Prayers
I'm always looking for new ways to "sharpen" the weapon of prayer in the fight against the enemy. Two people close to me both suffer from severe chronic pain due to ruptured back and neck discs, and as I was praying for them this morning God gave me some ideas for something different, and maybe someone reading this could use them too.
First, God impressed on me the importance of getting specific in prayer. A blanket "God please be with this person and help them" is a nice thought, but if a person really wants to get down and dirty and throw some spiritual punches back at the enemy, a good strategy is to be as specific as possible in communicating with God the things that are on your heart.
The benefits of this are twofold: first, you as the one who is praying receive a deeper understanding and empathy for the person you are praying for. God is amazing in His giving of understanding and wisdom if we just ask for it!
Second, by this deeper understanding God leads us to, He enables us to develop specific ways to fight, including things to pray for and strategies and advice to give to the person you're praying for. And it's like a snowball effect - the more you are willing to dive in and really be open to the specifics of God's will in a situation, the more knowledge, wisdom, and weapons He gives you to continue fighting the good fight.
Another idea God gave me in praying specifically for the two people mentioned earlier is to ask Him to give them rest from their pain for a time by giving that physical pain to me. By allowing me to carry their burden for a while, maybe God could teach me how fortunate I am to have a healthy body and give me better understanding of what they go through every day. Paul showed us that the willingness to bear physical pain in order to be a witness to Christ is an incredibly powerful weapon against satan. I am trying in my own fumbling way to do this, and I'm totally open to the possibility that there are better ways to do things and I would love to hear any feedback. Thanks!
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From: thereeds
Aug 22, 2008 10:11:41 PM
The Brick!!!
PLEASE
Read It.
Read this today and
don't delete it even if
you are too busy!! You'll
see.
THE
BRICK
A young and successful
executive was traveling down a neighborhood street,
going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was
watching for kids darting out from between parked
cars and slowed down
when he thought he saw
something. As his car passed, no children appeared.
Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door!
He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to
the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry
driver
then jumped out of the
car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up
against
=0 A
a parked car shouting,
'What was that all about and who are you? Just what
the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that
brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why
did you do it?' The young boy was apologetic.
'Please, mister...please, I'm sorry but I didn't
know what else to do,' He pleaded. 'I threw the
brick because no one else would stop...' With tears
dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth
pointed to a spot just around a parked car. 'It's my
brother, 'he said 'He rolled off the curb and fell
out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him
up.'
Now sobbing, the boy
asked the stunned executive, 'Would you please help
me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and
he's too heavy for me.'
Moved beyond words,
the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling
lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the
handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took
out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh
scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything
was going to be okay. 'Thank you and may God bless
you,' the grateful child told the stranger. Too
shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy!
push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk
toward their home.
It was a long, slow
walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very
noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair
the dented side door. He kept the dent there to
remind him of this message: 'Don't go through life
so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to
get your attention!' God whispers in our souls and
speaks to our hearts. Sometimes when we don't have
time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us. It's
our choice to listen or
not.
Thought for the
Day:
If God had a
refrigerator, your picture would be on
it.
If He had a wallet,
your photo would be in
it.
He sends you flowers
every spring.
He sends you a sunrise
every morning Face it, friend - He is crazy about
you!
Send this to every
'beautiful person' you wish to
bless.
God didn't promise
days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun
without rain, but He did promise strength for the
day, comfort for the tears, and light for the
way.
Read this line very
slowly and let it sink
in...
If God brings you to
it, He will bring you through
it.
Pass this message to
seven people except you and
me.
You will receive a
miracle tomorrow
( just do it)!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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