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Expecting God to Answer!

A good friend of mine sent this, just had to share 🙂

“Once upon a time, as a drought continued for what seemed an eternity, a small community of farmers were in a dilemma as to what to do. Rain was important to keep their crops healthy and sustain the way of life of the townspeople. As the problem became worse, a local pastor called a prayer meeting to ask for rain. Many people arrived. The pastor greeted most of them as they filed in. As he walked to the front of the church to officially begin the meeting, he noticed most people were chatting across the aisle and socializing with friends. When he reached the front his thoughts were on quieting the attendees and starting the meeting. His eyes looked over the crowd as he asked for quiet. He noticed an eleven-year-old girl, sitting quietly in the front row. Her face was beaming with excitement. Next to her, poised and ready for use, was a bright red umbrella! The little girl’s appearance and innocence made the pastor smile, as he realized how much faith she possessed. No one else in the congregation had brought an umbrella. All came to pray for rain, but the little girl had come expecting God to answer!

When you go to your Heavenly Father in prayer, that His Will be done for your request, are you coming to Him expecting an answer? Faith IS that His Answer will be for His Best for you – to Complete His Will and Purpose in your life! Will it always be what you think you should receive? Probably NOT. Why? Simply because you are unable to see the future impacts to your life and for those He Will cross your path with. God knows EXACTLY what you need for Him and others, before being called Home. Normally, it IS SO easy to kick and scream – be bitter when you do not think His Answer IS correct for you. Thank God that He Loves and Cares for you SO much, that His Mercy and Grace covers you, even when you complain about it! Please remember to thank God for ALL He does for you! Thank Him for ALL His Answers!

My thoughts and prayers are that you have faith in God, Truly Trusting in Him to give you His Best. Trials and tribulations, that you encounter on earth, are also seen by others – of what your actions are regarding them. These are greater opportunities to be His Witness and Example – far more than you can imagine! In Jesus’ Name. Thy Will be done. Amen. Peace.”

Keep Praying 🙂

Never Stop Praying!

A great friend of mine wrote this and sent it to me. It was so good; I just had to share 🙂

NEVER Stop Praying!!

“Fervent prayer IS a very important part of spiritual warfare. In fact, it IS the Lifeblood of those who seek to be Victorious in Jesus Christ. That’s why the evil one would like nothing better than to keep you from praying, so he sends distractions, delays, and disappointment (he is a master at these fiery darts). If for instance, you have two productive days of watchful prayer, the evil one might let you believe that you have finally mastered the discipline of prayer. Then, on the third day when you fail, he will tell you that you’re an utter failure, that you’ve completely blown it, and that there’s no use trying any further. If you miss one day in fruitful prayer, he will try to convince you that you are beyond help and hope – that you need not try again. Do NOT believe these lies!! The Good News IS, there’s a secret to overcoming this deception. As with any other area of spiritual life, if you fail, the thing to do IS begin again – Renewed and Refreshed by the Holy Spirit! There is NO permanent failure in learning to be a faithful disciple of Jesus. If you have a bad day in your prayer life – do NOT give in to the evil one’s tactics that are designed to keep you from praying. NEVER stop praying!!!”

“The enemy wants to keep you from developing a relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which he knows will bring Joy and Peace to you. SO, by the Mercy and Grace of your Heavenly Father, you need to commit to keep on praying! Only in the process of praying, will you find the meaning of life: a Dynamic, Personal Relationship with the Creator, the Living Lord, the Babe of Bethlehem, the Savior of the cross, the Resurrection-morning Victor, the Only One who IS Life to you. A well-known Billy Graham story is about a woman who wrote that she had pleaded in prayer for ten years, for the conversion of her husband, but that he was more hardened than ever. Mr. Graham advised her to keep on praying. One day he received another letter. The husband had been gloriously saved. “Suppose she had stopped after only ten years,” said the evangelist. Then he added, “NEVER stop praying – not matter how dark and hopeless your case may seem.”

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Heaven & Prayer

While Praying the Rosary, I saw a bit of Heaven 🙂

There is a white Cross in bright light up on the top of the hill. The entire hill is covered in light. The hill floor itself is covered in the greenest grass I ever saw. A thick carpet of grass. There is no pain there. And there is no fatigue. And as I knelt with Mary to pray, I saw that the hill had people kneeling in prayer to Jesus all over the hill. And I saw others that I know were definitely still alive on earth praying there as well.

Difficult times are coming, ask Jesus how to go there to rest and to pray.

Prepare, Pray and Be Ready 🙂

Prayer :)

“To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without praying”-Martin Luther

There are so many reasons to pray. For our needs and the needs of others. To thank our Lord. For forgiveness and help forgiving others. To share with God our day and our feelings. To listen to God and to seek direction. For faith, for strength, for wisdom, for courage, for God’s Will to be done (the best prayer :)…the list is endless 🙂

But there is one thing I pray for that is not usually mentioned that is important. It is almost like an insurance policy, lol. I pray that when I don’t feel like praying, I will. I pray that when I get busy , I will never be to busy for our Lord. And I pray that if my faith ever falters, that God will forgive me and “restore to me the joy of my salvation”.

