Intercession

Prayer warriors please understand that while it is good to pray for ourselves, it is indeed gracious to pray for others.

Praying for someone else comes with the most awesome and beneficial incentives...a satisfied as well as a thankful heart...both of the recipient and for the one praying.

Think about it...when you pray for someone else, you are also being strengthened in the knowledge and understanding of who God is and all the love that He has for His people and creation.

In Psalm 20 David intercedes in prayer with confidence and as I read each verse, I am filled and blessed as the Psalmist says as a confident prayer warrior:

- that our prayers are heard
- that we will be defended
- that we will receive help
- that we will be strengthened
- that we will be remembered
- that we will be accepted
- that we will be granted
- that we will be fulfilled
- that we will rejoice
- that we will set up and wave victory banners
- we will be Saved!

Here is the full passage of Scripture to read for yourself:

"The Lord HEAR thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob DEFEND thee;  Send thee HELP from the sanctuary, and STRENGTHEN thee out of Zion;  REMEMBER all thy offerings, and ACCEPT thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.  GRANT thee according to thine own heart, and FULFILL all thy counsel.  We will REJOICE in thy salvation, and IN THE NAME OF GOD we will SET UP OUR BANNERS: the Lord fulfil all thy petitions.  Now know I that the Lord SAVES His anointed; He will HEAR him from His holy heaven with the SAVING STRENGTH of His right hand. 
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God." (Psalms 20:1-7 KJV)

The Word of God will cause you to always pray in confidence... both for yourself and in interceding on behalf of another.

Prayer Warriors the need for intercession is greater now than ever before. All that God has revealed to you in His Word has already equipped as well as strengthened you...let's get back to interceding for our families, our people and our nation. Prayer is an awesome responsibility and WE have been CALLED AND ANOINTED to carry it out!

God bless Your people everywhere they go and in everything that they will face today, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Be Confident!

LIVE THROUGH IT

Earlier this morning I was listening to a song by James Fortune called "Live Through It". The song says, that you may have problems, but your problems don't have you!

Today, we must know that we can and we shall "Live Through It", not only live through it, but thrive; grow; be strengthened; have victory; and when we come out of it, we are better equipped to help others through it!

The Word of God tells us that "He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world", "For though we walk (live) in the flesh, we are not carrying on our warfare according to the flesh and using mere human weapons. For the weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One)" - 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 Amplified Bible

You see, the fight that you're in is lopsided in your favor...you're going to win! Again, The Spirit of God that is in you is greater than anything and everything in this world, in this universe and greater than each and every thought or idea that comes to distract, detract, divide or disable your life and commitment to God!

Be thankful in knowing that no matter what others may be saying; no matter how it appears right now; and no matter how many times you've been rejected, neglected; or subjected to negativity... I'm here to tell you that you will "Live Through It"!! Amen.

Exceptional or Significant - Doesn't Matter, DO YOU!

DO YOU!

In 1 Corinthians 15:1-9, Paul is telling the Corinthian church about the glorious resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul is telling the listeners of the bodily resurrection, not of a spirit that was seen, but Christ Himself in the flesh.

He is telling the story of how all of Jesus' Disciples at different times saw Christ, as did many others. He explains that Jesus was seen first of Cephas (which is Peter), then Jesus was seen by the Twelve. After that, Jesus was seen by about 500 at once, and then after that Jesus was seen by James; then of the Apostles. Then Paul says, "And LAST of all He was seen of me also, as one born out of due time. For I am THE LEAST of the Apostles..."

You see, Paul thought himself not as one of those who walked with Jesus, because he didn't. Paul felt lower because he didn't eat with Jesus, again because he didn't. Paul didn't pray with Jesus, he wasn't discipled by Jesus, he never witnessed a miracle performed by Jesus and he was never touched by Jesus! However, Paul was "CALLED" by Jesus and Paul believed in, and trusted in, and had strong faith in, the CALL that was upon his life.

He made up in his mind that no matter how hard he tried that he would never be like one of the Twelve that actually walked with Jesus. Paul couldn't do anything except to be himself and to live out the life that Jesus CALLED him to live and to minister the Gospel according to what Jesus gave him and to whom Jesus sent him to minister to!

Paul may not have had the reputation nor the prestiege of the Twelve, but Paul had an understanding of what God had for him to do, and that's exactly what Paul did...and nothing else. Paul would end up writing more New Testament Letters than any other of the Disciples combined.

I shared all of this to encourage someone this morning to STOP trying to be like everyone else; STOP comparing your CALL with that of someone else!!! JUST DO YOU!!!

I wrote this note to tell somebody...and perhaps to remind myself, that:

You don't have to be exceptional in order to be significant!!! Again, DO YOU, as one day, YOU will have to give an account on what YOU DID with what God gave you!

The Goodness of Life in Christ

“The Goodness of life in Christ goes much deeper than fun!”  I received this text message from a friend of mine last Friday.  When I received it, I just skimmed over it and said that was nice.  However, unknowingly, this message would be a prologue to the weekend.  Let me explain.

