My Prayer For You

June 30, 2012 “Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you.” (I Samuel 12:23 Amp.) Although God is Sovereign and is in complete control of everything, for His own reasons He has told believers to pray perseveringly (Phil.4:6; I Thess.5:17). I think some reasons He commanded us to pray are to involve us in His miracle working power, and it definitely enlarges our faith. Through this blog I wanted you to know how and what I am praying for you. These are prayers taken from God’s Word (I didn’t think I could go wrong in praying for you in these ways). As I pray for you, personalize (put your name in each prayer as if I were there with you calling out your name, because in the spirit I am). God already knows your needs and desires, so trust Him to answer each prayer as you yield yourself to Him for His good will and pleasure. (I am praying also for me). Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus, that name that is above all names, and for all for which that Name stand; and by virtue of my faith in that name I know you hear my prayers for all for whom I am praying – you know their names. Cleanse our hearts from anything that is unlike you (including any hidden sin) which will keep You from hearing our prayers (Ps.66:18). Thank You for cleansing our hearts and for making us pure and holy before You – what a wonder! I praise You because You are fearful and wonderful and that You created each of us to be special and unique. You saw each of us when You intricately formed us in our mother’s womb, and even then all the days of our life were written in Your book before they ever took shape. I thank You that Your love for us is everlasting and that Your thoughts toward us are precious and weighty. How vast is the sum of them – if we counted them they would be more in number than all the grains of sand. If we could count all of those grains, when we finished we would still be with You. Search us thoroughly, O God, and know our thoughts and our hearts, and see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in us, and lead us in Your way that is everlasting (Psalm 139: 13- 24). Father, I pray that each of us would believe that you gave your only Son so we would not and come to eternal destruction; but by believing in and accepting Your greatest gift, Jesus, we can have everlasting life (John 3:16). And by accepting Your magnanimous gift we become Your child and heir to all You have (Romans 8:14-17). Part of that inheritance is Your promises – they are “yes and so-be-it” in Christ (II Cor.1:20) – and we can lay claim to them all. What a wonder to get to know (intimately acquainted with) the Creator of the universe, Jesus, our Savior, and to know You is to love You. Although we are still in this world, this intimate knowledge of Jesus lifts us spiritually out from those who are spiritually dead because they do not know You (Philippians 3:7-16). I pray we may all come to know Christ in this way and be filled and flooded with Your very Self (Eph.3:19). Upon finding this “Pearl of great price” (Jesus), may we give all that we are to You Matt.13:46), because as Jim Elliot (the missionary to the Auca Indians in Ecuador and was later martyred) said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to save what he cannot lose.” Father, enable us to prove our love for You by continually give of ourselves to You and by obeying Your Word and Its commands, (because You know what is best) (I John 5:11-13). And we thank You, Father, because we can be assured of eternal life if we have put our faith and trust in Jesus, your Son (I John 5:11-13). Father, in Matthew 5:44, You told us to “love our enemies and to pray for those who despitefully use us,” but You also know we cannot love without You filling us with Your love and enabling us to love our “enemies.” We confess that we don’t want to love our enemies and those who despitefully use us – so please change our “want to’ and to love the unlovely through us, (who are often unlovely). Father, we know that love is a choice, as well as forgiveness, so help us to make that choice to give up and let go of that hurt and wrong that has been done to us and let You take care of the “making right” part (Matt.6:6-15). Father, help us to even forgive You because we know ultimately “the buck stops with You.” You are a sovereign God and in control of everything that comes into our life. We acknowledge that You don’t cause, but permit, terrible circumstances to happen to us, but Your thoughts and ways are not our thoughts, and the way we would do things, if we were God, are certainly not the way you would do them (Isaiah 55:8-9). We know from Your Word that You permit the enemy of our soul, Satan (the devil), to attack us and try to destroy us, just as he did Job (Job 1, especially vs.6-12). Father, although we may not understand why You have permitted “bad” things that come into our lives, help us to trust that You love us with an everlasting love and that You desire only our good. Because we know it is Satan who has come to “steal, kill and destroy us, but You have come to bring us life that is abundant and full of overflowing joy (John 10:10). Please help us to embrace this Truth and to yield to Your love in the midst of our chaos. Father, help us to pray knowing You always hear when we come with “clean hands and a pure heart” (Psalm 24:3-5). Help us to not live in the counsel of the ungodly, (following their plans, advice and purposes; nor to stand submissive and inactive in the paths where sinners walk. Nor help me not to sit in the place where mockers gather. But help me to delight in reading, studying, meditating and obeying Your Word day and night. If we do this You have promised that we shall be like a prosperous tree that brings forth its fruit in its season and its leaves will not wither; and everything we do shall prosper (Ps.1:1-3). Have mercy on us because You know we are weak and helpless (Numbers 14:18). Your mercies and loving kindness last forever, and Your truth and Your faithfulness endure to all generations (Psalm 100:5). Help us to learn to submit to Your will and wait for Your answers to our prayers, then our strength to persevere will be renewed and we will mount up close to You, and we will walk in Your paths of righteousness and not become tired, and You will cause us to run our course You have planned for us (Jer.11:29) and not be weary (Isa.40:31). Thank You, because in Your time You make all things beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Help us to trust You with all of our hearts and lean to our own understanding but in all our way to acknowledge You for Who You are, and You will direct our paths (Prov.3:5-6). We pray this in the precious name of Jesus, Amen.

