Prayers for our neighbors

1,000 Word Thursday

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FOR OUR ETERNAL BEST

I  look in disbelief. No word seems adequate to express a heart and soul mourning our brothers and sisters toll in Japan. My family, we clasp our hands to pray and intercede.
It's an odd concept to know that we are to pray,  He directs us to.
But I feel so inadequate at the same time through those prayers. I realize the immensity of the travesty and my own fragility & humanity. But yet He tells us to..pray. He tells ME to pray...I realize it's Him.
It's Him through my prayers... through our prayers!

James 5:13-18

The prayer that is able to accomplish much

Prayer is a powerful tool in the hands of a Christian because as James writes

“the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”

The idea is that when prayer is working, or doing its thing, it can accomplish much. This is because God has chosen to accomplish His will through our prayers. This truth can be mind boggling, but I think that we can grasp it by looking at another means that God uses to accomplish His will.

Romans 10:14-15
How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written:

"HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!

Who is it that saves a person? It is God of course. But here we see how God does it. God uses Christians who proclaim the good news about Jesus to call non-Christians to belief. It is not the Christian who saved the non-Christian, it is God. In the same way God gives us the privilege of working for His will through our prayers.

God uses our prayers to accomplish His will.

This is why our prayers are so powerful,

because

they have the power of God to accomplish His will behind them.

I find myself grappling with the age old questions:
Why is there suffering; why doesn't God always heal people when they ask?

There is this verse in Matthew 18 where Jesus is delighted to heal people who come to him. But he says, if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off.

Now right there, it shows that Jesus has a different priority, and that is our spiritual healing.

His real interest was in healing the soul.

He answers our prayers for our eternal best.

Sometimes that means physical healing. Even a miracle.
Other times it means using what Satan meant to destroy us to, instead, cause us to grow stronger
We have to remember that we live in a sinful world in which an enemy seeks to destroy us. He'll do that through whatever means he can. Illness, cancer, pain, discouragement, doubt, busyness.
Yet God promises to work all things to good for His children. Like Joseph, we can say, "You meant this for evil, but God used it for good" Genesis 50:20

I think of a great spokesperson of God's true healing Joni Eareckson Tada. "If I had been granted a miraculous physical healing back when I was 17, I know I wouldn't be in a ministry serving other people with disabilities around the world."

My prayer is for our Eternal Best Father!

#49 Power of prayer

CIVIL UNREST

1,000 Word Thursday

Egypt Civil Unrest

NEW SYMBOL

“I am proud to be an American. I'm proud of the freedoms we enjoy because of the brave men and women serving this great country and who have served.” Carrie Prejean

AMEN SISTA

In Case you missed this tempest in a teapot, recently we viewed the Miss USA pageant in shock and awe in regards to one loaded question and one profound answer. One of the contestants, Carrie Prejean, during the interview segment, was asked a question in regard to Gay Marriage by openly gay Perez Hilton. The contestant came in second, and after the Pageant, Perez lashed out with vicious profanities re; “the dumb b----,” Carrie on his blog.

Carrie Prejean of California is making headlines for actually having an opinion beyond "world peace is a good thing." Miss California's answer,

"We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. (ok the wording is a little strange) And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised."

That’s what’s so great about being an American - we’re able to have our own opinions. Being a Christian conservative I fall into the Prejean camp of “family values” however; I love this country and I love the freedom we exercise on a daily basis. From Perez’s’ freedom to his mindless daily ramblings to my ability to gather weekly with my church family and worship my Abba Father who died for each and every one of us. We live in the best country in the world and I stand for freedom of speech....whatever your opinion is!

God bless you, Carrie, for standing by your convictions and your faith in God. It must have been tempting to compromise your integrity (I sure wish you had not posed in some of those shots though). No doubt it’s been a difficult few weeks for you, considering the many attacks from total strangers you’ve endured, but you’ve also sparked a tremendous amount of people who are shocked by so many people’s desire to rob you of your First Amendment rights. You’ve become a symbol of free speech.