Prayer

2020 Devotional

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As I buckle up in the passenger seat of any airplane my mind is flooded with questions like: “Who is the pilot?” and “I wonder if this plane is in good repair?” Then as the jet engines start to whine the flight attendant stands up and explains what to do in emergencies. This never gives me comfort since the last thing I want to think about at take-off is the possibility of crashing! Before I know it we begin to hurtle down the runway and then up into the sky above the airport. Part of my worry is because I cannot see where we are going. Secondly, there is someone at the controls whom I have never even met. Last and maybe most troubling is the fact that I have no idea what holds the plane up in the air! Yet despite my fears, I not only accept the risk of air travel, I actually pay good money for my ticket!

That humorous look at my personal outlook on flying may be how some of you feel as you face the unknown journey into a New Year.  For that reason I have called this year’s devotional, “Flying Through 2020 With Jesus” We can buckle up for this flight with confidence because by faith we know who our pilot is even though we cannot see Him. But God also wants to be so much more than just our pilot. He wants to give us wings of faith and then teach us to fly, so that we can follow Him safely all the way home!

You could either follow the link provided below or search in your Kindle Store for Flying Through 2020 With Jesus. It is available in both softcover or E-Book format. Whatever decide; may God bless you as you prepare for His flight plan for the New Year!

Flying Through 2020 With Jesus

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Praying for Others

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And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.  He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ Luke 18:1-3 ESV

For the last 23 years in nursing home ministry God has helped me to learn a lot about prayer. Though you may have never set foot in a nursing home you will discover that prayer requests are remarkably the same everywhere. People in nursing homes battle with depression, fatigue and loneliness around the holidays like everyone else. As an outreach worker you often ask yourself; “What is my small faith in the face of such needs?” Jesus gives us some answers in the story that He told about a widow and a judge. P1040884

First, she built a relationship with the judge by going to see him every day. Every day as he sipped his morning cup of tea, he would hear a knock. When he went to open his door there the widow would be again asking; “Give me justice in my dispute with my enemy!”  Maybe he even began to anticipate her visit and prepare for it. In our case we pray, not to some uncaring local magistrate; but to our Father in heaven. He is loving, merciful and kind. Why not begin where the widow began? Why not come every morning with expectant faith; knowing that Jesus is eagerly waiting to hear our knock on His door. Learning to pray for others means persistently building our relationship with God and then trusting Him to meet their needs.

Energy Assistance

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But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 KJV

I looked for the telephone number for energy assistance that was at the bottom of our power bill and began slowly dialing. “May I help you?” a friendly voice answered almost immediately.

“I was wondering if I could apply for low income help for our energy bill this winter because I haven’t been working full time.” I humbly said.

“Okay well let me get your information. “The lady began. First I gave my name, address and date of birth. Then began a series of questions about our family size, estimated income, and how much money we had in our bank account. “Well I see you will qualify.” The lady finally told me.

“Wow that’s great, so what do we do next?” I asked

“First there’s some bad news.” she said apologetically. “The problem is that  our state’s low income heating assistance program has run out of funding this year.”

Did you ever stop to realize that God created us with needs so that we would come to Him for His heavenly assistance program? When we call to Him in prayer, He won’t tell us He’ll call back later when the funding is approved. His riches in glory never run out! If we need mercy, healing, encouragement, or strength; these are always on hand and available for immediate deposit. God’s promise is that if we trust in Him alone, our bill will be paid in full and all the energy assistance we need will be freely supplied through our Jesus Christ our Lord!