A Beautiful Description of the Beautiful Woman

June 18, 2012 (From writings of Audrey Hepburn) For attractive lips, speak words of kindness (*kind words are like apples of silver in pictures of gold. You can even say something good about the devil - he is determined). For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people (*Try to walk in their shoes, and remember we all have feet of clay). For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry (*exercise your gifts of love and mercy, take long walks while you meditate on the Word of God, and run to help fulfill the needs of others) . For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone (*God is always with you, be confident in Him). People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed (*Jesus is the restorer, the renewer, the reviver, the reclaimer, the Redeemer); never throw out anyone (*including yourself, “God don’t make no junk”).. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others (*to lift up someone else is to be lifted up yourself because “you reap what you sow”). *(italics are mine)

Abba Father - The Father Knows Best

June 16, 2012 “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, Abba Father. “ (Galatians 4:6) Back in the 50’s and 60’s the television cereal-type programs were all wholesome and usually taught a moral lesson. Since television was our main source of entertainment there were several we tried to watch faithfully. One was, “Father Knows Best.” The Father’s name was Jim Anderson and he was portrayed as a father who was dedicated, self-sacrificing, wise, moral, understanding and loving. Even when he failed in some way, he would quickly acknowledge his failure and make amends. He seemed to be the “perfect father” (although there is not such a person). But we have a heavenly Father Who is perfect in every way, and when we choose to accept His Son into our life, we become a “child of God,” and have the privilege of calling Him, “Abba Father,” which is an affectionate, informal term (Daddy). As His child, the yearning of our heart is for Him. As His child we desire to crawl into His lap and tell Him how much we love Him, to confess our sins to Him, to tell Him how we are hurting (although He already knows), to thank Him for all He has done for us and for how He will be there for us in the future, and to get counsel for the problems facing us (because He only has the answers). Since tomorrow is Father’s Day I want to share something good about: “How to Become A Successful Father,” by Charles Stanley “No human father is perfect. But with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Scripture, and godly mentors, a man can become a successful dad by intentionally leading his children in these areas: Spirituality – Help your children to trust in Jesus Christ as early as possible, and they’ll grow with the understanding that He is to be at the center of everything they do. Morality – In homes where honesty, purity, and loyalty are lived out, boys and girls learn to value integrity and listen to their conscience. Relationships – Teaching about love, respect, and mutual encouragement is good preparation for friendships and marriage. Vocation – Model cooperation and doing work “heartily, as to the Lord and not to men” (Col.3:23), and your children will form a healthy work ethic. Finances – Teach your kids the right way to handle money; to earn honestly, give generously, invest intelligently, save prudently, and enjoy heartily (I Tim.6:17). Authority – Unless children learn how to function properly under authority – of parents, school, church and government – rebelliousness can easily develop. Our sons and daughters notice when there’s a disconnect between our conduct and words, so setting a good example is essential. The way to build guiding principles into a child’s life is by precept (teaching) and practice (modeling). Dads, if you plant these heartily concepts in your children’s hearts, what a joy it will be to see them equipped and motivated to fulfill God’s purpose for their life." ----------------- Some will read this blog who are not fathers, but you may be an authority figure to someone, and these principles are for everyone: father, mother, grandparents, teachers, friends, boss, etc. They are timeless, practical, and essential to be a successful mentor and to leave a footprint of integrity in which others want to walk. If you have failed in the past it is never too late to start today applying these principles. Remember, you reap what you sow – if you sow godly principles some day others will “rise up and call you blessed.” Integrity will be your badge. Go for it Abba (Daddy)! “Faith of our fathers, we will love both friend and foe in all our strife. And preach thee too, as love knows how, by kindly words and virtuous life.” (Frederick W. Faber)

