No Politics In Prayer! by Gene McGuire August, 2011

“Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.” (Matthew 24:42)

 

COMMENT: It doesn’t matter what political stripe you may have but most Americans realize that it doesn’t make any sense to set a date that the United States will pull out of Afghanistan because all the terrorists would have to do is sit back and wait until after that date and then get into action. I believe that our Heavenly Father, in His infinite wisdom, decided not to tell us the exact date when Jesus was coming back. Can’t you just picture it in your mind’s eye? Many people would be “doing their own thing” right up until the “due date” and then, all of a sudden, they would repent and become “holier than thou”. Amos 4:12 exhorts us to “prepare to meet your God.”  I’m not trying to be morbid, just spiritually realistic. Remember the farmer in “The Parable of the Rich Fool“, Luke 12:16 – 21.  He was busy building bigger and better barns to store his crops, but that day was his last day on earth. I suggest that each morning we purpose to treat that day as, possibly, the last day of our lives. That way we will have the tendency to walk more closely to the Lord each and every day that “we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.” (1 John 2:28)

 

SCRIPTURE STUDY: 1 Thess. 4:13-18

 

WISE SAYING: PLAN AHEAD; IT WASN’T RAINING WHEN NOAH BUILT THE ARK. 

 

POST SCRIPT:Deborah Simmons is an excellent columnist for the Washington Times Newspaper. She is also a subscriber to the Thought for Today. On the Fourth of July I read her column about our great Country and I was greatly impressed. Years ago, as a teacher, I taught American History, but Deborah really opened my eyes to many wonderful facts about our Country. Please go to:

www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/jul/3/simmons-us-pride-from-sea-to-shining-sea/

I guarantee you that you will be enthralled by this masterpiece.

Blessings,

Gene

Do You Need To Make Proactive Prayer Your New Habit? by Elaine Davenport July 27, 2011

It’s a very honest question!   Truly.

 

Most people only want prayer for their children when something happens.  Often, it’s late.  It’s also wrong thinking.  People are proactive about many things…why not about those who we care about.  here we talk about children, but it’s not limited there.  And hopefully, we can all grow to a level to pray for people from all over the world; caring about them and loving them; even though we do not even know them.

 

 

I suppose this could be an infinite article; but I’ll try to contain it. 

I personally did not pray for my children at great length on a consistent basis.  I wanted the best for them, I loved (and still do love) them, but I counted on God to know my heart.   Looking back now…I can say He IS merciful.  He Blessed them (my children); despite my fledgling efforts.

I believe that my maternal prayed.  I know that she was a woman of faith.    I was around her a lot; she passed it on to me.  I know that she prayed for us; even though I never heard her say so.  I don’t know if it was the “times” or just her personality.

 

But, she took great care to make certain that I knew that God is real. 

For years, my prayer life was like most people’s with a “little bit of faith…”  a few short whispers offered up in troubled times.

And likely I’d have gone on like that …but I heard a sermon one day that changed my life!

Broken and in deep despair, I stumbled into a church to hear a sermon after offering a prayer to God that the minister speak on Healing.

I had a death notice given to me by the doctor and I wanted to know what God had to say about it.

It was in that message that I learned about the Concordance at the back of the bible which lists scriptures alphabetically by subject area.  Wow! I thought.  I had not known this!

I rushed home, dug up healing scriptures and began to meditate on the 5X a day.  I changed.  My faith grew and during that journey…two magnificent things happened: 

1.  I received the manifestation of my healing.

2. I decided to become a prayer warrior.

 

One of my first assignments was to commit to pray daily for my children…no matter what was going on in their lives…good or bad.

We must commit to do this.  The bible is full of scriptures that encourage us to pray.  We have lots of ammunition.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

“With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” Ephesians 6:18-20

“Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” Ephesians 6:18

“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” James 5:16

“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Matthew 5:44

“If any of you lacks wisdom, his should ask God, who gives generously to all without fault, and it will be given to him.” James 1:5

“Brethren, pray for us.” 1 Thessalonians 5:25

“Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you; and that we may be delivered from perverse and evil men; for not all have faith.” 2 Thessalonians 3:1-2

“Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.” Romans 15:30

 

“Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; in order that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.” Colossians 4:2-3

 

 

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