praying effectively: Practice Communion (1 Cor.11:23-34)

(1 Corinthians 11:23-34)  For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.

27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

33 So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment. The remaining matters I will arrange when I come.

Reminder:  "praying effectively" involves knowing God's will.  When we pray in His will (in His name), He may choose to not answer those prayers in the time period that we would like, or HOW we would like - but He will answer those prayers!

It is God's will:

- that we frequently take communion together as a family in order to remember what Jesus did for us on the cross (11:24-26)

- that we do not take communion lightly, or take Jesus' work on the cross for granted (11:34)

- that church members take communion together as a family, and not try to exclude anyone  (11:33)

- that before taking communion, all children of God should examine themselves and reconcile where they need to, otherwise God the Father will allow consequences of our sinful actions to get our attention (11:27-32)

Today's prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for Your work on the cross.  May we never take Your death and resurrection for granted.  May we as a church family, remember and celebrate Your sacrificial love together with sincere hearts.  May it be a time of reflection in order to remain reconciled with You and each other.  Guide us as a family to grow closer together in Your will and in Your unity.  Amen.