prayer

1 Peter 4:7-11 "Waiting for Christ Differently" (Part 1 of 3)

Our weekly Devotional plus a prayer guide, ICYMI links to articles and podcasts, events calendar, and of course, the “Two Thumbs Up!” recommendation of the week.

https://youtu.be/FcaHsbfkHA8

[First Things]

  1. Our new Faithful Presence Podcast series, “Thinking Deeply,” is underway with episodes from Dr. Peter Lillback of Westminster Theological Seminary and Dr. William Peel of 24Seven Faith. New episodes every Wednesday.

  2. Please let us know if you are interested in joining one of our in-person Washington discipleship cohorts or reading groups that start in September.

[The Devo] Waiting for Christ with Effective Prayer

7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers.8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 4:7-11  

As Peter nears the end of his pastoral letter to the elect-exiles of Asia Minor, the next section initially appears as the intended conclusion. Indeed, that may be the case. Peter’s use of a standard signatory ending, “To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen,” may well have been the intended conclusion. But then, after some rest, the Spirit of God compels Peter to add some additional, concluding thoughts.  Another option is that Peter was so caught up in the power of the Holy Spirit’s guidance that he broke into doxological expression before continuing his thoughts in verse 12 through the end of chapter 5. Indeed, it could be both.

Neither explanation has any significant consequences for pastoral application.  What is clear is that Peter is bringing his thoughts together in very practical terms and is doing so by introducing new thoughts while revisiting earlier themes. 

Important and Urgent 

Whether it is the fictional Bart Simpson or the guy outside Union Station on Capitol Hill, we have all seen (or heard) that guy with the sign (or bullhorn)  stating, “Repent! The End is Near!”  While this is not the forum for an in-depth biblical and theological overview of the various views of end times eschatology or their adaptation within American evangelical cultures, the widespread teaching on “the Rapture” and “the Second Coming” has proven far more beneficial to monetization in songs, books, and movies than it has to the adaptation of whole-life discipleship. 

It is unlikely that Peter believes Christ’s Second Coming is only a month or two away.  Rather, he is firmly stating that the clock is ticking and each day brings us closer to the fulfillment of Christ’s mission of “making all things new.” Perhaps the best visual is an hourglass. When Jesus ascended into heaven and was seated at the right hand of the Father, the hourglass was placed on the table, and the sand began pouring through. There is a limited amount of sand and, therefore, a limited amount of time. 

If Peter had been to a Franklin Covey seminar, he would have been familiar with the widely used tool for prioritization, the Eisenhower Matrix: important/urgent, important/not urgent, not important/urgent, not important/not urgent. 

Credit: The Facile Things blog

Peter is addressing an issue that is just as present today as it was in the first century. We either get so caught up in the imminent return of Christ that we lose our missional perspective, or we understand the implications of the Second Coming so poorly that we have no missional focus. 

Prayer belongs squarely in the Important/Urgent quadrant.

Self-Controlled 

The words Peter chooses for instruction are pastorally similar but critically unique. In calling for the elect-exiles to be self-controlled, he is calling disciples of Christ to act and pray in an intentional and restrained manner. To use an increasingly prevalent term, Peter is calling for “emotionally healthy” prayer. 

Rather than spending our days emotionally hijacked by the current news cycle, political maelstrom, or culturally driven trigger alert, which are so commonplace in the public square, Peter is calling for a deep breath followed by measured prayers about the issues that so easily send us into an emotional frenzy. Many of us are surrounded by colleagues given to knee-jerk reactions to extremely complicated policy issues. If we are to “take every thought captive” (2 Cor. 10:5), then we should contain the thought in a corral of prayer rather than letting it loose on the open public before responding. 

How can we, as Christians, respond with more self-control and less knee-jerk reaction? This is why this section comes at the end of the letter rather than the beginning. As Peter has already said, 

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

Secure in Christ, our future hope in him is the ground upon which our self-control resides. 

Sober-Minded

Continuing the theme of revisiting previously introduced terms, Peter’s use of sober-minded recalls his earlier teaching, 

13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy. 1 Peter 1:13–16.

