Begin with Prayer | Luke 6:12-16
This message was preached at Sherwood Community Friends Church on Sunday, September 7, 2025. You can watch the video in full by clicking below. This is adapted from the book B.L.E.S.S.: 5 Everyday Ways to Love Your Neighbor and Change the World.
Intro to the Series
As you might be aware, today we are beginning a new sermon series based on this book - B.L.E.S.S.: 5 Everyday Ways to Love Your Neighbor and Change the World by Dave and Jon Ferguson. Throughout my message today and the next four weeks, you’ll hear references to this book.
The Gospel - the Good news of Jesus Christ - is that not only did he come to earth, defeat death, and rise up again so that I may have new life, that I may know the love of the Father. That’s only half of it! Not only is this good news for me, but the second half is that God came to earth for others too. So my job as a Christian is not just to grow closer each day with the Father through Jesus, but then also to be sharing this same Good News with others.
And did you know that your missional engagement has a strong correlation to your spiritual growth and engagement? As some of you know, last year, I completed my Master’s degree. For my final project, I researched this very topic. What I discovered was that for 85% of participants, there was a direct correlation between internal spiritual growth and outreach engagement. High engagement in spiritual disciplines (like Bible reading and prayer) meant high engagement in outreach (like telling others your Jesus story or serving at your local food pantry), and vice versa.
In a larger study done, when practicing Christians were presented with the statement “Part of my faith means being a witness for Jesus,” 96% are in agreement that this is necessary! Yes! We should be making disciples!
But, in the same study, 28% also believe that it’s “wrong to share one’s personal beliefs with someone of a different faith in hopes they will one day share the same faith.” And as the age decreases, more believe it’s wrong to share in this way.
So how do we make sense of this? What do we do with this information?
When I am confused about what it means to live faithfully in my walk with Christ, especially when the culture around me seems to scream noise louder than I can think, I find that I must quiet myself and go to scripture. So what does the Bible say?
Well, many of us are familiar with some of the final words of Jesus, commonly known as the Great Commission.
“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:19-20a, CSB
But honestly…this feels really big. Too big. As one person reading this scripture, it can feel daunting. All of our inadequacies pop up and we wonder
What can I really do to “make disciples”, “baptize them”, and “teach them”?
I think, in our culture anyway, this practice is often referred to as evangelism, and it feels out of our comfort zone.
We think of evangelists as those street preachers or people like Billy Graham. Now, there is a place for these kinds of people. Lots of people come to know Jesus through their giftedness and ministry. But there isn’t this competition that we have to tally up how many we convert in order to win some prize when we meet God. In fact, when we read Jesus’ words, he doesn’t say
Go and make converts.
No… He says Go and make disciples…
Discipleship is the journey of bringing others to be closer followers of Jesus, so that they might be in right relationship with the Father, living in his love.
Yes, even if someone doesn’t know Jesus, you can still be discipling them through relationship. And relationship is a long-term investment.
Believe it or not, if your faith is important to you, studies show that 79% of your friends who are outside the church wouldn’t mind talking with you about your faith. Within friendship, there are more open doors for conversation.
Over the next five weeks, we are going to hone in on how we can be a part of bringing others closer to Jesus, focusing our attention on B.L.E.S.S.ing those around us.
B - Begin with Prayer
L - Listen
E - Eat
S - Serve
S - Share your Story
BLESS is a cool acronym and easy to remember. I’m all for a good acronym. But there is more spiritual truth here to remember.
Biblical Basis
In Genesis 12, God begins his covenant with Abraham (at that time he was known as Abram). God says this to Abraham in verses 1-3:
““Go from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. ” 2 I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt, and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Genesis 12:1b-3, CSB
In three verses, the word bless or blessing is in there 5 times. That’s pretty important! But notice, it’s not just about Abraham receiving blessing just for the sake of being blessed.
“Look at me! I’m so blessed!”
No. God very clearly says that Abraham and those who follow in his faithful footsteps will be blessed to be a blessing to others.
Jumping ahead to the Gospels, I think we can all agree that Jesus was a blessing wherever he went. He would heal people. Forgive them. Be with them in their humanity. Jesus’ presence was one that was so welcoming, that people even brought their children to him for blessing.
