I was asked to write a blog article on “3 Healthy Habits for a Healthy Praying Life” and as I thought about it, I decided to emphasize just one healthy habit. The one healthy habit that I long for ALL believers to establish for themselves is a daily prayer time with our Lord.

Unfortunately, it’s rare to find a believer who has a consistent prayer time. I’m not talking about saying grace before a meal or saying quick prayers when you’re stressed out. I think those kinds of engagements with the Lord are more common amongst Christians but what I’m referring to is a specific time set aside each day to talk with the Father.

Now you might be thinking, “Do I really need a daily time to talk with the Lord? Isn’t the blessing of faith in Jesus the fact that I can talk with God anytime and anywhere?” Well, yes, that’s true. Jesus has certainly brought us into the continual presence of God through His Spirit that dwells within us. However, his presence in us doesn’t create an immediate intimate communion with him and knowing of him.

Paul Miller opens chapter 5 of his book, A Praying Life, writing this, “You’d think if Jesus was the Son of God, he wouldn’t need to pray. Or at least he wouldn’t need a specific prayer time because he’d be in such a constant state of prayer. You’d expect him to have a direct line to his heavenly Father, like broadband to heaven. At the least, you’d think Jesus could do a better job of tuning out the noise of the world. But surprisingly, Jesus seemed to need time with God just as much as we do.”

When I first read that chapter years ago, it completely tweaked my understanding of my relationship with God. I thought exactly what Paul Miller had written. I thought Jesus was in constant communion with the Father (which he was), but I didn’t make the connection that in his humanity, his intimate communion with the Father was facilitated by the very human practice of one-on-one time with the Father. Intimacy with God didn’t just happen for Jesus. (Throughout the Gospels, we read that Jesus regularly spends time alone with the Father - Matt 14:23, Mark 1:35, 6:46, Luke 4:42, 6:12, 11:1, 22:39:40).

Jesus spent time alone with the Father because all significant relationships require undivided attention and time together if intimacy is to grow. And so, if Jesus made space for his relationship with the Father, we also need to do the same. There’s more to say about this but for now I pray you’ll begin the practice of having a specific prayer time with the Lord. It’s the primary habit that must be established in order have a healthy praying life.

by Pastor Victor Chen

A few months ago, I shared about a recommended book the church was giving away. Here are some quotes from church members who were blessed by the book:

“… In terms of us desiring to have intentional relationships that encourage Christlikeness, this book certainly gives a GENTLY convicting and inspiring look at the heart of Christ, which is what we desire …”

“I’ve gained insights into Jesus and his character and nature. Amazing how some works strike a certain chord. It’s nothing new in terms of head knowledge, but it’s been fresh and has offered a different perspective.”

“… the verse has long been familiar. What has been new to me in reading Dane Ortlund's Gentle and Lowly has been the fact that these are not simply characteristics of Jesus, they are his essence. He is gentle, meek, lowly in spirit, humble in heart. He wants to share this essence with you and me.

Come to me. I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you.

I am an avid reader, and lately the books I've been reading are about people overcoming great obstacles, prevailing in victory, enduring great hardships. Some have claimed to do this on their own strength, some have cited God's help. This book has helped me see more clearly the nature of who Jesus is and how he can meet us in our time of deepest need. It is not just something he decides to do, it's his very nature.”

“‘Gentle and Lowly’ is a book not for the faint of heart or the “me” oriented Christian. It has too much depth. Dane Ortlund took me on a unique love journey that pointed to the heart of Jesus in a fresh and timeless way. I found myself savoring, enjoying and allowing the richness of Jesus’ heart penetrate mine. Through the wisdom of the Puritans, the author brings, “glimpses of a divine kindness too great to be boxed in by what we deserve”. If you desire to have “flesh” put on Jesus, this book will take you there.”

For a free copy of “Gentle and Lowly”, please contact me at vchen@evergreensgv.org.

by Ian Nagata

“Say you strike up a conversation with someone on the train who’s never heard of Jesus. How would you share the gospel with him?”

It was a great question. And like many of the other questions people asked about my missionary game plan, I hadn’t envisioned that far yet.

So I said the first thing that came to mind:

 “I’d try to find a way to get him to sit down and read the Bible with me, so He could encounter Jesus.”

Nine years later, ironically, it’s the only question that I would still answer the same way. The person of Jesus is our greatest evangelistic tool.[1]

I could share why I feel this way based on multiple conversations, Bible studies, and yes, random people I’ve met on the trains here in Tokyo. But the past three weeks I got to experience this not only in Japan, but on a global level.

For three Wednesdays, I participated in an online training on the Person of Jesus by seeJesus ministries. Participants logged in from Hong Kong, Japan, the Philippines, and Taiwan, alongside trainers from Guatemala, Jordan, Philadelphia, and So. Cal. 

Besides the personal joy of seeing Evergreeners Jon Hori and Darren Inouye, we delighted in six hours of seeing and studying Jesus’ compassion, honesty, dependency, love, and ultimately, beauty throughout Scripture. (Though Jon and Darren are also quite lovely and beautiful.)

What struck me most however, wasn’t just Jesus’ beauty. Rather, His particular beauty in each of our cultural contexts.

For example, Jesus’ washing the disciples’ feet is beautiful to those of us in America. But have you ever thought how shocking such humility would be in a hierarchical society like Taiwan?

Or take Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son. Have you ever thought how the Father’s welcoming would resonate all the more in a shame culture, like Jordan? 

Or think of Jesus’ acknowledging Bartimaeus amidst a great crowd, asking what He could do for him. Can you imagine how courageous this would be in a culture like Japan, where people ignore each other on the trains in fear of disrupting the peace?

So pardon the seemingly sensational title. But I truly mean it when I say we have no greater evangelistic tool in the world. Because as the hymn says, only Jesus is our “Beautiful Savior, Lord of all the nations,” from Jordan to Japan, La Puente to the ends of the earth,

[1] Stole this phrase from Jon Hori’s teaching during the Person of Jesus online training!