It is suggested that you avoid meat, dairy, fecal matter from household members including pets (just didn't really know of a gentler way to say it than that), weeds, bones, diseased plants, needles from evergreens, eucalyptus, walnuts, charcoal, cooked food waste, dishwater, fish scraps and grains. This list I got from Jonnie McCoy's book Frugal Families.
Blue Star Museums is a partnership among Blue Star Families, the National Endowment for the Arts, and more than 600 museums in all 50 states to offer free admission to active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day, May 31, 2010, through Labor Day, September 6, 2010. Follow the link for more details and particulars.
LINK: Free Museum Admission
Reflecting on God’s Faithfulness
But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. (2 Thessalonians 3:3)
There is nothing more important in times of transition, closure or upheaval than to reflect on God’s faithfulness to you in the past. Many things may be changing in your life. Changing faster than you can keep up with and it’s overwhelming you. Maybe things are staying the same and you have prayed for months or years that something would change and it seems nothing ever does and it is depressing you. Perhaps you’re in a situation that is stressful or is producing a lot of physical or emotional pain and you are scared of the looming outcome. Here is an eternal fact that will make a difference no matter what your situation may be. The Lord of the Universe, the Hope of the World, the Soveign Authority of All History isn’t changing. He’s still the same steadfast, loving Savior and Lord that has always been there for you and helped you
“I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. . . . Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:6–7).
How can this truth of God’s dependable, unchanging nature help you? It can remind you that nothing you are facing or are about to face is impossible for God and you to handle.
“God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
God’s unchanging nature can also remind you of who is in control of your future (and it’s not you!).
How can reflecting on God’s past faithfulness help you? First, it can give you insight as to how God tends to challenge you, what you tend to be weak in, ways the enemy typically gets at you, what your anxieties are and what your long-standing hopes and desires are.
Reflection can also help you examine whether you have been faithful, in turn, to God and the people he has put in your life. So how do you reflect? There are a few ways that I’ve found helpful. Why not try a few of these?
Read God’s word
“….So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom 10:17)
As you read the Word, meditate on God’s characteristics as you study—think of ways these attributes can encourage you as you face problems in your world. Another approach is to read over passages that were particularly helpful to you in the past—perhaps they were underlined in red on a rainy day, way back. Chances are those passages are still relevant to your situation; think about them with yourself in the place of the person dealing with God. Meditate on God’s characteristics as you study in order to remind yourself that He is eternally, loving, gracious, merciful, longsuffering and yes, faithful!
Journal
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart. (Proverbs 3:3)
What have you struggled with over the last year? What were you praying for? How did God answer? Whether you’ve been keeping a journal for years or are just starting to maintain a record of your life events and thoughts is perhaps one of the most insightful steps in this process of recalling God’s goodness to you. The ways God steadies your stumbling steps, leads you in your misguided moves and breaks through when you’re going around in circles become more and more apparent as you look at your own history.
A journal can illuminate the patterns of behavior that you have struggled with and how God has dealt with you. Perhaps you won’t get many mountaintop revelations, but often, rereading a journal can be most effective in just encouraging you: “Gosh, look at the dumb things I was worried about” or “Boy, look how God took care of this” or “Why was I stressing over that?” I just have to laugh at myself sometimes when I re-read my journal—agonizing over my image, my future, my welfare etc.
Also, your journal can remind you of a time in your life when you were perhaps more in tune with the Lord, more dedicated to spiritual discipline. That’s definitely been true for me recently. Pouring over my journal and reflecting on memories, I have been seeking to answer questions like “What was I doing right before? How was I submitting to His will at that time? Why am I not doing that now?” Falling backward in my walk with God is one of the hardest things to repent. But such reflections have helped me get back on track—my journal reminded me of how satisfying a high level of commitment was when I was in God’s will, how great it felt and how much fruit it yielded by God’s grace. God wants us to move forward instead of backward, and he can build on our past experience to show us even more of Him and His ways
Remember
"For the LORD your God is a compassionate God; He will not fail you nor destroy you nor forget the covenant with your fathers. Remember, He gave His oath to them” Deuteronomy 4:31
Notice ways God was faithful to the men and women of Scripture and how those situations relate to you. Hebrews 11 is a good place to start. It’s a great “hall of fame” of faithfulness between God and his people. God’s eternal principles never change: when we follow His commands, we get blessed in the process. His Word records His Faithfulness to men and women who belonged to Him, who called upon His name: Like Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Esther, the Nation of Israel, the Disciples and the Apostle Paul just to name a few. What has been true in the relationship between God and these is also true in our relationship with God. There may be memories that come back to you every so often that didn’t make it into your journal but can bring insight about where you are with God and where He may be taking you. They may be painful or they may be joyful, but they are part of the fabric of your life. Ultimately, the idea of reflecting on God’s faithfulness to you isn’t meant to ram you into a touchy-feely corner of longing for the past. On the contrary, the lesson to take away is this: if he was faithful then, he’ll be faithful now as you move forward because he doesn’t change. He loves us too much and has sacrificed too much not to be faithful to us now. Even if he surprises you with unexpected change, the truth remains: “I the Lord do not change.” He who calls you is faithful.