13 People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. 14 When Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive, the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” 16 After taking them in his arms, he laid his hands on them and blessed them. Mark 10:13-16, CSB
Jesus didn’t have to post on Facebook or send out a group chat about where he was going to be and for everyone to bring their kids to be blessed by him. His presence preceded him and he couldn’t keep the people away. Not only did people want to be around Jesus, bu they wanted him to be with their children too. As a parent, I know that I was pretty protective of who was around my son. But these parents couldn’t get their children to Jesus soon enough.
There’s another story of Jesus that Nathaniel shared last week when he was here. If you missed that message you can catch the replay on YouTube or on our podcast, but the premise of the story is worth repeating today. The story is about a tax collector named Zacchaeus. Now, tax collectors were not the good guys in the gospels. They were thieves, overtaxing the citizens and stealing to become rich themselves. What’s worse is that Zacchaeus as a Jewish tax collector was seen as a traitor to his people, stealing from them for his benefit and for the benefit of the Roman government.
So Jesus was on his way somewhere else, but he noticed Zacchaeus and he said “I’m coming over!” Jesus inserted himself into Zacchaeus’s life.
Too often we are afraid to insert ourselves into the lives of others. We fall into that trap of fear, insecurity, self-preservation and we avoid taking the risk of saying to someone - “Hey! I’m coming over!” - because we are afraid of rejection.
And what was the result of Jesus’ insertion into Zacchaeus’s life?
8 But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord. And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much.”
9 “Today salvation has come to this house,” Jesus told him, “because he too is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:8-10, CSB
Jesus was with Zacchaeus relationally and it led to his salvation - a true repentance of turning from his horrid ways to now being a blessing to others, above and beyond his crimes. Now Zaccheaus was a true son of Abraham, Jesus declares.
When we risk rejection and seek to be a BLESSing, lives are literally redirected and changed.
B - Begin with Prayer
So where do we begin?
We begin with prayer.
We know that without prayer, we can only go so far on our own. It doesn’t matter the infrastructure, the systems in place, how we communicate, even serving here at the church or at Willowbrook or wherever. Doing the good works, while important (that’s another week), will only get you so far if you don’t have prayer.
Prayer is so important that Jesus himself relied on prayer.
Luke recounts when Jesus went into the wilderness for 40 days prior to the start of his ministry on earth. While he was there he fasted and prayed and confronted the enemy. When he returned Luke says
14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread throughout the entire vicinity. Luke 4:14, CSB
Prayer was at the very heart of Jesus’ preparation and the source of his power. It’s how he stayed connected with the Father and how he was able to be effective. Before he stepped into the public work of preaching, healing, and calling disciples, he went first into the wilderness with his Father.
It was in prayer that he found the strength to withstand temptation. And with that time of immersed prayer, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit.
This practice would fuel his ministry for the next three years.
Like when Jesus was selecting his disciples:
12 During those days he went out to the mountain to pray and spent all night in prayer to God. 13 When daylight came, he summoned his disciples, and he chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles: 14 Simon, whom he also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; 15 Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. Luke 6:12-16, CSB
How many of us have a decision to make and we just make it without talking about it with God first? I think most of us would agree, in our human wisdom, we wouldn’t have selected a tax collector, fishermen, rebels, or any of the other ragtag guys Jesus picked.
But Jesus went to the Father, because he knew the importance of selecting the people who would be joining with him in his earthly ministry. He didn’t decide in his human wisdom. He decided with his Father.
These men would not only be the people who would journey with him for 3 years but also the ones who would eventually spread the message of the kingdom of God after his time on earth came to an end.
What seems like indifferent or temporary decisions today have an eternal impact so we must go to God in prayer first.
Another example.
Jesus was in high demand in his ministry. It would have been easy for him to never break away for times of prayer. After all, he was God right? Did he actually need prayer to do all the healings and preachings? I don’t know the answer to that question, if he NEEDED to pray, but regularly we see that Jesus pulled away to pray and be with the Father.
“Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he got up, went out, and made his way to a deserted place; and there he was praying. Simon and his companions searched for him, and when they found him they said, “Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let’s go on to the neighboring villages so that I may preach there too. This is why I have come. He went into all of Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.”” Mark 1:35-39 CSB
And even as Jesus is facing certain death, his priority is not to get his affairs in order or spend time with his mother. Jesus prays:
“Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he told the disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”” Matthew 26:36 CSB
And what does Jesus pray?
He prays that death might be taken from him, but then he surrenders to death anyway.
