Prayer for Father's Day 2008

Lord, Sunday is Father's Day. I praise You and thank You for the many blessing in my life. I know that no matter how disappointed or discouraged or tired I might get, I need to count my blessings.

• You gave Your own son Jesus to die a painful death like a common criminal to pay the price that had to be paid for my sin so that I could be with You for eternity.
  
• I am healthy enough to work outside in the yard for several hours in summer heat.
• My wife and children are also healthy.
  
• We have not been a victim of senseless violence.
• We have not had any horrible accidents.
  
• I have enough financial resources to provide all the true necessities of life plus several luxuries.

If it be Your will, I pray that You...

• Keep my faith strong.
• Make me responsive to the leadership of the Holy Spirit in my life. In particular, make me alert to anyone You put in my path for a reason. Tell me what to say or do that will help them come to accept Jesus into their life.
  
• Help me resist temptation to stray away from the straight and narrow road You have revealed to us in the Bible
• Give me a hunger for Your Word and for time spent in prayer with You.
• Show me how it is You would have me serve Your purposes in this life. Open those doors of opportunity and close all the other doors which would only distract me from Your purpose for my life.
  
• Bless me in my role as husband and help me be a blessing to my wife. Spread Your grace all around our home and remove all barriers which might come up between us. Give me joy in my marriage to her. Give her joy in her marriage to me. Prepare us for the time when all our children are grown and help us find new ways then to serve which fit Your plan.
  
• Bless me in my role as father and give me wisdom in family matters. Help me know when to step back and wait on You and Your timing.
  
• Bless my children thru me and help me set a Christian example for them. Put positive Christian friends, teachers, professors, coaches, ministers, youth workers, etc. in their path that will also be a blessing upon them. If it is Your plan that they should marry, I pray that You are this moment preparing a godly spouse for them that will love them always and be godly parents for any future grandchildren. Help each child also find their place of service to You and Your purposes.
  
• Bless me in my role as provider and help me take full advantage of every career opportunity which is part of Your provision for my family's financial needs. I pray that You guide me thru the changing economic times. Help me trust in You alone and not in my job title, credentials, salary, or 401k balance.
  
• Bless me in my role as employee and help me honor You in my work and show Your light in a dark world.
  
• Bless me in my new role as a manager and help me lead Your way and be a blessing to every person under me.

Lord, I also pray for similar blessings for all the other fathers on Father's Day. Help all of us be the Christian men, husbands, and fathers that You need us to be.

• There are probably millions of fathers struggling to provide basic necessities for their families that I take for granted. I pray You show them Your provision for their families.
  
• There are fathers grieving the loss of a wife or child. Show them Your comfort.
  
• There are fathers faced with career decisions which will affect both their ability to provide for their families financial needs and the time/energy they have to devote to their wives and children. Give them wisdom to balance the seemingly conflicting demands upon them. Help them be good stewards of their time and talents.
  
• There are husbands out there who just found out their wife has been unfaithful. Guide them as they must decide what to say and do next.
• There are husbands out there who have been unfaithful to their wives. Help them repent of their sin and live honorable lives from this day forward.
• There are fathers out there grieving over a son or daughter that has made horrible choices in life and are now suffering the consequences. Help them know Your will and comfort them.
• There are husbands and fathers who are being the spiritual leaders in their home that You intend. Supernaturally enable them to succeed.
• There are husbands who want to be the spiritual leaders in their home that You desire but there attempts have been rejected. Spread Your grace in their home, supernaturally enable them, and prepare the hearts of their families to hear and accept Your message.
  
• There are fathers out there that have let their children down. Lift them up and grow them into the fathers both You and their children need them to be. Help them also to live honorable lives from this day forward.
  
• There are fathers out there who are managers or business owners that have great influence on their employees and their families. Bless them as they honor You in the way they conduct their business.
• There are fathers out there spending their spare time with children and youth as coaches or Sunday School teachers. Lift them up so they are good examples of what it is to be a Christian man today.
  

