One of the biggest mistakes we can make in our prayer life is to give up when we don’t see the answer right away. In today’s message from Luke chapter 11, Pastor Ed exhorts us to be persistent in prayer and to never give up. God wants tenacious children who will knock and keep knocking on heaven’s door and who are patient enough to wait on His answer. Pastor Ed also reminds us that our Heavenly Father is a good Father who will not deny his children any good thing.

When the Lord taught us how to pray, He made it clear that prayer should be an unselfish act. When we go to the Father, we shouldn’t just pray for our individual needs to be met, but we should also pray for our community. For the Lord says that we are to pray, “Give us this day OUR daily bread.” In today’s message, Pastor Ed teaches us that as we pray, we are to bring the burdens of our brothers and sisters in Christ before the throne. As we do, our hearts are softened and become unified as a Body.

Do you need advice or wisdom? Are you feeling discouraged or lonely? If your answer is yes to either question, perhaps it is time to pray. In today’s message from Luke chapter 11, Pastor Ed teaches us that we gain access to heavenly wisdom through prayer. We also experience divine fellowship with the Father when we pray. Pastor Ed encourages us to leave time for listening when we pray. If we go to God without giving Him time to speak to us, we will miss out on His important words to us.

When Jesus was on earth, He was a prayerful man. The Lord always found time to go to a quiet place and commune with His Father. In today’s message form Luke 11, Pastor Ed teaches us to follow the Master’s lead by seeking the Lord through prayer. We can pray in a park, in a closet, or at the kitchen table. We can pray on the drive to work or in the shower. Sometimes the Lord will even wake us up in the middle of the night because He wants us to seek Him in prayer. It matters little where we pray, but it matters much that we do indeed pray.

In Luke chapter 10, Jesus is at Martha and Mary’s house. While Martha busies herself with preparations and taking care of guests, Mary plants herself at the feet of Jesus to listen to what He has to say. Pastor Ed teaches us that Mary chose the better path. Our intimate time with God should be cherished and guarded. If our schedules make it impossible to carve out time with the Lord each day, we should make adjustments so that we can follow Mary’s lead to find time to sit at the feet of Jesus.

We live in a culture that pushes us to do. Many Christians therefore busy themselves serving the Lord. However, sometimes we can get so busy serving that we forget that intimacy with Jesus is more important than what we do for Him. In today’s message from Luke chapter 10, Pastor Ed teaches us about a woman named Martha who fell into the trap of busy service rather than treasuring her time with the Lord. Pastor Ed also reminds us that what we do for the Lord should naturally flow out our time with Him.

The Bible teaches that the Greatest Commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. The second greatest is to love our neighbor as ourselves. In Luke chapter 10, we learn through the parable of the Good Samaritan what it looks like to love our neighbor. Pastor Ed teaches us that when we love our neighbor, we join them in their world and show that we care. Loving someone can come at great personal costs. Being a good neighbor means helping people that can give nothing in return.

In Luke chapter 10, Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan. In the parable, we hear about a priest who was too busy or perhaps too prideful to help a person in need. However, a Samaritan does all he can to help this same man in need. Through this story the Lord demonstrates just how we can love God and our neighbor. In today’s message, Pastor Ed reminds us that all the Bible knowledge and scholarship in the world results in nothing if that knowledge does not change our heart and behavior.

In Luke chapter 9, Jesus revealed His glory on the top of the mountain of transfiguration to Peter, James and John. Pastor Ed teaches us today that there are holy set apart moments in the lives of Believers that help sustain us and give us strength. However, just like Jesus and the other three men on the top of the mountain had to leave that place, we too have to eventually descend the holy hill to rejoin the fray below. We cannot make the mistake of wanting to stay in that holy moment or place forever.

In Luke chapter 9, Jesus leads Peter, James, and John up a mountain to pray. Pastor Ed admonishes us to do as Jesus did and carve out particular time to pray. Some of us pray better when we are in a natural surrounding such as the top of a mountain where Jesus and His disciples were. We can pray in our car, in a closet, or during lunch break at work. It matters not where we pray. What matters is that we find the time to connect with our Heavenly Father so we can cultivate intimacy with God and seek the Lord’s will.