DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)
Be pleased to grant to your churches more power over the sons of men. Oh, Lord, make your ministers throughout all the world to be more fruitful in soul winning. Let us not rest without sowing the good seed beside all waters. Forgive us our coldness and indifference; forgive us that we sleep as do others, for it is high time for us to awake out of sleep.
Oh, Lord, help us to live while we live; shake us clear of these cerements, these grave clothes, which cling to us; say to us, most blessed Jesus, what you said concerning Lazarus of old, “Loose him, and let him go” (John 11:44). May we get right away from the old death and the old lethargy, and live under the best conditions of life, diligently serving God.
Amen.
VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)
“But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first.” (Revelation 2:4)
What love we had for our Savior the first time he forgave our sins. When we first loved him, how passionate we were. There was not a single thing in the Bible that we did not consider most precious. There was not one command we did not think to be like fine gold.
Where did we lose our first love, if we have lost it? Have we lost it in the world? Too much of the world is a bad thing for any person. Have we lost our first love by spending too much time with worldly people? Have we forgotten how much we owe Christ? Have we neglected communion with Christ? There are a thousand possible reasons, but each person must search his own heart.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCE
May God wake us up and forgive our indifference
Today we prayed that God would wake us up, forgive our indifference, and give us much influence over “sons of men,” that is, non-Christians. And then in Revelation 2:4, we read about the tragedy of Christians who have neglected to love others.
Many Christians today have failed to love our neighbor, demonstrated by our unwillingness to do evangelism. Getting active in evangelism will transform your life, your church, and your community, and that’s why Spurgeon wrote his book The Soul Winner — to encourage every Christian to do the work of evangelism.
This book isn’t a typical evangelism guilt trip, it will fill you up with amazement and excitement at the privilege of evangelism. We get to tell people about Christ! That’s amazing!
I hope The Soul Winner will be a helpful resource as you prepare to share the hope of Christ this summer.