God, bless all fathers on Father's Day

Amen

Copyright © 2008 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved

Lost Boy of Sudan to Graduate

Some of my readers may remember a post A Prayer for Michael and the Lost Boys of Sudan in which I described a moving incident meeting a refugee from Sudan in the waiting area at a car dealer. Imagine my surprise when I open up the morning paper and find a whole article about the same young man. See One of Sudan's 'Lost Boys' finds calling, will graduate as nurse.
Apparently he is graduating soon and making a trip back to Africa to see his mother whom he hasn't seen in 19 years and hasn't spoken to since 2004. Let's all pray for a happy reunion.

The Christian Life is NOT

I've been hooked on podcasts ever since I got an iPod as a Christmas gift. Therefore, I've now decided to give podcasting a try myself. Here's my first podcast, based on a previous post of mine The Christian Life is NOT.

If you've got an iPod, just click on the "Add to iTunes" button to subscribe to future episodes of my Poster Child 4 Grace Podcast. You may have to hit the play button and start listening before the subscribe button will work.

There is also a list of podcast subscription feeds down the right-hand side of the blog if you use a different kind of MP3 player. These are right below the Feedburner RSS feed to the text of this blog.

Subscribing to a podcast is a great way to squeeze some other time thinking about God into your busy day. With an MP3 player (or you could burn a CD) it can be like listening to an audio book during your commute back and forth to work.



Click here to get your own player.

Copyright © 2006 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved

A Prayer for Michael and the Lost Boys of Sudan

I took my daughter's car to the dealer this morning to get it looked at. Then engine wasn't running quite right and it needed an oil change. I didn't have to work today so I just waited on the repairs in the dealer's customer waiting area. At one point it was just me and a young black man waiting on our vehicles. I remember noticing he was wearing a name tag that said "Michael". I was getting a little bored and I made some lame remark about "I hate waiting like this more than almost anything." He smiled and replied back to me in an accent that sounded foreign and I deduced that he might be here from Africa.

I always like talking to people from other countries an inquired with him "Where are you from?" He replied that he was from Sudan and I suspected immediately he was a refugee from the war there in which Muslims from northern Sudan have been attacking the Christians in southern Sudan. On talking to me a little more he described himself as one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan." (See also the Red Cross article on the Lost Boys of Sudan.)

I didn't know what that meant but I learned that when he was about four years old, his parents sent him away to Kenya where they hoped he'd be safe from the fighting in his own country. I think he said his mother was too sick at the time to travel with him. I didn't learn any details about his father other than he had learned later that his father had been killed in the war. He told me he spent 8 years as a refugee in Kenya before coming to the United States. His last contact with his mother was by telephone from Kenya two years ago.

I felt a little uneasy because I knew my life had been so easy compared to his. Whatever problems I have seemed small in comparison to his.

He told me he is now living in the US under a refugee visa which allows him to work here on a green card. He told me after working here five years, he hopes to apply for US citizenship. He's going to school at a local university to become a nurse.

The customer service representative from the car dealer arrived about that time and he had to go pay for his repairs and I never saw him after that.

God, I want to lift up Michael in prayer tonight. I pray for all the refugees of Sudan and especially for the "Lost Boys of Sudan". Bless them and show them Your provision for their needs. I pray that he will reunited with his mother soon or at least be able to contact her to know how she is and where she is. I pray for an end to the bloodshed in Sudan. I pray that we here never forget the bloodshed and suffering in that part of the world that seems so remote to us. I know that somebody's mothers and fathers and children are fighting just to survive while I am so comfortable. Forgive me when I am too complacent about the needs of my brothers and sisters. Amen.

(March 11, 2008) see the followup at Lost Boy of Sudan to Graduate

Copyright © 2006 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved

With Father's Day approaching, I will repeat here a Father's Day prayer I wrote last year and posted on my Caleb's Publishing website. (new as of June 13, 2008 see also Prayer for Fathers Day 2008.)

