nursing homes

His Eye is On the Sparrow

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments 
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 NIV

Did you know that Jesus not only commands us to give thanks, but that He also gave thanks Himself? He thanked God for bread, before He fed the five thousand and even more amazingly, when He gave it to the disciples at the Last Supper. Jesus, knowing that everyone would run away, and that Judas would betray Him, still gave thanks. It strikes me that the anxious thoughts, problems and struggles that frustrate and keep me awake at night are nowhere near what Jesus faced. And yet in the middle of it all He was thankful. I am learning that when I let go of circumstances that are way beyond my control and trust them into the hands of God a miracle happens. The peace of God that is way beyond my understanding comes to keep and guard my mind in Christ Jesus. I may not see the answer to my prayers today or in the way I hoped, but God will be honored, I will be guided in the way He wants and in the end His blessing will be more than worth it all!

A Time for Praise

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 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. James 5:13 ESV

The other day as we looked at the hymn, “Sweet Hour of Prayer,” I wrote about the times when we need to simply fall to our knees and watch with the Lord in our own Garden of Gethsemane. But there are also times when God delights in a tidal wave of praise and gratitude, such as James describes here. There are few places where such praise seems more out of place than a long-term care facility, but my friends there teach me that sometimes there is nothing better than good old-fashioned hand-clapping praise. Last week, they showed us just how that is done, when as my former pastor used to say, “If you can’t clap on that song, your arm must be broken!” I do hope that whatever situation you find yourself in this Thanksgiving, that you will find a way to praise, whether in health or sickness, surrounded by family or alone in your room, because God loves us and sent His only Son, to pray for us, heal us, wash away our sins and to die in our place. How can we not find times of joyful abandon to simply: “Call Him Up” – “Have a Little Talk With Jesus,” and tell Him that we are the ones who are “Standing in the Need of Prayer?”