Acknowledge and Commit
We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ (Ephesians 4:14–15).
When we respond to His grace by putting our trust in Christ, we enter into an intimate, covenant relationship with God. Though our response should be a life of faithful service to God in the world, we slip up, living for ourselves rather than for our Lord. Yet God does not abandon us. His faithfulness continues even when ours fails. The God of the Bible has kept His promises for far longer than we have been on the Earth. Trust in Him now because He is real and He is Faithful!
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: When you think of the faithfulness of God, what images or experiences come to mind? How have you experienced God’s faithfulness even when you have been unfaithful?
PRAYER: Gracious God, how grateful I am for your faithfulness. You are faithful, Lord, even when I am not. For centuries your faithfulness has not been nullified by the failure of your people. I have experienced this grace so many times. Thank you, Lord, for not abandoning me when I have neglected you. Thank you for turning my despair into hope. Thank you for always being there for me. O Lord, how great is your faithfulness!
In Jesus Name,
Amen.
Everything around us has the potential to change. But God is forever the same. He’s an immovable rock and a firm foundation on which we can fully rely.
“Great Is Thy Faithfulness!”
Deuteronomy 4:31
For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which he confirmed to them by oath.
Deuteronomy 7:9
Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.
Deuteronomy 32:4
He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.
Numbers 23:19
God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
1 Kings 8:20
The LORD has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the LORD promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.
1 Samuel 15:29
He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind."
1 Kings 8:56
Praise be to the LORD, who has given rest to his people
Psalm 9:10
Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.
Psalm 36:5
Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.
Psalm 40:10
I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly.
Psalm 89:2, 8
I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself... O LORD God Almighty, who is like you? You are mighty, O LORD, and your faithfulness surrounds you.
Psalm 89:33
but I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.
Psalm 92:1-2
It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night,
Psalm 105:8
He remembers his covenant forever, the word he commanded, for a thousand generations
Psalms 111:5
He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever.
Psalm 117
Praise the LORD, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us,
and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD.
Psalm 119:89-90
Your word, O LORD, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures.
Psalm 119:160
All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal.
Psalm 143:1
O LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness
come to my relief.
Isaiah 25:1
O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago.
Isaiah 46:11b
What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do.
Isaiah 49:7
This is what the LORD says— the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel— to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the servant of rulers: "Kings will see you and rise up, princes will see and bow down, because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you."
Isaiah 54:10
Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
Lamentations 3:22-24
Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him."
Romans 3:3-4
What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: "So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge."
1 Corinthians 1:9
God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.
1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
2 Corinthians 1:20
For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God.
I Thessalonians 5:23-24
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.
Hebrews 10:23
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
I John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Revelation 19:11
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.
God’s Illumination on Our path of Life
Psalms 119:105
"Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path."
The ancients knew about walking in the dark. That is why they developed foot lamps. These were small lamps that were tied onto the feet. They did not cast much light, but they did shed enough for the night walker to see where he was putting his next foot. I can almost imagine seeing little bits of light rising and falling with each foot fall on trails across the hills leading to a village in the middle of a dark night.
