Spiritually Handicapped

As the years have passed, we have witnessed a trend in many churches. That trend is one of Spiritual apathy. More and more of our churches have become lethargic. They just exist, without fulfilling the commission our Lord has given to us.

            Some will argue that the blame rests on the overall condition of our society, but the world has always been depraved. Some blame culture or circumstances. But the real reason some of our churches are spiritually handicapped is because they’ve lost the power of God.

            We must never forget that God wants to do a great work through the church, but he will only use a vessel of honor. A Christian that has quit serving God is not a vessel of honor, nor is the church that has also grown cold and indifferent.

            For the next few days I will mention 3 things that have handicapped our churches … but identifying the problem will not solve the problem. There must be repentance and change! A few years ago I went to my doctor for my annual exam. She looked me over, listened to my heart, and took a blood sample. When I returned for my follow up appointment, she informed me that my cholesterol was too high. Her diagnosis could only reveal the problem, not correct it. It was only when I took the necessary steps was the problem corrected. This same pattern holds true for every church and every Christian. We can identify what has spiritually handicapped us, but unless we make a correction we will remain spiritually handicapped!

            What has handicapped us?

DESERTED PRAYER CLOSETS

            Every Spirit-filled church I’ve ever been in had one thing in common, they were prayer warriors. Prayer was not reserved for emergencies. They’re prayer lives we constant and consistent. In 2 Kings Chapter 19, the Assyrian army had besieged Jerusalem and destruction looked imminent. But Hezekiah immediately went to the House of God and prayed. He responded that way because that was his habit. His prayer life had much to do with his success.

            We are told to “Pray without ceasing”. This speaks of constant contact with God. There is a time each day that we should set aside to spend with God. It should be quality time without interruption. But that should not be the extent of our daily prayer life. Throughout the day we should talk to our Lord. There are days that I’ll speak to God twenty times, for only a few seconds. I try to always be in the state of prayer. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” James 5:16