PRAYER DOES MATTER

Each of us has an opinion on what we believe our country's future holds. Presidential candidates tickle our ears with their words of wisdom hoping to entice us to jump on their bandwagon. Like many Americans, I'm wishing for a miracle before our nation crumbles before our very eyes.

As a christian I know we can debate our political views all we want but without faith in the one true God and a desire to pray nothing will change. Unfortunately our current situation in this country will get worse unless we stand united as One Nation Under God. Below is a prayer for our government. Each sentence is taken from scripture making this a prayer for all denominations. If God's people (You and I) will humble ourselves and pray, and seek God's face, turning back to Him and realizing our sin He will forgive us and heal our land. Please pray the following prayer often, our future depends on it. 

Heavenly Father, I give thanks for our government......1 Tim. 2:1
I pray for all men and women having authority over us in any way........1 Tim. 2:2
Pour out Your Spirit upon them and make Your Word known to them.....Prov. 1:23
Cause them to be men and women of integrity, obedient concerning us.....Ps. 25:21
that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, in all godliness and honesty......1 Tim. 2:2
Let wisdom enter their heats, and let knowledge be pleasant to them....Prov. 2:10
Let discretion preserve them and understanding keep them.....Prov. 2:11
to deliver them from the way of evil and from evil men....Prov. 2:12
Make their hearts and ears attentive to godly council.....Psalm 1:1
doing what is right in Your sight....2 Chron. 20:32
Let the upright dwell in our government.....Prov. 2:21
Cause there to be a shaking in all areas....Heb. 12:27
Let those complete and blameless before You stay....Prov. 2:21
and cut off the wicked. Let the unfaithful be rooted out....Prov. 2:22
Bring to light what is hidden in darkness....1 Cor 4:5
and expose the secret aims of the heart....1 Cor. 4:5
Let this nation remember from where they have fallen, ....Rev. 2:5
repenting and returning to doing their first works....Rev. 2:5
setting their hearts and their souls to seek the Lord...1 Chron. 22:19
humbling themselves, praying, and turning from their wicked ways....2 Chron 7:14
Then hear them, O Lord, and forgive their sin and heal our land....2 Chron. 7:14
Open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light....Acts 26:18
Soften the hearts that are hardened through the deceitfulness of sin... Heb. 3:13
Deliver them from their destruction's..... Psalm 107:20
Father, You have been long suffering toward us....2 Peter 3:9
not willing that any should perish....2 Peter 3:9
but that all should come to repentance...2 Peter 3:9
Raise up a standard in this nation....Isa. 49:22
Cause the rains of the Spirit to flood this land....Zech. 10:1
and revive Your work in the midst of us.....Hab. 3:2
Raise up intercessors for this nation....Isa. 59:16
to pull down strongholds over this land....2 Cor.10:4
And let the glory of the Lord be revealed!!!!.Isa. 40:5

Print your own copy at prayinginvictory.com

Lessons from Nature... GROWING PATIENCE IN LIFE'S GARDEN

Remember Veruca Salt, the spoiled rich kid in the movie
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?  I hate to admit when it comes to having patience, I totally understand her.  She wanted everything life had to offer and she wanted it NOW, and if she didn't get her way ...look out.

We live in an "On Demand" world and want life to operate like the click of a remote button.  Truth be told, I allow this same attitude to spill over into my prayer life, and when I have to wait on God I can get anxious, impatient and discouraged. 

Unfortunately, God does not operate on Central, Pacific, or Eastern time zones so if you  are waiting for a prayer to be answered you might as well take a lesson from nature.

The amazing Chinese Bamboo plant starts from a tiny seed, just like most plants, but here is where the similarities end.  You water it, protect it, and care for it and nothing happens.  Nothing.  Not the first year.  Nothing the second or third year.  Nothing the forth year. 

But WAIT.  The fifth year the little seed begins to grow.  In fact, it grows 90 feet in just 6 weeks!!

Life often works in similar ways.  We can pray and work for years on a dream, a relationship, a job and nothing seems to get better.  Instead of having faith we start to second guess ourselves.  We might be tempted to dig up the seed and plant it somewhere else, wondering if all our nurturing is worth it.  We begin to think our hope will be realized in greener pastures.  HOLD ON! 

Realize you can trust God with your most heartfelt desires if you don't give up.

God promised Abraham and Sarah a child in their old age but they had to water their bamboo seed for 25 years before God answered their prayer. They waited long past the time where this miracle was biologically possible.  A young shepherd boy was anointed to become a king but David watered his bamboo plant 20 years before he finally sat on the throne of Israel.

