Cedarville Magazine, Summer 2021

CHAPEL NOTES HOW CHILDLIKE PRAYER CAN CHANGE YOUR WORLD THE POWER OF PRAYER The following is an excerpt from an April 17, 2017, chapel presentation by Thomas White. Listen to his full message at cedarville.edu/WhiteApr17 . The following is an excerpt from a February 11, 2020, chapel presentation by Jedidiah Coppenger. Listen to his full message at cedarville.edu/CoppengerFeb20 . You have a God that is with you in the hard times. He is blessing you in the good times. He is worthy of your prayers. He is worthy of your praise. And so we should come to Him at all times. Prayer is not natural. Our culture runs against it in at least three ways. First, we are taught to be independent. Do it on your own. Rugged individualism. A n d p r a y e r s a y s , “ I ' m dependent on God.” That's hard to confess. “God, I need your help.” That is humbling. And our culture does not encourage that philosophy. Second, we are taught to be busy and efficient. If you ask anybody, “How are you?,” the response usually is “I'm too busy, too much work to do.” We think having too much to do is a sign of success. If your life is busy, you think that's successful. If you were to say, “I don't have anything to do,” you might indicate that you're not that important. They don't see that God can do more, and we do more, when we start our day in prayer. Third, we fill our minds with so much that we rarely stop to meditate and listen to what God may be saying to us. When we pray, we evaluate life more accurately. We understand in a better way. Prayer allows things to settle so that we can see more clearly. Thomas White is President of Cedarville University. Jesus says if you want to have a prayer life, you need to start with a childlike perspective. But you don't stop there. In Matthew 6:9, after He says, “Our Father in heaven,” Jesus tells His followers what to pray. Prayer doesn't work; God does. He can do more in a moment than we can do in a lifetime. Jesus doesn't end His prayer the way most of us end our prayers. In verse 13, He says, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” He doesn't even say “in Jesus’ name.” That's why in verse nine He said you should pray like this, not exactly like this. It's about the elements, not the order. It's not about the wording; it's about the posture. He wants you to remember Whom you're talking to. And when you see Him for who He is, you can walk out of that conversation without the burden you brought into it. That's how prayer produces peace. That's childlike trust. Deep inner peace does not come from understanding. It comes from trust. God is doing amazing work here, but He wants to do more, and He wants to do it through all of us. So as you grow older, grow more childlike, because Jesus showed us that childlike prayer changes the world. Jedidiah Coppenger is Lead Pastor of Redemption City Church in Franklin, Tennessee. When we pray, we evaluate life more accurately. Deep inner peace does not come from understanding. It comes from trust. Watch Chapel on Your Smartphone or Tablet With CU Chapel+ Livestream chapel and access other Cedarville videos on demand with the CU Chapel+ app. Learn more at cedarville.edu/cuChapelPlus . Chapel is also livestreamed each weekday at 10 a.m. at cedarville.edu/chapellive . Cedarville Magazine | 29