How Long Will You Give The Lord To Answer?

I’m convinced the Sabbath was created for frantic souls like me, people who need a weekly reminder that the world will not stop if I do. In one of the most dramatic examples of waiting in the Bible, Daniel prays for people who’d been oppressed for seventy years. He abstained from food and drink for twenty-one days, as he labored in prayer, persisted, pleaded, and agonized. No response. On the twenty-second day an angel of God appeared. He revealed to Daniel that his prayer had been heard on the first day. From an earthly perspective, nothing was happening. But from a heavenly perspective a battle was raging in the heavens. God was working.

What if Daniel had given up? Lost faith? Walked away from God? Better questions: What if you give up? Lose faith? Walk away? Don’t! God is at work. Keep waiting!

From You’ll Get Through This by Max Lucado

Until Steve and I did this study by Max, I don’t think I had ever heard this passage and certainly don’t believe that I have heard it preached on.  Daniel prayed for twenty-one days with no response from heaven--or so he thought.  But read the passage again and see what really happened.

Daniel's Prayer for His People
9 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.

3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7 To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. 8 To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. 12 He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

16 “O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

Gabriel Brings an Answer
20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my plea before the Lord my God for the holy hill of my God, 21 while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the first, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. 22 He made me understand, speaking with me and saying, “O Daniel, I have now come out to give you insight and understanding. 23 At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved. Therefore consider the word and understand the vision.

Wow!  That was quite the prayer, wasn’t it?  No wonder the spiritual forces in heavenly places were warring over this.  No way did Satan want this one answered!

So, this begs the question:  what are you praying for that has yet to be answered?  What is the devil so afraid will happen if God gives you the desire of your heart?  It could be God said “yes” but Satan?  Oh Satan.  He does not want you to get the response you so earnestly seek.  He knows what will happen when God’s children pray fervently in the will of Christ.

 

I encourage you, readers:  keep on praying.  Fast if you desire.  God is listening.  Cry out to Jesus!  Your prayers aren’t in vain.

What's Love Got To Do, Got To Do With It?

 

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Good morning!  This is my third attempt at writing a blog so far and I thought it was going to go one way but it didn’t.  I thought it might go down another path but that too was a dead end.  As I began this one, I thought I was on the right track but just received a message from a friend who wrote of a loved one’s condition and in that message there were these two words--words that I had been considering anyways but wanted to keep this blog light and airy today rather than sad and melancholy, so I put them on the back burner, saving them for another day.

Okay then, let’s see how this one goes, Stef.

Bruised heart.

Those were the two words she wrote.  

A couple of days ago my heart--nay, my soul!--was hurting.  I had been invited to a celebration ceremony where many hard-working kids were about to be rewarded for their diligence in their studies for the past school year.  So many proud parents, grandparents, and other caretakers (hmn, that’s an interesting word:  caretakers.  It implies ones who take care, right?  Keep that in mind as you continue reading.) were on hand to see their precious child(ren) receive ribbons and certificates.  Cameras abounded and the gymnasium was...well, it wasn’t as full as when other types of programs went on, but perhaps that was because this order of events was limited to a certain sect of the whole population.

Or was it something else?

As I gazed about the mostly cheerful faces, I noticed something missing.  Perhaps I should say I noticed someone missing.  Where was that one’s dad?  And that kid over there--where was her adoring fan club?  The little kid beside me who kept talking about her daddy really broke my heart because, you see, daddy and mommy were no longer a pair but apart.  Why didn’t he come to see his kids be rewarded, even if it meant sitting on the opposite side of the gym?

Trying to focus on the good that was going on, I purposed myself to pay attention to the better things.  So many achievements by so many students!  How wonderful to see their love for knowledge and to hear of their excellence.  But then, as I listened closely, maybe not by so many after all.  It seemed like I kept hearing a lot of the same names called, just for different categories.  I watched the faces of the classmates as their peer’s name was called.  Some smiled as they shared the pride of knowing that was their friend who was getting an award.  Some clapped enthusiastically when the child’s name was read out.  One parent was quite exuberant in his excitement over what his son had accomplished and let out a huge “Whoop!” which was soon mimicked by the toddlers around me who were getting bored by this time.

But then there were the students who just sat there with blank looks upon their faces.  They knew they were just there because, well, they were just there.  Nothing special was going to happen to them and they knew it.  No awards were coming their way and they knew this as well.  No one was going to take their picture as their hands were shaken and ribbons placed around their necks.  Un unh.  Pats on the backs and words of “Well done!” or “Excellent job” and mostly “I’m so proud of you!” would not be spoken about them.  Getting that one certificate of promotion to the next grade was all that was in their future.

Sigh.

Bruised heart.

Hurting soul.

When do kids lose it?  When do they lose the favor of the ones who brought them into this world?  When did they lose the attention span of the adults who used to hang on their every word, their every achievement as they learned to speak, to walk, to run, to read, to jump, to sing, to learn?  When did mom and dad turn their focus away and basically left the kids to their own devices?  When did the caretakers stop taking care?

Sigh.

Bruised hearts.  Hurting souls.  

Someone used to sing to them “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.  You make me happy when skies are grey.  You’ll never know, dear, how much I love you.  Please don’t take my sunshine away.”  When did their light stop shining?  When did the parents stop looking for that light and instead choose to live in the dark?