It could be a bit humorous if you picture it just right. This is the picture David had as he wrote today's verse. On a spiritual level, David says that the Word of the Lord is a lamp to his feet. It is that little bit of sight that makes faith possible. Paul says that "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The truths of the Bible are that bit of flame that fires up the faith. As a believer, can you imagine life without faith? Perhaps you can if you remember your life before Jesus. Remember the darkness and the hopelessness? Then someone opened the Word of God to you and it was as though someone switched on a light. All of a sudden, you could see, not just the sin, but the solution to that sin and a life you never thought possible, because now you could see Jesus.
Perhaps even now you are groping in the dark. You seem to have lost your faith. The light has grown dim and you don't know where you are or how you got there. May I make a suggestion? Open the Word. Let God speak to you. If you persist, He will turn on the light again, not only that, He will show you where you are and where you should be and how to get there.
God has not abandoned you. He is there with you -- He always has been. There is no place that you can set your feet that God will not follow you. He loves you so much that He will follow you to the gates of Hell in one last attempt to bring you back home to Himself. You don't see Him? He's there. If you pick up His Word, He will speak to you. Ever been in a dark room and someone struck a match? Quite bright wasn't it? That's how a single verse can be for you today. It will shed enough light for you to see where the light switch is. When you make your way to the Father, He will illuminate your entire being with floods of wonderful, bright, purifying light. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
The Key for Healing a Broken Heart
Is there hope for healing a broken heart? Something or someone has just broken your heart. You were caught off-guard by a betrayal, a shocking behavior, or loss of a loved one. Suddenly you are feeling like you’ve lost all hope . . . you can feel a physical aching in your chest that leaves you wounded and scarred. How can you ever hope to recover or discover what steps will end this suffering?
We all know that emotions are a vital part of the way we are made. Yet we can’t understand why it takes so long to heal from emotional injuries. We would never prematurely remove a cast or sutures until the broken bone or skin was fully restored. We must realize complete emotional healing requires time. The book of Psalms offers great comfort when experiencing long-term emotions like sadness, fear, and grief. “He heals the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3). God is the only One that can restore our emotions and our attitude Our human tendency is to avoid painful situations, even burying them. That will bring tragic results.
Broken heart - pain and implications of no healing
A broken heart can result in a hardened heart - difficulty loving.
A broken heart can result in bitterness - the intention to get revenge.
A broken heart can bring on health problems, even heart problems as a result in emotion express in our body.
So what is the Key to Healing a Broken Heart – The key is trust!
But can we ever trust those who hurt us so deeply? Yes, if we first trust our Lord. There are some steps we can take to restore this Trust.
I know this can make a great difference in your life. It can help your heart from getting totally bitter and hard.
NEXT
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We would never choose to have a broken heart! The agony and recovery time is just too unbearable. There is Someone, however, who had a flawless heart and chose to have it broken. Medically when a heart ruptures (breaks) water gushes out (John 19:33-34). So in every way, Jesus experienced a broken heart. He understands betrayal, temptation, and loss (Isaiah 53:3; Luke 22:33-34; Matthew 14:10-13). He is our Comforter, Counselor, and Companion who fills our heart’s empty spaces.
Healing Prayer is for those who are ready to say: "I can't do this. I need God to do it."
Are you ready to say: "This is too much for me. I need God to heal my life?" When we admit our own poverty, lack of resources, helplessness, then we are ready to let God heal us. Are you willing to let go of -control. Ready to let God heal your broken heart? the broken heart prayer is a way to: "Let go and let God."
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).
The image of heartbreak describing the devastating emotional pain of a broken relationship or loss of a loved one transcends culture and is expressed in the same way in almost every language. We feel the pain of betrayal, separation and isolation deeply at the core of our soul. It feels as if our heart really is breaking - because of course, it is. God understands this experience because he himself has lived through a broken heart. . Through his love for us, he has endured unfaithfulness and desertion. God understands our loneliness and identifies with us. We can talk to him about this experience and ask him for help at our deepest point of despair - because he's been there himself! If you are at that point right now cry out to Him. He specializes in mending broken people. I know because He has put me back to together over and over again and brought meaning to situations I would have never known if I had not Call on His precious name for help.
PRAYER
"God, you care deeply for broken-hearted people. This is a promise you make: You are close. We pray for all those who are crippled by broken relationships. Our hearts take the blow of disappointment. We feel crushed because our hopes are dashed. God, heal broken hearts. We cannot fix our own wounds. But you can. If pieces of our heart have been lost, or are held captive by another, recover them and bring them back to us and miraculously "put us back together" so that our heart is whole again. You are a mender of broken hearts. We ask for this miracle, in the name of Jesus."
