• Is God Asking for Something in our Prayers? | Posted by Mart De Haan on Jun 27 2008

    When Jesus teaches us to pray, “Our Father, who is in heaven…,” he is encouraging us to bring our daily needs to his Father. The second half of this brief model prayer teaches us to say, “… give us, forgive us… and lead us…” (Haddon Robinson gives the most helpful summary explanation I have ever [...]

  • A Case for Short Prayers | Posted by Mart De Haan on Jun 26 2008

    When it comes to prayer, less can be more.
    A few words expressed from the heart, can be far more meaningful and timely than an hour spent covering a long list of praises, confessions, requests, and intercessions.
    Who hasn’t been bored to death by long prayers that are less than heart to heart communication?
    We’ve been told otherwise. [...]

  • What About Praying to Pray? | Posted by Mart De Haan on May 28 2008

    No one said prayer would be easy.
    But had I missed the obvious?
    I didn’t want to repeat myself over and over like a child that won’t take “no” or “wait” for an answer. So how are we supposed to come before the Father in a meaningful way, when prayer is something we have done and tried [...]

  • Wouldn't Start From Here | Posted by Mart De Haan on May 24 2008

    A city guy lost his way on rural roads. Dangerously low on fuel, he came across a man on a tractor who looked like a landowner. “Excuse me, sir,” the traveler said, “but I’m lost and running low on gas. Can you tell me how to get to the nearest gas station”? The man [...]

  • What if God Couldn't Feel? | Posted by Mart De Haan on May 02 2008

    What if the Bible told the story of a God who was all-knowing and all-powerful–but who could feel nothing? In a relationship with such a God, I’m thinking a conversation might go something like this:
    “Hello, God… It’s me again… I need to talk to you about some things that have been on my mind.
    The more [...]

  • What if God Couldn't Hear? | Posted by Mart De Haan on May 01 2008

    What if the Bible told the story of a God who could hear some of our attempts to talk to him, some of the time…but that because of his busy schedule and all of the background noise he has to deal with, he doesn’t hear everything we are trying to say to him? In that [...]

  • Group or Personal Prayer? | Posted by Mart De Haan on Apr 30 2008

    In Judaism a minyan is a quorum of ten or more adults assembled for a religious obligation such as public prayer. According to the famous 12th century Jewish rabbi Maimonides, “The prayer of the community is always heard; and even if there were sinners among them [i.e., the minyan], the Holy One, blessed be He, [...]

  • Can We Pray a Hedge? | Posted by Mart De Haan on Apr 29 2008

    Can we “pray a hedge of protection” around our home, church, or city? For many of us, it’s an important question. If there’s anything we understand, it is how much a parent, spouse, or pastor would love to use prayer to create a fence of security around those we love.
    I often think of the way [...]

  • The Logic of Intercession | Posted by Mart De Haan on Apr 24 2008

    I don’t like to think about how many times I’ve told someone “I’ll be praying for you,” before only following through in a token way. And when I have prayed repeatedly for those I really care about– with no apparent results– I sometimes wonder why I don’t seem to be able to touch the heart [...]

  • The Mystery of Intercession | Posted by Mart De Haan on Apr 22 2008

    Why, at unexpected moments, do I have a profound sense of the Lord’s presence? Why do I wake some mornings with a song of praise and worship running through my mind that seems to have come out of nowhere? Why after times of discouragement does my heart turn back to Christ?
    The thoughts are my own. [...]

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