Category Archives: Prayer

Talk to me.

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The brainWe all know God hears us when we pray. Scripture says he sees our requests as they’re forming in our brains, way ahead of their reaching our mouths. By the time the words are rolling off our tongues, he’s already got the whole paragraph.

These promises are from Isaiah 65, and in context God is (1) speaking to the children of Israel and (2) referring to our perfect existence in the New Heaven and Earth. But I view these verses not just for Israel but also for us, and not just future-distant but for now, based on God being immutable and absolute. What he promised for them, he can also do for us. And what he guarantees in the future, he can also do now.

God is today who he always has been.

Literally hundreds of us have been calling out to him to answer prayers concerning my sister Mary as she walks a road common to many: cancer, surgery, and chemo. (So far, radiation has not been recommended.) For a month we’ve been praying against the ravaging nausea most chemo patients experience, and this morning we learned God answered in the affirmative.

YesWe can rejoice that Mary reported no vomiting has taken place since her infusion yesterday, and only mild nausea has come and gone during the last 24 hours. This surely is God having said yes. He hasn’t told us why she suffered horrible nausea before, and he hasn’t promised she won’t again.

But for today, we can lift our hands and rejoice with Mary singing, “Thank you, Father!”

Prayer is mysterious, but one thing is certain. It is an interaction with The Almighty. Though he doesn’t give us all yeses, sometimes he does. Skeptics say, “You mean there’s no rhyme or reason to it? It’s just random? Why would you ascribe a lack of nausea to answered prayer?”

We have some very good reasons:

  • Because God says there is power in prayer.
  • Because God promises to listen to our prayers and answer them.
  • Because Jesus told his disciples to pray.
  • Because Jesus himself prayed.

And since we believe those 4 things, we continue to pray.

In the same biblical chapter quoted above, the Lord also reprimands those who choose not to talk to him through prayer. He says he had tried to engage his people in conversation, but unbelievably they weren’t interested. God said, “I called, but you did not answer, I spoke but you did not listen.” ( v. 12) And he follows that with some pretty harsh judgment over this group.

Today God is still calling all of us to communicate with him, and so we continue to pray for Mary and many others, because when he answers in the affirmative, he makes our hearts sing!

“Before they call, I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.” (Isaiah 65:24)

Praising and Praying with Mary

  1. I’m praising God for answered prayer about my nausea! Nothing but mild twinges this time, and I even ate dinner!
  2. The feeding tube continues to be a problem. Pray for an earlier date with the specialist.

Always On Time

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AbigailMy friend Abigail has a stunning home on a good-looking lot with interior spaces worthy of magazine covers. But I don’t admire her for her home as much as her radical dependence on the Holy Spirit and for always taking God at his word.

Abigail’s home is down the road from a railroad track, and though the tracks are used infrequently, there’s one regular freight train she’s always happy to hear.  It blasts its whistle every day at 10:10, two longs, one short, and another long.

Though such regular racket might be irritating to most, Abigail has found a way to appreciate the 10:10. She uses it as a prompt to claim a Scripture for herself, a verse of truth that’s been a ribbon of reality for her ever since she took up residence near the tracks.

John 10:10.

The biblical setting has Jesus teaching about the life he envisions for everyone who believes in him as the Son of God: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

“They” refers to all who put their trust in him, and “abundantly” describes the rich, full inner life he wants to give, richer and fuller than anyone else can offer.

The thief is the devil. It’s not that he doesn’t make some mighty alluring promises. It’s just that he doesn’t keep them. But it’s even worse than that. Once he gets us to follow, he whirls around and bites us with his intent to steal (what God has promised), to kill (our desire to follow Christ), and to destroy (our spiritual hope).

When we believe Satan, we’re headed for destruction. When we believe Jesus, we’re headed for abundance.

People often say, “But what about the evil in this world? What about things like Mary’s life-threatening cancer and the wretchedness of chemo? Don’t those things steal, kill, and destroy?

As soon as we align with Jesus, the incredible answer is “no”. Cancer may steal good physical health for a while and may kill energy. Chemo may destroy red and white blood cells and force us to surrender regular commitments for a time. But neither cancer nor chemo can ever pluck abundance out of our hearts, souls, and minds.

Although Mary and other cancer patients battle nausea, altered routines, and intense fatigue, those who believe John 10:10 have no trouble recognizing Christ’s abundance inside them, in places that matter far more than physical deficiencies. For instance, Mary has testified to feeling the power of prayer in the middle of her battle, which then produces overflowing comfort and reassurance. And that’s just one example of the abundance God desires to give.

RR crossingAs for Abigail’s affiliation with the 10:10, she’s got me on board, too. Though I’m 2 miles from the tracks, I can still hear the whistle blasting, reminding me that Christ’s abundance is available to us all.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” John 10:10

 

Praising and Praying with Mary

  1. Praise for a good day accomplishing wedding “jobs”
  2. Praise for time with grandchildren
  3. Pray for safe travel for family members coming for the weekend, and energy for all the Memorial Day activities

Teacher of the Year

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Back to schoolGod is always teaching us. If we’re eager for it, he’ll show us all kinds of things. If we’re ambivalent or worse yet, antagonistic, he’ll still show us all kinds of things. Either way, he’s going to teach. It’s just that if we want to learn, it’s going to be pleasant. If not, getting educated will be difficult.

Any way we look at it, God is Teacher of the Year, the Decade, the Century, and of all time. He’s got eternity covered, too. Problems result only on the student side, and we can certainly be stubborn pupils, especially when the lessons are advanced.

One subject in our Teacher’s curriculum is so difficult, it’s included in his curriculum every year. It’s based on a question: why doesn’t he always say “yes” to our prayers?

For instance, if a friend is injured in an accident after we’ve prayed for safety, we might need a refresher course entitled, “Our God Hears.” When we learn of children being harmed, we might need new instruction in a class called, “Our God Sees.” If a family member gets cancer as Mary has, we might need to re-register for, “Our God Heals.”

Let’s face it. No matter how many lessons we’ve learned in God’s school, once in a while we raise our hand and say, “Is this injury/damage/disease absolutely necessary?”

Though he has the answer, he’s not required to give it. Sometimes, though, he does. For example, this morning in my small prayer group, we were preparing to pray over 12 long lists of names, each one representing difficulty and sadness.

As we spread our requests on the table in front of us, the 200+ needs sometimes threaten to overwhelm us. We can feel like our Teacher is “failing to answer” our prayer-questions. Where are the yeses?

Today he used one of his student teachers to deliver our lesson. Compound interestAbigail said, “I like to think that as we pray, it’s like putting money in God’s bank. He hears us each time we plead for answers and is quietly working on our requests much like a savings account is changing, based on compounding interest. The prayer/account grows and grows until the day God reveals everything he’d been doing all along, and just like with compound interest, his answers are far larger than what we expected!”

Caa–ching!

So, today’s lesson in God’s School of Understanding used a banking metaphor to teach us why we should keep praying, even when answers aren’t forthcoming. We knew he had a classroom, but who knew he had a bank, too?

“If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord and rely on your God.” (Isa. 50:10)

Praising and Praying with Mary

  1. Pray that her new nausea would respond to meds
  2. Praise that there are stronger meds, if these don’t work
  3. Pray for energy to continue wedding planning
  4. Praise for friends who never stop praying and encouraging her