“Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him.”—Mark 11:23 NASB

“Why do I see so little fruit from my ministry?” “Why are members of my church so little helped by my ministry?” These were some of the questions pastors asked Reuben Archer Torrey. His answer? “Neglect of prayer.” He reminded them, “You do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:2). Often working in close harmony with Dwight L. Moody, Torrey had seen many miracles and conversions. Born in 1856, he held many crusades around the world before being called to lead Moody Bible Institute. Torrey observed that many Christians “do not believe in prayer as bringing anything to pass that would not have come to pass even if they had not prayed.” Yes, they pray, but deep down, they don’t really believe that prayer changes things or that their prayers can move mountains. The same patterns are still true. Many Christians pray at least on a semi-regular basis, but how many really believe that anything is possible if they pray in faith? How many believe that they can speak to a mountain, and it will “be taken up and cast into a sea”? How about you? Do you really believe God’s Word? Are you willing to humble yourself and seek His face? Do you seek first His Kingdom? Do you really believe that prayer matters? Commit yourself to prayer. Seek God for yourself, for your family, for your country, and the world.

Reflection Question: How can you increase your faith when you pray?

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations…behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”—Matthew 28:19–20 NASB

Robert Finley was born in Pennsylvania to Christian parents who had come to the New World from Scotland. Attending Princeton College, he prepared for a career as a teacher of languages. But as his son James later wrote, “There were great and pressing calls for ministerial labor in the new settlements of the Carolinas and Georgia.” Robert responded. This was a bold decision. The “country was in an unsettled state” with “the gloomy clouds of war” hanging over the land. Tensions were high between the colonies and the English government. There also were strong divisions within Americans. Some advocated independence while others remained loyal to England. Eventually these divisions exploded in a violent revolution. Going to the mission field meant leaving behind friends and family for life in a rugged, often untamed region, without any financial support. There, they faced constant peril and violence. All of his wife’s brothers were killed, and Robert himself was wounded. But as James wrote, Robert trusted “in God for help and direction.” In the face of dangers and unknowns, he refused to back down and continued preaching the Gospel. Today, Finley is hardly a footnote in history. But he was a hero of the faith. He was more concerned with serving his Master than the world’s rewards. He was willing to leave everything behind to fulfill the Great Commission. This still is our command until the end of the age.

Reflection Question: How are you helping to fulfill the Great Commission?