“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” Revelation 5:12, NIV
As we lock arms together in prayer with believers all across Ohio, one of our goals is to see renewal and flourishing peace in our communities. We long to see God’s Kingdom come and His will done here on earth as it is in heaven. A true win for us would look like a mighty spiritual awakening and undisputed, tangible evidence of greater measures of common good and holistic thriving (economically, socially, physically, spiritually, etc.). These aspirations line up with scripture directives such as Jeremiah 29:7 where the Lord instructs the Babylonian exiles to: “seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”
While this vision is certainly a large part of our heart’s desire, ultimately the glory and worship of Jesus our King is our ultimate “why.” He alone is worthy, and ultimately, we are seeking His face over seeking His hand to move among us. The famous 2 Chronicles 7:14 passage states: “If My people who are called by My name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” This scripture makes it clear that healing the land and cleansing from sin happen as a result of seeking God’s face, humbling ourselves, praying, and turning from our wicked ways.
Being motivated to see healing in our land is a noble pursuit, but ultimately our eyes are fixed on our Savior. He is our portion. As the Psalmist says: “Who have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (Psalm 73:25-26)
Prayer as Worship
As Pray for Ohio seeks to strengthen and mobilize prayer across our state, we ultimately seek to see Jesus worshipped and adored in greater measure across the body of Christ. Unfortunately, in today’s culture, prayer seems to be synonymous with primarily asking God for things rather than abiding in His Presence and beholding His glory. Our primary pursuit in prayer is worship of the only one found worthy. We endeavor to lift our gaze to Jesus’ majesty and glory, magnifying Him over and above the requests on our hearts.
So what do we mean by worship? Click here to read more about our view of worship