Father's Day Prayer

by Philip Hartman

Father's Day 2005

God, I thank you on this Father’s Day for all the many blessings you have given me.. Thank You for:

• Your Son Jesus and the sacrifice He made for me,
• my wife and my two daughters,
• for the other family and friends that love and care about me,
• for my good health and the good health of my family,
• for my career and Your provision for my family’s financial
  needs,
• for today’s special moments like catching a butterfly with
  my 8-yr old,
• for the love, care, and good example set by my own father when I
  was growing up.
  

God, I confess that I am not always the best husband and father I should be. I pray for Your forgiveness and grace.

I pray that You will bless me in my role as father. Give me wisdom and patience. Grow me into the father You need me to be for my two daughters. Help me be someone they know will always be there for them.

I pray that You will bless me in my role as husband. Again, I pray for wisdom and patience. Grow me into the man my wife needs me to be. Protect my marriage from evil influences. Grow us together as a couple that will be an example for our daughters and a good Christian witness to those around us.

Help me discern Your will for my life and the life of my family. Where I need to take a stand for You and Your purposes, I pray that You will make Your will obvious and supernaturally enable me to do what You need me to do. Where I need to shut up or back off, I pray that You will
convict me of this and give me peace as I turn it all over to You. Build me up where I am weak. Help me develop the spiritual gifts You have given me for Your service.

I pray that You will bless me in my role as provider. I ask for Your continued blessings on my work life. Help me honor You in all that I do. Help me be a good witness in the workplace. God,
there is much uncertainty in the world right now with many people losing their jobs. Help me trust in Your provision for my family. Where Your provision is where I am already, help me be the best that I can be. When turmoil is coming and a change is needed, I pray that You will
alert me in some way, prepare me for the change, and enable me to make the changes I need to in order to take full advantage of Your provision.

I pray that You will bless my wife in her role as mother of our children. Giver her continued good health, wisdom, energy and patience. Grow her into the mother You need her to be. Give her deep joy from motherhood despite all the hard work.

I pray that you will bless her in her role as my wife. Grow her into the woman You need her to be for me. Strengthen her commitment and resolve to our marriage. Remove all walls that separate us and bring us together intimately in a way that lasts a lifetime.

I pray that you will work mightily in the lives of my two daughters. Use Your Holy Spirit to draw them close to You. Give them a hunger to seek You. I pray that they will grow up happy and healthy. I pray that You will provide friends, teachers, Sunday School teachers, youth group leaders, and coaches who will be good influences on them at the very moment they will be tempted. Protect them from peer pressures to stray away from the path You have planned for them. If it is Your will that they should marry, I pray that at this very moment You are preparing a godly young man for them who will love them and remain committed to them always. I also lift up to You the parents of these young men. Help them raise their sons to be great fathers for my future grandchildren if that is part of Your plan as well.

This I ask in the name of Your Son, Jesus.

Amen.

Copyright © 2005 by Philip Hartman and Caleb's Publishing - All Rights Reserved

More on Middle Tennessee Tornado

On my way to church in Goodlettsville, I passed some devastation along New Brick Church Pike. Bakers Chapel CME church was damaged and the Red Cross was handing out water and other supplies in the parking lot. Behind the church many, many trees were down. Many homes were damaged.

The grocery store where I often stop to get milk on the way home was severly damaged. The building between the Goodlettsville public library and the Bell South building was flattened.

Nashville Electric Service bucket trucks were everwhere. The police were blocking off access to side streets to all but the people who lived there.

At church this morning, a man I had seen often but didn't know very well got up to talk about his ordeal with the tornado. His house was lifted away from him in about 5 seconds. He and a neighbor went looking for another neighbor, a young mother with two small children. She had sought safety in the basement (not many houses in Middle Tennessee have basements) right before her house was demolished. She had crouched low with her two children under her. The two men dug through the rubble to find them. The two children were unhurt but the mother had punctured lungs and spinal injuries. He said he had heard that she may be parallized from the chest down for the rest of her life.

The newpaper said Friday was the worst loss of life due to tornado activity in Middle Tennessee since 1974.

God, I lift up to You in prayer all those who have lost their homes and possessions. I especially lift up those who were injured or who lost loved ones. Heal the pain and loss. Provide for all their needs, both spoken and unspoken. Lord, I pray for your healing hand on that young mother who was severly injured protecting her children. Amen.

