Overcoming – Page 21

Could it have been avoided?

The senseless mass murder at the Naval Ship Yard in our nation’s capital this week raises many questions. Not the least of which “could it have been avoided?” Many things, as with past massacres such as the Newtown School shootings less than a year ago, are under consideration that shoulda woulda coulda been done to prevent such tragedies. But I have not heard, at least through secular media, even a hint or suggestion that it could have been avoided through prayer. To even suggest that prayer might have headed off such a tragedy doubtless jars the sensibilities of some, but let us stop for a moment and consider it as a possibility.

In the bible, both Old and New Testaments there are numerous accounts of earnest, concentrated prayer being made where tragedy was thereby averted Jerusalem’s last minute deliverance from its own imminent demise when surrounded by the Assyrians during the reign of King Hezekiah was a direct and miraculous answer to prayer. And the Apostle Peter’s eleventh hour escape from prison and certain death directly coincided with a prayer meeting that was focused on his behalf. (2 Kings 19 & Acts 12:5-16)

And even more noteworthy is the fact that throughout the Bible God actually encourages individuals to take up positions as watchmen in prayer specifically for the purpose of being a safeguard against evil. Many of the prophets, including Isaiah, Ezekiel, Micah and Habakkuk were specifically called by God as watchmen to intercede on behalf of God’s purposes in the nations. God told Isaiah “I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest, and give Him no rest till He establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth.” (Isaiah 62:6-7 NIV)

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Never underestimate the power of your prayer!

Answers to Prayer!, Overcoming, Prayer / Tom Stuart

Never underestimate the difference a prayer can make. “Never stop praying” is one of the shortest verses in the Bible and yet it conveys a remarkable and unmistakable truth. Prayer makes a difference! Even when it may seem like a brief formality or something one does simply out of habit, prayer is nonetheless important and does make a difference. I learned this in an unforgettably humorous way back when I was a youth pastor.

One practice of prayer since my early days as a believer in Christ has been to pause before embarking on any long journey and pray to God for His traveling mercies. Typically it is a spontaneous type of prayer asking for His presence and protection as I and those with me travel to our destination. It is as simple as sitting in our vehicle just before starting out and bowing for a few moments in prayer. And as a leader I have always been particularly cognizant of the necessity of doing this whenever I have had a van or bus load of people heading out on an outing together.

One winter I chartered a school bus to take the youth from our church located in the Twin Cities (Minnesota) up into the woods of Northern Wisconsin for a weekend retreat. The retreat center was a rustic one that was situated just off an isolated forest road in the middle of nowhere.

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Thief scared off by prayer!

3 Comments / Answers to Prayer!, Overcoming, Prayer / Tom Stuart

Several years ago the Lord gave me a very practical encouragement in this regard. It showed me that watching and praying really does fend off evil. And it illustrates the reality of the analogy Jesus used when He said “if the owner of the house had known at what time the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.” Matthew 24:43

A remarkable thing happened early Friday morning during our church’s week of prayer and fasting. (Bridgewood Community Church) We had scheduled 6 AM prayer meetings at the church each morning that week and I was on my way there when I received a cell phone call from the church’s security company. The caller informed me that a door had been opened in the building and it was setting off the alarm since no security code had been entered. Since I was just minutes away I told her I would be there shortly and check things out. I assumed someone coming to the prayer meeting had arrived at the church, had a key but perhaps did not enter the code correctly.

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Glorifying God in an April Snowstorm

3 Comments / Overcoming / Tom Stuart

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech.” Psalm 19:1-2

This morning here in Twin Cities (Minnesota) we all woke up to a mid-April snow storm dumping 4-6 inches of snow and regrettably extending an already interminable winter. When I went outside between 6 and 7 AM to put out our trash receptacle, the visibility was blizzard like and it took some effort to wrestle the container, wheels and all, through the snow to the curb. I was grumbling and complaining to myself and to the Lord, and vowing that no matter what, I was done shoveling for the year and absolutely would not lift a finger to get rid of the snow in my driveway. Leave it to nature for it to eventually melt away! I have had it!

As I was walking back to the garage shaking my head with incredulity and listening to the crunch of snow under my feet I suddenly noticed another sound. It caught me off guard because it seemed so incongruous with the blizzard like conditions. It was the sound of a bird singing. Somewhere in one of my trees there was some crazy bird singing his little heart out in joyful song.

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What it means to pray with Jesus.

2 Comments / Overcoming, Prayer / Tom Stuart

“Could you not watch with Me one hour?” Mark 14:38

This Holy Week we are once again invited to take the journey with Jesus to the Last Supper, into the Garden of Gethsemane and then to ascend the hill of Golgotha to the cross. In my last blog post I shared how when Jesus initially called His disciples, and us, His first and primary intention was, and always will remain, that we simply be with Him. And I made the point that being with Him is expressed most naturally through relating to Him in prayer, just as He related to the Father.

The very last time Jesus was with His disciples, pre-crucifixion, that night in the Garden of Gethsemane, He renewed that “be with” calling in a way that has been indelibly etched in the heart of every follower of Christ. Knowing He would no longer be with them in the natural, He was preparing them for a post resurrection relationship with Him in the Spirit. One of the last things He said to Peter, James and John in the Garden that night was “remain here and keep watch with Me.” (Matthew 26:38) He then moved further beyond them “about a stone’s throw away,” knelt falling with His face to the ground and began praying with such fervency that “His sweat became like drops of blood.”

When He arose from prayer He came back to the three and found them sleeping. It was then that He said these oft-quoted and hauntingly powerful words “Could you not watch with Me one hour?” (Matthew 26: 40)

The two words that I want to give special consideration to in this meditation are “with Me.” In the Gethsemane account in the book of Matthew we see in the space of three verses Jesus urging His disciples to watch and prayer using the “with Me” reference two successive times. (vs. 38 & 40)

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