Acts 2:41; 6:1 – Prayer was a big part of the lives of the apostles and the early Christians.

Romans 12:12

Make it an engrained part of your routine.

• Daniel 6:10-11 – Even threatening death would not stop Daniel.

• Nehemiah 1 – Nehemiah wept and prayed for days!

• Luke 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:16, 28; 10:17, 21; 23:46

Freshen up your phrases.

• Matthew 6:5-15 – Avoid meaningless repetition.

• Psalms 51:16-17 – God demands a broken and contrite heart.

• Changing our wording forces us to think, which is what we should be doing when we pray.

• Have you tried writing or typing out a prayer?

• Psalm 48 – Include praise in your prayers.

• Colossians 4:2 – Include thankfulness in your prayers.

Develop a proper heart.

• Luke 18:9-14

• Romans 8:5 – We should be spiritually minded.

  • Colossians 3:2

Read a whole book of the Bible in one sitting.

• Deuteronomy 8:3

• Psalms 119:1-16

• We need Jesus as our shepherd! (See https://berksblog.net/2020/07/03/we-are-sheep-he-is-the-shepherd-we-need-an-illustration/)

• I Thessalonians 5:27

• You have more time for Bible reading than you think! (Infographic - https://www.crossway.org/articles/infographic-you-can-read-more-of-the-bible-than-you-think/)

• A good reading option: ESV Reader’s Bibles: https://www.crossway.org/articles/a-guide-to-esv-readers-bibles/

Pray for longer than 2 minutes.

• Luke 18:1-8

• Nehemiah 2:4; 1:4-6; 4:4; 5:19; 6:9; 13:14, 22, 29 – Nehemiah was a man of prayer.

Listen/watch another sermon/class

• I Timothy 4:16

• II Timothy 2:2

• Many churches have started putting classes and sermons online because of the COVID-19 outbreak. This can be a great resource for us!

• Acts 17:11 – Examine what you hear!

• Recommendations:

  • https://www.humblechurchofchrist.com/Humble_Sermon_Recordings/2020/2020_Sermons_mp3_recordings.htm

  • https://lhmcallen.org/sermons-laurel-heights-church-mcallen-tx/

  • http://www.justchristians.com/sermons

  • http://www.thebibleway.com/audio/sermons

  • http://www.dowlenroad.com/sermons-alt/

Send a note to someone.

• II Corinthians 2:13; 7:6-7

• Communication can be a great boost to others!

I Peter 2:21

Angered, but righteous

• Mark 3:1-5 – Jesus was angry at their hardness of heart.

• Mark 6:3

• It’s easy for us to get riled up at sin, and then sin in return.

• I Thessalonians 5:15 – Don’t repay evil for evil!

• Acts 17:5 – Rioting!

• I Peter 3:8-9

• I Corinthians 13:5

• Acts 18:12, 17 – Evil going unpunished is not a new thing!

Anxious, but trusting

• Luke 12:49-50

• Luke 22:39-46 – Jesus underwent great stress but trusted in God.

• John 16:32-33

• I Peter 2:21-23 – Jesus entrusted Himself to God.

Aware, but optimistic

• Matthew 9:35-38; 10:1, 6-7, 16-17, 21-23 – Jesus was not naïve about the dangers, but He knew the people needed the word of God.

• Matthew 11:1 – The world needed the gospel then and it needs it now!

• Matthew 28:19

• The gospel is the greatest weapon in the world, and it’s the only thing that can change hearts and minds.

God’s people have always had a single house of salvation at any given time.

• One ark - Genesis 6

  • Genesis 7:21-222 – Everything outside the ark perished. Any that wanted to could have entered.

• One tabernacle – Exodus 25:8-9

  • Leviticus 17:1-9

• One house for Rahab’s family – Joshua 21:1-19

• One temple – Deuteronomy 12:6-14; 14:23-26

  • I Kings 9:1-8; 11:37-38; 12:30

• One church – Matthew 6:18-19; I Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 1:22-23

  • Matthew 16:8 – Jesus would build His church. He succeeded!

  • I Corinthians 1:2; Romans 16:16

In Christ, His body, His church, there is:

• Triumph – II Corinthians 2:14

• Reconciliation – Ephesians 2:14-16

  • Ephesians 1:23

• Life and light – John 1:14

• Completeness – Colossians 2:10

• Sonship – Galatians 3:26-27

• All spiritual blessings – Ephesians 1:3

The teaching and practice of the church of Christ started in Jerusalem in AD 33.

Ephesians 1:22

Does God want us to worship Him with music? Yes.

What kind of music? Under the Old Covenant or New?

II Chronicles 29:25; Psalm 150 – Instrumental music was authorized under the Old Covenant.

What about under the New Covenant?

• Romans 15:9; I Corinthians 14:15; Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16; Hebrews 2:12; James 5:13 – Singing is the only type of music authorized under the New Covenant.

Under the Old Covenant, God told His people to use instruments in worship. In the New Covenant, He authorizes only singing.

Answering possible objections:

• Ephesians 5:19 – The word “psallo” never authorized the use of a musical instrument. It expresses an action, but the object must be specified. In the New Testament, the heart is specified as the object. See Hebrews 9:10.

• Revelation 14:2-3 – The voices in Heaven were described as thunderous and melodious as instruments, but it was still singing. Also, this is highly figurative language and not to be taken literally.

• Use of songbooks

  • Songbooks are simply a way to coordinate worship. They do not add a new act of music.

• The Bible doesn’t say not to.

  • The Bible doesn’t expressly say not to use instruments to worship under the New Covenant, but it comes pretty close. See Exodus 17:6; Numbers 20:12. The Old Testament gives us an example of this reasoning. New Covenant Christians are commanded to sing. Playing an instrument is surely going beyond this command.

• Having instruments at home

  • Having instruments in the home is not a reason to use them in worship.

Historically, instruments were added to worship by Catholics in 670 A.D. and strenuously objected to by many at the time.

II John 1:9 – To use instruments of music in worship is to go beyond God’s command.