Prayer in U.S. House of Representatives the Day After the Bombing of Pearl Harbor

It was Sunday, August 28, 2005. I had driven home to visit my mother for her birthday. Right before I left I remembered that when my father (a minister) died back in 1980, the contents of his church office were moved into the garage of my mother's house. I had taken an interest in doing some writing about my own Christian faith and remembered from many years before that there were many boxes of his "preacher books" plus a couple of file cabinets where he kept manilla folders with his notes from almost 30 years of his sermons. I thought to myself, "There must be some great stuff in there that might provide good material for my writing!"

My mother used the garage for storage and not for parking cars so when I opened it, I found boxes of my brother's household goods that were nevershipped to Alabama when he moved, boxes of my sister's stuff from whenshe moved to a new house, and even a mattress my mother told me belongedto my niece's boyfriend. How did that get in there? After moving some old furniture, I found my father's file cabinets where they have beensitting for 25 years. I think I'm the only one who has ever even looked inside them and maybe only three times in that 25 years.

I found several drawer of manilla folders, each with notes for a particular sermon, as I expected. I removed one draw full of sermons to take home with me to look for ideas for my own writing. In the back of one of the drawers, I found something I never knew about. It was a brown, thin, hardcover book. When I read the title, I knew I had to rescue this little book from obscurity. To me, it was a genuine historical gem.

Prayers

Offerred by the Chaplain

Rev. James Shera Montgomery, D.D.

At the Opening of the Daily Sessions of the

House of Representatives of the United States

During the Seventy-Seventh and

Seventy-Eigth Congresses

1941-1944

Based on the date of publication, I guessed that this book must have belonged to my grandfather, also a preacher. I have since traded emails with my Uncle who said my grandfather actually met Rev. Montgomery on trip to Washington, DC and received the book from him directly. My uncle also said my grandfather had commented on "what a great guy he was." My
father inherited the contents of my grandfather's church office when my grandfather passed away.

Here's a scan of the front cover of the book.

The inside title page:

Here is the House Resolution authorizing the printing of this book of
prayers.

Apparently the chaplain got to dedicate this book of his prayers, which he did - dedicating it to his father.

I discovered that this historical gem containing a glimpseinto the spiritual life of my nation's past was originally offered forsale for $0.35 a copy.

Here's the first page of prayers.

I knew enough about history to know that these were the years of World War II. Captured in the pages of this book were the opening prayers offerred to our Congressman during the greatest struggle of war in my nation's history. I quickly searched to see if it included the prayer
offerred immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It was there!

Imagine if you will that you were this chaplain. Your nation had just been bombed and the Pacific fleet decimated. Before you was the Houseof Representatives of the United States of America. A declaration of war was likely. What would you say? What would your prayer be like? Here in the public record, is what the man who really had to do it said, beginning at the bottom of page 60 and continuing to page 61 below. See the opening prayer for Monday, December 8, 1941.

I think the words of this chaplain still offer us some wisdom for today. Remember our nation's leaders in your prayers tonight and remember our brave service men and women fighting today's war on terrorists.

Adding to Our Prayer List

Things We Usually Pray for

• for forgiveness of our sin
• to help us stop sinning more
• to help someone else stop sinning more
• to remove or minimize the consequences of our sin or bad decisions previously made (likely decisions made without seeking God’s will first)
• to remove or minimize the consequences of someone else’s sin on our lives
• that our family & friends come to know Jesus as their Savior
• for the future good health, happiness, and general well being of ourselves, family, & friends
• for help in dealing with a difficult person in our lives
• to remove a difficult situation in our lives
• to take away our desire to repeat a difficult sin
• for financial blessings or for success in life
• for success in and God’s blessing upon the plans we have made for the future
• for relief from financial distress or burdens
• for His provision of a job so that we can support our families
• to help us be a better parent to our children
• to change our spouse so that he or she becomes more like the person we need them to be
• to heal someone close to us already suffering from an illness or injury
• for His protection from accidents and anyone who might intentionally harm us or our family & friends
• to bless and lead our church leaders and other spiritual leaders who minister to us.
• to bless and lead the executive, legislative, and judicial governmental leaders in the decisions they make which affect all of us.
• to bless and protect from harm those who willingly risk their lives to protect us such as our policeman, firefighters, and military.
• that doctors and nurses who try to make us or our family well again have the skill and wisdom they need to provide the proper medical care.