He prays for his disciples.
He prays for the ones who will come later. You and me.
If Jesus himself depended on prayer to fuel his work, how much more should we? Jesus challenged the religious leaders with boldness, healed the sick, forgave the sinners, and opened the door for a new way to God, accessible to all.
Prayer is not just preparation. It is participation with God in the work he is doing through us. We must pray!
Why don’t we pray?
Now, in the book, Ferguson lays out some reasons why we don’t pray for people.
I don’t know how to pray. We addressed this in our 4-week prayer series just over the summer. We’ll link to this in our newsletter this week. But if this is you, it’s as simple as saying “God, I’m talking to you today about __________.”
I’m too busy. Fortunately, prayer is something that can be done on the go. When you are driving in the car (keep your eyes open!). When you are washing dishes. Pairing your prayers with an activity that you regularly do will be an easy way to remember to pray. Or block out time on your calendar. Make it the same every day and build the habit.
I doubt it works. Well, here at Sherwood Friends, we know prayer works! We see answered prayer after answered prayer in our Wednesday night AMEN! Prayer time. But it’s also important to know that not every answer is yes. Sometimes God’s answer to us is not yet or no. Regardless, we take time and persistence and God is faithful to answer.
But I’m going to throw another one out there that I’ve eluded to: we don’t think we need to pray. Why do I need to pray when I can just go out there and do the right thing?
The rest of these - Listen, Eat, Serve, and Share - I can just do those things without praying simply because they are good things to do, right?
The difference between LESS and BLESS is the beginning with prayer! It’s what moves us from good works to Gospel works.
With prayer, we learn how to follow God’s Spirit, recognize his promptings, and gain direction from him on who and how to bless.
Application
So you are fired up and ready to dive into this. Now what?
First, pick one context/network of people. Many of us have 3-5 areas of our lives where we regularly engage with people: our neighborhood, family and friends, work, doctors’ offices, school, and so on. We humans have a limited capacity. It’s not realistic to pick every area of your life to practice the BLESS strategy. Start with one.
Second, remember that this is not a checklist. Check - I prayed for my neighbor. Check - I listened to them. Check Check Check - This approach will make people feel like projects. This isn’t a project. This is building relationships with people. Ferguson reminds us that, “the Gospel was meant to be shared in routine exchanges between friends and neighbors.” One of the things I’ve really appreciated about the book is the number of stories of people’s experiences and how many times, it took a couple years of relationship before they were able to have a conversation about Jesus. It’s a reminder that we are in the long-game for God’s kingdom. We are making disciples, not converts. That takes time and intention.
Third, find a tool that works for you. You can find what works for you but I have a few suggestions.
In the lobby, we have a sheet with a picture of a house in the center and 8 houses around it. Name the people that God puts on your heart to be praying for. Write down your neighbor’s names as you learn them. If you don’t know names yet, pray for their street number until you learn their name. If they are people from work or other contexts, that’s ok! The concept is the same.
If you are a digital person, they even have a BLESS App that will help you remember to pray for the people in your neighborhood, as well as note when you Listen, Eat, Serve, and Share your story with them.
These also might be people that you can be praying for to invite to Friend Day here at Sherwood Friends on October 5th, our final day of this sermon series. Some will be ready to accept your invitation. Some might not be ready yet. That’s ok. But we can always begin praying for those in our life.
Blessed to be a Blessing
My capstone project I mentioned earlier was driven by my curiosity regarding the decline of Christianity in America. And while that decline has slowed, we are not in the clear yet.
Surveys show that while people have a high opinion of Jesus, the Church is not so fortunate. We have misused the grace we have received and become a people seen as hypocritical and judgmental. We must repent of this, turn from our misuse of grace. We have missed the whole “blessed to be a blessing” thing!
Paul needed to remind the Galatians of the same thing:
“Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” Galatians 3:7-9 NIV
The good news is that God has never abandoned his plan to bless the world through his people. Just as Abraham was called to be a vessel of blessing, and the Galatians were reminded not to lose sight of it, we are invited to live out our faith in a way that reflects God’s heart - by being a blessing.
The Church regains credibility not by defending itself, but by embodying the grace, humility, and love of Jesus. We do this by BLESSing those around us. When we remember that we are blessed in order to be a blessing, the watching world no longer sees hypocrisy. They see the hope that we carry in Jesus Christ.