Have You Had Hematohidrosis?

June 8, 2012 “And being in an agony of mind, He prayed all the more earnestly and intently, and His sweat became like great clots of blood dropping down upon the ground.” (Luke 22:44) (Amp) In my studying I came across a new word to me, a medical term called, Hematohidrosis. Wikipedia describes hematohidrosis as “a very rare condition in which a human sweats blood. It may occur when a person is suffering extreme levels of stress, for example, facing his or her own death. Several historical references have been described; notably by Leonardo da Vinci: describing a soldier who sweated blood before battle, men unexpectedly given a death sentence, as well as descriptions in the Bible, that Jesus experienced hematohidrosis when he was praying in the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:44).” Jesus is the only one recorded in the Bible to have possibly experienced hematohidrosis. Outward stress moves from the brain through the body causing the vessels to dilate and rupture, releasing blood into the sweat glands which release the blood onto the skin, mixed with sweat. So it is possible that Jesus experienced hematohidrosis in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night of His arrest. He was not in “agony” over facing physical torture and death but agonized over having to take upon His pure, holy personage (the One Who knew no sin), all the sins of the whole world – every person’s sins who ever lived and who would ever live. Although Jesus was in great stress we don’t think of Him as being “anxious” or “fearful.” Webster defines “anxious” as, “characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or brooding fear – worry.” My definition of worry is, “unbelief that God is in control of our situation.” To be either anxious or fearful would be sin because God tells us in His Word “not to be anxious for anything” (Phil.4:6,7) and that “God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, and of love and of self-control” (II Tim.1:7,8 - Amp.). Jesus agony was not over the fear of torture and death, but His agony was indescribable pain and anguish of spirit over the prospect of Him being the pure, Holy God becoming filthy, vile and desecrated with our sins. It is important to notice what He was doing when this condition happened – He was praying. He took His pain and agony to the Father in prayer, trusting Him for the outcome. As long as we live in this world stress of some kind will be a daily occurrence (consider that we bring a lot of our stress on ourselves by our own willfulness), but in John 16:33 Jesus said, “In this world you will have distress, but take courage, be confident and undaunted for I have overcome the world” (Amp.). II Cor. 4:8-10 says, ”We are troubled and oppressed in every way, but not crushed; we are unable to find a way out, but not driven to despair; we are persecuted and hard driven, but not deserted to stand alone; we are struck down to the ground, but never struck out and destroyed; always carrying about in the body exposure the same putting to death that the Lord Jesus suffered, so that the resurrection life of Jesus also may be shown by and in our bodies” (Amp.). David Jeremiah describes stress as “being a mirror – it reveals better than anything else what is inside.” The way we handle stress defines who we are. In times of fear is the time to trust. I wrote in my blog, “Let Faith Be Your Doorkeeper” - “When fear knocks at the door, let “faith” answer. “God did not give us a spirit of fear, anxiety and worry but of love, power and of a well-balanced mind” (II Tim.1:7, 8). So when fear, anxiety and worry try to dominate your mind go to the Lord in prayer. Remember the verse in Philippians 4:6 which says, “Do not be anxious about anything but in everything pray, with thanksgiving, and let your wants be made known to God. And God’s peace shall be yours, that tranquil state of soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God, that peace which transcends all understanding shall mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Amp.). When you intentionally trust your anxiety to God and walk in peace of mind, your character becomes stronger and more peaceful and filled with faith. We will never experience the kind of stress and agony that Jesus went through, but however great our agony of spirit if we focus on Jesus and His sufficiency to keep us, go with us and love us through it all, we can experience that wonderful peace that comes only from prayer, thanksgiving and trusting God. Wonderful Peace (W. D. Cornell) O Soul, are you here without comfort and rest, walking down the rough pathway of time? Make Jesus your friend ere the shadows grow dark, O accept this sweet peace so sublime! What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace buried deep in the heart of my soul, So secure that no power can mine it away while the years of eternity roll. I am resting tonight in this wonderful peace, resting sweetly in Jesus’ control, and I’m kept from all danger by night and by day, now His glory is flooding my soul. Peace! Peace! Wonderful peace, coming down from the Father above. Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray, in fathomless billows of love. , in fathomless billows of love.>