  God loves us enough to want us to grow deep before we grow tall.  Like any good parent his main concern is what is growing within our heart so when our prayer is answered we are mature lacking nothing.  Patience is not easy to grow and cultivate but if you want God's best you will learn to wait patiently and keep watering your bamboo seed.

Scripture Reading: 

 Isaiah 40: 28-31
Psalms 25:  3-5

 

LESSONS FROM NATURE....Deep Roots

After the long winter we finally had a beautiful warm weekend. It felt like I walked out my door into the Land of Oz. Overnight our back yard burst open with emerald green grass, colorful spring flowers and fresh budding trees.  Suddenly, I was delighting in warm sunshine, sporting bare legs, wearing my favorite flip flops,and sipping herbal tea on a lounge chair.

You can imagine my surprise when a weather alert appeared on my cell phone. Tornado Watch!

This type of storm is extremely rare in our State making the news flash seem impossible.  Yet, the report on my husbands weather scanner confirmed the prediction and warned everyone in our area to stay indoors for the next few hours.  I walked back outside and looked into the early night sky. A host of twinkling stars spread a canopy overhead until a flash of light caught my eye.  Creeping across the horizon to the west was a huge black mass.  Heavy grey clouds, full of lightning, intermittently broke through the darkness.  What struck me with fear was the eerie, dead silence of this thunderstorm as it moved forward in all its power.

 The swiftness of the unexpected made me realize how important it is to be prepared for life's storms. Before disaster strikes we need to be rooted and grounded in our belief system.  Jesus needs to be our trusted friend and counselor when the sky is still crystal clear and blue.

Z. Randall Stroope put these words of hope to song from fragments of Jewish text found on a cellar wall in Cologne, Germany during World War 11.   It is believed to have been scrawled by a child hiding from the Nazis.

I believe in the sun,  even when it is not shining.
And I believe in love, even when there's no one there.
And I believe in God even when he is silent.
I believe through any trial, there is always a way.
But sometimes in the suffering and hopeless despair
My heart cries for shelter, to know someone's there.
But a voice rises within me, saying hold on my child.
I'll give you strength, I'll give you hope,
Just stay a little while.

If your caught in the "eye of the storm," be encouraged.  God said, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified, because the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you."  Deuteronomy 31:6

Making Ordinary...EXTRAORDINARY

Inside the gardens of the Hampton Court Palace grows the world's oldest and largest grape vine.  The plant began as a small cutting and was planted in the castle gardens around 1768 where it is still growing strong today. This amazing plant is known world wide as the "Great Vine."

 At 229 years old, this magnificent plant measures 12 feet around it's massive base and the longest rod stretches beyond 120 feet.  This giant  produces an average of 700 bunches of sweet black grapes each year, weighing in at a staggering 705 pounds!
 
In the early years, the grapes were used only for the pleasure of the Royal Family, but in 1930, George V began sending the grapes into local hospitals. By 1933, visitors to the gardens could purchase the grapes and part of the proceeds were used to buy specialty baskets made by soldiers blinded during the first World War.

So what makes this extraordinary?   A branch does not grow fruit for itself but for others.  

On the last night  Jesus spent with his disciples before His death, his final instructions to his friends was the parable of the Vine and the Branches.  "I am the Vine; you are the branches.  Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much fruit." So what is this fruit we are to bear as disciples in 2015?  Simple things; like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

On the surface we might be tempted to believe we have this covered.  But in reality do we love those who are different then we are?  Are we kind to anyone who disagrees with us?  Are we faithful to our commitments?  Are we in charge of our appetites or do they rule over us?  I personally can say" No Way" to each of these unless I'm connected to Jesus, the Great Vine. I have found when I make a conscious effort to begin each day reading the Bible or watching my favorite preacher online I grow a little more fruit each day.

Like every lesson Jesus taught, this is only part of the lifestyle he asks us to live.  He tells us to grow so we have fruit to give away.  Ordinary people live for themselves....EXTRAORDINARY people learn to abide in the vine so when the harvest is ripe they have much to give.

Scripture Readings:

John 15: 1-17
Galatians 5: 22-26  

SOUL FOOD

Our bodies are a lot like a city and the circulatory system is the superhighway that keeps our metropolis running.  Blood is the vehicle that transports life giving oxygen and nutrients to its destination.  If these highways are blocked our vessels stop working. Thankfully we know what it takes to keep our bodies healthy so we try to exercise, eat right, and have regular check ups.

