(Notes from the session and audio for download are available. The video will be up shortly.)
The Speaker Q&A wrapped up the 2011 Conference for Pastors. There was excellent interaction over the submitted questions. Here are some memorable quotes:
- "The most important you do on pastoral visitation is pray. The most important thing that we do in our day is pray. We don't really believe that anymore, not like the Reformers did, and that is why we are more prayerless." — Joel Beeke
- "In the Scriptures I see that God answers prayer. And when I don't see the answers, I look at my life. I look at my relationship with my wife, because the Bible seems to say that there can be a hindrance to our prayers being answered based on human relationships. I also need to check my motives, because the Bible says we shouldn't ask selfishly. In light of Isaiah 58 I also ask myself, Am I really caring for the poor? I look at my holiness, because the Bible says that the prayer of a righteous man is effective. James tells me that I must not doubt when I pray, so I examine my faith." — Francis Chan
- "At this moment, every pastor at this conference should go for broke in prayer. Lay hold of God in prayer! I don't have answers to all my prayers, and I don't know all the reasons God does what he does. But it is either give up on God and go sell insurance, which some of you may do—I hope you don't. Or, it is the response of trust. He said to keep knocking and I'm going to keep knocking and petitioning God in prayer." — John Piper
- "Go home after this conference and think back over your entire life and make a list of the prayers you think were answered. You may be surprised at how many there are. I think we have more answered prayers than we realize. However, I also thank God for unanswered prayer, because that is when I go to the crucible and God does a deep work in my heart during those times." — Joel Beeke
- "When we have a relationship with God, all the supplications and requests we bring to God give us joy because we are releasing all our cares to him, knowing he is sovereign. He is in control." — Jerry Rankin
- "In Jeremiah 2, God says twice that no one is lamenting to God. He wants to be engaged with over what grieves your heart." — Paul Miller
- "This is God's Word, it is smarter than you are. God is smarter than you are. The smartest people that have ever lived have tried to understand God's book." — John Piper
- "God will accomplish his will, and we pray for that." — Jerry Rankin
- "You cannot persist in low levels of obedience and have high levels of assurance in prayer." — Joel Beeke
Topic Prayer Categories: Conferences