In a book by
John Haggai entitled, “How to Win Over Worry” the author tells the story of a
Mrs. Monroe who resided in Maryland. Mrs. Monroe, a typical mother like any
other mother you might meet, had gone to the store and left her children home
watching television. When she arrived home and walked into the kitchen carrying
her bags of groceries she felt an eerie silence in the house. She looked into
the den and saw her five children sitting around in a circle in the middle of
the floor with their attention on what was before them. Mrs. Monroe walked in
and saw her children playing with five cute little skunks. Startled, she yelled
at her children, “Run, children, run!” With that, each child grabbed a skunk
and ran in five different directions. As they ran, she screamed even louder
scaring the children so badly that each one squeezed their skunk. The moral of
the lesson is “Skunks don’t like to be squeezed!”
Maybe we find
ourselves in life squeezing the skunk, getting so frustrated with what weighs
us down that we act or react in a way that just makes things worse. We’ve all
probably been there and, in the end, have a bigger mess to get out of than we
had to start.
I start this
week’s article with this story as I observe selfish, immature worldly leaders
causing stinks all over the world playing with and squeezing skunks that should
ought to be left alone. I believe President Ronald Reagan was the one who
emphasized the philosophy of “peace through strength.” He meant that the United
States was more likely to enjoy a peaceful existence if we maintained a strong
defense. The idea is that a strong and mighty military might keep us out of
war. Christians, however, can live by the concept of “peace through strength”
regardless of their country’s military power. Biblical peace is not the absence
of war; rather it is the result of enjoying a right relationship with Almighty
God, no matter what is happening in the world. God’s strength brings peace to
His saints.
When we have
been justified by faith, “…we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ” (Romans 5:1). This is “…the peace of God, that surpasses all
understanding” and that “will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 4:7).
[James 5:16]
“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may
be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” I am
persuaded that most people would concede they need to pray more than they do.
We all recognize the importance of prayer, so why do we not pray more than we
do? I think one reason is that we do not truly appreciate the power of prayer.
For faithful Christians, prayer is our connection to our Heavenly Father and
His unlimited power and wisdom. The power of prayer was expressed by James in
his writing. Notice that the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Prayer itself must also be fervent, that is, it must be continual, sincere, and
from a trusting heart. James gave the example of the prophet Elijah who prayed
fervently, and God heard his prayer (James 5:17-18). Fervent prayers from a
righteous heart are effective, that is, God will answer them according to His
perfect will and timetable. We are assured that such prayer “avails much,”
which is more than a little. There is real power in prayer! May we forever have
faith in God and in the power of prayer.
Pray that God
intercedes with wisdom and truth for those who are “squeezing the skunks” and
stinking up the world with evil and depravity destroying His perfect creation.
While the world
wallows in continuous warfare, the Christian can enjoy peace because of God’s
grace. Don’t let the constant evil and worldly unrest rob you of peace, or the
knowledge that, “come what may,” my soul is safe in the arms of Jesus. God save
us!
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