My niece, Alicia, is a freshman this year at Frostburg State University and has been away now for nearly 2 months.  Although her time away would seem short, the time away from family, those who truly love and adore Alicia seemed much, much longer.

Well, the weekend of the Columbus Day holiday was Frostburg’s Family and Friends Day.  The family had been planning to make the trip to see Alicia for a over a month; making Hotel reservations, signing up for events at the college, cooking all of her favorite food items from various family members and wrapping up loose ends here in the local area prior to traveling to the University.  We strategically made all of this preparation and planning well in advance so that we could and would have “fun” during our visit.

The drive could be labeled as uneventful, meaning no traffic jams, no weather difficulties and no mechanical issues with the vehicles.  However, I would change that label and say that the drive was spectacular!  I say this because the coolness of the morning air, the brightness and warmth of the sun shining above and the colors of autumn surrounding us as we drove through the mountains were indeed spectacular.  Yeah, everything during our trip to Frostburg was “fun”.



Rocky Gap State Park, Flintsone MD



Our first order of business before seeing Alicia was to check-in to our Hotel.  We approached the exit for the Hotel and began to notice how beautiful it was…I mean EVERYTHING appeared to be as if on a cover of a magazine!  The golf course straddled both sides of the street leading to the hotel.  Nature trails, a crystal like man-made lake surrounded the property and the Hotel itself was simply stunning!  Upon entering, we approached the desk, gave our name and were informed that everything was in order. Yeah, as planned, the “fun” was becoming a reality!

My brother came and met us in the lobby (he and his wife, Paula, arrived the night prior) and helped us to our room and then led us to the dining room where we had breakfast.  The anticipation was great for everyone; hurry up and eat so that we can get to the college.  We were all checking our watches and reviewing the schedule of events for that day at Frostburg…anxious for the “fun” stuff that the college students and faculty had prepared for the families that would be visiting.

When we pulled into the parking lot of the apartments where my niece was residing, before we can even park the car, we could hear the “Hellos” from her and her roommates!  You see, they had been waiting to see us as much as we’ve been waiting to see them!



My niece Alicia, walking IN answered prayer



Alicia (left) was the ultimate tour guide and host!  She showed us around “her” school with great pride.  We visited all her places of study, dining and Java City, her favorite place to be!  She took us to the campus bookstore and bought everyone a little something to take back with them to represent Frostburg. Yes, the “fun” was being enjoyed!

It wasn’t until later on that evening when Ken and I were sitting out on the dock that extended out into the lake, after the “fun” of the day had come to an end, that it hit me.  As I looked at my brother, I began to not only see, but to understand and be reminded once again of “The Goodness of life in Christ” and that it indeed is much more than just “fun”.  I saw in Ken: Confidence not worry or anxiety about neither financial concerns nor health concerns for Alicia, I saw Calmness in his personality not turmoil, and I saw Assurance instead of conflicting thoughts as to the well-being of his daughter and the distance that now separates them.  He was at peace and in a place of Thanksgiving…he was LIVING and THRIVING in “The Goodness of life in Christ”!

We know that true life, not just existence, is found in Christ Jesus.  We know that He has given us life and life more abundantly, we know that He gives us joy that surpasses all understanding, we know that He gives us His peace…we know these things.  However, it is not every day that we live IN IT; we oftentimes just live it without acknowledging His Goodness.

Let’s look back with our spiritual eyes…Because He loves us, He went ahead of us to make all things perfect.  The drive was perfect, the weather was perfect, the accommodations were perfect, the activities at the school was perfect, Alicia was in perfect health and doing well academically as well as socially…everything was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!  You see, when you look back, you begin to realize that it wasn’t ABOUT us and who we are…it was FOR us because of whose we are!  We did not only prepare and make arrangements; we prayed that the day would be “fun”.  He went beyond “fun” and blessed EVERYTHING about the trip!!!

Life in Christ is so much more than just fun, it’s deeper than fun, it is eternal and not temporal, it is beyond our imagination and our comprehension; and because we are His children, He gives us grace when we don’t acknowledge His goodness and when we overlook His provisions and protection.

I couldn’t even begin to label this weekend as “fun”.  However, I do label it as a blessing and I do say that “The Goodness of life in Christ is AWESOME…everything about the life in Christ is AWESOME…every aspect of living your life in Christ is AWESOME!!!”

If you want to have “fun”, schedule a trip to an amusement park.  You may or may not have fun on that particular day, it may or may not rain, the park may or may not be open…BUT, THE GOODNESS OF LIFE IN CHRIST GOES SO MUCH FURTHER than “fun”, it is available to all of us, every single day of our life…and beyond!

Just like the proud parents who wanted to ensure that everything about their daughter's experience in college and being away from home was perfect…Our Heavenly Father makes certain that everything that concerns His children, He will perfect it!

Many thanks to my friend Teddy Foote, for sending me this text message and ultimately, this reminder!