Part two of this series is about prayer. My great-grandmother was a prayer warrior. Every morning, she prayed for every single person in our family by name. She taught me to walk around the church building every Sunday morning before service and pray over every seat in the building. She taught me to pray over the person who would sit in each individual seat, and to pray that they would be transformed by God through the service. Anytime someone came to her with a problem, she prayed about it. That was always her very first response.
I’ve mentioned in a few previous posts that words have immense power. But have you thought about that fact in terms of prayer? Prayer is one of the most powerful things we could do. Speaking to God Himself is an amazing opportunity. A lot of times, people are skeptical of prayer because we don’t always get an immediate response. Sometimes we can pray and just like that God gives us an answer, but it's not always like that. We have to be patient and learn to wait on God and put our full trust in Him. When we do that, God will answer our prayers. And keep in mind that when I say God will answer your prayers, that doesn't mean that He'll always give you the answer that you want. He might say "yes", "no", or “wait”. Here are my two favorite verses on prayer: James 5:16 ...the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. When people have problems, prayer is normally not the first thing they turn to. They turn to friends or other things that they think will help them. For example, when people get sick, what is the first thing they typically do? Call a doctor or run to the store to grab some medicine. But what if before doing any of that, they stopped and prayed? James 5:14-15 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up... You can pray alone, get your family or friends to pray, ask your pastor to pray for you, or all three. If you have faith that prayer will heal you or someone else you're praying for, then the Bible says that they will be healed. Prayer can heal anything and everything, even diseases incurable by medicine. The Bible says that all it takes faith the size of a mustard seed to move mountains (Matthew 17:20). In case you didn’t know, a mustard seed is about 1-2 millimeters in diameter. This is just proof that faith in prayer is the most effective and powerful weapon you can have. With prayer, you can have a one-on-one conversation with God, the Creator of the universe. So next time you have a tough problem, turn to God in prayer first; then you'll see the power of prayer. In closing, I’d like to give you an example of what prayer can do. I was born with something called genu valgum. There’s a bone extending from my mid-thigh down to my knee cap and it’s supposed to be straight, but I was born with mine curved in both legs. This caused extreme pain constantly. It was awful when I was sitting, but standing or walking just made it excruciatingly worse. I tried different medications, leg braces, and physical therapy. None of it worked. I went to several different orthopedic doctors to hear different opinions, but they all told me the same thing: the only way to heal my legs was to do a complete reconstruction surgery that would leave me in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. I’d never again get to play softball or basketball like I’d done since I was three. I’d never again get to run around with my five little siblings. I was devastated. Then, about two and a half years ago, my youth group prayed over me. Now, I had received prayer for my knees countless times before. I had begun to lose faith that God would ever heal me. But on this particular night, something was different. A guy in my youth group said he had a message from God. That message was this: “There is someone in this room who has been suffering from a disease her whole life. She’s been told that she’ll have to have extensive surgery and never be able to walk again. Bring her to the front and pray over her.” Keep in mind that no one outside of my parents knew about the surgery and wheelchair. That’s how I knew it had to be God. So I went to the front. The whole youth group prayed over me. Suddenly, I felt the bones in my legs shifting. When I looked down, my bones had been realigned to their proper position. I jumped up and ran around the room. I didn’t feel a single bit of pain, and haven’t since that night! Let my testimony be proof of just how powerful prayer can be if you have faith the size of a mustard seed.
