It’s time to pray

I’ve actually had half of this post sitting in my draft folder for a week or so.  I had forgotten about it until I received a book on prayer as a gift followed by stumbling across an article on missions being an answer to prayers.  Thought I would finish it off and publish it.

 

A relative of yours was just diagnosed with a terminal disease. You are shocked, feel lost. Not sure what has happened to your life. It’s time to pray.

A friend just found out that their child was suddenly killed in a tragic accident. You are at a loss for words. You want to provide comfort but feel inadequate and lost. It’s time to pray.

Life is going great. Blue skies all around. All your needs are being met. You can’t imagine things getting any better than this. It’s time to pray.

Life is awful. You have endured some of the most awful events that life has to offer. You are hurt, frustrated, angry, confused. You can’t imagine things getting any worse. It’s time to pray.

Over the past couple weeks, I have known people in each of these situations. I know of people who have stepped out in faith and they are now meeting real resistance. People are hurting deeply. People are lost. People are suffering. No bumper sticker response is good enough when the pains and struggles of this world mount against you. So what are we to do? Pray.  (James 5:13-15)

Prayer seems like such an easy answer but to follow through on it is exceedingly difficult. I, for one, continually struggle with seeking the Lord in meaningful conversation. (That’s what prayer is supposed to be…a two-way conversation.  Not just a one way list of requests.)  A quick thank you before meals is alright but how often do I really make time to discuss the difficulties of this life with the one who created life? Not often enough. Part of it is the element of ADD that I probably have but part of it is just that it is hard….very hard. On several occasions we are told of Jesus retreating to a quiet location to pray for hours at a time. In the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus asked His inner circle to pray what happened? They all fell asleep! But Jesus understood the importance and necessity of prayer. He modeled it perfectly for us and gave us clear instructions on how to do it.  (Matthew 6:5-15, Matthew 7:7-12)

Today many people are struggling on a personal level.  Countries are in turmoil.  Additional wars seem inevitable.  Persecution continues to increase.  Honestly, it can often look like we are without hope.  But God has invited us to come to Him.  It is amazing that the eternal God – who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – has invited us through prayer to enter into communication.  That is something that I don’t think I will ever be able to wrap my head around.  It doesn’t make much sense to me but scripture is full of examples of God meeting with His people.  Abraham is even called a “friend of God” on several occasions (2 Chronicles 20:7, Isaiah 41:8, James 2:23).  An we are now invited to have the same intimate relationship.  Amazing!!

We are to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).  We are to pray when things are good, when they are bad.  We are to pray for those we love and those we are not fond of.  If you desire wisdom, then pray for it.  “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”  James 1:5

We are to pray for those in authority over us and for those who do not know Jesus.  “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.  This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”  1 Timothy 2:1-4

Through prayer we can set our minds on the things that truly matter…the eternal.  “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Colossians 3:1-2

I don’t fully understand prayer.  I’m not going to pretend to.  I am still learning and struggling myself.  But what I do know is that prayer is the way God has chosen to communicate with us.  Even when we don’t know what to say, He still listens.  (In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.  Romans 8:26-27)

 

These past couple weeks have been pretty busy as usual.  School is now in full swing.  Jacob is loving school.  Noah…well, Noah is tolerating it.  Levi will soon be starting his preschool class as well.  (For more details on this check out Steph’s blog posts.)

Myself and several others at the hospital spent afternoons/early evenings taking a course on Biblical orality (the course is called Simply the Story).  We learned methods for learning the true stories in scripture and then retelling those stories in a way that allows the audience to glean the treasures God has placed there.  It made for some long days but the course was fantastic!  (Did you know that upwards of 80% of the world either cannot or prefers not to learn through reading?  This is why Biblical orality can be such an important tool.)

Work remains busy and challenging.  The last several days I have seen more trauma and complex medical patients.  The surgeons are in the process of working up a 24 year old I saw.  She has a massive aortic aneurysm that extends from the arch to her iliacs.  She essentially only has one kidney (as one is atrophied due to thrombosis) and her abdominal organs are only receiving blood through retrograde flow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday I saw a 15 year old with unilateral leg edema.  After a full day of working him up and consulting with some medical colleagues, a urologist and a visiting dermatologist (for various elements of his presentation), we still aren’t sure what the cause is.  We are still entertaining the possibility of filariasis but we’ve not been able to confirm this as of yet.  Overall, things are good here.  We appreciate your interest in the work we are doing and what our family is up to.

Prayer requests:

1.  Continue to pray for us as we draw nearer to the 6 month mark since Hannah’s home going.  It doesn’t seem possible that we said goodbye so long ago.

2.  Be praying for a young woman who has reached out to us.  She has endured some of the most horrible things you could imagine and is struggling with severe depression.  (This is the same person I mentioned on our FaceBook group.)  Pray for healing, forgiveness, and wisdom as difficult choices have to be made.

3.  Pray for the ongoing and increasing persecution of the Church around the world.  Many are suffering and dying simply because of their belief in Jesus Christ.  May they be strong witnesses for the Kingdom.

4.  Pray for the many unreached people groups around the world.  Pray that men, women, children will be raised up to go out and bring them the truth of the gospel.

5.  Be praying for the patients that I have mentioned and the many others I have not.

6.  Pray that all who took the story telling course would have opportunities to share our stories and speak truth into the lives of those around us.

7.  Pray that we all would develop a deeper relationship with God through real, unashamed, ongoing, fervent prayer!  It’s time to pray.