Praying the Light (40 Days of Prayer Part 2)

Do you have friends or family members that don't know God (or don't have a relationship with Him)? Chances are you do. The Bible says that people who are lost are surrounded in darkness and cannot see the truth. How do we get them to see the truth? Maybe you've tried talking to them. Maybe you've tried praying for them. Sometimes the effort seems futile because some people seem like they will never change. I've heard the doubts that prayer will even work on someone who refuses to know God. After all God's not going to make them come to Him. There is freedom of choice and accepting God is a choice they alone can make.

But if this helps - let me offer another perspective.

Imagine you are in a cave. It is pitch black and you are completely lost as to which direction you should go. Suddenly you see a flicker of light. Your first and natural instinct is to take a step toward that light. Though it may be small it offers you a tiny bit of hope. But suddenly the light disappears. You stop - unsure of where to go. You are once again surrounded in darkness. Your eyes begin to adjust to the darkness and there may be times when you actually forget you're in the darkness. But although you may be able to see the hand in front of your face and you've learned to cope with your environment, you're still in the dark. You are still lost.

Imagine a rescue worker at the exit of the cave. He has a tool to help him see in the dark - a flashlight. If he turns on his flashlight for a brief second, the light makes its way to you for a brief second. The flicker of light is helpful but not as helpful as it would be if he kept the flashlight on and shining in your direction. A solid stream of light would draw you to the exit - to the point of being rescued (of being saved).

Now imagine your loved one is in the darkness and you are the rescue worker. You have been given a great tool by God (prayer) to shine light into your loved one's life. Only the light that shines from your flashlight is not an ordinary light. It is the Light of truth. We can choose to turn our prayer flashlight on or leave it off. When we turn it on (when we pray), God's light of truth is generated and shines into the darkness. We are calling on God's truth to shine in the direction of our loved one. I believe every time we pray we turn on a light for someone in the dark to see. And the more we pray - the stronger the light. I mentioned in a previous post that I'm committed to pray for people in intervals of 40 days. You may have a different prayer plan. For me praying 40 days creates a constant light stream. A more continuous stream of light is easier to see than flickers of light. I believe the more dedicated we are in prayer the longer God's light will shine. The longer the shine, the more inviting it becomes. Maybe this is why we are told to "pray continually" (1 Thess 5:17). Your friend or loved one still has a choice to make. But by praying - we at least provide a choice. We can provide a source of hope that might not have been visible to them before.

John 12:35 - So Jesus said to them, "For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes.

John 12:46 - I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.

One final thought - God provided the tool for us to use. He wants us to shine the light. He wants us to pray. I Samual 12:23 says: "As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you." Think how different the world would look if it was filled with light. Let me encourage you to turn your flashlight on.

40 Days of Prayer (Part 1)

(Some of you have already read this before but I wanted to include it in this blog. My next post will be Part 2 which is new.)



If any of you are like me - praying consistently for others is a hard task to accomplish. It's not that I don't want to do it or that I don't have time to do it. I simply am not disciplined enough. It truly bothers me to know that family and friends need and want prayers lifted to God on their behalf and yet I continually fail them. I believe with all my heart that God wants us to pray for people - to be an intercessor. There are many things (circumstances, people's hearts) that I have no control over. But I know the One who does. I believe strongly that there is definite power in prayer. James 5:16 says: "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." So why is it that I can't seem to get a grip on this incredible avenue of change and blessing God has given us? I don't know the answer to that question and frankly all I can do is move forward and not give up. I have a desire to be the prayer-er I believe God wants me to be.



So I have come up with a new prayer strategy for myself. You may have noticed there is great significance given to the number 40 in the Bible. I am taking that important number and applying it to my prayer life. I have determined to dedicate myself to praying for a specific list of people for 40 days without fail.



1 John 5:14-15 says this: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of Him." This verse has often stumped me. But as I look at it again I go back to the "according to His will" part. What do I really know about God's will? Well - I know He loves people. I know He wants us to bless people. I know that He wants everyone to be with Him in Heaven. I know He wants us to draw closer to Him and I know He wants us to take the fruit of the Spirit and be fruitful. So with that knowledge and understanding, I have begun praying for my list of loved ones with confidence in this way: I pray for God to bless their lives in the manner in which He chooses (not what I think they need but what He knows they need). I pray for their relationship with God to grow (at whatever level of relationship they have with God from non-existent to strong Christian - the relationship can always grow). And I pray for a hedge of protection around them. These are things I truly believe God wants - so therefore - are "according to His will". Then I know that I will have what I have asked of Him.



