Big, bigger, biggest

The city. In our church we're talking, preaching and thinking about it. We're praying for her and attempting to get involved (corporately that is; many individual church members already are involved on different levels).
Sometimes I go to interdenominational prayer meetings where, again, we pray for our city. Some will prophecy over her, other will proclaim whatever over her and, again others just claim (big things, very big things). It is good to see believers pray. It is not so good that, despite all our claiming, proclaiming and prophesying, we, as believers and children of the most high God, were not able to infiltrate in the realm of crime. Maybe we were ignorant, or took for granted that, with all the big words we spoke, the crime would automatically decrease, or even disappear.

Yes, Rotterdam won a price! We’re the most criminal town in the Netherlands!

Isn’t that sobering! Some believe that our words cause life or death. Despite the words of life we speak, the result is death. In our society, in our families. We seem to be drifting farther and farther away from the desired outcome. Our children don’t seem to desire personal holiness. It’s our children that don’t think twice about premarital sex, co-habitation or an occasional marihuana filled cigarette. And yet, it’s the same children that will tell you that they love Jesus. The apostle John would say: they haven’t seen Him and they don’t know Him (1 John 3:6).

And us, the praying, prophesying, proclaiming parents? We are as guilty. Guilty of ignorance, guilty of compromising, guilty of prophesying without a deep, overwhelming conviction of sin and acts of repentance.

Moving away from the group I might and up hiding behind; what is my role?

I will answer that with a prayer:

Lord! God! Forgive me for I have sinned.

I am guilty of thinking and speaking in terms of “us” and “them”

I am as guilty as any other person in my city

Open my eyes so I can cry

Open my heart so I can give

Open my mind so I can see

Open my life so I can give

Lord, I will stop feeling better, bigger and more

I am as guilty as any other

Help me not to pray bigger things than my heart is willing to see and believe

Help me to stand in the gap and beg for your mercy an behalf of me and my city

God, poor out your spirit of conviction so I may repent and receive your love