Presence Pioneers Premium, A New England Book Tour and The Importance of Sonship in Prayer
January 2024 Newsletter
Welcome to the first official email from Presence Pioneers Media! Thanks for signing up. We have totally revamped media.presencepioneers.org and moved it to Substack. This will be your new go-to spot for books, podcasts, courses, articles and resources to equip you in worship, prayer, revival and missions. Go check it out!
Announcing PP Premium!
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We are excited to announce the launch of Presence Pioneer Premium on our new website. PP Premium is our brand new subscriber community. Why should you consider a paid subscription?
Get exclusive, premium content such as bonus podcast episodes, exclusive articles, early releases and more (such as part 2 of our recent podcast episode with Robin Dillamore on the Theology of David’s Tabernacle).
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New England Book Tour
At the beginning of the year, Jonathan Friz and Matthew Lilley took a short book tour to various churches across Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. They encouraged pastors, worshipers, students and intercessors towards prayer and unity while also sharing about their new books, 10 Days and Enjoying Prayer.
Sonship: Our Identity in Prayer
by Matthew Lilley
My wife Shepard woke me up around three a.m. Her water broke. Our first child would soon be born. Adrenaline kicked in as I threw on my clothes, helped Shepard to the car, and rushed her to the hospital. Our first-born daughter Shiloh arrived just before the sun was up. Her birthday was on Sunday the thirteenth, just like mine. She came quickly in the early morning hours, and she has continued to do everything early and quickly her entire life.
She’s an early riser, fast talker, and quick learner. It is hard to describe the feeling of becoming a new parent. I felt proud, confused, overwhelmed, exhausted, protective, and delighted all at once. Actually, Shiloh later created the word “nervited” to describe when she feels both nervous and happily excited, and I think that’s the perfect way to describe it. I felt extremely nervited when she was born.
I clearly recall one distinct impulse that rose in my heart shortly after her birth. I wanted to get everyone’s attention, raise my voice, and proudly display my new daughter for everyone to see — like Mufasa holding up baby Simba in The Lion King. She was my kid, and I wanted everyone to know it! She hadn’t done a thing for me, but she had my whole heart. In fact, she had already cost us time, energy, and money. But she could not have earned our love anyway. We love her because she is ours, not because of something she does (or does not do) for us. No three a.m. wake up call, dirty diaper, toddler tantrum, or sassy attitude has deterred us from loving her unconditionally.
After Shiloh we had three more beautiful children, and I can confirm that the impulses to wildly love and celebrate our children arose every time a new one entered our world. God has used the process of having children to show me His Father’s heart in many ways. I have such a deep love for my own kids that it is hard to believe that God loves me (and everyone) infinitely more than that. In becoming a father, I’ve learned over and over again how to be God’s son. He is proud of me. He loves me unconditionally. I belong to Him. And He loves me just because I’m His son. Like a newborn baby who has yet to do anything for their parents, I come to God in my emptiness and still receive extravagant acceptance and affection from the Father.
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. I John 3:1
When Jesus taught his disciples to pray to God as Father, he brought revelation regarding the nature of God, but He also brought revelation about their identity in Him. If God was their Father, that meant that they were sons of God. If God is Father, then you are a son or daughter. If you are not willing to accept this truth, you will find yourself falling back into bad habits again and again. You will start believing lies that will hijack your good intentions. You will start praying as if you are a slave or orphan, instead of talking to the Lord as His child.
In Jesus’s parable we discussed last chapter, the younger brother had lost his identity as a son. He had mistakenly begun to believe that his identity was based on his performance. He even proposed becoming a slave of his father when he returned home. The Father’s gracious response to him reminded him that he was a son because of his identity, not because of what he did or didn’t do.
The older son was just as confused. His identity was not rooted in his mistakes but rooted in his (apparent) goodness. However, the underlying issue was still there. His identity was based on his performance. He thought he deserved to be a son because he had been faithful to his father and worked hard for years. He forgot that his sonship was based on his father’s love, not his own good deeds.
If your identity is based on your performance, then your sense of worth will rise and fall with your sense of good and bad behavior. On seemingly “good” days, you will be arrogant and on your seemingly “bad” days, you will feel condemned. But a son or daughter whose identity is rooted in the Father’s love is free from the roller coaster of performance-based-identity. There is a stability that comes because you know that your sonship is based on the work of Jesus and not your own works, good or bad.
(Excerpt from Chapter 3 of Enjoying Prayer)
FREE E-Book on Fasting & Prayer
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