Maybe you have your own prayer system that works for you. If not, maybe this will be an encouragement for you to try this approach or rededicate yourself in your own prayer life. The more dedicated we are in prayer - the more Godly changes can and will occur through us and around us. I have been doing this now for several months and am on my fourth list of friends and family. It has been a blessing for me to dedicate myself to praying for others. I have no doubt that God is interacting in the lives of the recipients and have even heard of some blessings in their lives. May the blessings continue!

Parable of the Talents

Here is another blog entry from my personal archive of written articles. You may want to read the parable first for reference. It's found in Matthew 25: 14-30.

Parable of the Talents

In the past when I’ve looked at the Parable of the Talents I looked at talents the way they are portrayed – as money. There is a great deal to learn from the parable in that respect but as I reread the passage recently I saw talents in a different light. I saw them as actual talents (special abilities).

It struck me that many of us are afraid to use our talents so we run off and bury them somewhere much like the third servant did. When I applied this to my own life I wondered what talents I have been given that I’ve buried away. For example, I like to write but fear and lack of dedication has always gotten in my way of doing anything with this ability. I’ve been burying what actually could be one of my talents. What I believe this parable is telling me is that I must make an investment in my talent much like the first and second servants did. Only by investing time and effort into a talent will I ever see any return in it – any growth in it. I may not start out as a great writer but that’s okay. You see, I’m investing in it and I’m banking on the fact that the more I invest, the more talent I’ll receive. It’s kind of like practicing. The more we practice, the better we become. Matthew chapter 25, verse 29 says: “For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.” If we invest in our talents, we will be rewarded with more talent(s). If we don’t invest in our talents we are like the third servant. Our unused talents will be taken from us.

It can be a little daunting trying to figure out what our talent is. But it’s important to remember that we have many talents and abilities. I don’t believe we have one “talent-of-all-talents”. If that’s the case then there’s a great many of us wondering around completely clueless. If we’re supposed to have one grand talent, I assume we would know what it is. However, most of us don’t. I look at talent from this perspective: since God created me in His image I assume, then, that I have been given many abilities. The possibilities are endless. Our talent doesn’t have to be grand or obvious to us or the whole world. We can’t let that misconception keep us from investing in what may be a God-given ability. The simplest thing to one person may be something extraordinary to another. For example, I once had a roommate who enjoyed washing dishes. She said it was relaxing. Believe it or not but there are people out there who don’t like to wash dishes. Or maybe they can’t because of physical reasons. Having someone come do this for them would be a nice outreach. The same applies to other chores like cooking, house cleaning, and laundry. Do you enjoy doing these things? If so, then I say that is a rare gift. Go forth and bless those of us who don't. But seriously, do you like to write stories, songs, or poems? Are you a good listener? Are you a good teacher? Are you good at encouraging others? Are you someone who comes up with good ideas but has trouble making the ideas come to life? Share your ideas with someone who is a “doer” but has trouble coming up with ideas. Are you a home organizer, a computer whiz, a party planner or do you enjoy being a hostess? Everybody has things they’re good at. The trick is sharing them with others.

Whatever you do – do it for the glory of the Lord. The first and second servants in the parable were ultimately trying to please their master. We, ultimately, want to please God. He has entrusted us with talents and expects us to make them grow. By investing in our talents we’ll find the rewards are great. Not only do we please and glorify God but we also get more talent in the process.

God Walks With Me

Have you ever thrown a temper tantrum? Well - I have. Okay maybe I didn't lie down flailing my arms and legs while screaming at the top of my lungs but I certainly gave attitude. It's one thing to have tantrums when you're a kid. It's another altogether when you're a grown up. I'm not proud to admit my composure failures but I have to be honest. Life is hard and downright unpleasant sometimes. Can anyone really blame me for getting a little upset on occasion?

When I go through my tantrums it's because I'm hurt, frustrated, angry, confused, etc. Reality is - I usually feel some sort of combination of those emotions. When my attitude gets into high gear I don't feel like praying and I don't feel like reading my Bible (even though I know deep down that's what I really need to do). I go through sort of a rebellion - not an outright rebellion but more of a passive rebellion. I don't feel like praying because a part of me wonders if my prayers are making a difference. I stop reading because a part of me wonders what the Bible could possibly tell me that will help with my specific situation. Thankfully, I grew up with a good foundation of who God is and what He's about. Even though I don't always understand Him or His ways of doing things, I still know that He loves me and He will never leave me. Life may be difficult at times but I try to keep the following visual as a reminder of His love:

My life is a journey down a path. Fortunately, I am not walking down the path alone. My Lord and Savior accompanies me. Most days are spent in peace. We walk along talking, making note of the splendor around us and taking in the blessings of life. But, as with all journeys, we encounter obstacles, speed bumps, forks, or flat out collisions (whatever description seems to apply at the time). It's on those occasions where my tantrums comes into play. I picture myself crossing my arms, sitting down and stubbornly refusing to move forward. I am not happy and I'm not going to get up! It's my silent protest. Here is the remarkable thing: God doesn't yell at me. He doesn't call me a crybaby and tell me to get up. He doesn't tell me I'm ungrateful and I'm lucky to get as far as I've gotten in life. He doesn't say, "Fine, you stay here. I'm moving on with or without you." No - I believe with all my heart that God waits patiently for me to finish my tantrum so that we may proceed together. He'll wait however long it takes. Yes, He is probably disappointed with my attitude but that doesn't mean He doesn't love me. His hand is always there ready and waiting for me to get over myself. When that point finally arrives (when the hurt and anger have subsided enough for me to see truth again) I look up at my Savior. He holds out His hand and lovingly asks me if I am ready. I say "Yes." and take His outstretched hand. He pulls me up and our journey starts again.

I'm so thankful for God's loving patience. Knowing that God walks with me in my journey through life helps make each step easier to take.

Tiny Blessings

Below is an article I wrote in 2003. I thought this blog would be a good place to share it.

Tiny Blessings

When I was in college I was blessed to be able to spend a semester in Vienna, Austria with a group of 30 other students. As you can imagine, it was a very exciting and memorable time of my life. I brought home pictures, souvenirs and memorabilia of all kinds in order to remember the experience. However, in the years that followed my return, our family moved a couple of times and somewhere along the line my keepsakes disappeared. I tried several times to find the items. I looked through all of my boxes at home as well as those at my parents' home and found only disappointment. There was nothing to be found from my trip. We all believed that they somehow got lost in one of the moves.

Months later, on an early Saturday morning, I woke up for some reason with those lost items on my mind. Something inside of me told me I should pray about them. Why would God care about these things? I didn't know. But I prayed anyway. I remember asking God to help my keepsakes show up somehow. I remember saying to Him that I knew having them back wasn't important in the overall scheme of life. However, having them was important to me and I'd like to have them.

Later that very same day my dad called me. He said he had been going through the boxes again looking for something and came across some items that looked like they were mine. Indeed, they were. They were my Vienna keepsakes. My prayer had been answered.

Some people will hear that story and toss it off as a coincidence or say that my keepsakes were there all along and we just missed them. Some will say that there was no answered prayer. Because some will say that God doesn't bother Himself with things of so little importance. You see, growing up I had the perception, like many others, that God's too busy to mess with the "little things" in our lives. My belief was that God has bigger issues to deal with such as world hunger, peace and the state of Christianity than to care about whether or not I have souvenirs from a college trip, or pass an algebra test in high school, or get to the airport in time to make my flight home. How wrong I was to believe that way. Yes, it is true - God does have bigger issues to deal with. But remember - He's God - He can do ALL things (ALL the time).

We have a tendency to believe that we should only pray about the big things in life such as finding a Christian mate, getting a job, or getting out of debt. But doesn't God already promise to provide for us the things we need? In Matthew 6:25 it says "do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear...your heavenly Father knows that you need them." God's blessings don't always stop with our "needs". If we don't believe that God gets involved with the little things in our lives, we end up putting boundaries on His love for us and limiting the blessings we can receive from Him.

Think about our relationship with God in terms of a parent/child relationship. God is our Father and yes, He has a lot to do. But He's not too busy for His children. He still has time to support us at our Little League games and He still has time to read us a story before we go to bed. Why? Because He loves us so much that He makes time for us. He cares about the little things in our lives because we care about those things. I believe it brings God great joy to answer our prayers and to give us those "tiny blessings" just as it would for a parent to bless their child.

God provides for the world but His blessings don't stop at a worldly level. God does more than that. He takes time to listen to our specific wants and needs - both big and small. It is in those answered prayers - those personal "tiny blessings" where we can really see how much He loves us and how personally involved God is in our lives. I believe God takes pleasure in being involved in every aspect of our lives. That is a joy unparalleled by anything else. It's kind of like He says: "Today I fed and clothed the world - but for you - a little something extra special. Just because I love you."

So don't be afraid to pray for the little things. Give it a try. Pray and watch for the answers to show up in your life. Watch for the "tiny blessings". You will see God's amazing hand wrapped all around your life. We all want to feel special and God loves telling us how special we are.