Food for thought... Should We Add Some Prayers More More Like These?

• Seek God’s will in a difficult decision we must make before we make the decision
• “I thank You and praise You God for Your grace in forgiving me of the sins I’ve committed in the past and for forgiving me in advance for sins I will no doubt commit in the future. Help me accept Your gift of grace. Help me stop feeling guilty about the past and help me instead to get about the business of glorifying and serving You to the best of my ability both now and in the future.”
• Ask God to show us where He is already actively working around us and reveal to us how we should alter our plans and join Him
• Help us to be able to forgive someone who has sinned against us because we are having trouble forgiving them
• Ask God to reveal what He wants us to learn from a difficult situation when He chooses not to make it go away. (see I Peter 1:6-8)
• To change us so that we become the person our spouse needs us to be.
• That we be able to rejoice in the difficult circumstances we face if is because God is “pruning” us to bear even more fruit for Him in the future. (see John 15:1-8)
• That the Holy Spirit lead us so that we always glorify God in what we think, say, and do... and that our lives be a positive influence on all those around us.
• Ask God to reveal His purpose for our life, how He wants to use us to serve His purpose, and for the Holy Spirit to lead us and equip us for those tasks.
• Ask God to reveal to us His plan for our “outreach” to those outside the church who do not yet believe.
• Ask God to reveal to us His plan for our “inreach” to serve our fellow believers
• For help in accepting a “no” or “wait” answer from God to one of our prayers for His help
• For strength to persevere in times of adversity when God chooses not to relieve us from difficult circumstances or consequences
• That God use the Holy Spirit to prepare the heart of someone who does not believe in Jesus to be ready to hear God’s truth and accept Jesus
• That God use us in some way to help someone who does not believe to come to know Jesus as their Savior
• That God use us today in some way to plant a spiritual “seed” in someone’s life, water a seed someone else has already planted in their life, or otherwise care for any spiritual “plant” which may be growing in someone’s life.
• For the words to say to or the actions to take towards someone that God puts in our path today
• That today God would place someone in our path that we are to influence in some way for God’s glory.
• The ability to discern whose heart the Holy Spirit has already prepared and that God would prepare us to be ready to help that person find Christ in their life, or at least help them get started.
• How we should respond as a Christian when someone around us is involved in some sin such as adultery, homosexuality, sexual promiscuity, pornography, drugs, theft, dishonesty, etc.
• Identify what we do now or have now that God would have us give up so that we might more time/energy/resources to serve Him better
• Help us identify the right balance of our time/energy/resources across our jobs, marriage, children, church, service to others, personal enjoyment, and personal growth.
• Unity among Christians in the face of dissention and disagreement in the Church
• That God give us joy when we submit to and obey God
• That God give us the ability to lovingly confront believers who are giving in to sin.
• That God give us the ability to discern between His truth and false teachings
• That God give us the ability to discern between godly spiritual leaders and false ones
• That God help us to submit to the godly leaders God puts over us.
• That we have a hunger to know more about God and be have a closer personal relationship with God

Copyright © 2005 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved

In Scorn of the Consequences

Christ came, not so much to preach the Gospel, as that there might be a Gospel to preach.

R. W. Dale

When you face the perils of weariness, carelessness, and confusion, don't pray for an easier life. Pray instead to be a stronger man or woman of God.

Luis Palau

The Gospels do not explain the Resurrection -- the Resurrection explains the Gospels.

John S. Whale

Lord, I know not what I ought to ask of you. O, Father, give to your child what he himself knows not how to ask. Teach me to pray. Pray yourself in me.