We, as Christians, need to pray like other people breathe :). So this Christmas, let’s commit to a life of daily prayer. Share our day and our worries with God. Listen to God speak. Believe me, God is happy to hear from us and He does truly Listen 🙂

Take A Stand For Christ!

For those who don’t know, Jim Caviezel played Jesus Christ in The Passion of the Christ. (This video is well worth watching 🙂 )

Some of his great quotes include:

“Freedom exists not so you can do what you want; freedom exists so you can do what you ought”

As we pray today before the eve of the Prayer Day being held in Washington DC tomorrow, we need to realize that we, each one of us, will need to make a choice and we will need to live with the consequences of those choices.

We will need to choose between God and Satan. Between Good and Evil. Let’s hope as a nation, and as individuals, we choose wisely.

As Jim Caviezel said, “you were not born to fit in; you were born to stand out”. Stand for Christ!

“Be The Light”

Pray Without Ceasing :)

Sometimes, we just don’t feel like praying. Especially if we feel our prayers have not been answered “Yes”. But the truth is, sometimes God’s answer is “not yet” or even “no”. Why is that? Why doesn’t God just give us what we want?

Sometimes it’s simply because what we “want”, is not what we “need”. We only know yesterday and today, but God knows all of these, but in addition God knows all our tomorrows too!

Never give up on Praying! As a very wise Pastor, Pastor Richburg, says, “Prayer changes things”.

Although God may not always gives us what we want; He will always give us what we need 🙂

Have we lost our freedom by turning away from God?

In Nehemiah, Chapter 9 37-38, we see that many of the Jewish people had turned away from God and they paid a great price for it! The Kings that ruled over them had “dominion” over their “bodies and over their cattle.” They were in great “distress”! And all because they turned their backs on our Lord!

Sounds a lot like our country. Our country has turned its back on that which made it great in the first place, Faith in Jesus Christ. Now our government rules us with an iron fist. They control where we can go, whether we can attend church, which medicines we can take, what food we can eat…We have lost our God-Given freedom without a shot being fired. But there are three things they can not control: God, Our Prayers and Heaven.

And there is something else. In Nehemiah 10, it goes on to list those that were “Sealed” by God. What does that mean? It means that they belonged to the Lord Himself. Why? Because they followed God and they did their very best to do as our Lord commanded. And that is what we need to do.

For if we belong to our Father God, ultimately, He will protect us. Because He loves us, and because we belong to Him ?

There is more written in God’s Word on being Sealed with the Holy Spirit and how you can be Sealed with the Holy Spirit (more on that in future posts) ?

Trust God

Everyone says it. Everyone means it. But how exactly do you do it?

For me, it’s sometimes as basic as repeating over and over in my mind, “Trust God”. That way, there is no room for any scary thoughts! Recently, I had an experience that I had to do that. My tire had been torn, and I had to drive it quite a long way, and over a bridge with a metal grate in it. To say I was scared is an understatement! What if that tire blew? What if I lost control of the car? But it needed to be fixed before all the air leaked out, and that was the only way.

So I got in the car and drove the long drive, over the bridge, and the metal grate…saying to myself over and over “Trust God”. Sometimes it’s just that simple.. And you know what, I arrived just fine ?.

Coincidence? Miracle?

Prayer changes things ?

Picture By Mbmariogc3s – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25157408

Racism

There has been a lot of talk about the growth of racism in the media lately. But I can’t help but think that the media has actually caused most of it. And I can’t help but wonder if what is really growing is not racism, but fear.

And the most important question is not “Why”, but “How”. How do we change it?

Personally, I think we change it one heart at a time. We need to meet under the Cross. For Christ knows no colors and neither does Heaven. For regardless of color, political beliefs or any of the many other ways by which we divide ourselves, Jesus Loves Us All, Each and Everyone! God always has and God always will!

And if we can’t actually meet, than let us pray for one another. For as my Pastor says, “Prayer Changes Things” 🙂

When our prayers are answered, do we thank God or do we have doubts that God is the One responsible?

I was reading The Intercessory Prayer book and it raised this very point. And I couldn’t help but think that sometimes that’s true. Why is it that it can take me a few moments to say thank you? After all, shouldn’t that be my immediate response?

For myself, many times my gratefulness and thank you are immediate. But there are occasional times when it takes me a little longer, when I hear that whisper in my mind, “would that have happened anyway?” That whisper-it’s from Satan. Banish him and give your thanks, and any doubts, to God.

For our Lord will appreciate the first and take care of the second ?