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This is the final blog in a mini-series exploring questions raised by President Trump’s declaration of a national Day of Prayer in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Just a few weeks later the number of cases increased until the USA had more than anywhere else in the world. Does this mean that God doesn’t listen to prayer or that He couldn’t answer prayer? Is this a challenge to the Christian faith? The crux of the matter is that the Christian God has not promised to listen and respond to all  our prayers, like a genie in a lamp. True prayer requires childlike humility expressed by faith in Jesus Christ rather than spiritual self-confidence. Like a good father, God is free to give the answers “no”, “wait”, or “this is better” as well as “yes” and He doesn’t have to explain why. In fact, if we take seriously what the Bible says about God it is clear that we could never understand fully even if He did explain. However much we grasp it is always a little bit more complicated t...

Let’s assume, for the sake or argument, that Trump is a man with real faith in the Lord Jesus Christ who is following the Bible’s command to humble himself in calling the United States to pray. There is much in the media portrayal of the man that might cause us to question that but ultimately only God can judge his heart. So for the sake of argument, let’s give him the benefit of the doubt. The Christian God is not a genie or a vending machine who is obliged to listen to every prayer. We can go further than that and say that He is not obliged to answer every prayer in the way we expect. To illustrate this think about a parent with a nagging child. When children ask for things they really need - like food, water, or rest - a good parent is only too happy to provide. There are occasions when children ask for things that would be harmful - to drive the car, play with dad’s chainsaw, or parachute off the roof with an umbrella - and a parent has to say “NO!” But there are other oc...

The Christian  God is not a genie who will answer our demands just because we go through the motions of praying. God is not a mechanical vending machine in the sky. There is nothing ‘automatic’ about calling for a Day of Prayer. We cannot judge President Trump’s heart but God can and it is up to Him to respond as He sees fit! This begs another question: why should God listen to any of our prayers? This is a really good way to explain one of the most important things Christians believe about prayer. You may not be so interested in that but I would ask you to stick with me because it is, in turn, essential in exploring how Christians understand the idea of a ‘Day of Prayer ’. One of the ways God is portrayed in the Bible is as a great King. If you have ever been to visit Buckingham Palace or the White House you know that tourists are kept at a safe distance by multiple layers of fences, walls, and well-armed security guards, both uniformed and in plain clothes. You ca...

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump announced a national day of prayer in America but it is not clear if or how God answered those prayers. What do we make of this ? Chatting it through whilst preparing to write this blog I received the tongue in cheek reply "Well, would you listen to him?" Joking aside there is a very good question implicit in this comment. Why should God listen to Donald Trump? Does calling a 'day of prayer' compel God to listen and do whatever people ask him? It is easy to imagine God as a vending machine: press the right religious buttons and put the right spiritual coins in and whatever we want falls into our laps. It is also easy to imagine God as a kind of genie in the sky: use your prayers to rub His lamp the right way and He pops up to give you your three wishes. Sadly, some people claiming to be Christians are deliberately encouraging this view of God promising that He always gives healing and prosperi...

In mid-March President of the USA Donald Trump called for a national day of prayer . By early April he was confident there was light at the end of the tunnel . Yet a BBC report dated 29th April states that "The United States alone has more than one million confirmed cases - four times as many as any other country". So what does this mean for religion? Was God able to answer but didn't? Was God unable to hear? Did God create the coronavirus? Should all this cause Christians to question their faith? These sincere questions, asked respectfully by an long-term friend who is not a Christian, have had me thinking hard for several days. Rather than attempt a single answer which could get quite lengthy, I hope to explore this over a few shorter blogs. I want to start by turning the whole thing inside out, on its head, and flipping it around ! Inside out: these are  very important questions. The existence of suffering is something for which every religion an...

Jesus voluntarily gave up His freedoms in order to win forgiveness and life for sinners. He was ‘imprisoned’ to the Will of God through a willing obedience. At the end of His life He was captured by Roman soldiers, mocked, beaten and crucified. After He breathed His last on the Friday afternoon, His body was incarcerated in a sealed and guarded tomb until the Sunday morning. Then He broke free of the chains of death and rose back to life. Demonstrating a power that could even escape the grave, Jesus resurrection life is now marked by an unrestrained freedom to go and do as He chooses. That first Sunday evening Jesus’ friends had gathered in a room and locked all the doors for fear that they could be treated as the master had been. But a locked door was no hindrance to Jesus. He appeared in the room - a real physical presence - showed them His wounds and brought them a message of peace. A similar thing happened in another locked room a week later. On the day of Pentecost t...

One dear friend responded to yesterday’s post with the words: “It feels very dark in the valley ”. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul URGES   that “ supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions.” At this time of crisis we need to take this even more seriously than usual. So I’ve just made my list .  It contains the names of The Queen The Prime Minister Boris Johnson The Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Our local MP Ian Murray It also contains the names of: Two dear friends and a close relative who are hospital doctors. Two dear friends who are GP’s. An uncle who is a critical care nurse. Family members of colleagues who work in midwifery and the ambulance service. The GP’s who work at our local surgery. These people on the front line of this crisis need our prayers. They need our prayers NOW as they prepare themselves. Other personal messages from fr...

We were at the shop early yesterday morning needing some milk and bread for breakfast. Alas we were too early ! The distribution depot are struggling to keep up with the demand. The supplies are there but people are emptying the shelves faster than they can refill them. There was nothing the shopkeeper could do to help. There is a problem of 'supply and demand'. God's storehouse are full of grace. In Luke 11 Jesus is teaching us the procedure we should follow in requesting extra resources so as to avoid any issue of supply and demand with regards to divine grace . (1) Fill in the order form . IN Luke 11 Jesus tells the story of a man who urgently needs bread for an unexpected visitor. The man goes where he knows he can get bread and he keeps asking until he gets it. Jesus goes on to say these famous words "And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened. For everyone who asks receives, and the ...

Until recently, most of us had only seen empty supermarket shelves on TV reports from Eastern European countries in the years after the 'Cold War' ended. Now the UK supermarket supply chain is struggling to keep up with the demands of mass panic buying. People are stockpiling painkillers, toilet paper, soap, pasta, and beans driven by the need to 'self isolate' and the very real possibility of a 'national lock-down' coming into force. Today the workers of the Faith Mission have been asked to set as much time aside as they can to call on the Lord in prayer. Perhaps you are doing something similar in your own Christian circle and if not perhaps you would like to join us? As we pray remember that we are NOT coming to a supermarket with empty shelves. 1. We are coming to  The Throne of Grace (Hebrews 4:16). This is the place where God exercises His Almighty Authority in giving Generous and Benevolent Gifts freely to those wh...