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My late great-grandmother was an amazing, strong woman of faith. She was a beautiful Christian woman who didn’t let anything waver her trust in God. For the next few posts, I’m going to be writing a series titled “Lessons From My Grandmother”. The lesson we’re focusing on today is trust. My grandmother’s favorite scripture was: Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths. That verse was on every birthday and Christmas card she ever wrote in my lifetime. And that’s the scripture I’m going to focus on today. I’m not one to trust easily. Some people trust until they’re given a reason not to; some don’t trust until they’re given a reason to do so. I definitely fall into the second category. If I tell you that I trust you, that’s not a phrase I use lightly. It’s difficult for me to trust the people around me who I interact with every day. So imagine how hard it is for me to trust someone I’ve never seen. Trusting God is a lot easier said than done. Especially when His plans are almost never clear. When you go through the things I’ve been through, it can be hard to “let go and let God”. But I’m going to give you a few scriptures to help you achieve that level of trust in God. Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. God is a rock. A firm foundation. And He’s not just any kind of rock; He’s an everlasting rock. When you put your trust in Him, you’re not trusting in something unstable. God is always there, even when it doesn’t seem like it. Psalm 37:5 …trust in him, and he will act. God isn’t one to leave you high and dry. You put your trust in Him and He will repay that action. God will help you through your situation. He will answer your prayers. It may not be right away, and it may not be the answer you want, but always remember that His thoughts are greater than our thoughts and His ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:9). God will come through for you. All you have to do is let Him. Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good. You might not see it right now, but things will work out in the end. God hates to see you suffer. We just have to trust that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. When all is said and done, everything will be good. Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you hope and a future.” This scripture has always been of great encouragement to me. God has a plan for my life. There are 7.8 billion people in this world, yet God still has a specific plan for me. But not just any plan. A hopeful plan. A plan that gives me a good and prosperous future. It is true that I don’t know that full plan right now. But I know that by placing my complete trust in God, all will be revealed in due time. Take it from someone who has major trust issues: it won’t be easy to place your full trust in God. When you say, “Okay, God. I trust You,” you’re doing more than just saying meaningless words. You’re surrendering to God. You’re surrendering your future. Your family. Your relationships. Everything. You’re hopping out of the driver’s seat and asking God to take the wheel. And believe me when I say this: He will be more than happy to do so. Hope is a valuable thing. And while hope and faith go hand in hand, they’re not the same. Faith is knowing that something will happen, even if there’s no substantial evidence. Hope is wishing something will happen. I believe that it’s essential to have both. Life is full of seemingly hopeless situations. I’ve had my fair share of “hopeless” situations. I almost gave up countless times. I remember one day, I heard my mom talking to someone about me and she said, “I can just look at her and tell that she has no hope anymore.” And she was right. I had lost sight of the power of Christ. It took me a long time, but I finally realized that scripture gives us plenty of reasons to have hope, no matter the situation.
1. Ephesians 1:18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you… One thing that jumps out at me from this verse is the fact that hope isn’t always easy to find. It’s not always right in your face. Sometimes, you have to really look deep. Jesus has called us to have hope. No matter what. Not only in “good” situations. In every situation, we’re supposed to open the eyes of our heart and take hold of the hope offered through Christ. 2. Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Put simply: don’t give up on your hope. Even when times get rough. Because Jesus has promised us hope, and He is always faithful. Do not be swayed by the troubles of this world. Because the hope that Christ gives us is so much stronger. 3. Isaiah 40:31 But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength… Things may be tough right now, but keep your hope. God promises to give you strength through your situation. Even when you’re beaten down and tired, keep hold to your hope. The Lord will strengthen you. 4. Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” The Lord has already promised us hope. God had a plan of hope laid out for us before we were even born. All of God’s plans are good. Even if we can’t see it, we mustn’t lose sight of our hope. Hope is something that’s in short supply. We cannot get by in life without having at least a little hope. Take it from someone who’s been through a lot: hope is always there. Even if it seems like nothing will ever get better, remember that there is no such thing as hopeless. For my birthday last year, my big sister, Leah, gave me the book Unoffendable by Brant Hanson. Except I lost it, so I never read it. Until I found it about two weeks ago while I was decluttering my closet. No idea how it ended up in there, but it did. Anyways, I found the book, so I started reading it. I just finished it last night. And wow. Hanson introduces the radical idea that we can just decide to not be offended by things people say and do. I’ll be honest: by the time I read the first two paragraphs, I had already decided that he was crazy. But I decided to stick it out and read the whole book anyways. That was probably one of the best decisions I’ve made all year. I highly recommend you read the book, but just in case you can’t, I’ll sum it up for you. The book is basically saying that we have no right to be angry (crazy, right?). But the more I read, the more I realized that he was right. Through scriptures and anecdotes from his own life, Hanson proves several statements to be true: we can decide to be unoffendable; we have no right to anger; we there is no such thing as “righteous anger”; when we become offended, we’re removing our trust from God; and God’s love and mercy for us is unconditional. I know it’s a crazy idea, but it makes sense. So today, I’m going to give you eight scriptures that disprove your (in Brant’s words) Made Up Right To Anger.
