This morning at the beginning of Dr. Moore’s Systematic Theology I class, many classmates shared prayer requests for various bad things that were happening to them or their family; much personal calamity and hardship being suffered. So in light of that and just hearing of some recent news, I have a prayer request:

Pray for my close friend back home in Toronto. She got hit between the eyes with a softball on Saturday; there’s a swelling under her eyes, possibility of a broken nose and internal bleeding. She can see, but she’s in pain (though mostly emotional)… and would welcome the prayers of seminarians and saints who read this blog. May the Lord bring healing upon her, to give her strength and peace, to see Christ’s hand at work in her time of suffering.

We read the following passage this morning in class. It was related to our call to Christo-centric study of theology, but it was heart-wretchingly appropriate in these times…

24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Colossians 1:24-29

E. M. Bounds once said, “There is no arriving at a high state of grace without much praying, and no staying in those high altitudes without great praying.”

There’s a part of my life I was reminded of earlier tonight that I really need to pray about. Theology is as serious as anything else in life, but this, makes life even more serious than I think it needs to be. However, there is a gravity to this that last a lifetime, so I suppose the seriousness of this matter is appropriate. Nevertheless, I need to pray more — a lot more. Especially for grace, that high state of grace; the undeserved favor from the Lord kind. The God’s-riches-at-Christ’s-expense kind.

On that note, I leave you with some photos from Southern Seminary here in Louisville, Kentucky:

I found the following as today’s entry on my desktop calendar of quotes:

“The goal of prayer is the ear of God. The living child of God never offers a prayer which pleases himself; he wonders that God listens to him, and he accounts it a wonderful instance of condescending mercy that such poor prayers as his should ever reach the ears of the Lord God of Sabbath.”

C. H. Spurgeon

Lord, teach us how to pray aright,
With reverence and with fear;
Though dust and ashes in Thy sight,
We may, we must draw near.

We perish if we cease from prayer;
O grant us power to pray;
And when to meet Thee we prepare,
Lord, meet us by the way.

Gracious Father of light, give us eyes to see Your worth.
Heal our blindness. Save us from the deadly disease of seeing the world as worth more than its Maker. Restore the capacity of our hearts to cherish infinite beauty and savor infinite sweetness.
Deliver us from the deadening effects of thinking this short life is the main thing.
In Jesus’ name, we pray,
Amen.

(From Ch.3 of John Piper’s “Life Is Vapor”)