Prayer

All posts tagged Prayer

Dear Friends

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on September 21, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , .

Dear Friends,

It has been nearly two months since the last post was submitted to The Bible in Your Hand. It has truly been a blessed time and very busy time. Let me explain.

In the middle of May, I was invited to be a guest speaker at a church roughly forty miles from the church I am serving in. This is not unusual for I have been asked to speak in several area churches. What made this unusual is the Pastor of that church was present and waiting for me at the door when I got there. He and I had never met before and it was indeed a pleasure to get to know him.

A few weeks before I spoke at the above church, Kim Larsen who is a contributor to The Bible in Your Hand and I were talking. During the conversation Kim mentioned that she was praying that my wife and I would move to Northfield. I laughed and responded, “Sorry Kim, that will never happen. Why, why would you want us to move to Northfield?” Kim responded, “There is a church planted there. They are needing extra help and you would be a perfect fit for that church.”

“Sure Kim, you keep on praying, it’s not going to happen. Then I had the sermon and the Pastor was there. Afterword and Kim, her husband my wife and I sat around the table at Fellowship Dinner. We were really enjoying the company, when Pastor Birai sat down and started asking all kinds of questions It was 15 or 20 minutes into he conversation when He suddenly said, “I would like you to come and preach at the Northfield church. If they like you, and they will, I want you to come and be the Associate Pastor in the district making Northfield your primary area of focus.

Now, Kim had not told anyone of her prayer, not even Pastor Birai. She and her husband were just as shocked as my wife and I are.

To make a long story short, the last two months have been very busy, wrapping up things in our previous church and starting at the new church in Northfield.
God often moves in mysterious way, we just need to be open to His leading.

It should also be noted, that Kim and her husband Palmer have at the same time become much more involved in their local church. This has made it difficult for her to find time to contribute to “The Bible In Your Hand.”

I am not completely sure how all this will work out and would really like to continue posting to the website, but it will be more sporadic for a while. Hopefully within the next few weeks there will be the opportunity to begin posting on a regular basis.

Blessings,

Pastor Lester

His Hands Made Strong

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on February 2, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , .

come-follow-meHis Hands Made Strong

But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel). Genesis 49:24

The Bible contains man chapters tasty morsels to make us strong. One text even speaks of “royal dainties.” Royal indeed, for we dine with the king when we feed on his word. And remember our guiding them: “He who opens the scriptures, and feeds upon the heavenly manna, becomes a partaker of the diving nature.”

There are deep meanings in Jacob’s blessings upon his sons. Meditate upon the blessings wished on Joseph, the “grateful bough.” What made Joseph so fruitful? He must have had the prerequisites to successful fruit bearing. He had perfect connection with God, his hands made strong by hands of God. That is hand-in-hand contact. How is our contact with the Vine this morning? Christ says, “I am the vine, ye are the branches.” Am I a fruitful bough? Am I yielding “royal dainties”? Joseph “hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.” What memories as we think of Jacob’s might God strengthening him and making him strong “as a prince.”

Note also how Gad would be made strong; how he would rally in defeat and overcome at the last.” Once when Napoleon’s army was demoralized and beaten, the general ordered the drummer boy to sound a retreat. The little fellow straightened up with pride and said, “Sir, I don’t know who to count a retreat – I never learned – but I can sound a charge, sir, a charge that will wake the dead.” He sounded the charge. The army rallied and won a glorious victory. They overcame at last.

The Scriptures are full of royal dainties.” Let us search for them and we will find them. Genuine courtesy is the badge of true royalty, for it reveals the kingly quality of kindness. Out of such a heart come noble thoughts, thoughts worthy of a king. Nobel aspirations, noble plans noble prayers – all are “royal dainties” to our King. O let the Prince of Peace come into your heart this morning and enjoy a spiritual feast with Him eating “royal dainties.”

Jesus in the Garden

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on January 12, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , .

GethsemaneFinal2Mark: According To

Part 68

Mark 14:32-42

Jesus in the Garden

Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here a while I pray.” 33 And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. 34 Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.” 35 He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.

I cannot imagine or comprehend what it must have been like for Jesus as he left His three trusted disciples, then went on a little farther, fell upon the ground and began to pray. The word Gethsemane is an Aramaic word meaning “oil press” and it was to this spot that the Saviour had frequently resorted for meditation, prayer, and rest. It was here he had often spent the night. How fitting as the weight of all humanity was pressing down on Him that He would go to a place meaning oil press, for the weight of sin from the entire world was pressing down on him. It was here that Jesus prayed to His Father: 36 “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You, Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what you will.”

The humanity of Christ struggled under the weight of sin, to the point that Jesus was tempted to not follow through with the plan of salvation. Yet as Jesus prayed to His Father that this burden, this weight of sin may be lifted from Him so that He would not have to experience this total separation from the Father.

When Adam and Eve sinned, they separated themselves from God and the death referred to in Genesis 2:17 is the death which means total and complete separation from God. In order for Christ’s atoning sacrifice to be accepted, he had to experience total separation from His Father in heaven. This total was more than the human side of Christ could bear, yet even when facing total separation from His Father, Christ prayed that God’s will be done, not his own. Christ loved those he had created and although facing death and separation, he asked for the cup to pass from Him, he was still willing to lay his desires down and allow God’s will to be done.

Jesus had brought the three disciples with him hoping that their praying would strengthen them and give encouragement to Himself. Yet instead of seeking strength from their heavenly Father, they fell asleep. Not once but twice they failed to be roused from their sleep.

Christ in that Garden paradise was three times tempted of Satan to not follow through and had Christ exercised his self-will, the plan of salvation would be over and result in failure with no hope for you and me. But Christ submitted His will to the Father and the Father gave him the strength necessary to endure the events which were about to take place.

41 Then He came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going. See, my betrayer is at hand.”

Each of us, when faced with trial and difficult should seek God through prayer. Our prayers when lifted up with the prayers of friends will bring comfort to the weary soul. None of us will face the same challenge as Jesus faced when he had the weight of this world resting upon Him, but each of us faces the trials and temptations that cause us to ask God for it to pass away. There are times when He will remove these burdens and trials. But there are times when for our own betterment, He allows them to continue so that we can grow in our trust of God and His care for us. These trials and temptation when we rely upon God will strengthen us for further temptations. The heat of temptation and trials will cause our imperfections to rise to the top, to be skimmed away by the silversmith until finally we reflect the image of the refiner, the Master Silversmith, who imparts to us His righteousness which was gained upon His death, burial and resurrection.