François Fenelon

Faith is not belief in spite of evidence, but life in scorn of consequences -- a courageous trust in the great purpose of all things, and pressing forward to finish the work which is in sight, whatever the price may be.

Kirsopp Lake

How do you pray for forgiveness?

Pretty early in life, I was taught to pray something like this:

"Father, forgive me of my sins."

As I got a little older, the Lord's prayer had more of an influence on my prayer life and this part of my prayers turned into:

"Father, forgive me of my sins as I forgive those who sin against me."

As I matured in my faith, I began to realize there were “sins of ommission” which were just as offensive to God as the “sins of commission.” Therefore, I found myself praying along the lines of:

"Father, forgive me of my sins as I forgive others... both those sins where I have done something wrong... and those times where You wanted me to do something and I did not."

Lately, however, I have thought a lot about Christ's one-time payment for all our sins. Surely Christ was aware that He was substituting Himself for me even though I wasn’t even born yet. That means He was offering himself as a living sacrifice for sins not committed yet. It seems that the forgiveness is on-going and once we are saved we should be thanking God for forgiveness that He has already granted. As a result, I wonder if a believer should pray something more like this:

"Father, thank You for forgiving me of my many sins as I forgive others... both those sins where I have done wrong and those when I failed to act on faith when You needed me to do something. I thank You also for continuing to forgive me both now and in the future for sins I will certainly commit in my future weakness and lack of faith.”

Maybe I'm crazy. Opinions are appreciated and encouraged.

A Prayer to Start Each Day

I start my day with words like “Lord, today is Your day. Today is going to include temptation, and I know my tendency is to act in the flesh. I don’t want to do that. I want to walk in the light... in Your will. I want to act in Your Spirit. I want to respond as You would have me respond. So I place myself on Your altar, and I ask You to assist me as I accept Your power to hold me in Your will. Help me to live like that moment by moment, all through this day.

Charles R. Swindoll, The Mystery of God's Will

What the Homeless Taught Me About Prayer

There is a really excellent article by Phillip Yancey entitled The Word on the Street
What the homeless taught me about prayer.

Here are a few quotes to entice you to talk a look...

"If you're writing a book about prayer, you should hang around the homeless for a while," said my wife, a veteran of inner-city ministry. "Street people pray as a necessity, not a luxury."

Her advice made sense, especially after I interviewed Mike Yankoski, a Westmont College student who, along with a friend, left school for five months to live on the street. (His book, Under the Overpass, tells the story.) Mike told me that homeless people, having hit bottom, don't waste time building up an image or trying to conform. And they pray without pretense, a refreshing contrast to what he found in some churches.
...

As I listened to the homeless relate their prayers, I was struck by the prayers' down-to-earth quality—indeed, their resemblance to the Lord's Prayer. "Give us this day our daily bread": They all had stories about running out of food, praying, and then finding a burrito or uneaten pizza. "Deliver us from evil": Living on mean streets, these believers pray that daily. "Forgive us our trespasses": Deep down in each lay buried secrets of shame and regret.

A Spirit of Anticipation

I found myself wondering whether I have the kind of spirit of “anticipation” that God would want me to have.

It all started when I was preparing to teach Sunday School and read in the Gospel of Luke about Simeon and the prophetess Anna.

Luke 2:22-40 (New International Version)
22When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"[a]), 24and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."[b]

25Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

29"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss[c] your servant in peace. 30For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31which you have prepared in the sight of all people, 32a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel."

33The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."

36There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37and then was a widow until she was eighty-four.[d] She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

39When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.

See how Simeon was “righteous and devout” to the point of God choosing to reveal that the arrival of the Messiah was to be within his lifetime? Think of the anticipation he must have felt knowing that Christ was coming soon. Imagine the difference this would have made in his life. Also note how he was attentive to the subtle promptings of the Holy Spirit and was present in the Temple on the exact day that Mary and Joseph were to present the baby Jesus. God chose to use Simeon to announce that Jesus would be a “light for revelation to the Gentiles” as well.

