MOVING BEYOND "THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS".....

"With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints." (Ephesians 6:18)

We have all heard it and some of us have even said it "so and so are in our thoughts and prayers". Even people whom we know could not say a prayer to save their lives, or say they are atheists or not Christians will repeat this cliche.

But even worse than this, Christians are using the same phrase when wrapped up in the moment. Beyond all of the bluster about "being in our thoughts and prayers", do any of these folks actually pray for those to whom they say these things. From personal experience, before I realized I used to do the same thing, I can tell you that it is very easy to tell someone you will pray for them, then walk away and completely fail to do. Such a move is not right, even if we remember to pray three of four days later. After realizing my shortcoming, in this area of Faith, corrective action needed to be taken so this aspect of ministry could function with an unction.

Basically, when a person says to another that "you are in my thoughts and prayers" and then does not do so, it is deception. There are ways to avoid that and do the right thing...and that is, to really pray for there person right then and there. Sometimes, circumstances and potential discomfort of the recipient of those prayers, WILL prevent us from praying then and there with the person. In this case it is really beneficial to such a person, and then pertinent to our spiritual growth, if we take a note of the situation and immediately begin to pray in silence. Then, after getting to a place we can pray intensely, for real, we must bear down and contend for the recipient of our intercession.

There is a really memorable passage in Scripture of a woman who was the beneficiary of more than just "thoughts and prayers". 1 Kings 17:21-22 tells us of the great prophet Elijah, who had been staying with a widow woman and her son. He had already blessed the widow and proven himself as a man of God by miraculously causing her food not to run out, so that the widow, her son, and Elijah could all eat during a time of famine and drought. But during his stay, the widow’s son became ill and died. When Elijah prayed for the child’s life to return to him, God answered right away. This is a dramatic, immediate instance of God answering prayer....and instant prayer!

The Bible said of Elijah in these two verses: "Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, ‘O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.’ And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived". We may not be able to pray someone back from the dead, but we sure can lift high such a one to the One Who heals, reveals and blesses all things and all people - Yahweh Rophe - the God Who heals! He is Yahweh Shammah - the God Who is there for us if we cry out earnestly and pray for those ....truly pray for them, with all the Faith we can muster in our spirit, so that the Lord will hear from Heaven and answer our prayers. Why did God listen to Elijah? He listened because of the close relationship He had with this imperfect man who was serving a perfect God. God listen to Elijah's thoughts, prayers and then ACTIONS to put His prayer and Faith into action mightily!

Then God responded by restoring the child to his mother....all because Faith in the Lord changes everything and FAITH IN ACTION, brings results. Amen.

(Image Credit Here)

PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES - THE BOOK OF JAMES, #11

                      METHODOLOGY CONCERNING: INTERCESSION

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16a).

There is no greater gift you can give a friend than to pray for them, after you have told them about Jesus and what He has done for you. This makes you and each Christian who follows the teaching of the Scriptures (through James here) - an intercessor.

An intercessor is one who stands in the gap for someone else in prayer and supplication to the Father in Heaven. 
An intercessor is one who has such an intimate relationship with God that when this Christian man or woman approaches the Throne Room of heaven - day or night - our Heavenly Father listens. 
An intercessor is one who is prayed up, stayed up and weighed up in the Scales of Heaven and found wanted by the LORD as one of His dearest saints.
An intercessor is a prayer warrior who lays a hold of the need of another or many others and does not let go, even after the result has been achieved because that desired result only leads to more and more praise to the Most High God.

Many of us have prayed for the closest of our loved ones to the most distant of emailed prayer requests and do so willingly, because a willing heart is near and dear to God. So is a repentant heart and one that is willing to forgive someone else, even if we are the party who has been wronged.

So, we know what the attributes of someone who "stands in the gap" for another - an intercessor looks like. But how does that look in practice? First things first, unless it is absolutely impossible to do so immediately, we never tell someone in dire straights "you are in my thoughts and prayers"! That is an easy way out to do nothing but sounds like the rest of the world.

Secondly, even if it is very quietly off to the side of a room or the street, on a sidewalk, ask permission to pray for the person right there and there.

Third, pray to the point, in brief, with power and immediately transport yourself into His Presence, in the Power of the Holy Ghost like this - "Father, in the Mighty Strong and Powerful Name that is above every name, the Name of Jesus, the Great and Mighty Physician Who heals our diseases and rescues us from the domain of darkness, I come to You right now on behalf of my friend........(fill in the name of the person being prayed over) and humbly as Thee for Thy tender mercies, grace and compassion for her healing (or his restoration) to full and complete health. Lord, we know that You are more than able and capable of reaching down from heaven and ask that You intervene with the Healing Touch of Your Powerful and Awesome Hand into this situation and restore from this (virus, tumor, ....fill in the blank) right now, right now and heal every fiber of his/her being....that You remove every affliction....that You restore life into that which was formerly non-functional and that You bring hope, joy, peace, contentment and gratitude at this miracle, which we are asking for, believing in and trusting in right now, right now Father, from the top of her/his head to the soles of her/his feet and believe, receive and thank You right now for intervening, in the Mighty Name of Jesus, Amen and amen and amen.

