Friday, June 26, 2015

The Outcome of Prayers



               People who pray don’t always know how God will answer their requests. I have two friends who have specific requests for their children but do not know how God will answer them.

               One of them, an online writing friend, summed it up this way: “We are placing ourselves and this need in the grace and mercy of God”

               My other friend, a local lady, has asked for prayer about her son’s legal circumstance. She and I are praying and waiting for God to intervene in this situation.

               We all have circumstances in our lives to which we don’t know the outcome. We can only see what is in front of us. Another friend says it this way: “Only God can see around corners.”

               My thought on this is that we can only see a small segment of what God sees; we see a pixel and He sees the big picture.

               As I stated in another blog entry, we have to trust God. This means we have to trust Him with our prayers and what He does with them. Sometimes, we don’t get the outcome we desire but we have to remember that God is sovereign and He can do what He wants to with our prayers and even with us.


               I am praying for a request for myself and a request for my church. There again, I can only trust the LORD for His answer and His resolution of my concerns.

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Accept

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“God grant me the serenity to change the things I can; courage to accept the things I can’t and the wisdom to know the difference.” Reinhold Niebuhr

               Accept means to receive. Accept also has a slightly different meaning. It means to believe something to be a reality.

               Some families have a hard time accepting that their loved ones got deployed to the Middle East. Others cannot accept the immature selfish behavior of their chronological adult family members.
              
               Family members can’t do anything about their loved ones in the military except pray for them and support them through cards, letters and packages. Likewise, none of us can do anything about the actions of those who ‘bug’ us except pray for them, place them in God’s hands, step back and observe.  We can only be of help to anyone if and when they accept their need of our or anyone’s help. Until then, we can only make suggestions.


               As Christians, we learn to accept Jesus into our hearts and lives. We learn to lean on Him for guidance and protection. Sometimes we have to plead the blood of Christ over a circumstance in our lives. But, because we have accepted Him, He will always be there for us.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Courage

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“God grant me the serenity to change the things I can; courage accept the things I can’t and the wisdom to know the difference.” Reinhold Niebuhr

               Courage means strength, inner strength. Courage is commendable. It took courage for the French people in World War 2 and for the Kuwaiti people in Desert Storm to have resistance movements during their times of captivity and occupation.

               It takes courage to love a person with a compulsive make-up. It also takes courage to stand up to someone enraged at another party when we feel ‘caught in the middle.’ This courage is not based on size, familial relationship, or friendship. This courage must come from the LORD.

               A lot of people who know the LORD have to rely on Him to get up each day When I went through a prolonged time of depression, a friend knew what I meant when I said, “I’m making it.” One day, she told me that was something to praise God for.


               Lord, please help me to be courageous during hard times. I love You and want to live for you at all times.

God Alone

  Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.          I will both lie down in peace and sleep;  For You alone, O LORD make ...