Quiet Walk

[Judy Harder]

April 20

John 11

After Jesus raises his close friend, Lazarus, from the dead, many believe in Him.

INSIGHT

Jesus was ministering on the east side of the Jordan River, about a day's walk from Bethany, when Lazarus fell sick. Messengers were sent to tell Jesus, who waited two days before returning to Bethany. He found that Lazarus had been dead for four days, apparently having died the same day the messengers were dispatched. So Lazarus was dead by the time Jesus learned about his illness.

Why, then, did Jesus delay His return for two days? Jesus knew Lazarus' condition. His delay was to heighten the manifestation of the power of God. Jesus called, "Lazarus, come forth!" And Lazarus came forth. The result of this miracle? Many of the Jews believed in Him, and the Son of God was glorified.

PRAYER

· As a God, both of power and compassion, we offer Him our praise:

Stand up and bless the Lord your God
Forever and ever!
Blessed be Your glorious name,
Which is exalted above all blessing and praise!
You alone are the Lord;
You have made heaven,
The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
The earth and everything on it,
The seas and all that is in them,
And You preserve them all.
The host of heaven worships You
(Nehemiah 9:5-6).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,
And saves such as have a contrite spirit
(Psalm 34:17-18).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:.

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· a stronger desire to be like Christ,
· the ministries of your church,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen (Ephesians 3:20-21).

[Judy Harder]

April 21

John 12
After the triumphal entry, the multitudes herald Jesus as their Messiah.

INSIGHT

It is easy to get someone to talk about God, but try to talk about Jesus, and it is not so easy. People will often talk about "feeling close to God." But mention Jesus, and people start to get uncomfortable. Say that Jesus is the only way to God, and people get downright offended.

But Jesus says that if you accept Him, you accept God; and conversely, if you do not accept Him, you do not accept God. When someone talks about being close to God but wants nothing to do with Jesus, you can be sure he is not yet close to God.

Regardless of anyone's unbelief, here is the simple truth: Jesus is God the Son, and He is the only way God has provided for sinners' reconciliation with Himself.

PRAYER

· Praise God for His merciful provision of a Savior:

For I know that my Redeemer lives,
And He shall stand at last on the earth;
And after my skin is destroyed, this I know,
That in my flesh I shall see God,
Whom I shall see for myself,
And my eyes shall behold, and not another.
How my heart yearns within me!
(Job 19:25-27).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

I said, "Lord, be merciful to me;
Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You"
(Psalm 41:4).

· As you consider God's mercy, confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand (John 10:27-28).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater appreciation for Christ,
· a revival in our nation,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6).

[Judy Harder]

April 22

John 13

Jesus meets with His disciples and institutes the Lord's Supper.

INSIGHT

More than 2000 years ago, the Lord Jesus Christ ate a ceremonial meal with His disciples. This meal originated in the Passover and pictured Christ's death, our need to receive Him personally for our salvation, and the fact that all those who are His people are a communion of saints. During the meal, He instructed His disciples to observe this ceremony regularly and with gladness until His return.
And so, whether called the Lord's Supper, Communion, or the Lord's Table, Christians today observe a solemn but joyous ceremonial meal which looks back to the redemption of the Cross and forward to the glory of the Second Coming.

PRAYER

· Praise God that He is powerful enough to keep the promises pictured by Communion.

The Lord reigns;
Let the peoples tremble!
He dwells between the cherubim;
Let the earth be moved!
The Lord is great in Zion,
And He is high above all the peoples.
Let them praise Your great and awesome name - He is holy
(Psalm 99:1-3).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

If I regard iniquity in my heart,
The Lord will not hear
(Psalm 66:18).

· As you contemplate the mercy of God, confess any sins which the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

But certainly God has heard me;
He has attended to the voice of my prayer.
Blessed be God,
Who has not turned away my prayer,
Nor His mercy from me!
(Psalm 66:19-20).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater understanding of other traditions within Christianity,
· heart-felt worship at your local church,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Finally, offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb! (Revelation 19:9).