As for the prophetess Anna, I cannot imagine myself never leaving the temple but always being in an attitude of prayer. And, I am sorry to say, I have not taken up the spiritual discipline of fasting either. I do not believe anyone could spend decades in constant worship without anticipating that God was about to work in a mighty way right there in the community where she was.

I must now ask myself some difficult questions.

• How well am I worshiping God?
• Do I live in anticipation that God will work in some mighty way right here where I am?
• Am I listening attentively to the prompting of the Holy Spirit?
• Will I be willing to speak boldly for God if asked to?
• Do I have the perseverance to wait expectantly for decades for an answer to prayer?

God, I pray that You will mold me into the kind of man You need me to be. If it be Your will, give me the faith and perseverance of Simeon and Anna. They both never stopped believing You would keep Your promises. They both waited with anticipation for You to work in Your own time.

Not as Close as I Should Be

God, I come to You tonight knowing that I am not as close to You as I know I should be. I have let the distractions of life take away the time I should spend with You in prayer and Bible study. I pray that You will show me grace though I don't really deserve it and draw me back close to You. Grow me into the man You need me to be. Grow my faith. Help me discern Your will for my life. Supernaturally enable me to accomplish what You want me to do to serve Your purposes. Protect me from temptation. Do not let me be a stumbling block to others and their own walk with You. Amen

Copyright © 2005 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved

Prayer - A Simple Necessity

Personal prayer, it seems to me, is one of the simplest necessities of life, as basic to the individual as sunshine, food and water—and at times of course, more so. By prayer I believe we mean an effort to get in touch with the Infinite. We know that our prayers are imperfect. Of course they are. We are imperfect human beings. A thousand experiences have convinced me beyond room of doubt that prayer multiplies the strength of the individual and brings within the scope of his capabilities almost any conceivable objective.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

God, Make Me More Like Joseph

At this time of year when we celebrate the birth of Jesus, I want to remember the great example of Joseph as a husband to the Virgin Mary and as the earthly father to Jesus.

When Joseph got the news that Mary was pregnant (and he knew he wasn’t responsible), he could have ruined Mary’s life. Could he have had her stoned to death? Yet even before God let Joseph in on what was going on, Joseph had already resolved to divorce her quietly. Matthew 1:19 says:

19Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

Note that he was described as “righteous.” Also, in the male-dominated society of the day, this shows Joseph had a greater respect for women than was probably typical.

In the very next verse, we are told that God lets him in on the fact that Mary is pregnant by the Holy Spirit and that it is all part of God’s plan.

20But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[a] because he will save his people from their sins. 23"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"[a]—which means, "God with us."

What was Joseph’s reaction? Did he react cynically with a “yeah, right... she hasn’t been sleeping with another man... I wasn’t born yesterday.” Did he treat his vision as just a dream. A dream that could be safely ignored? Did stop to wonder what people would think? No! Joseph was obedient and quickly so. In Matthew 1:24

24When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

Talk about a leap of faith! Would you have acted so boldly? Would I?

Joseph also had great commitment to God and great self control. The Bible tells us he took Mary as his wife but did not consummate his marriage to her until after Jesus was born. And in obedience to God’s instructions, he gave the Christ child the name Jesus. See Matthew 1:25

25But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

He knew the prophecies about Jesus’ virgin birth and he did not want to tarnish this part of God’s plan in any way.

Joseph was called upon to take quick action a little latter in life as well. In Matthew 2:13-14 we find that after the visit of the Magi:

13When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him." 14So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt,

Did he worry about the affect of leaving town abruptly on his carpentry business? Did he argue that the timing isn’t good. Was he so deep in debt that he couldn’t give up his steady income? No! He knew what God wanted. He did not hesitate. He did not flinch. He got up right that moment and got out of town that very night. Disaster averted!

The same thing happened once again in Matthew 2:19-20.

19After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead."

So... Joseph continued to do his part in God’s great plan of salvation.

God, at this time of year when we celebrate the birth of Your Son Jesus, I pray that you will mold me and make me more into a man like Joseph. Help me make myself available to You to serve Your purposes. Lead me to know clearly Your will for my life and how You need me to serve You. Give me the courage and wisdom to obey promptly and not hesitate when You call me to do something. Give me the discipline I need so that I do not hinder anyone else from coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus. Amen.

