and turn from their wicked ways

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

Turning from our wicked ways involves two things—repentance and changed lives. Repentance involves deep sorrow and regret for any past action. The Bible makes a distinction between two kinds of sorrow—”Godly sorrow bring repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death” (2 Corinthians 7:10). Just feeling bad about something leaves us feeling condemned, defeated, useless, disqualified. But true repentance is a result of God’s initiative—God the Holy Spirit convicts us of guilt in regard to sin (John 16:8). Repentance is agreeing with God that what happened was wrong, sinful, contrary to God’s laws. Jesus said that the pure in heart would see God (Matthew 5:8). God purifies our hearts and our relationship with Him is restored as we confess and repent of our sins. God, in His mercy, saves us from receiving all that we deserve, giving us blessing instead of curses, life instead of death. He set this choice before the Israelites (Deuteronomy 30:19), and He sets it before us today. Repentance is vital, but it is not enough. We must also live changed lives. Godly sorrow leads to different actions, not just the words, “I’m sorry.” Jesus said to “produce fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 3:8). We do this by intentionally turning away from sin, and turning towards God. When we stop sinning, we’re telling God we’re serious about following Him.

There is another kind of repentance, often called “identificational repentance,” in which we repent on behalf of others (Nehemiah and Job both did this). We can’t repent unto salvation for someone else, but we can pray for God to forgive sins that were committed by others. God said that He is “punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Deuteronomy 5:9—10). Personally, in our city, and in our nation, we all reap the consequences of sins committed by others. When we repent on behalf of others, we change the course of history.

Prayer: Father, please show me anything that I need to repent of. Give me the strength to stop sinning and turn completely away from sin. Help me to live according to Your plan for my life, and hide Your word in my heart. Show me how to repent personally, for my city, and for my nation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

and seek my face

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

“One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. . . .My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek.” (Psalm 27:4, 8)

I love it when my children come to me. They often have a question or a request, and I love helping them out as much as possible. But I especially love it when they just want to be with me, to spend time together, to be close. God gave us family relationships on earth that, when healthy and working the way that God intended, give us a glimpse into how He wants us to relate to Him. The Father loves it when we have a question or request. But He especially loves it when we come to Him with open hands and an open heart, with no agenda other than to meet with Him. One way to describe that is “seeking God’s face and not just His hand.” Yes, it is important to present our requests to God (Philippians 4:6), but there is “one thing” that is needed. It is the thing that Jesus commended Mary for doing—”only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better” (Luke 10:42). Mary “sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what He said” (Luke 10:38).

As we come to God each day, let’s resist the temptation to have only a one-sided conversation accompanied by a long list of needs and wants. Let’s remember to start with the one thing, the main thing . . . to sit at Jesus’ feet, gaze upon his beauty, and to listen to what He says.

Prayer: Father, please give me a heart like Yours. I want to seek Your face, to gave upon Your beauty, and to listen to Your voice. Keep me from a functional relationship with You, and help me to always seek Your face, not just Your hand. I love You! In Jesus’ name, Amen.

and pray

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

There are many ways to define prayer, but my favorite definition is this — “prayer is the conversational part of the most important love relationship in our lives—our relationship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Prayer is so simple that many Christians neglect it, thinking erroneously that it can’t be that easy, that there must be some special skill required to be able to pray correctly. Some have said that prayerlessness is the greatest disease infecting the body of Christ today. It leads to apathy and hopelessness, because the problems in the world are so overwhelming. Prayer is what happens when we depend on God; prayerlessness is what happens when we depend on ourselves. Jesus commanded us to pray, and modeled prayer for us. Even though prayer is very simple, it is also a spiritual discipline. In other words, it is something that we can grow and develop in. Just as a young child has faltering steps, and with much practice walks and eventually runs, so, too, we can grow in our prayer lives. The best way to learn how to pray is to pray! A common question concerning prayer is whether it is more important to pray alone or with others. That’s like asking whether we should walk on the left leg or the right. Both are needed—make time in your schedule for alone time with God and to pray with a small group. Many people who have strong prayer lives say that they learned how to pray by praying with someone who was more seasoned in prayer than they were. There are many different ways to pray—be yourself and God will help you. Though it often looks like Satan is winning in our communities, the body of Christ has underutilized its greatest weapon – prayer. Change is possible. Countries like South Korea have been transformed in our generation from non-Christian to overwhelmingly Christian, mainly through large numbers of people crying out to God for their nation. We serve a God of miracles, who can defy statistics. In one night, God delivered the entire nation of Israel and they went out blessed and strong. Pray. Pray often. Pray hard. Pray with expectation. But pray.

Prayer: Father, teach me to pray. Keep me from praying out of obligation or religious compulsion; give me Your heart. Please forgive me for my prayerlessness and help me to be faithful in prayer. Increase my faith as I use the mustard seed You have already given me. I want to see Your Kingdom come! Give me confidence and expectation in You, that every time I pray, You hear my prayer and act on my behalf. In Jesus’ name, Amen.