Image Credit Here)

A GREAT MAN OF (NO) FAITH - CYRUS THE GREAT

Archeaology proves the Bible again

It is amazing how, when, why and for what God uses a man (or woman).  Do you know what is even more incredible? God, in His infinite, grace, mercy and long-suffering, does so even when He knows this person will reject Him! But such is the case with the Great Amazing God of the Universe. 

One such person is Cyrus, the great Persian King,

King Cyrus the Great

who overran Babylon a generation after Nebuchadnezzar was saved and went on to be with the Lord. His grandson Belshazzar had just ignored the prophet Daniel’s interpretation of the famous “handwriting on the wall” which had told the corrupt final king of Babylon that God had weighed him in the scales and found him wanting. Less than 24 hours later, Cyrus’ men ingeniously pierced the fortress that was the city walls by diverting the river and coming in under the gates, eradicated Belshazzar and assumed control of Babylon.

The Cyrus Cylinder with
Rich  history written on it

In effect, Cyrus had accomplished the work of God in one  fell swoop to end the pre-ordained 70 year old Babylonian captivity of the Jews, for the latter’s disobedience to the laws of the Holy One of Israel. Over 150 years before this, the Prophet Isaiah predicted this event and even named the person who would thus emerge!  In Chapter 45, Isaiah wrote in verses 1-3: "This says the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whom I have seized by the right, to subdue nations before him. Yes, I will open the loins of kings, to open the two-leaved doors before him, and the gates shall not be shut. I will go before you and make hills level; I will tear apart the bronze doors and cut the iron bars in two. And I will give you the treasures of darkness, even treasures in secret places, that you may know that I am the Lord who calls you by your name, I the God of Israel.” 

The great God of heaven called Cyrus by his name and even called him “His anointed”! Yet, God Himself says of Cyrus (and TO Cyrus) 150 years before in the next four verses (4-7): "For Jacob my servant's sake, and for Israel my elect, I have called you by your name. I named you but you do not know me. I am God, and there is no other, there is no God except me, I will clothe you, even though you do not know me, that they may know from sunrise to sunset that there is none except me; I am God and there is no other who creates light and forms darkness; makes peace and creates evil. I God do all these things"

Cyrus did NOT “know” the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel because He was a like a lot of Persians of the day and believed in many gods. Even when he was

Excellent book about
God's Hand in Persia

told that the God of the captive Jews had prophesied him by name 150 years before the event, Cyrus in his pride, attributed his success as a might
y warrior and king to his “great military prowess”, and even wrote about himself in the third person. These can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus and in Cyrus’ Cylinder, which archaeologists discovered years ago. A book which I have read and which details all of this and the special relationship Persia had with the one True God is the book “PERSIA AND THE BIBLE”  There are photographs of Cyrus’ Cylinder (seen here), his tomb and some of the pagan temples he set up there

So we know how great this king was. In fact he is known as Cyrus the Great and his Declaration of Human Rights predates the Magna Carta by 1700 years. It was so great a document, that the UN had it translated in 1971 into modern English. With all the great things he did- from his military conquests to his tolerance and all, Cyrus never acknowledged the God Who prophesied him by name, spared his life as a child and was the one who gave him all the power, wealth and honor he received. Even when told about the Prophesy of Isaiah, he never changed his view of God and prefered the unknown gods of the Persians. Marduk and Nebo were his favorite pagan idols. He set up temples to gods and sought prayers and worshipped everything except Yahweh, the One True God of Heaven. Cyrus was the fore-runner of the Bahai Faith.

Are there lessons for us today in the account of this amazing man who freed the Jews from 70 years of Captivity in Babylon? You bet there are:
1. The Bible is true and God knew us before we were born as He told Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1:5. He knows our names and how we will turn out. He knows those who will believe and trust in Him and those who will never bow the knee.

2. Just because a person is ordained for worldly greatness by God, does not mean that said person will actually believe and love the Lord with all heart, mind, body and soul. America and the west are full of people calling themselves "Christians" who know there is a God, know there was a man named Jesus Who lived and preached and was nailed to a Cross. They believe He may have risen from the dead on Resurrection Morning. They even tell folks "you are in our thoughts and prayers" when something goes wrong, yet never pray or even know how to. Our western churches are packed with these cultural Christians, in name only. The proof is in their lack of a testimony of their conversion, from a child of wrath to a child of the King.

3. The wealthier or the higher position in this life that a person occupies, the more difficult it is for him (or her) to give all the credit and glory to God. We see it in self-made millionaires, celebrities, politicians, most athletes and especially Kings and Queens. The common denominator is both pride and self-reliance. Sure, they worked hard and earned that fortune, or in some cases, inherited it, but the life and breath and good health to become successful - you guess it - came from God! Both the uber-rich, and everybody else, are just one breath away from eternity, yet very few really recognize that and live accordingly.

Cyrus is really an intriguing personality and it is sad to read about his fishing around for some non-existent God to "worship". But what a great King Cyrus the Great was! He not only freed the Jews from Babylon as he was prophesied about 150 years before, but he ruled such a huge part of the known world around his time, that Alexander the Great made a pilgrimage to his tomb, when the latter rampaged through the Middle East less than 300 years after Cyrus. The main takeaway from this - our God, Yahweh, is Sovereign and His Word (the Bible) is always TRUE!!

Credits:
Slideshare.net (Clay brick photo above)
Ancient Origins (Cyrus Cylinder)
Amazon.com (Persia and the Bible)