At the start of this blog, I quoted from First Corinthians.  My meme featured a verse about the same topic.  Love.  The title of my blog asks what love has to do with it.  And though it’s been a scattered essay, I leave you with this question:  are you loving today?  Are you truly loving or are you just making noise that you are a good parent, a true friend, a considerate person, or are you just performing when it makes you look good to the world rather than to the one who needs you the most?  Those kids shouldn’t have had to had sad faces and gone home without ribbons around their necks.  They shouldn’t have had to try to find things to amuse themselves with while their friends were being photographed and fawned over.  They didn’t have to maybe collect the awards they did receive and tuck them carelessly in their backpacks to maybe show off later--the next time they got to see mom or dad...whenever that might be.  They didn’t have to not know love.  Their hearts didn’t have to be bruised nor their souls filled with anguish.  They’re just kids!  They didn’t ask to be brought into this world but here they are, waiting to be loved, waiting to be someone’s sunshine.  Let’s not leave them in the dark, friends.  May we all love in deed and in truth is my prayer, my plea, asked in the name of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Are you talking to Me?

One night--literally, she was only there for one night--my sister Mary was in a hospice center. As the family was all gathered about, my other sister and her daughter discussed who would stay with Mary that night. Although I could hear every word said and was a mere three feet away, they talked as though I wasn’t.

This morning as I pondered my prayer life, I recalled this incident. Funny, isn't it, how our Lord uses common things to point us to Himself? He gently spoke to me about how I talk a lot--intending for Him to hear the conversation yet...yet I don't speak directly to Him.

Hmn, Stef. You mean you spoke at Him but not to Him? Seems like what we have here is a failure to communicate.

Okay, I see it, Lord. Although Your presence is always surrounding me, You still desire my undivided attention. Just as when my sister wanted me to hear her words, I wasn’t invited into the conversation. And when I'm not a part, I wind up being apart from talking with someone who can help.

As I continue learning, Father, thank You for these simple truths. I am to go to the Source for help in my times of need. Concentrating on You keeps my prayers from just being useless words that are bandied about in hopes of being responded to. May I be more direct instead of subtly hinting when I need answers is my prayer. Amen. +

Prayers gonna pray pray pray

Yesterday was check-up time with my Bible Study Group.  As prayer time began and it was my turn to submit my requests, I first asked if the gals had anything for me.  They kind of looked blankly at me and then I reminded them of how last week I had asked them to write me a prayer.  Realization came to some of their eyes as they suddenly remembered what they had been asked to do but hadn’t.  Well, except for two of the gals who weren’t there last week.  And Kristy.  But I’ll write more about her in a moment.

Saddened but hiding it in humor (my go-to fix) I declined the offer to share my requests since they hadn’t prayed for me last week.  “Why ask if you aren’t going to do your part,” I questioned, with a mock-offended tone and my hands held out in protest.  And then came the responses that made me ashamed of myself.  

“When I drive past your road, I say a prayer for you.  That’s when God brings you to my mind” said one gal, as she explained how writing just wasn’t her thing.  

Kristy--again, I’ll get to her later--smiled at me in camaraderie, because she had done her part.  And then, the sweet gal beside of me, pulls out a sheet of paper, handwritten, from the Book of Colossians, where she had been specifically praying for me as she wrote her conversation to the Lord about me but hadn’t finished it yet.  

Wow.

Did I mention I was humbled?  

Sigh.

Okay, let’s get to Kristy now.  I love this little lady!  She is one of the sweetest souls I have ever met and I weekly delight in how she is growing in the Lord and how her inner light blesses me and so many others.  For example, on Tuesday I received a message from her, with a prayer she had prepared for me from Ephesians 6:10-18.  I was so touched!  We talked back and forth for a few minutes and she let me know that she had received her note from me earlier in the day and how it had come and said what she needed at just the right time.  Don’t you just love when God works that out?!  Me too!

We all have our own ways of praying and lifting each other up.  Mine is mostly through writing while another’s is done through “drive-bys.”  Then there are those who just pray at specific and/or designated times.  Others will only do it when strongly impressed to.  But the kicker here is to pray.  When you can.  Where you can.  How you can.  As often as you can.  For you see, when we talk to Jesus about one another, we have an Advocate Who listens and is able to touch the needs addressed.  We have a Friend Who gives us His whole-hearted attention, whether that be for a minute, a moment, or more.  And the results of these conversations with our Lord can have lasting results and make changes not only in the one we are praying for but in us as we take the time to speak to Him.  

In conclusion, I timed myself yesterday as I was praying for my special person.  Less than three minutes was all it took.  Three minutes to devote to my friend as I mentioned her name to the Father as I prayed I Corinthians 13 over her.  Today I purpose to say that prayer again but pausing more as I consider where she is on her journey, where I wish she was, and how I am going to trust God to see that she completes her race.  I shall look at her paper I created and reflect on those verses throughout the day.  I shall ponder and pray because she is worth this to me.  

As you glance at the meme I posted today, I ask that you consider giving me three minutes of your time.  Repeat the words of scripture or use your own.  Can you imagine what God might do if a few of you lifted me up to Him with these words?  Ol’ Stef might finally get straightened out and be a vessel of glory and honor.  Now that would be something!