Power of Prayer

Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work.

[Oswald Chambers]

1 Thessalonians 5:17 ... Pray without ceasing.

Romans 12:12 ... Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

Ephesians 6:18 ... Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Philippians 4:6 ... Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Colossians 4:2 ... Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving;

James 5:16 ... Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. ♥

The Butterfly

The air is full of butterflies,

Flying so effortlessly in the sky.

No weight they carry, to hold them down.

Never a worry or a frown.

And yet not long ago, they were,

A crawling little caterpillar.

I wonder if they knew they'd be,

A beautiful butterfly flying so free.

They do not question how long they'll live,

But are happy with each day God gives.

They trust that he will always provide,

whatever they need to survive.

So learn to trust and fly away,

from cares and worries of today.

See how beautiful life can be,

Rely on Jesus, to supply your needs.

[Author Unknown]

Psalm 27:7 … Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.

Philippians 4:6-7 … Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 5:6-7 … Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Philippians 4:19 … But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. ♥

Shipwrecked

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions.

But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened; everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. “God, how could you do this to me!” he cried.

Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. How did you know I was here?” asked the weary man of his rescuers. “We saw your smoke signal,” they replied.

It is easy to get discouraged when things are going bad. But we shouldn’t lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground, it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.

[Author Unknown]

2 Samuel 22:7 … In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.

Nahum 1:7 … The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.

Isaiah 41:10 … Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. ♥

My Chains Are Gone

Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed

My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures

My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God, Who called me here below
Will be forever mine
Will be forever mine
You are forever mine

[sung by: Chris Tomlin]

John 3:16 … For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Romans 6:22 … But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

John 8:36 … If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. ♥

There is a God

A little girl asked her mother: “How did the human race appear?” The mother answered: “God made Adam and Eve; they had children; and so was all mankind made.”

Two days later the girl asked her father the same question. The father answered: “Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race evolved.”

The confused girl returned to her mother and said: “Mum, how is it possible that you told me the human race was created by God, and my father said they developed from monkeys?”

The mother answered: “Well, Dear, it is very simple. I told you about my side of the family, and your father told you about his.”

[Author Unknown]

Genesis 1:27 … So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Genesis 1:25 … And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Isaiah 42:5 … Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:

Colossians 1:16 … For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: ♥

The Right Relationship

We must continually remind ourselves of the purpose of life. We are not destined to happiness, nor to health, but to holiness. Today we have far too many desires and interests, and our lives are being consumed and wasted by them. Many of them may be right, noble, and good, and may later be fulfilled, but in the meantime God must cause their importance to us to decrease. The only thing that truly matters is whether a person will accept the God who will make him holy. At all costs, a person must have the right relationship with God.

[Oswald Chambers]

1 Corinthians 1:9 … God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

John 17:3 … And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

2 Timothy 1:9 … Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Colossians 1:21-22 … And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

1 Peter 1:16 ... Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.♥

Strength Will Rise ... As We Wait Upon The Lord

There are times when solitude is better than society, and silence is wiser than speech. We should be better Christians if we were more alone, waiting upon God and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for labour in his service. We ought to muse upon the things of God, because we thus get the real nutriment out of them.

[Charles H. Spurgeon]

Hosea 12:6 … Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait on thy God continually.

Psalm 25:5 … Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.

Isaiah 40:31 … But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Psalm 27:14 … Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. ♥

Immeasurable

Go, count the sands that form the earth,

The drops that make the mighty sea;

Go, count the stars of heavenly birth,

And tell me what their number be;

And thou shalt know loves mystery.

No measurement hath yet been found,

No lines or numbers that can keep

The sum of its eternal round,

The plummet of its endless deep,

Or heights to which its glories sweep.

Yes, measure love, when thou canst tell

The lands where seraphs have not trod,

The heights of heaven, the depths of hell,

And lay thy finite measuring-rod

On the Infinitude of God!

[Thomas C. Upham]

Psalm 36:5-7 … Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens; and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O LORD, thou preservest man and beast. How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.

Ephesians 3:17-19 … That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. ♥

What A Friend We Have in Jesus

What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In his arms he'll take and shield thee; thou wilt find a solace there.

What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

[written by: Joseph M. Scriven 1855]

2 Chronicles 20:7-9 … Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying, If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help. ♥

The Stranger

A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small town. From the beginning, dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later.

As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family. Mom taught me to love the word of God, and dad taught me to obey it. But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most fascinating tales. Adventures, mysteries and comedies were daily conversations. He could hold our whole family spell-bound for hours each evening.

If I wanted to know about politics, history, or science, he knew it all. He knew about the past, understood the present, and seemingly could predict the future. The pictures he could draw were so life like that I would often laugh or cry as I watched.

He was like a friend to the whole family. He took Dad, Bill and me to our first football game. He was always encouraging us to see the movies and he even made arrangements to introduce us to several movie stars.

The stranger was an incessant talker. Dad didn’t seem to mind but sometimes mom would quietly get up while the rest of us were enthralled with one of his stories of faraway places and go to her room, read her Bible and pray. I wonder now if she ever prayed that the stranger would leave.

You see, my dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions. But this stranger never felt obligation to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our house–not from us, from our friends, or adults. Our longtime visitor, however, used occasional four letter words that burned my ears and made dad squirm. To my knowledge the stranger was never confronted.

My dad was a teetotaler who didn’t permit alcohol in his home–not even for cooking. But the stranger felt like we needed exposure and enlightened us to other ways of life. He offered us beer and other alcoholic beverages often.

He made cigarettes look tasty, cigars manly, and pipes distinguished. He talked freely (too much too freely) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I know now that my early concepts of the man-woman relationship were influenced by the stranger.

As I look back, I believe it was the grace of God that the stranger did not influence us more. Time after time he opposed the values of my parents. Yet he was seldom rebuked and never asked to leave.

More than thirty years have passed since the stranger moved in with the young family on Morningside Drive. He is not nearly so intriguing to my Dad as he was in those early years. But if I were to walk into my parents home today, you would still see him sitting over in a corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.

His name? ... We always just called him … TV

[Author Unknown]

Psalm 101:3 ... I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.

1 Corinthians 15:33 ... Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.


Galatians 6:8 ... For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. ♥

Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. [Jesus Christ]

Deuteronomy 28:1-2 … And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

2 Corinthians 9:8 … And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

Philippians 4:19 … But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. ♥