1 John 1:9 draws a spiritual parallel  that teaches us  how to keep our souls healthy.
 "If we admit that we have sinned and confess our sin, He is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us from our unrighteousness."

What an awesome promise!
Yet how many of us in the 21st century  consider ourselves sinners?

 In an  article published in USA Today, Cathy Lynn Grossman asked the question, "is sin dead?"  Her report raises some important issues about what many people believe about sin.  The people interviewed tend to toe the traditional line of thought "that there is sin" but interpret that reality in their own way -I have to do what's best for me; I am not as sinful as most.     We like to point our finger of judgement at those who make us feel better about ourselves but look at our own failures as harmless mistakes.  Many of us know what sin is; we just don't believe it applies to us anymore.  The new spirituality is happiness, not holiness, and God is no longer our reference point.

Maybe we need to do some soul searching by asking ourselves a question and answering it in our minds once and for all.  If we no longer recognize ourselves as sinners and are too sophisticated to need God's word (the Bible) as our moral compass why did Jesus have to die on the cross to atone for our sins?

Instead of making our own rules and judgements let's rethink the parallel and take advantage of the promise.  The same way our physical blood cleanses our body of poisons, the blood of Christ continuously purifies us of sin every time we confess our weakness.  Admitting we have sinned keeps our spiritual vessels open.  You don't have to wait for an appointment to talk to God.  He listens to us, anytime or anywhere. Whenever we mess up God is ready to forgives us, even when it takes years or a lifetime to get it right.  Don't make the mistake of believing you are too far gone for God to forgive you.  Abortion is NOT the unforgivable sin.  Homosexuality is NOT the unforgivable sin.  Murder, lust, envy, greed etc. are NOT unforgivable.

Pride might be the unforgivable sin.  Don't allow it to hold you back from a healthy relationship with God.  His mercy is new every day.

Scripture readings:
Romans 3:23
Romans 8:1
Proverbs 28:13
  


 

GIVE GOD YOUR PAINTBRUSH

Did you know that before one stroke of color is applied to a painting the canvas must be prepared and made ready for the process?  First - it must be stretched, pulled, hammered, and stapled to fit securely over a frame; a difficult process for the beginner and master alike.  Next, a sizing is applied as a sealant to protect and preserve the material to stand the test of time.  Last, a coat of ground is then spread over the surface to provide a uniform texture, color, and level of absorbency for the paints being used.  If any of these essential elements are skipped, or applied out of sequence, the finished product will crack, flake, and peel rendering a poor result.

This New Year each of us has the opportunity to begin again as a blank canvas in God's hands, ready to be made new.  

Maybe for you, last year stretched you to your breaking point, pounding your life with one problem after another, and you don't see much hope for your future.  If that describes you, your in the best place of your life!  Yes. God stretches us. "Consider yourself fortunate when all kinds of trouble and trials come your way, for when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure."  God knows we can not grow and mature without developing perseverance to carry us through the many storms we all eventually face in life.  His plan is to make us perfect and complete, lacking nothing.  He strengthens us so we don't crumble and fall away in the process.

Think of Jesus as the sizing that protects you when fear and discouragement are beating down your door.  "Do not be afraid I am with you!  I am your God let nothing terrify you!"  Jesus promises to make us strong and to help us.  "I will protect you and save you."  We don't have to depend on ourselves or rely on what we think we know. When we invite Jesus into our everyday lives he shows us the right path and leads us into his best for our future.  The Holy Spirit is like the ground...giving comfort, guidance and hope to face each challenge that comes into our lives.  "A disciple may have many problems, but the Lord saves him from them all."

 Like an artist, our Heavenly Father is preparing you as His masterpiece.  He does not want bad things to happen to you, but when they do, He uses the bad things to build greatness within you.  None of us can grow into the people we were meant to be if we only experience good times and success.  Our greatest struggles can be our greatest triumphs when we allow God to be God.  Trust his brush strokes.  Thank Him for the bad and the good.  His plan for your future is bigger and better then anything you can imagine, or any resolutions you make for the coming year.  Give God your paint brush and expect miracles.  Nothing is impossible for God.

Heavenly Father,
Let me be like a sheet of new canvas in your hands.  I  know you want the best for me. Whatever comes my way, I will trust You to make this year my best year yet.  Amen

Scripture Reading:
Psalms 34: 18-19
Proverbs 3: 4-6
Isaiah 41:10
1 Peter 5:7-10

 All scripture verses used from (GNT)