Prayer & Praise
You call and we have a vocation.
You send and we have an identity.
You accompany us and we are swept to
big purposes:
chosen race,
royal priesthood,
your own people,
receiving mercy.
But we, in our restlessness,
do not want to be so peculiar.
We would rather be like the others,
eager for their wealth,
their wisdom,
their power.
Eager to be like them, comfortable
beautiful
young
free.
We yearn to be like the others,
and you make us odd and peculiar and different.
Grant that we may find joy in our baptism,
freedom in our obedience,
delight in our vocation.
The same joy, freedom and delight
that so marked our Lord
whom we follow in oddness.
Walter Brueggemann
I’m really angry. Angry that the good Christian man that I married has forsaken me and Christ. Angry that the good Christian men that I reached out to for help were too busy to involve themselves. Angry that we are too shallow to involve ourselves in another’s failures. Angry that the promise of our marriage was sabotaged by a little tart. Angry that my husband was weak enough to fall for it, or worse yet to seek it out. Angry that I didn’t see it coming. Angry that I couldn’t stop it. Angry that God didn’t. I’m just plain angry.
Oh, jlo. I’m angry with you. Deception, betrayal, heartbreak, disappointment…. I’m angry too, as I read your post. I’m hurting with you. I am so sorry, my friend. I believe God understands every feeling you have. Pour out your heart to Him. You are loved and I am praying for you, sweet sister/friend.
Please pray for our grandson, Bennet, who is one month old today. He was born with Hypoplastic left heart syndrome. (the left side of his heart did not develop) He has had 1 open heart surgery and another surgery on his diaphragm, and faces at least 2 more open heart surgeries. Here are some specific prayer requests.
Bennet’s Nonnie thanks you so much for praying.
Update from Bennet’s Mama:
Bennet is doing great and he is ready to be extubated again, however the doctors decided to finish an entire round of antibiotics before they do it, so it should happen on Monday. Here are some specific prayer requests:
1) that once he is extubated his lungs will naturally strengthen and not collapse again
2) that the secretions that have been causing so many problems in his lungs will stop once the tube is removed
3) that he will begin to tolerate food again (he has been having problems with digesting and also vomiting his food this week. Most likely because of the antibiotics as well as the excessive amounts of mucous he is swallowing from the tube in his throat). We are really praying that once his lungs are better his body will accept the food again.
4) going along with the last one, please pray that he will begin to gain weight so that he will not need a feeding tube once we take him home.
It has been a really long road so far and we are really praying that the next few steps will be easy for Bennet so we can take him home. Our God is BIG, so we know all things are possible! And no matter what the outcome, our God is GOOD. So we rest in His love.
praying for Nonnie’s dear family’s test
along with jlo, i’m angry – we’ve somehow created a crop of posing, Christian wimps – men who pride themselves in talking the talk until it interferes with their fantasizing walk
i’ve seen it played out in my own family – jlo is not alone in wondering just what hit her as she goes on with God on the fringe of a chilly Christian society
we Christian women need to ask ourselves a few tough questions, too – where does our faithfulness to God stop?
i don’t know if an anecdote belongs here, but …
i know a woman, a sister in the Faith, whose husband was “seeing” another woman for months – “we’re just friends” – coworkers – she was single and loved to have him come over to her place to “visit after work.” Well, the wife shared her concern with a sister in Christ who happened to be a black woman who said, “come on, we’re going to pay that gal a visit.” The *two* Christian women knocked on the gal’s door and, essentially said, “We don’t know what you think you’re doing, but it’s not right and we know where you live – don’t make us come back for another discussion!” They kept the pressure on and prevailed. A black woman with attitude and a righteous cause. She should be a model for us all. We won’t always win and we can’t up the ante to the absurd and we will look odd at best, but if more of us stuck our necks out (like the black sister and like Michael) there’d be far less exploitation of us, i think… dunno
more marching side by side and less hiding behind each other in a reverse version of leap frog
it is too true that
“We would rather be like the others,
eager for their wealth,
their wisdom,
their power.
Eager to be like them, comfortable
beautiful
young
free.”
and maybe it’s not wrong, but it comes later, after the war is over and King Jesus rules
just saying –
Em, I love you!!!!
Your children and grandchildren have a real jewel in you!!! I hope they know how blessed they are.
Em…yes, we do need to be more like that woman!
Jlo…so very sorry to hear this. Praying for you today, and praying for great conviction to fall on your husband and on this girl. Praying for them to be completely restless, unable to be still, unable to find any joy in anything until they come before the Lord.
And yes, you have every right to be angry.
Nonnie, my prayers go out for your grandson. Lord, please continue to hold Bennet in your loving hands. Father, You made him and You made him special. Our prayer is that it’s Your will to make him whole, healthy and without any side effects. We also ask for peace for mom and dad as well as other family members as we all struggle when such a little one seems to be suffering. You can do anything, You are on the throne and You are still God. Thank you Father and these things we ask in the Holy, Precious name of Your Son Jesus. Amen.
