Our son, Phillip, and his wonderful fiance, Patty, are finally getting married this weekend. As I am doing laundry and packing for the trip I keep thinking about how happy Phillip is now compared to his life in the past.
Phillip has been married before and even though she was a great girl she and Phillip just couldn't make it work, for various reasons. During this time in his life he would call me so upset and sometimes would ask me why life was so hard and when would things get better. I would assure him that we were praying for him and in time he would be happy again. I knew he and his children needed to have hope of this, but I also knew I was right in this. God and time are healers of so many things.
We all live in anticipation of something. For Phillip and Patty and our family, right now we are all so excited and can hardly wait for this Saturday when Rodney will get to pronounce them, "Husband and Wife". She will be such a added blessing to our family, but for me to be able to see the happiness and contentment on our son's face and to know that his time of loneliness is over and his healing is complete, is going to be such a gift from God.
Unfortunately our world has been waiting for healing for a long time. Here in America we have job losses, problems with health care, poverty, hunger, worries about our safety and an uncertainty for our futures. The rest of the world has these same problems but some people have them on such a grand scale, we here in the states can't even imagine it. Hope is failing and as this happens our world becomes a sadder and sadder place to be.
But hope can and will be restored.... Romans 8:18-21
The Message (MSG)
18-21 That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.God is going to change this world's circumstances. We will live in peace and contentment again. In time we all will be healed of all of our problems. Either on this side or on the next. The hard part for us is that we have to wait for this. During this waiting "The Evil One" is not making our lives easy. But soon he will be defeated too.
In time we will all be healed and safe, but for now we wait in certain anticipation of this. Are you waiting for healing? Do you have hope in this? If not turn to the one who can give you that hope!! Turn to the one who can put a smile back on your face! He is waiting in joyful anticipation for you, even more than you are waiting for healing from Him!Blessings!
I was struck today by a statement I heard from a preacher I listen to most mornings. Now mind you he's not my most favorite preacher. Of course I am married to him. And by the way If you would like to hear Rodney he preaches every Sunday, in Hagerstown. He is a great deliverer of what the Holy Spirit has placed on his heart.
Anyway, enough of the advertisement. This preacher, this morning, said there is no power in prayer. Now I have led classes that taught on the power of prayer. I have said things like, isn't prayer amazing"?, or "that happened because of prayer". I know of many, many miraculous things that have happened after prayer took place. So this really stuck in my craw. How can you say there is no power in prayer?
Then this preacher, who I really do like and appreciate, brought up Christ in the garden. Praying on the night before his trials began, that would lead Him to the cross. He spoke of how tormented Jesus was. So tormented that He sweat blood. Christ was praying that this cup might pass, that maybe God could come up with another way to send redemption for us. Instead God sent an angel to give Jesus comfort and strength.
Even Christ, did not have enough power in his prayer to change the situation he was about to be in. If Christ, that night couldn't change His situation, how can we change ours? If you listen in on Christ's prayer you might hear the answer...
Luke 22:39-44
: 39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him. 40 When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.” 41 Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” [[43 Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength.44 In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.]]
Did you read it? Did you hear it? He said,"not My will but Yours be done". Jesus knew where the power came from. Even a most earnest prayer from this perfect man could not be answered with out His Father, God.
So how can any of us think that our willingness to pray be all that there is. We have faith in our God. But do we understand that He is the one who lifts our voice and thoughts to Him and cares enough to turn them into answers?
Sometimes He gives answers we really wish would be different. Look at how a scared Christ still had to go through Calvary for us. Praise Be! So there will be times we don't understand what God, our source of everything, is doing, but as time goes on, we will. Look at Easter!!
What is wonderful though is that we do have the ability to use our voice to turn to the one who gives the power to our prayers.
Happy Praying!!
Blessings!
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