What God wants us to know about The Power Of Prayer
Power Of Prayer - How powerful is it?
The power of prayer should not be underestimated. James 5:16-18 declares, "…The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops." God most definitely listens to prayers, answers prayers, and moves in response to prayers. Jesus taught, "…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20). 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." The Bible urges us, "And 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).
Power Of Prayer - How do I tap into it?
The power of prayer is not the result of the person praying. Rather, the power resides in the God who is being prayed to. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him." No matter the person praying, the passion behind the prayer, or the purpose of the prayer - God answers prayers that are in agreement with His will. His answers are not always yes, but are always in our best interest. When our desires line up with His will, we will come to understand that in time. When we pray passionately and purposefully, according to God's will, God responds powerfully! We cannot access powerful prayer by using "magic formulas." Our prayers being answered is not based on the eloquence of our prayers. We don't have to use certain words or phrases to get God to answer our prayers. In fact, Jesus rebukes those who pray using repetitions, "And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Matthew 6:7-8). Prayer is communicating with God. All you have to do is ask God for His help. Psalm 107:28-30 reminds us, "Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven." There is power in prayer!
Power Of Prayer - For what kind of things should I pray?
God's help through the power of prayer is available for all kinds of requests and issues. Philippians 4:6-7 tells us, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 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." The Word of God is full of accounts describing the power of prayer in various situations. The power of prayer has overcome enemies (Psalm 6:9-10), conquered death (2 Kings 4:3-36), brought healing (James 5:14-15), and defeated demons (Mark 9:29). God, through prayer, opens eyes, changes hearts, heals wounds, and grants wisdom (James 1:5). The power of prayer should never be underestimated because it draws on the glory and might of the infinitely powerful God of the universe! Daniel 4:35 proclaims, "All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: 'What have you done?'"
Prayer is one of the most powerful tools that a Christian has in his or her arsenal, yet so many Christians don't use it to their (or others') advantage. Here are a few ideas that can help you get started praying and come into a closer relationship with God. Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 11:1-4 as a model of how to pray effectively. This prayer is not a prayer we are supposed to memorize and simply recite to God. It is only an example of how to pray and the things that should go into a prayer - worship, trust in God, requests, confession, protection, etc. Pray for these kinds of things, but speak to God using your own words. Let’s examine this prayer one phrase at a time.
"Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."
Prayer should always begin with praise to the Lord and appropriation of His promises.
1. "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."
Prayer should be made for God's will to be done in 1) your personal life; 2) your family; 3) your church, etc....
2. "Give us this day our daily bread"
This area of prayer seeks God's provision for your physical and material needs.
3. "And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors"
Confession of sin and repentance is made as the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins.
4. "And Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"
Prayer is made for deliverance from demonic forces and that such forces would not lead one into temptation through one's own carelessness or disobedience.
5. "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen"
Prayer begins and ends in praise to God.
1. Persistent prayer will be transformed from desire to discipline to delight!
2. Prevailing prayer purposes to war in prayer until the victory is won.
3. You will experience divine preservation as you put on the whole armor of God and pray a hedge of protection about yourself and your loved ones.
4. Prayer as duty is drudgery, but prayer as delight becomes a dynamic encounter with the living God.
5. Refuse to let discouragement or unbelief rob you of answers to prayer. When you lose one, get mad, declare "I am claiming in the name of Jesus a seven-fold return on everything the devil has stolen." ( Proverbs 6:30-31). Repossess that lost ground!
6. The desire to pray is not something we work up in our flesh. Ask the Holy Spirit to plant the desire in your heart to pray.
7. A prayerless Christian is a powerless Christian.
8. John Wesley said "God does everything by prayer and nothing without it."
Prayer is not a natural act of the flesh. Sometimes you need a little extra help to start you praying and some guidance as to what to pray for. Psalms are an excellent tool for this as they are some of the most emotional prayers offered to God from King David, himself. Simply pick up your Bible, select a Psalm, read the first verse, pray about what you have read, and then move on to the next verse. For example, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." (Psalm 1:1)
Then pray in your own words what God has revealed to you through his word. Like:
Dear Lord, our world is so full of the hatred and ungodliness indicative of a fallen generation. Please help me not to fall into the traps set by the devourer. I know that I too am ungoldly at times and I ask that you give me the strength to walk in light and your good nature....
