Saturday, August 27, 2016

Prayer Works - When Applied


I think my dog works for my general practitioner. She’s constantly coaxing me out of my chair by either bring a toy to me and then keeping it just out of reach so I have to get up and out of the chair to play with her; Or she’ll sit in the middle of the floor staring at me until I get up and go let her outside. One-by-one she takes her toys out into the yard, via the doggie door, giving each a walk around the fence. It’s comical to watch as she seems to be giving each toy a tour of the yard every time they go out. After that she runs back inside, to stare at me some more, egging-me-on to go outside to play with her there. Of course her next move is to get me to chase her around the yard for a little cardio exercise for both of us. By-the-way, my vocal cords are clear once again and in six weeks they will get another inspection to see if they are still clear. Thanks for all your prayers.

[John 10:11-13; Matthew 7:15-20] I often ponder the thought of where will my leaders be when the wolf attacks. This is the scariest election we as Christians have ever faced, and as seen in recent polls, the Christians aren't voting Christian values. We all need to be on our knees. Do you believe we can take God at His word? Call upon His name, then stand back and watch His wonders unfold. 2 Chronicles 7:14 states. "...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." This scripture gives us, as Christians, ownership of this land and the ability to call upon God to heal it. I challenge you to do that. We have never been more desperate than now for God to heal our land. This election is the scariest I remember in my lifetime. During WWII, there was an advisor to Churchill, who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every night at a prescribed hour for one minute, to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace. This had an amazing effect, as bombing stopped. There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America. The United States of America , and our citizens, need prayer more than ever!!! If you would like to participate, each evening at 9:00 p.m. Eastern, stop whatever you're doing, and spend one minute praying with sincerity for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, for peace in the world, the upcoming election, and that the Bible will remain the basis for the laws governing our land, and that Christianity will grow in the U.S. If Jesus felt the need to pray to the Father, surely we need God’s help in our own lives. God knows our needs even before we ask, but still He wants us to ask (Matthew 6:8); and Jesus tells us that men “should always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1). James wrote that, “the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” (James 5:16). Paul wrote in his first letter to the Thessalonians, “...pray continuously” (5:18). A prayer does not need to be long nor eloquent to be pleasing to God. It is to simply come from our heart as we humbly talk to our God and Creator. It was the simple and sincere prayer of the publican that was accepted by God, not the self-praising prayer of the Pharisee (Luke 18:10-14). Prayer is to be directed to God the Father, as Jesus illustrated in teaching His apostles to pray (Matt. 6:9), and in the name of Jesus (John 14:13). Sometimes we get “stage fright” when asked to pray in public. But it helps to know that God is our “audience” and not those around us. “Father, help us all to pray often with sincere hearts for we need Your help every moment of the day. In Jesus name, amen.”

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