Give Me This Mountain

“Give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke, He said there would be giants, bigger and stronger and fortified stronghold cities.” (Joshua 14:12) Many an unbeliever has said the Bible was boring, but to anyone who knows the author it is the most exciting, insightful, adventuresome and informative book there is. And what is so wonderful is that every word in It is true. Jonah really was swallowed by a big fish; the Red Sea really was rolled back like a scroll to let Moses and the Children of Israel cross on dry land; David really did kill the giant, Goliath, with a sling shot and five stones; and Jesus really was born of a virgin, He did live on this earth, was crucified and died for our sins, was buried and rose from the dead by God’s resurrection power. God’s righteousness is a wonderful gift we are given when we are saved. It is our “breastplate” to protect us against the onslaughts of the enemy. His righteousness covers us so we never have to fear that Satan can steal this gift away or inflict a fatal wound to us so we would be lost to our Savior or hope to spend eternity in heaven. Our struggles are not with physical opponents and circumstances but with the master powers of this world and spirit forces of wickedness, so we must daily appropriate all of God’s gifts to stand against these forces and God will help us to be victorious and take the mountains and fight the giants in our life (Eph.6:10-18). We are promised victory in Jesus (Philippians 4:13). Consider Joshua because he was a man of faith who listened to what God said and led his people on a conquest to conquer the enemies’ territory which the Lord had promised his people. There were mountains to scale, giants to overcome and fortified cities to invade and conquer. What a hero, what a role-model, what an example! He was all those things not because he did any of them on his own and or that he was so courageous, but because he sought God for direction when he didn’t know the next step to take. He sought God for protection and courage when he knew there were great dangers ahead and enemies to destroy. There were walls he had to tear down and idols he had to destroy, and he did great exploits, but he chose to trust God through it all, and he challenged those under his command to, “Choose today whom you will serve, but for me and my house we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). He lived an intentional, faith-filled life to the end and died at 110 years old. He was buried on that mountain for which he had asked God. Have you, or are you now facing circumstances in your life that loom before you like an insurmountable mountain? Are your circumstances overwhelmingly big? Satan has a way of holding a magnifying glass of worry up to our mind’s eye that brings fear and anxiety to make our problems seem like mountains. When we are in a valley of discouragement it may seem like we are not only in the valley but under an immovable boulder of circumstances in that valley. We may be paralyzed with all kinds of fearful thoughts not knowing how we can possibly solve our heap of problems. But God has some leverages to roll that boulder off our back and a broad, level path on which to climb that mountain. God gives us some powerful spiritual weapons to fight those opposing giants and reminds us of His promises to give us “the mountain.” He tells us in Isaiah 54:17 that “no weapon formed against us shall prosper and every tongue spoken in judgment against us will be shown to be in the wrong because we are servants of the Lord and this is our inheritance.” The fundamental piece of our weaponry is the Word of God, which is the Sword of the Spirit. We must study It, meditate on It, appropriate It in our life and let It change us. God’s Word will show us our sin, instruct us in the Truth, guide us in life, comfort us in sorrow, encourage us in our failures and It gives us hope for this life and for eternity. As we skillfully wield this most powerful weapon It will destroy our enemies and build our faith in God. The Bible is God’s Word and It will never fail, become extinct nor pass away. God’s Word will stand forever! "Try It, you’ll like It." Prayer is another