40 Days of Prayer | Days 11-20

You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a candle and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)

The world is dark, as sin has infected and affected everything and everyone. A quick glance of the news, a quick read of the internet, a quick scan of headlines reveals that our world has been negatively impacted in every imaginable way by sin. The only hope to dispel darkness is for light to permeate the situation. Left to ourselves, we cannot manufacture this kind of light. However, in relationship to Jesus, the light of the world (John 8:12), we can radiate his light that’s within us. In this way we can shine his light with the words we speak and the actions we take. The light we’re to shine doesn’t belong to us but is given to us by the Holy Spirit. When you follow the example of Jesus, you shine his light into your situation.

Identity one thing you can do today to let your light shine in the life of your one. Pray that the Holy Spirit will enable your one to see the light of Jesus as you shine your light.

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44)

How valuable do you perceive God’s kingdom to be? In the movie National Treasure, main character Ben Gates abandons everything to find a treasure his family spent decades unsuccessfully searching out. With his eyes on the prize in front of him, he stops at nothing to follow the clues hidden throughout the United States to find the treasure. Similarly, the man in Matthew 13:44 joyfully gave up all he had because of the value of what he was getting in return. The kingdom of God held so much weight to him that selling all he had was a small cost compared to his gain. As missionary Jim Elliot wrote, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Never stop seeing the kingdom of God as the greatest treasure and set your heart adamantly on inviting your one into this joy.

Pray you would value the kingdom like the man in Matthew 13:44 and that it would propel you to share your findings with your one.

Although I am free from all and not anyone’s slave, I have made myself a slave to everyone, in order to win more people … I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some. Now I do all this because of the gospel, so that I may share in the blessings. (1 Corinthians 9:19, 22b-23)

Paul did whatever he had to do to remove barriers that may have prevented people from believing and trusting in Christ by wholly giving himself to the needs and service others. It is paradoxical that Paul sees the giving of himself as “sharing in the blessings.” While our sin nature tells us to hoard our time, talent, treasures, and even the good news for our own joy and blessing, there is great benefit for both the hearer and the proclaimer of the gospel. May we seek to share in the blessings to be had when we become all things to all people in order to save some.

Pray God would help you identify one way you could “become all things” to your one that Jesus might save them. In what ways may the Lord be calling you to serve your one in order to remove barriers?

Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please people, but rather God, who examines our hearts. For we never used flattering speech, as you know, or had greedy motives – God is our witness – and we didn’t seek glory from people, either from you or from others. (1 Thessalonians 2:4-6)

Have you ever allowed the opinions of others to keep you from sharing your faith with your one? Perhaps a perfect opportunity presents itself, and you feel the distinct nudge of the Holy Spirit. You may notice the other person’s voice is muffled and tuned out because insecurities begin to flood your thoughts. “What will they think of me? What if I offend them with what I believe? Who am I to share this message, and what if they ask questions for which I don’t know the answers?” God has entrusted the message of the gospel to you, and perhaps this moment is one of the good works in which he has prepared in advance for you to walk (Ephesians 2:10).

As you share the gospel this week, don’t allow the temptation to seek the glory of others crowd out your boldness and faithfulness to share the message.

Although we could have been a burden as Christ’s apostles, instead we were gentle among you, as a nurse nurtures her own children. We cared so much for you that we were pleased to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us. (1 Thessalonians 2:7-8)

You’ve probably heard the statement, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Sharing the gospel is not less than a verbal proclamation or announcement, but it is more. We share the good news of Jesus in word while sharing our lives. When we display the love of Christ to others and build relational capital, we begin tilling the soil of their hearts to not only hear the good news but to experience it through our own lives and friendship.

This week, as you look for opportunities to share Christ, don’t neglect sharing yourself. Share your joys, your struggles and your life with those you are trying to reach for Christ. How will you share your life and the gospel with your one this week?

No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer. (2 Timothy 2:4)

The concerns of everyday life can leave our zeal for evangelism quenched. Our ever-growing to-do list piles high with no end in sight. Errands are left undone, tasks unfinished, and cares of this world begin to choke out our vision for the kingdom of God. We can easily lose sight of the fact that, as important as these things are, this world is not our home. May we seek to cultivate our own love for the Lord each day, so that our desire to please him overcomes the busyness of our hearts.

Pray that the motivation of sharing Christ with your one is the desire to please the Father and the glory of his name.

For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, so that you won’t grow weary and give up. (Hebrews 12:3)

If we are living intentionally to advance God’s kingdom, we will grow weary. Our souls and bodies grow tired with time and age. Life’s harsh realities put a wet towel on our fiery passion which once burned brightly. But we find hope to endure when we look at the cross. As we think on the person and work of Jesus, we place our hope in the one who endured immense hostility to the point of death on the cross. He did this so we would not give up. As the great crowd of witnesses spurs you on, keep running the race set before you with endurance, with your eyes ever fixed on the Savior. While it may take years or decades to see that friend, family member or your one come to Christ, “be steadfast, immoveable, always excelling in Lord’s work, because you know that your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Pray the Lord would give you endurance as you share the gospel with your one.

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:44)

Sometimes you may feel pressure that you are responsible for a person becoming a Christian. Maybe you place an overemphasis on saying the right words or finding the right time to share the gospel. Rest assured, God will give wisdom regarding how and when to share. As a follower of Jesus, you can find joy in the fact that it is not in your ability to save people. You are called to deliver the message, and God gives you the privilege to be used by him. As you share the best news with your one, leave the results of salvation up to the God who draws people to himself, and enjoy the joy of joining God in his mission as he makes all things new.

Pray that as you share the gospel with your one, you would be reminded that only the Father can draw people to himself.

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. (1 Corinthians 3:5-6)

If you like fast-action results, you should not take up gardening. It requires the slow and steady act of consistent day-in and day-out nurturing and cultivating the plants. Likewise, sharing the gospel where we live, work and play can be slow work. We build relationships and share the love of Christ in word and deed. We pray that our friends and family who do not know Christ will turn away from their sins and turn toward him in humble submission. In this sometimes-slow process, the Lord uses other men and women to call people to himself. Each person has a role they play in their influence of drawing people into the kingdom. While God uses our labor and the labors of others, true spiritual growth comes from God. As you share the gospel with your one, resist the urge to become frustrated when people become Christians or grow spiritually as a result of another’s influence. You may plant and another may water, but ultimately God causes them to grow.

Recall the people who played a role in your own story of salvation. With a thank you note, a phone call, a text message, etc., communicate your gratitude in their willingness to be used by the Lord to call you to himself.

A God-fearing woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying. (Acts 16:14)

Opportunities to share the gospel can happen at unexpected times, and we must be vigilant to recognize them when they come. Paul and his companions went to sit by a river to pray. When they found the space occupied, they engaged the women who were there. It is here we witness God open the heart of Lydia in response to Paul’s proclamation of the gospel.

We never know the degree to which God is working in a person’s heart, but we can depend on God to open the hearts of those with whom we share the gospel. God and his Word are sufficient to do the heavy lifting in our evangelism. Remain faithful to share his Word. You never know who may be listening and whose heart will be opened.

Pray you would be ready to share the gospel in the unexpected moments of life this week.