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Pastor Steven Young: Prayer Makes the Difference (Luke 11:1-13)
Steven Young, pastor of The Cross Baptist Church in Tyler and principal of Winona Elementary School, pointed out that even though Jesus’ disciples had seen him perform wonders, they still needed him to teach them how to pray. “Learning how to pray takes time,” Young said.
Young recounted Jesus’ parable about a person who knocked on his neighbor’s door late at night and asked for food to feed his guests (Luke 11:1-13). He explained how Jesus used this short story to teach his disciples how to pray.
Prayer enables Jesus’ disciples to move forward when facing headwinds, Young explained. Like the neighbor in Jesus’ parable who sought help in the middle of the night, prayer gets us through the darkest times.
Jesus also taught his disciples to pray when they are in need and to keep praying even when they receive “no” for an answer. In addition, prayer relies on kinship—God’s children appealing to their heavenly Father.
This sermon was delivered July 4, 2021, for the morning worship service of First Baptist Church in Tyler. Pastor Young preached at the invitation of Pike Wisner, pastor of First Baptist Tyler, as part of an ongoing partnership established in 2009 between First Baptist and The Cross Baptist Church.
A sermon outline is available here.
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