Prayer For Increased Faith As We Pray God's Word Back To Him
Tuesday September 15, 2020
Faith Comes By Hearing
Six months ago on March 15 my colleague Evelyn and I adjusted our schedules in response to a directive we’d received that volunteers were no longer being allowed into the prison for health reasons.
For years we had been going to each unit of the prison to sit with women and facilitate chapel services. I can still hear the song, “Your love never fails, never gives up, never runs out on me” ringing in my ears and see the smiles on faces as we sang it together. The questions, the sharing, the disruptions, the tears, the prayers – precious times as people in prison woke up to the fact that there is a God who cares for them and who is able to give them a future that is bright even though the past has been turbulent and dark.
For years we had been going to each unit of the prison to sit with women and facilitate chapel services. I can still hear the song, “Your love never fails, never gives up, never runs out on me” ringing in my ears and see the smiles on faces as we sang it together. The questions, the sharing, the disruptions, the tears, the prayers – precious times as people in prison woke up to the fact that there is a God who cares for them and who is able to give them a future that is bright even though the past has been turbulent and dark.
A larger group of us used to visit one-to-one with women on those units on Monday evenings and hear their personal stories and pray with them as they considered where they were, how they got there, and what they were hoping for in the future. Those visiting nights were also cancelled until further notice.
None of us realized that six months later we’d still be locked out and all the changes that have come during those months.
These events – even long lasting ones – are no surprise to God. His heart is turned toward people who are suffering, people who are stumbling around in the darkness of sin and separation from Him. He’s always reaching out, calling out, and making the Good News of the Gospel available to them.
The Bible tells us: So faith comes from hearing the message and the message that is heard is the message about Christ. Romans 1-:17
Evelyn and I were praying in thanksgiving for the many hundreds of meditation booklets that were still getting inside prison walls each month and with each letter we received from a chaplain or inmate we gave thanks for God’s creative ways to help people hear so their faith could grow as they put their trust in Him.
We also wondered if there was something God wanted us to do while the time we used to give to chapel services and visiting was available to us and so came the idea to bring God’s word to the front of our hearts and minds in prayer in a daily blog.
The purpose has always been simple. What is God saying to us that can encourage and strength us to live above the chaos of the pandemic? How can we pray in faith to open doors for what God wants to do in our lives. I don’t know a better way to pray prayers that I know God will answer “yes” to than to pray His own words and promises back to Him. That’s what we’ve been seeking to do each day – pray God’s faithful words back to Him and over our lives so He can do all that He longs to do for us.
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.
Psalm 55:22
Loving God, you hold the past, present, and future together and You know every day of our lives long before we live them. Six months into these huge changes in our daily lives, today's circumstances are no surprise to You. You promised us that if we would cast our cares on You that You would sustain us and that You would never let the righteous be shaken. You’ve kept us through these months just like You promises Thank you.
God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5
Thank You for being with us today when it seems like chaos and out of control things are perhaps even more the order of the day than back in March with society being more open but with case numbers ticking up in so many jurisdictions and so many things yet unknown. You promised that You would never leave us and that You would make us strong. We still need that today.
Don’t worry—I am with you. Don’t be afraid—I am your God. I will make you strong and help you. I will support you with my right hand that brings victory.
Isaiah 41:10
Help us to be conscious of You today. Give us ears to hear the instructions You have for us - through Your Word, through the leaders in government and health care who are working hard on our behalf, through one another as we offer our experience, strength, and hope to each other.
We bless ourselves, our loved ones, our leaders, the at-risk folks in our communities, and those who are grieving. Surround us with Your comfort and compassion today. We rely on You. You will not let us down. Amen
There is still so much we don’t know about the virus and about the future isn’t there? I’m so grateful that we have the reliability and stability of God’s faithful words to guide us and keep us steady.
It’s true for us today, friends. If we want to be strong and live well during this season the basis still is: So faith comes from hearing the message and the message that is heard is the message about Christ. Romans 1-:17 Let’s immerse ourselves in this truth, pray it into our lives and share it with our friends. God will bless us and we will be fruitful beyond our wildest expectations.
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