Showing posts with label Secret. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Secret. Show all posts
29 November 2022
31 August 2013
A Great Secret
Matthew 6:2-4 (The Message)
"When you do something for someone else, don’t call attention to yourself. You've seen them in action, I'm sure—‘playactors’ I call them—treating prayer meeting and street corner alike as a stage, acting compassionate as long as someone is watching, playing to the crowds. They get applause, true, but that’s all they get. When you help someone out, don’t think about how it looks. Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out."
'Nuff said.
16 January 2012
Shhh - It's A Secret! : part two
Following on from last week's blog entry under this heading - and giving me another excuse to use the pic of one of my childhood heroes from the Hanna-Barbera animation studio, Secret Squirrel - here's more from this passage from The Sermon On The Mount about the activities that we are encouraged to carry out in secret.
Matthew 6:6 (NIV)
"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
Alongside those acts of charity that we are encouraged to perform in secret - there's also those times each day where we simply need to get down to prayer, to recharge our spiritual batteries, sharing quality time with your Lord. This is also something that we are encouraged to do in secret...
This is not saying public prayer is wrong - there's a place for public prayer as well as private prayer. Jesus practised both types during His earthly ministry. However, there's something particularly special about the intimacy of your private devotions - for instance, this allows for less distractions. Like our acts of generosity, prayer shouldn't be made public just for show - if you're doing it just because people are looking, you've got the wrong end of the stick.
Also, take note - the verse starts with 'when', not 'if' - it's taken as read this activity is essential.
Prayer is the Christian’s vital breath, the Christian’s native air, his watchword at the gates of death; he enters heaven with prayer. - James Montgomery
Matthew 6:6 (NIV)
"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
Alongside those acts of charity that we are encouraged to perform in secret - there's also those times each day where we simply need to get down to prayer, to recharge our spiritual batteries, sharing quality time with your Lord. This is also something that we are encouraged to do in secret...
This is not saying public prayer is wrong - there's a place for public prayer as well as private prayer. Jesus practised both types during His earthly ministry. However, there's something particularly special about the intimacy of your private devotions - for instance, this allows for less distractions. Like our acts of generosity, prayer shouldn't be made public just for show - if you're doing it just because people are looking, you've got the wrong end of the stick.
Also, take note - the verse starts with 'when', not 'if' - it's taken as read this activity is essential.
Prayer is the Christian’s vital breath, the Christian’s native air, his watchword at the gates of death; he enters heaven with prayer. - James Montgomery
14 January 2012
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)