Christian Reflection and Prayer

Scripture:

"God Who does not lie, promised." (Titus 1:2)

Reflection:

When I pray, I often find myself praying for more
faith.  But when I really listen to myself, I get to
the essence of my prayer.  I realize it's not more
faith that I desire but I want my faith to be changed
to sight.
Faith does not say, "I see this is good for me therefore
God must have sent it".  Instead faith declares, "God
sent it, therefore it must be good for me."
"FAITH, WHEN WALKING THROUGH THE DARK
WITH GOD, ONLY ASKS HIM TO HOLD MY HAND
MORE TIGHTLY!"

Phillip Brooks states:

"The Shepherd does not ask of thee
   Faith in Your faith, but only faith in Him.
And this He meant in saying, "Come to Me,"
   In light or darkness seek to do His will, and
leave the work of faith to Jesus still." 

Come with me   To a third grade classroom..... There is a 
Nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of  A sudden,
there is a puddle between his feet and  The front of his
pants are wet. He thinks his  Heart is going to stop because
he cannot  Possibly imagine how this has happened. It's 
Never happened before, and he knows that when 
The boys find out he will never hear the end of 
It. When the girls find out, they'll never speak
To him again as long as he  Lives.
 The boy Believes his heart is going to stop; he
puts his  Head down and prays this prayer,
'Dear God, this Is an emergency! I need help now!
Five minutes  From now I'm dead  Meat. ' He looks up 
From his prayer and here comes the teacher with 
 A look in her eyes that says he has been  Discovered.
 As the  Teacher is walking toward him, a class mate 
Named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is  Filled with
water. Susie trips in front of the Teacher and inexplicably
dumps the bowl of water  In the boy's Lap.  The boy 
Pretends to be angry, but all the while is  Saying to himself,
'Thank you, Lord! Thank you,  Lord!'
Now all of a Sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, 
The boy is the object of sympathy. The teacher  Rushes him
downstairs and gives him gym shorts To put on while his pants
dry out.  All the other Children are on their hands and knees
cleaning  Up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful. 
But as life would have it, the ridicule that  Should have been his
has been transferred to Someone else - 
Susie, She tries to  Help, but they tell her to get out. You've
done  Enough, you  Klutz!'
 Finally, at The end of the day, as they are waiting for the 
Bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers,  'You did that on
purpose, didn't you?'
Susie Whispers back, 'I wet my pants once  Too.'
May God help  Us see the opportunities that are always around 
Us to do Good..
Remember.....Just going to Church doesn't make you a Christian
any more Than standing in your garage makes you a  Car.
Each and Everyone one of us is going through tough times  Right
now, but God is getting ready to bless you In a way that only He
can.           KEEP THE FAITH!
Prayer:
Father, I ask  You to bless my friends, relatives and those 
That I care deeply for, who are reading this Right now. Show
them a new revelation of Your Love and power. Holy Spirit,
I ask You to Minister to their spirit at this very moment. 
Where there is pain, give them Your peace and Mercy..
Where there is self-doubt, release a  Renewed confidence
through Your grace. Where  There is need, I ask you to fulfill
their needs.  Bless their homes, families, finances, their 
Goings and their comings. 
         AMEN

Scripture:

"Their is to sit still".  (Isaiah 30: 7 KJV)

Reflection:

I have come to the realization in my life
that inner stillness is an absolute necessity
to knowing God.  I remember learning this
during a time of great crises and turmoil in
my life.  Everything in me, my entire being,
seemed to throb with anxiety, and the sense
of need was immediate and powerful action
was absolutely overwhelming.  Yet the
circumstance were such that I could do nothing
to overcome my crises.
This is when I discovered that to overcome my
crises I needed to be still in my spirit and "rest"
in God.  It was during this crises I effectively
learned that my "strength is to sit still"
You see there is perfect passivity that is not
laziness.  It is a living stillness born of trust
in Christ.  I YEARN FOR THAT STILLNESS,
I LIVE FOR THAT STILLNESS, I HAVE
RECEIVED THAT STILLNESS THROUGH
JESUS CHRIST.