Here, again, we see the connection of the future hope that is guaranteed to us by Christ, as integral to our mental focus and navigation amid a world than is constantly suggesting that we move prayer to the not important/not urgent category and replace it with a social media generated item-of-urgency whose importance is only be measured in likes and retweets.  Distractions of this kind were a concern for Paul as well, 

5 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5 For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6 So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.  1 Thessalonians 5:1–11 (ESV).

Living as elect exiles within the public square, in a posture of faithful presence, requires waiting differently than those around us, and especially Bart Simpson. The whole-life discipleship Peter is advocating produces a waiting that includes effective prayer, which comes from being self-controlled and sober-minded.

As we shall see, it also includes waiting with affective love.

Application Questions

How does the Eisenhower Matrix help you to evaluate the present location of prayer?

How does the concept of balancing “the end of all things is at hand” with waiting reorient your valuation of prayer?

In what situations do you find yourself reacting more like Homer Simpson than a self-controlled and sober-minded disciple? What aspects of this passage will help you improve your ability to wait with effective prayer?

[Faithful Prayer] 

  • Cabinet Agency: For servants and leaders at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) who are charged with building a better-connected world through universal high-speed Internet access, more efficient use of the public airwaves, modernized public safety communications, and ensuring that the Internet remains an engine for innovation and economic growth—relying on evidence-based decision making and cutting-edge research.

  • Think Tank, Lobby group, NGO: For servants and leaders at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) in their legislative policy efforts, which aim to defend dignity and combat sexploitation through political advocacy at the national and state levels with bipartisan support of all legislative solutions. 

  • Weekly delegation: The congressional delegation of Nevada, which is home to 18 legally-sanctioned prostitution houses that generate an estimated 75 million dollars a year.  

  • Agency News: The NTIA recently released important revisions to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which provides $42.45 billion to expand high-speed Internet access by funding planning, infrastructure deployment, and adoption programs in all 50 states and territories. This program funds projects that help expand high-speed Internet access and use. It supports infrastructure deployment, mapping, and adoption.

  • Personal requests: For a long-term senior policy expert who is “running on fumes and disillusioned.” For a former administration staffer who is beginning a new position helping clients navigate a federal program. For two women who are pregnant and increasingly uncomfortable. For someone who has just closed on a home and another individual who is negotiating on a property. For a senior-level staff member with a family, who has just started an MBA program. 

[The Page, The Pod & The Stack]

[What’s Happening?]

This Week 

Next week

  • NOTE → Due to Washington’s annual August Recess, most think tanks and policy centers have no public events scheduled. 

  • The Live! Concert Series is back for another summer of great music from 12:00 - 1:00 pm EDT weekdays on Wilson Plaza. Next week’s schedule includes:

  • August 14-18, The Westin Washington DC Downtown, You can join in or watch the DC Bachata Congress, ranked as the best Latin dance festival in the U.S. five times, DCBX takes over the nation’s capital for five days each summer. Veterans and newbies of dancing bachata, the sexier-than-salsa dancing style from the Dominican Republic, will have plenty of chances to strut their stuff, from concerts to contests to workshops.

  • August 16, 1:00 - 6:00 pm, Fairfax County’s Shipgarten hosts their Summer Renaissance Festival. Enjoy sampling a wide variety of drinks, food, compete in festival events for prizes, or take pictures in the photo booth - there’s something for everyone!

[Two Thumbs Up!] The ESV Scripture Journal

If you enjoy studying a hard copy of the Bible, but prefer not to bring your Bible with you everywhere you go, then the folks at Crossway have just the solution. The ESV Scripture Journal features journals for every book of the Bible. With text on one side and ruled lines on the other, these journals allow in-depth interaction with the text, the freedom to mark, circle, underline, and highlight, along with space for notes and personal reflections. They are excellent for those who work through one book at a time, as well as for grabbing a journal for the week’s sermon. The journals can be purchased by book or as a set.

ESV Scripture Journal in use.

[Last Things]

If you enjoy this newsletter, please share it with a friend. If you want to join a Bible study, discipleship cohort, or reading group, please get in touch!

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