Praying the Distance

I'm watching a church service this morning and it's time to pray for the sick. I remember standing in for members of our families for healing all the time. Somehow I kept  it up, though I saw no results with my human eyes. Maybe their healing is on the other side, maybe they will get the miracle they hope for.

But what the church doesn't see anymore are miracle healings; people stacked up at the altar praying through, waiting, expecting, sometimes for HOURS and DAYS. I've read books and stories of these miracles; blind eyes opened, deaf ears hear, a shorter limb lengthened, even the dead brought back to life.

Why doesn't this happen anymore?

Prayer is like running. When you start running, it's not so bad. You start to huff and puff a bit, time goes very slow, after a while your lungs feel like concrete and that searing pain in your side is crippling. Most people stop running. They just stand there knowing they have to get home, at the very least. Some people start walking instead. But very few run through the pain.

The pain is there to make us stop, turn around, go back, go no further. But runners know that when the pain starts, it's just the beginning of a long, long run that has no pain, only results, because the pain does stop.

We don't 'see' results when we pray because no one goes the distance, prays through the hard part with expectation. Yes, we petition the Lord, but we do not run the distance with prayer. Imagine the results, the MIRACLES, if we did!

Faith. Have faith, pray much, expect more!

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father." John 14:12

It May be Summer, but Winter's coming.

It's nearly harvest time. Fruit trees are heavy with their sweet burden, soon the fields will be orange with pumpkins and other Autumn goodness. Crickets and cicadas are wonderfully loud. The days are just a bit shorter. God is working, He is changing things bringing our attention to the bounty to come.

Is Winter coming? Yes. But why are we so disappointed of its coming? Have you ever noticed the bright blue of the winter sky? And when every leaf has fallen to protect the soil for next spring, the browns and bronze and copper all glinting against the blue sky is glorious! Add a puff of an occasional white cloud to bring it all together. Yes, I can smell the snow coming.

Yet the gloominess will overcome now and then, the snow will fall. But sprinkle a little of the Plan of God on it and you'll see the beauty I see. He is always working, He is always there. Even the snug blanket that God puts on the earth does not keep Him from us!

With God, everything does work together with a well thought out and orchestrated plan that we cannot imagine or understand. But there is comfort and joy in knowing He is still there, even in the Winter of our days.

Yes, I'll miss the green grass and warm summer rain. I may even lament it a bit. But knowing that a new bounty is a grasp away renews my Faith and my resolve.

I'll miss you, Summer, but the Autumn of my days are here and I am looking forward to the Winter.

"Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest." John 4:35

The Prayer of the Sojourning Christian.

I cried, but no one heard.
I was hurt, but no one helped.
I fought alone to no avail,
I waited, but no one came.

I saw, but couldn't remember.
I heard, but couldn't discern.
I held out my hand, but it came back empty.
My heart hurt, and no one comforted me.

How can I love when I receive none,
Where is the delight in life?
Is it in the mirror looking back at me
Or is it in the eyes of another?

Lord! Come closer, be near me
Because my fight is harder than ever.
You are my only Joy, my Salvation
From a life of tears and remorse.

I have lost so much and gained little.
This world has spewed me out
But it won't let me go.
Let me go, world...I am not yours.

But I look up and see my Abundance
In a face I have not yet met.
His beauty is infinite, His love is unmatched.
Just a little while longer, He says, You are not done.

I hold my hands up to Him in Praise
and seek His warmth with sweet tears.
I am yours, I say, I am yours!
Touch me today, Lord...Touch me today!

I am a stranger, a sojourner in this world.
My woes are His, but the consequences are mine.
I look to Him, I Praise His name!
Until I cross that River, I will rest in Him!

©katherinemarple ©mylifeasachristian

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28