Stand Firm in the Faith: Prayer

Scripture Reading:

• Philippians 4:1 – “Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm

thus in the Lord, my beloved.”

• Philippians 4:6 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication

with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

• Luke 22:41-43 –

“And he (Jesus) withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and

prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will,

but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.”

Thought:

Imagine you are one of those people who do not check the weather before playing. While you

are on the furthest side of the course, you hear tornado sirens go off, and you remember you are near

the home of someone you have known your whole life. You are not going to say, “oh tornado,

smorshmado” (there are not a lot of words that rhyme with tornado). You are going to run to their home

and ask for shelter.

Paul is giving the Phillipians advice on how to stand firm in where they are in Christ. One way is

giving up our anxieties to the Lord through prayer. An example of this is Jesus in the Garden of

Gethsemane (Luke 22:39-46). Jesus was about to be crucified, taking on our sins so we could live eternally

with Him. The agony (cup) He was experiencing was not about the physical torture, but both taking on

our sins, which God abhors and experiencing the separation from God the Father we should experience.

While Jesus asked the Father that the cup be taken from Him, Jesus was still willing to take the cup,

knowing the Father would sustain Him through it. The Father rather than taking the cup from His only

Son, since it was the only way for us to receive eternal life, sent an angel to strengthen Him thorough it.

You may be thinking to yourself, well, that is Jesus, but I can’t be expected to pray like Him. A

better way to look at it, is if Jesus needed to come to the Father in prayer, how much more do you and I

need to. As Christians, prayer should be our initial response to all concerns, followed by going to God’s

word, the Bible. How can we utilize prayer and thanksgiving in our Disc Golf community? We can keep

connected to the life issues of other players. During difficult times, offering to pray for them and praise

God during good times.

Reflection 1: What is my initial response to stressful situations?

Reflection 2: When I pray is my focus on what I want or only on God’s will for me?

Prayer: Lord, thank You that I can turn to you in times of stress and joy. I pray that by Your Holy Spirit,

You will enable me to develop an automatic response of prayer during times of struggle. In Christ’s name I pray. Amen!

Contributed by: Dean Langenhahn | PDGA #2088