I love the challenge of reading through the book of Luke for the month of December. The challenge I am referring to is to read a chapter a day from December 1- December 24. Since there are 24 chapters in the book of Luke, you will read through the entire life of Christ from the foretelling of His birth until His ascension up into heaven by Christmas Eve. This is just one thing we can do during the Christmas season that will help us truly experience the reason for the season.
So I began today, December 1 with Luke 1. What a chapter! But this year I added my own personal twist as I read Luke 1.
Allow me to explain… For the last 6 months I have chosen a chapter from the book of Psalms to pray through. Psalms is a wonderful book to pray through. I find that these passages prepare my heart to meet with my Father and as I use the words and principles to shape my prayers it increases my faith in God’s promises.
“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17)
And faith is such an important ingredient in prayer.
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” (Mark 11:24)
“And the prayer of faith shall save the sick,” (James 5:15a)
Back to Luke 1. So I decided that I would choose a passage or two from my daily chapter to guide me as I pray. Today, there were 80 verses full of promises, prophecies and miracles that took place in the lives of real people just like you and me!
Luke 1:45-49 really stood out to me.
“And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.”
Here are some thoughts about prayer I jotted down after my prayer time in Luke 1:
Pray for God to increase your faith and the faith of those you love. In verse 45, Elizabeth tells Mary that she is blessed because she believed. God desires to bless us. And I desire for Him to bless my home, family and loved ones. So I pray for increased faith and that God will help us to trust Him more. We are truly blessed when our trust is in the Lord! (Psalm 2:12, 40:4)
Pray for God to complete the work He has begun in the lives of others. I named the names of my children, grandchildren and more when I pray this prayer. I remind my Heavenly Father that I am confident in the work He has begun in each of their lives and that He will perform it according to Phililpians 1:6. A loved one may walk away from God, but I believe God continues to do a work in their heart. I, also, thank God and praise Him for the work He has done and continues to do in my own life. I love that Elizabeth reminds Mary that God will do what He said He would do.
Pray that God will be magnified. Mary wanted her life and her situation to make God look great! She wanted God to get the glory. Pray that God be glorified through each trial you go through and each victory or success that you have. As you pray for others, pray that they live a life that will bring glory to God.
Pray for others to experience the joy of salvation. Here I took a moment to rejoice in getting saved years ago! I praised God for saving souls from hell and giving us a home in heaven with Him for all of eternity. I believe that God wants His children to enjoy life. He wants us to rejoice in the fact that we are born again children of God! I pray for lost loved ones and neighbors to trust Christ as their Savior so that they can know the joy of being saved. I desire this for my family and my grandchildren. Not everyone who is saved is a joyful Christian. Personally, I have struggle with being a happy Christian at times. So my prayer was that God would restore to those who have lost their joy the joy of His salvation. (Psalm 51:12)
Pray with humility. We see in verse 48 Mary humbled herself before God. Humility seems to be a way of life for Mary. In verse 28 the angel told her she was highly favoured. The word favoured means to grace, i.e. to indue with honor. James 4 teaches us that God resists the proud but He gives grace to the humble. Mary’s humble attitude reminds me of Psalm 8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? Amazingly, the God of the universe looks down on us, visits us and desires to do a work in our life to bring us His blessings. But so often we are full of pride and when we are, we miss the blessing of God. I pray often that God will deliver me and others from my own will and the spirit of pride. This is a continual foe for the Christian.
Finally, pray for God’s strength and power. In verse 49, Mary recognized the power of the work of God in her life. It amazes me that God offers us the resource of Himself and the power of His Word for every trial, every temptation and every battle we face. The angel told Mary, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”(Luke 1:37)
I find when I pray through scripture, my prayer time lasts longer and is sweeter.
Maybe some of you will take the challenge with me to pray through the book of Luke this Christmas season. If you do, let me know what God is teaching you about faith and prayer. I would LOVE to hear from you.
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