Prayer

God Answers Prayer – Part One

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 And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”  But He answered her not a word …Matthew 15:22-23a

Did it ever feel like God wasn’t paying any attention to your or your needs? That is undoubtedly exactly the feeling that this woman experienced. She cried. She begged. She fell to His feet. Nothing she could do or say seemed to touch the Lord. Her story reminded me of the Bangladeshi people who came to work the gravel of the dry river banks in North India. They were rejected by most of the local people and forced to take the lowest and most menial jobs. Yet Jesus made His only trip abroad and in retrospect came only for this one woman as an answer to her prayers.

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Bangladeshi Women in North India

So when it seems as if Jesus is not listening and when no one else seems to believe that we will find the answer, we have a decision to make. Will we continue to believe or will we go away? Will we continue to ask or will we give up in desperation?  For all of us there comes that single moment when we have to decide what to do with silence. This woman who appeared to have no background, no friends and no hope leaves us with a testimony of hope, not only that God is listening but that He cares enough to hear and answer our prayer! It is if you could think that Jesus made the trip to earth, just for you!

3rd Gift at Christmas

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Third Gift of Christmas – Prayer

 

But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”  Luke 22:32 ESV

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That sense of being totally alone in the world can be worse for some people as Christmas works its way closer. Even people surrounded by friends can feel abandoned because of inner struggles that no one else knows. Why not take a moment to tell someone you will be praying for them, or better yet, pray right away with them. Some things in life are so heavy, so difficult, so complicated and so unbearable that only prayer can meet that need. There is no greater gift we can give someone than to be able to truthfully say “but I have prayed for you.”

 

What will they See this Thanksgiving?

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In the gospel of Luke we find a story about 10 lepers who came to Jesus for help. They are a lot like people in our neighbors today. They knew that Jesus cared about their needs and has the ability to help. These 10 men also were ready to  immediately do anything that Jesus asked.

Luke 17:12-15

Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”  So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God

Jesus had made an impression on people because they knew that He was willing to touch lepers and that He had the power to help them Because of how Jesus ministered He was continually surrounded by people longing to get close. Some wanted to touch Jesus, others hoped just to see Him and still others sat quietly listening to what He had to say. It must have looked a little bit like a hospital emergency room. People were lined up waiting to be seen. Others brought their loved ones and family to Jesus. He was constantly presented with opportunities to demonstrate the love of God.

Sadly our local church today bears a distant resemblance to the ministry of Jesus. Too often we seem to function more like an understaffed medical clinic. Sick people still show up regularly but they find few people around to help. Our nurses are out on strike for a better benefits package and our doctors are having coffee together reviewing their retirement program. When folks press their nose against the glass and look inside the office they hear the sounds of a business meeting called into session to discuss how to reduce the number of sick people allowed in! If any hospital functioned like our churches they would quickly find themselves in court. The front page of the paper would be filled with angry headlines. The 6 o’clock news would begin with a lead story demanding immediate change to how that medical facility functioned. nepal-and-india-260

So as we approach this Thanksgiving let’s consider what we can each do differently. The world has as much need as it ever did. Do our altars act more like walls to keep folks off the podium rather than a meeting place for prayer? God  is still willing to cleanse. Jesus is still ready to heal. He still welcomes the sick, the blind and the sinner. They are outside looking in our windows. What will they see this Thanksgiving?