Remember Childen of Prison Inmates This Christmas

Last Sunday, my church had an “Angel Tree” outside the sanctuary. Hanging from it were cards, each representing a child with a parent was serving time in a prison. While we were asked to take a child’s card from the tree and purchase a gift for the child, the child would never know our participation. This was because the gift was to be tagged so that from the child’s point of view, the gift came from their incarcerated parent. The card gave the child’s name, age, gender, clothes sizes, and a gift suggestion. The guidance was to spend $20 or less.

I had never done this kind of thing before, and I felt led to do something special for a child who might not get anything for Christmas. I also felt, that no matter what the parent may have done, the child should get at least something from their parent.

My “angel” was a 12-year old girl who wanted a portable CD-player. I ran by Walmart and picked up a CD player that also had an FM radio. (It came with headphones, too.) I felt like the radio might would come in handy, not knowing how many CDs the child owned. It was just under $20 before tax. I noticed it did not come with the 2 AA batteries required. I decided to “splurge” on a 10-pack of AA batteries to go with it. I blew the $$ limit I guess.

God, tonight I offer a prayer for the innocent children separated from a parent because the parent is in prison. I know that when any of us does something against the law, we must suffer the consequences. Some of those suffering the consequences have children and their children suffer from the separation too. It saddens my heart God because these children don’t deserve what life has dealt them. So I ask Your special blessing on those innocent children. Make them resilient and provide for their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Work in the lives of people like me who can spare a few dollars and make a difference in a child's life. Show the children how to succeed in life and how not to follow in their parent’s footsteps to prison. Grow them up into productive citizens. Send the Holy Spirit to work in their life. Draw them close to You and bring them to a saving knowledge of Your Son Jesus. Be also with the parents in prison. Work in their lives also and draw them close to Yourself. Use their time in prison to mold them into the kind of person You need them to be. Where there is pain and broken relationships in their young lives, I pray You bring healing and reconciliation. Amen.

Leadership of the Holy Spirit

Well, it is my turn to teach Sunday School tomorrow. We’re studying what it means to be led by the Holy Spirit from Romans 8:1-14.

I pray that the Holy Spirit will guide me in my preparation of the lesson and reveal to me the message that my class needs to hear. I pray also, that when it comes time to teach tomorrow, that the Holy Spirit will guide me as I try to deliver this important message. Give me the words to say. Help me discern the needs of those in the class.

I pray also that You will prepare the hearts of each and every member of the class, myself included, so as to make them ready to hear Your message. God, I pray that You will remove all barriers which might hinder anyone who needs to hear Your message from attending.

Modern Signs of God Working When a Nation Repents

Imagine if 10% of an entire nation all showed up at one location at one time to attend the same prayer meeting.

Imagine if a stream that used to be too foul to drink ran clean again on its own.

Imagine if fishing grounds suddenly began producing more fish.

Imagine if the soil began producing more and bigger fruit.

Well, this all happened on the island nation of Fiji. Take a look at "Let the Sea Resound". This 75-minute documentary describes the spiritual revival of this island nation.

The story starts with the nation of Fiji at its darkest hour in 2000. For the first time, a non-Fijian (ethnic Hindu) government was elected and some radical Fijian nationalists tried to take over the island nation by violence. The economy sank as the violece scared away the all-important tourists from the island. Then political leaders began to openly turn to God. What follows is a "moving and instructive testament of unprecedented Christian unity, contemporary signs and wonders, rapid church growth and genuine socio-political transformation. The breath of God has revived even the land and the sea.

Islanders even tracked down several descendents of a Christian missionary killed by pagan tribesman back in the 1800's, brought them to Fiji, and publically asked for forgiveness for the actions of their ancestors.

I am told that the residents of Fiji are real prayer warriors. Many wake up early in the morning and start their day with prayer. Sinde they are located near the international date line, they like to think of it as starting the new day for the whole world with prayer.

Copyright © 2005 by Philip Hartman - All Rights Reserved