It is important to realize that we are energized by the Holy Spirit for prayer; we know what it is to pray in the Spirit; but we do not so often realize that the Holy Spirit Himself prays in us prayers which we cannot utter. When we are born again of God and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, He expresses for us the unutterable, looking at the sincerity and passion in our hearts. "He," the Holy Spirit in you, "maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God," and God searches your heart not to know what your conscious prayers are, but to find out what is the prayer of the Holy Spirit.
Firstly because if prayer didn't change anything, what would be the point in praying "in everything"? (Php 4:6).
Secondly because God promises that people who pray are far better off than people who don't, so things must change for the better through prayer (Jas 4:2-3 and Matt 7:7-11).
Prayer changes "all things". If we are to "pray in everything" (Php 4:6) then everything must be capable of being changed by prayer. Prayer helps make "all things" work together for good (Rom 8:26-28).
But "all things" does not mean absolutely everything in the universe but rather "all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2Pe 1:3-4, 11). The "life" referred to is eternal life. Prayer does not change things which have no connection with God’s Kingdom & purpose.
However this doesn't mean that prayer changes only spiritual things. Prayer will certainly change material things when that change has a spiritual benefit. On the other hand, God is not Santa Claus.
Prayer is not for satisfying material lusts and whims, although it is certainly important that we pray for our material needs. In one breath Jesus taught us to pray, "Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses..." The main purpose of prayer, however, is to help make things "turn out for God’s ultimate purpose (Php 1:19).
Prayer avails "much" (Jas 5:16)
But how much is "much" ? If you think, "Not very much", you are mistaken. "Much" is "more than we ask or think" (Eph 3:20). Prayer changes things more than we imagine or comprehend. Prayer changes things for spiritual and eternal purposes which are wonderfully high.
We cannot measure or perceive the changes which prayer makes, so in one sense we cannot answer the question "How much...?"
But we do know this: Prayer changes things as much as is necessary to ensure god’s will. Thus prayer changes things very much indeed!
Sometimes in a miraculous manner —for example when Peter raised Tabitha from death (Acts 9:40).
Sometimes in an extraordinary manner —for example the case of Elijah and the drought (Jas 5:17-18).
But mostly in an ordinary manner —for example when Paul was met by his friends (Acts 28:15-16). We usually
experience the changes prayer makes at an ordinary level. If miracles and extraordinary events were commonplace, they would not be extraordinary, would they? God is able to influence the ordinary course of events so that our real needs are satisfied. This does not diminish the power of prayer or the providence of God. In a way, it makes it all the more wonderful and abundant. So how can our lives be changed? How can our families be changed? How can our neighborhood, our city, state, country and yes even the world be changed? By the faithful, fervent, effective and earnest prayers of the redeemed men and women of God. What a promise! What a hope if we will be faithful in Prayer.
PRAYER FOR OUR NATION AND OUR PEOPLE
Father God, Our world is so full of the hatred and ungodliness indicative of a fallen generation. Please help each of us that are redeemed by you not to fall into the traps set by the evil one and the car nal desires of our own lusts. We know that we too are ungoldly at times and ask that you give us the strength to walk in light and your good nature of Truth.
I humbly pray that You direct the leaders of this great nation now in this time of crisis. Especially those we oppose. Let us remember You are soveign and still in control over all things. Open our leaders eyes to your Word and direction and grant them wisdom and understanding, and help them to respond wisely and effectively in leading this nation in your ways. Direct them that they may do what is right in Your sight. May they follow Your Divine Will to lead our nation on the paths of peace and safety. Unite all government agencies in an organized and harmonious fashion to bring quick and effective resolve to the demands of the many crisis and decisions we face. Empower us as United States citizens and Christians to do our own part, financially, physically, emotionally, and spiritually to care and support all who have critical needs, so they might know that You are the Source of life, mercy, grace and peace and we are just your instruments of your work. O Lord, you are the answer to longing of all people. I pray that You encourage and strengthen our nation. Surround us with Your Love and Mercy! Bring peace and comfort to all those who are suffering and searching for You. In Jesus' Holy Name. Amen.
