Mom’s birthday today. So thankful for her and so thankful that she is still strong and sharp – continuing to be a blessing, a conduit of God’s extravagant love and grace, a living testimony to the finished work of Christ, and a projection and demonstration of the Holy Spirit; So thankful, that she continues to be a beacon of Truth in this reality full of lies and deception, of Light and Life, in this world saturated in darkness, hopelessly corrupted by sin and death.
And as God has been faithful to her through her many years, so shall He continue to be faithful and true, in her many years to come. To Him be all the glory and praise, forever and ever.
Let us continue to call upon the Lord – if not for our own circumstances, let us also lift up the grief and concern we have for others.
I’ve said time and time again that there are many more reasons for us to give thanks, than there are reasons for us to complain… however, I’m only realizing now that I’ve also mentioned that when we DO give thanks, we are also praying, just as we are also rejoicing; And with all that in mind, we can also say that we have just as many more reasons for us to pray, than there are reasons for us to complain.
For a while there I thought, it isn’t as easy for us to share reasons to pray, just as there are reasons to give thanks… and then I thought, maybe it’s because we’ve been conditioned to find our reasons to pray from our circumstances; they’re therefore a lot more reactive, but more to the point, more… specific to the situations?
Consider how we’ve been praying for ourselves, or for each other: you pray for healing for someone who’s sick. You pray for provision because you’re going through lack. You pray for restoration after experiencing heartache.
I mean, sure, you can look at me with a matching facial expression that says ‘duh’, but I think we shouldn’t neglect the opportunity of praying for someone based on what we or they could be thankful for, no matter what they’re going through.
So with that being said, consider someone who is sick. Many of us have been healed, sure, and we can make that our basis for thanking God and praying to Him on behalf of this person, specifically for His healing him as we have been healed.
But, see, and I guess this is my point, consider everything other way that you’ve been ministered to when you were sick yourself – not only were you healed, but perhaps you also saw God move in everything else that you had to place on pause while you endured affliction? Then, in thanks, pray for our Lord to take care of the one who is presently sick, in the same way.
I’m not sure if I’m making a strong-enough point here, but I guess I’ll just say that there’s at least so much more reason for us to pray, in that we don’t really need to just look at the situation itself, we can also find reasons as we consider how the Lord has worked in our lives in similar situations as well.
But if I’m being honest, I suppose one way the Holy Spirit has been moving in my own life specifically, especially in these recent days, is to keep on praying, whenever anxieties for certain issues I’m handling come up. In other words, I don’t need to wait for others to come to me with their own situations to pray – there’s already a lot on my plate.
But I guess here I see another reason to be thankful – for if the rest of the world has other means of handling said fear and anxiety, it’s only through prayer – the line to our Father made possible only through the finished work of Christ – that we’re able to feel real peace.
So whether we’re praying for others, or we’re praying for ourselves – whether we pray as a reactive action, or we’re spurred to pray out of our own intentions – the bottom line is that we’re led to give thanks, and we shouldn’t be surprised if we feel a peace beyond human understanding, every single time.
We pray and give thanks; We give thanks, and pray.
No matter how it starts, it ends up the other way.
So if you feel need for peace through the pain of today
Take some time to talk to God,
thank the Lord and pray.
Wow, that came out of nowhere.
Father, thank You for my Mom. Thank You for Your goodness and love, seen through her, as You undoubtedly move in her, through her, with her, by her, and for her. Thank You, for You sustain her, and I agree with her in her continued proclamation of Your Word – that she shall not die, but live to proclaim Your wondrous works.
Thank You, dear Father, for everyone who happens to be reading up until this point. I may not know these people, but I thank You, because I know You certainly know them. You know them by name, You know all about them, You know more about them than they know about themselves… and I AM thankful, Father, for Christ, because I know that as He was willing to give all up for me, so He gave everything up for these people.
I thank You, oh, I thank You, Father! For it was never based on our merit, never based on who we were or what we did… but Jesus, You lay it all down for us, because it was YOU who loved us!
Father, in this world full of half truths and lies, in this reality that’s so full of pressure that the slightest changes could tear our entire beings apart… Minister to us today, as You minister to us every day, with Your everlasting mercy that sustains us and holds us together, and with Your Truth that sets us free.
Do not leave us reeling and barely recovering from the beating the world gives us day by day – By Christ, cause us to stand, and to shine! Do not allow us to flee as victims, but make us move from Your absolute victory!
…Yes, Father, there it is. No matter what I’m seeing happening against me from the outside in, or what I struggle with from the inside out… and no matter what whoever is reading this is experiencing, I thank You – because, again, we not only survive, but thrive in Your mercies that are new every morning.
We are not so easily pushed to and for, nor are we rendered anxious and full of terror, for more than the so-called facts of this world, we have the truth, and we stand firm from the Truth.
Thank You, Father, for no matter what we’re going through, we will ALWAYS have Mercy, we ALWAYS have TRUTH – all because of Christ’s victory! Indeed, He is worthy of all praise and adoration.
Thank You, Father, for this time. Thank You, Father, for everything.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I thank You. Amen.
Until the next post, God bless us greatly, abundantly.
Amen.
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