Jason Locke's Blog

In our moments of greatest need, we reveal what lies beneath outward appearances. For those who are empty on the inside, times of crisis can reveal a bankruptcy of character. For those who are filled with the wrong things, catastrophe tends to unearth wrongheaded priorities and misplaced frenzy. But in those who have been filled with the love and grace of God, we can see a calm strength that seems out of place in a world that values hysteria. King Ahaziah, son of Ahab & Jezebel, reigned slightly more than a year. The narrators of 1 & 2 Kings don't tell us much about him, except that he walked in the evil ways of his parents and of the founding north Israelite king Jeroboam. Ahaziah is an unimportant figure in the annals of history. His failure to trust in God, however, is the perfect canvas for the narrators to close out the prophetic work of Elijah. In Ahaziah's dumb and futile desperation, we see a clash of powers and priorities, and we discover the outcome...

Why do we pray? Does praying actually change anything? Is prayer merely a psycho-therapeutic aid to calm our anxious spirits? The fact that I’m including prayer in this series hopefully conveys my belief that prayer is a vital part of our spiritual warfare. When Paul depicts the "whole armor of God" in Eph 6:13-17, he wraps it up with this: " Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me. " What does it mean to pray? For starters, prayer requires you to inquire what God’s true priorities are. You probably understand what it's like to request something from a powerful person, perhaps a boss, principal or community leader. You can't just get whatever you want simply because you request it. If your request doesn't align with the priorities of that powerful person, then your odds of success are slim to none. Now imagine coming i...