Jlo, my heart goes out to you. I will pray for peace and guidance. Your situation is sad and no one feels that pain like Your Lord does. For some reason betrayel is very painful but our Father in heaven knows how provide peace even in this difficult trial.
Father, please be with our dear sister as she deals with the pain that comes from deceit, betrayal and the sin of others. Only you Lord can provide the comfort that she needs right now. Lord I pray that You will make Your presence known to Jlo as she seeks answers. Father we know that You care and we know that You can provide the hope and peace that we need to get by. Lord You hold our very next breath in Your Hand, please hold our sister tightly as she seeks You. Thank you Father and we love you.
Broken heart for you, jlo.
amen to the prayers here today
(Nonnie, you are sweet, but i’m just an old pilgrim who’s very God-dependent)
” i’m just an old pilgrim who’s very God-dependent”
And that is what makes you such a treasure! Hugs.
jlo, I just now saw your post. I am so very sorry. Your anger is understandable. My prayers are with you.
Jlo–praying. My heart hurts for you my friend. (((hugs))).
I have a prayer request for a co-worker of mine who is also my friend. She goes in tomorrow at 6 a.m. to have a brain tumor removed. Her name is Ellen. Thank you.
Praying for Ellen tonight.
Thank you, Kevin.
Wow, mk….praying this morning for your friend.
Thanks, Sarah. We just got a call saying the surgery went well and she’s in recovery now. Surgery took just over two hours.
This morning we had about 20 teachers gather to pray. It was pretty moving…and we also learned that the time we gathered to pray (7:30) was when her surgery began. I love how God works.
🙂
a praise this a.m. – i opened the drapes to blue sky this morning after a week of smoke so heavy that we couldn’t see more than 2 blocks and the sun looked liked an unfriendly glowing red rubber ball – the hills are black, but by God’s grace the wind only lasted one day, the firefighters who came from all over (including some Canucks) got the job done – hopeful that is the last of it for the year, but God knows – the most beautiful blue sky i’ve ever seen – thank You, Lord
praise for mk’s report of successful surgery and praying teachers, too
A few months ago in April, I asked for prayer for my husband’s high school friend, John. He was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. We have been praying for his salvation.
The cancer has since spread to the pancreas and last Friday we learned it has spread to his brain. He has declined quickly over the weekend. A minister read last rights to him two days ago then hung a cross around John’s neck.
A few of us gathered around John’s bedside last night to be with him and reminense. Though his speech is inaudible, he was fully aware of the conversations around him, and expressed delight through his eyes and short, quiet chuckles. There was such love in that room last night.
I watched on as my husband, Craig, and another high school friend, Kerry, sat on either side of Johnny…each man holding one of John’s hands and looking on at him like parents gaze at their newborn. John returned their gaze and the three of them sat quietly for at least ten minutes…sharing a bond that goes back to the1970’s.
Finally, Kerry broke the silence and presented the Gospel (after presenting it in letter form a couple months ago). John acknowleged that Christ Jesus is his Lord and Savior. Such a precious moment. Especially as he held Craig and Kerry’s hands. The sweet and simple white plastic cross with braided blue rope hung around John’s neck made me smile and cry inside at the same time…rising up and down on his chest. So precious this man. Once so strong, now so frail.
My heart hurts. This is so painful…the end of life. Yet I am incredibly thankful and blessed to have witnessed his stand for Christ last night. Praising God and crying all at the same time.
This Sunday is John’s 55th. We plan to take a cake and balloons to him…praying he makes it to Sunday so we can celebrate on his official day. As God wills.
Blessings and thanks for your prayers.
mk, what you relate of those 3 men is so blessed – the grace and mercies of God and His love toward us was in your description – may your friend go to the Father in peace and assurance
praying for all to feel His presence tonight – God keep
Thank you, Em. It hadn’t dawned on me about God’s grace, mercy, and love being mirrored in those three men last night. Your insight has given me a precious picture to hold onto and be comforted by.
mk, praying.
Prayers for Trey and family appreciated…we’re really struggling with his issues.
jlo, I’m sorry this has happened.
mk, Thank you for sharing such a beautiful story.
nonnie, Seeing the first pictures of Bennet was difficult for me. Praying for the miraculous.
Michael, Praying for your family.
Michael, praying.
Thank you all…may God hear and answer the hearts of the ones who read and pray here.
Asking again for prayers for Trey…things are at a crisis level behaviorally and may necessitate some sort of inpatient treatment away from home. This is a sadness beyond words…
praying for God to guide those who interact with Trey now and praying for that His love and strength to infuse His son Michael
Praying, Michael!
mk…thank you for sharing that story…so touching.
Praying Michael