1. James 1:20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Honestly, I could stop here having proven my point. If something isn’t righteous in God’s eyes, we shouldn’t do it. Simple as that. But for those of you who aren’t convinced, here’s another scripture. 2. Proverbs 29:11 Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end. This verse is also very simple and straightforward. Giving in to your anger makes you a fool. You could argue that you do, in fact, have a right to be angry. And I would say, “Sure you do. That is, if you want to be a fool in God’s eyes.” I don’t know anyone who would want to be anything less than wise. Letting go of your anger is the first step to wisdom. 3. Proverbs 19:11 …it is one’s glory to overlook an offense. Overlooking an offense will bring glory. Not defending yourself; not Gettin angry; not lashing out in that anger. None of those things bring glory to God. There’s more on “overlooking offenses” in the next scripture. 4. Matthew 5:39 But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. I realize that this isn’t a very appealing thought. Retaliation and revenge are programmed into our brains from society. But this is not what God wants. If someone wrongs you, God wants you to, instead of “getting them back”, give them another chance. 5. Psalm 37:8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath… This one needs no explanation. 6. Matthew 5:22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgement. I can only speak for myself here, but I know that I would much rather deal with my anger and become unoffendable right now, than have to answer to God for it on Judgement Day. But that’s just me. 7. Proverbs 22:24 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered. Not only does God not want us to be angry, he doesn’t even want us to be associated with angry people. That says a lot to me about God’s thoughts on anger and revenge. 8. Colossians 3:8 But now you must also rid yourself of all such things as these: anger, rage… Get rid of it. Completely. Don’t hold onto your anger for people who “deserve it”. Don’t hang onto it and lash out at people wen they wrong you. Let it go. I know this whole idea of being unoffendable and turning the other cheek is pretty radical. But I truly believe that it’s what God wants. And I would much rather follow God’s will for my life than do my own thing. It’s no secret that our world is going through a scary time right now. Millions of people are sick, and hundreds of thousands have died. It can be really easy to become scared or anxious during this time. I’m sure a lot of you are probably worried about you or someone in your family getting sick. And while I understand that fear wholeheartedly, Jesus commands us 365 times in the Bible to not fear. We have eternal security in Christ. We need not fear the things of this world. As I said, there are 365 “do not fear” scriptures in the Bible. But today, I’m going to give you a few of my favorite. Here are ten reasons why you shouldn’t be afraid or anxious; even during a pandemic.
1. 2 Timothy 1:7 For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2. Isaiah 345:4 …be strong, do not fear; your God will come… 3. Isaiah 41:10 Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. 4. John 14:1 Do not let your hearts be troubled… 5. Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go 6. Luke 12:22 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…” 7. Philippians 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8. John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you….Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. 9. 1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 10. Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. This post was relatively short, but I feel like the scriptures speak for themselves. Our world is suffering from a deadly crisis right now, but we can have peace and security through Christ. |
MissionIn short, I started this blog because I want to give girls all over the world hope. All of the topics I write about on this blog are things that I have struggled with or am still struggling with. I want to help young women everywhere achieve freedom through Christ. Archives
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