[Judy Harder]

April 23

John 14

Jesus reassures His disciples with His promise to send the Holy Spirit.

INSIGHT

A very tender and intimate scene begins in chapter 14. The disciples do not understand clearly everything that is going on, but they know that something big is about to happen and that Jesus will be leaving them. Their Teacher, their Mentor, their Friend for the last three years is leaving, and their hearts are crushed with the burden.

In this spirit, Jesus speaks softly, kindly, tenderly to them: "Let not your heart be troubled; . . . I go to prepare a place for you (in My Father's house). And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself" (14:1-3). Again: "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you" (14:18).

How loving and compassionate. And He loves us just as much as the disciples.

PRAYER

· God's love for us is indeed cause for us to give Him our heart-felt praise and adoration:

Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth! Sing out the honor of His name;
Make His praise glorious.
Say to God, "How awesome are Your works!
Through the greatness of Your power
Your enemies shall submit themselves to
You (Psalm 66:1-3).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits
(Psalm 103:1-2).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully (2 Corinthians 9:6).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater love for others,
· the work of missions in Australia and the islands of the South Pacific,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen (1 Timothy 1:17).

[Judy Harder]

April 24

John 15

Jesus teaches that a personal relationship with Him, and others, is central to His design.

INSIGHT

There are times when our prayers are answered and we seem "in tune" with God. At other times, our prayers seem not to be answered, and we seem far from God.

Jesus gives us two directives to keep in mind as we ponder our prayer. First, we are to abide in Him. This abiding, among other things, includes fostering a conscious awareness of His presence at all times and bringing all thoughts, attitudes, and actions in line with what we understand of His teachings. Second, "and My words abide in you" must involve studying, memorizing, and meditating upon the Word so that we pray intelligently, knowing God's will ahead of time on some things. As we grow in these two areas, more and more of our prayers will be answered.

PRAYER

· The Lord is pleased when we offer Him our praise:

Let my mouth be filled with Your praise
And with Your glory all the day. . . .
But I will hope continually,
And will praise You yet more and more.
My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And Your salvation all the day,
For I do not know their limits.
I will go in the strength of the Lord God;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only
(Psalm 71:8, 14-16).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20).

In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength (Isaiah 30:15).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater faithfulness in evangelism,
· national and world affairs,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen (1 Timothy 6:15-16).

[Judy Harder]

April 25

John 16

The Lord teaches the disciples about prayer through His own example.

INSIGHT

We often gain by our losses. The one who has suffered no loss is still a shallow person. It was expedient for the disciples that the Lord should leave because the Spirit's presence was contingent upon His physical absence. Christ's work must be complete so the Spirit can apply it to the hearts of men. Jesus must die and be resurrected. The Holy Spirit will draw men to His offer of salvation. And the best news? We'll see Jesus again.

PRAYER

· God forgives our sin and beckons us to Himself for which we offer Him our gratitude and praise:

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. . . .
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands for us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands
(Psalm 90:1-2, 17).

· Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight-
That You may be found just when You speak,
And blameless when You judge
(Psalm 51:4).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You
(Isaiah 26:3).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· the homeless in America,
· greater wisdom for living life,
· the needs of your immediate family,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen (1 Peter 5:10-11).

 

[Judy Harder]

April 26

John 17

Jesus prays that the Father will make His disciples fruitful and give them future glory.

INSIGHT

The mark of a Christian should be love. In Matthew 22, we read that the two greatest commandments are love for God and love for our neighbor. In John 13:35, Jesus says, "By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." In John 17:21, Jesus says if Christians have unity (based on love), the world will believe that Christ was sent from God. When our badge is love, the world is convinced that we are genuine disciples of Jesus, rather than hypocrites.

PRAYER

· In the words of this psalm, offer your praise to the Lord, who is patient with us when we doubt:

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,
And Your faithfulness every night . . .
For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your work;
I will triumph in the works of Your hands . . .
To declare that the Lord is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him
(Psalm 92:1-2, 4, 15).

· Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

The Lord is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. . . .
As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust
(Psalm 103:8, 13-14).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world (John 6:51).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· others to see Christ in you,
· laborers for the harvesting of souls,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Finally, offer this prayer to the Lord:

Blessing and glory and wisdom,
Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,
Be to our God forever and ever. Amen
(Revelation 7:12).

[Judy Harder]

April 27

John 18

After His arrest, Jesus is taken before Pilate and the religious leaders.

INSIGHT

As the power of the Creator of the universe was veiled in human flesh in Jesus of Nazareth, men came with torches and weapons to subdue Him.
He asked, "Whom are you seeking?" They answered him, "Jesus of Nazareth." Jesus said to them, "I am He." With the force of those words from Jesus, they "drew back, and fell to the ground" (John 18:6).

It must have rattled their confidence to have to arrest Jesus. How much greater significance it lends to Jesus' words: "Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself" (John 10:17-18).

For our sakes, Jesus laid down His life that we might take it up. He became what we are so that we might become what He is. Praise and glory to God!

PRAYER

· Offer to the Lord your praise for His willingness to lay down His life for you:

Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who only does wondrous things!
And blessed be His glorious name forever!
And let the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen and Amen
(Psalm 72:18-19).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

No temptation has overtaken me except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow me to be tempted beyond what I am able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that I may be able to bear it (based on 1 Corinthians 10:13).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation (Hebrews 9:27-28).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater sensitivity to sin,
· the ministry of your local church,
· your activities for the day.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, . . . through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (Hebrews 13:20-21).

[Judy Harder]

April 28

John 19

After being cruelly mistreated, Jesus is crucified and gives up His spirit.

INSIGHT

The apostle John reveals the most detailed picture of Pilate's judgment of Jesus. At first, Pilate says, "I find no fault in Him at all" (18:38). Then, he scourges Jesus, hoping to placate the Jews. Without success, he makes efforts to release Jesus, but the Jewish leaders will not stand for it. Anxious about his political reputation in Rome, Pilate caves in, washes his hands of the affair, and releases Jesus to the Jewish leaders to be crucified.

We place much of the blame for Jesus' death on Pilate. But if at any point in time Pilate had repented of His deed, Jesus Himself would have welcomed him into the kingdom of God.

PRAYER

· Give your praise to the Lord for sending His only begotten Son to provide the way for your redemption:

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.
He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities
(Isaiah 53:10-11).

· Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:

All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all
(Isaiah 53:6).

· Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.
For the kingdom is the Lord's,
And He rules over the nations
(Psalm 22:27-28).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· deeper gratitude for your salvation,
· the integrity of those who represent Christ in the pulpit,
· your activities for the day.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever
(Psalm 23:6).

[Judy Harder]

April 29

John 20

After Jesus's resurrection, He appears to His disciples and reassures Thomas of His deity.

INSIGHT

God commands us to believe in Him, but He doesn't require us to believe in Him contrary to the evidence.

Thomas needed to be shown that the miracle of Jesus' resurrection was really true. God provided Thomas with the proof he needed. Jesus appeared to Thomas and said, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands. . . . Do not be unbelieving, but believing" (20:27). Jesus saw what Thomas needed and gave him sufficient evidence to believe.

You don't have to be afraid of sincere doubt. That doubt can be changed. Just examine the evidence of Christ's work in the New Testament. Then ask God to help you to believe according to the evidence. Like the father in Mark 9:24, your prayer can be: "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!"

PRAYER

· Praise the Lord that He has made the truths of His existence, power, and righteousness plain for all people to see:

Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the
foundations of the earth?
It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in
(Isaiah 40:21-22).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord:

When I know to do good and do not do it, to me it is sin (based on James 4:17).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:

For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him
(Psalm 103: 11-13).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

· greater love for the glory of God's creation,
· the work of missions in Asia,
· your activities for the day,
· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Sing to the Lord a new song, and His praise from the ends of the earth (Isaiah 42:10).