key weapon we have been given to climb our mountains and kill our giants. “The earnest, heartfelt and continued prayer of a righteous person makes tremendous power available – dynamic in its workings” (Jas. 5:16b Amp.) We are told in Psalm 66:18 that if we see and approve sin in our hearts that God will not hear us when we pray; so before coming before the Father in prayer we must agree with Him about the sin in our life so we may be forgiven, cleansed and healed from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). When cleansed we can come boldly before the “throne of grace to present our needs” (Heb 4:16); and a big need we have is to conquer those mountains in our life. Because of prayers Peter was delivered from prison when he was chained, there were two guards by his side and there were sentries at the doors guarding the prison (Acts 6:6-19). “But urgent prayer was made to God by the Church.” This scripture tells of the mighty miracle of Peter’s release, all as a result of prayer. “That force of earnest prayer is mightier than any King’s or President’s authority, and mightier than all of hell.” There is no force that can stand against the power of earnest, faith filled prayer. If we have accepted Jesus as Lord in our life we have been given God’s own righteousness and we can come right into His presence to talk with Him about anything. We can tell Him about the areas in our life in which we are struggling and ask for help. We can pour out our heart over the hurt or fear in our life, or in someone else’s. Because of His righteousness He has given us we are filled with praise for Who He is and are so thankful for all He has done in our life and all He will do for us in the future. The Word tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3), so God is there! Praise and thanksgiving are mighty weapons to dispel anxiety over taking the mountain. Consider the mountain Jehoshaphat conquered in II Chronicles 20. Although he was afraid, he set himself determinedly, and all of Judah, to seek the Lord with all their heart by prayer, fasting, believing God’s Word for possession of their mountain, which was their inheritance, but was inhabited by their enemies who were strong and many in number. They acknowledged their weakness and that they didn’t know what to do, but their eyes were on God. The Lord heard their cries and told them, “The battle is not yours but God’s.” Jehoshaphat, with Judah and Jerusalem, obeyed, sang praises to God and thanked Him for His everlasting mercy and loving kindness. The results: the enemy was self-slaughtered and Jehoshaphat and Judah received their mountain – Victory! As Joshua conquered and overcame by faith and courage. We also must live by faith in the only One Who can and will fight our battles for us and will enable us to conquer and overcome the mountains in our life. The first weapon we must acquire is our salvation from sin and the devil’s kingdom and power. Our salvation and all our weapons are gifts given by our Father Who has wonderful plans for us, to prosper us; to give us peace and a hope for the future (Jer. 29:11). He has given us His Truth and we don’t have to be deceived by the lies of Satan. We can know the Truth of Who Jesus is, Who the Father is, and who our enemy is and his tactics to defeat us. Faith in the Truth will set us free from the bondage of Satan. Don’t forget Esther (Esther 2), who learned obedience when being raised by Mordecai, her cousin. She learned sacrificial courage to climb her mountain when presented with Mordecai’s challenge (4:14-16). Taking Esther’s mountain meant life or death to her and all her people, and because of her courageous obedience God gave Esther her mountain (her life and the lives of her people). We also can be God’s victors by fully committing to Him, seeking the Truth in His Word and then in prayer and faith courageously obey His will and His ways and rejoicing in “Him Who is able to do abundantly all we could ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). Got any rivers you think are uncrossable? Got any mountains you can’t tunnel through? God specializes in things thought impossible. He’ll do for you what no other one can do. (Oscar C. Eliason)