The earnest prayers of this faithful few will not be in vain. When the Lord comes forth as an avenger, He will also come as a protector of all those who have preserved the faith in its purity, and kept themselves unspotted from the world. It is at this time that God has promised to avenge His own elect which cry day and night unto Him, though He bear long with them.—Testimonies for the Church 5:210.

Strive earnestly for unity. Pray for it, work for it. It will bring spiritual health, elevation of thought, nobility of character, heavenly-mindedness, enabling you to overcome selfishness and evil-surmisings, and to be more than conquerors through Him that loved you, and gave Himself for you. Crucify self; esteem others better than yourselves. Thus you will be brought into oneness with Christ. Before the heavenly universe, and before the church and the world, you will bear unmistakable evidence that you are God’s sons and daughters. God will be glorified in the example that you set.

The world needs to see worked out before it the miracle that binds the hearts of God’s people together in Christian love. It needs to see the Lord’s people sitting together in heavenly places in Christ.—Testimonies for the Church 9:188.

God calls upon His faithful ones, who believe in Him, to talk courage to those who are unbelieving and hopeless. May the Lord help us to help one another, and to prove Him by living faith.—Testimonies for the Church 8:12.
With God at Dawn p. 197
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Prayer Requests
—-My husband may have a leak in his small intestines. Please pray that he does not have to have another surgery. Rachelle
—-Please pray for Jake, Emily, Easton, Trevor, Aubrey and Aspen. M
—-Prayers please for one of my favorite students and his family, as he has started having seizures this spring. We need a miracle! Tanya
—-Please pray for my daughter Jennifer and family. They just got 48 hour eviction notice. She lost her section 8 because miscommunication because of covid and losing her ss for 6 months so now being evicted. She has nowhere to go. Except my camper. Please pray for a miracle. Debra
—-I have an unspoken prayer request. Buck
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Dear Friends,

I have a love/hate relationship with the cell phone! It’s comforting to have one if I have any car trouble because I can call for help. Yet, that is not the primary use for my little device. No matter where I am, by just a press of a button, I can speak with those who are dear to me. Through the cell phone I can find answers to questions as they come to mind. Yet, it can become such a time-waster. It can become a distraction from the important things of life. Still, if I forget my cell phone, I go back and get it whenever possible. Without it, I feel very disconnected and lonely.

So it is with prayer and Bible study. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we can breathe a prayer to our Loving Saviour. No matter where we are, no matter what we are doing, we can meditate upon His Holy Word. Do we feel as disconnected and lonely when we get so busy that we forget to pray or study the Scriptures as I do when I have forgotten my link to hearing my children’s voice? Do we stop whatever we are doing when we realize that we have not kept in contact with the Great King of the Universe?

Think of it! He, who is worshiped and adored by all the beings in His vast universe, longs to hear our voice raised to Him in thanksgiving. He, Who is the ruler of all, is so very near to us that He walks beside us joining us in the joys the sorrows that come our way. He, Who is Omniscient, speaks to us through the Holy Word He inspired holy men to write long years ago. (2 Tim 3:16, 17; 2 Peter 1:21) He, alone, can help us in our trials, yet, how often we get so busy with our daily life that we forget to study His Word and to “pray without ceasing.” 1 Thes 5:17

Just as David, when he watched over his father’s sheep, lifted his voice in prayer and thanksgiving to his Good Shepherd, so will our hearts be united with God’s Great Heart of Love as we keep our mind focused upon Him throughout the day. Just as he was filled with love and gratitude when he meditated upon our Great Creator’s tender watchcare over us, so will we. He declared, “My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.” “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.” “The LORD hath heard the voice of my weeping. The LORD hath heard my supplication; the LORD will receive my prayer.” Ps 5:3; 55:17; 6:8,9

May we daily hear God’s voice speaking to us as we meditate upon His Holy Word. May we bring to Him all of our sorrows, all of our joys, all of our cares, all of our heartaches, (we cannot weary Him) knowing that if we allow Him to, He will untangle the tangled up mess that we have made of our life. May we, like David, exclaim, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” Ps 42:1

Rose

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rosesdevotional/~3/Tpy0qcJcYOE/if-two-shall-agree-it-shall-be-done.html

Family prayer and public prayer have their place; but it is secret communion with God that sustains the soul-life. It was in the mount with God that Moses beheld the pattern of that wonderful building which was to be the abiding-place of His glory. It is in the mount with God—the secret place of communion—that we are to contemplate His glorious ideal for humanity. Thus we shall be enabled so to fashion our character-building that to us may be fulfilled the promise, “I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

While engaged in our daily work, we should lift the soul to heaven in prayer. These silent petitions rise like incense before the throne of grace; and the enemy is baffled. The Christian whose heart is thus stayed upon God cannot be overcome. No evil arts can destroy his peace. All the promises of God’s Word, all the power of divine grace, all the resources of Jehovah, are pledged to secure his deliverance.—Gospel Workers, 254.

God reads the hidden thoughts. We may pray in secret, and He who sees in secret will hear, and will reward us openly.—Messages to Young People, 247.

We should be much in secret prayer. Christ is the vine, we are the branches. And if we would grow and flourish, we must continually draw sap and nourishment from the Living Vine; for separated from the Vine, we have no strength…. Press your petitions to the throne, and hold on by strong faith. The promises are sure.—Early Writings, 73.
With God at Dawn p. 196
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for Evelyn and her husband. She contracted covid while helping a neighbor who had it. They are elderly so are in more danger of complications or death from it. M
—-Prayers for my friend Peach. Someone has taken her camera and she needs it for her job. She had lots of things on the SD card, hours and hours of work she desperately needs. Prayers that it comes back to her and prayers for peace as she continues with her pregnancy. Jennifer
—-I’m asking for prayers for my sister-in-law Linda. She’s in critical condition & not doing well. Praying for healing… nevertheless, may God’s will be done. Becky
—-Please pray that David will be healed from depression. Buck

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rosesdevotional/~3/DUSmlxMRHQU/secret-prayer-will-be-answered.html

It was represented to me like children asking a blessing of their earthly parents who love them. They ask something that the parent knows will hurt them; the parent gives them the things that will be good and healthful for them, in the place of that which they desired. I saw that every prayer which is sent up in faith from an honest heart, will be heard of God and answered, and the one that sent up the petition will have the blessing when he needs it most, and it will often exceed his expectations. Not a prayer of a true saint is lost if sent up in faith, from an honest heart.—Testimonies for the Church 1:121.

Watch, pray, work—this is the Christian’s watchword. The life of a true Christian is a life of constant prayer. He knows that the light and strength of one day is not sufficient for the trials and conflicts of the next. Satan is continually changing his temptations. Every day we shall be placed in different circumstances; and in the untried scenes that await us we shall be surrounded by fresh dangers, and constantly assailed by new and unexpected temptations. It is only through the strength and grace gained from heaven that we can hope to meet the temptations and perform the duties before us….

Ask, then; ask, and ye shall receive. Ask for humility, wisdom, courage, increase of faith. To every sincere prayer an answer will come…. The prayers you offer in loneliness, in weariness, in trial, God answers, not always according to your expectations, but always for your good.—Gospel Workers, 257, 258.
With God at Dawn p. 195
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Prayer Requests
—-Please pray for my neighbors chow he has not been able to walk on his leg for several days. his back leg is hurting him he needs surgery and she keeps claiming the promises by His stripes we are healed she is in her 70’s and never had any children lives alone never been married . she is in poor health her self crying her heart out can barely get around. her name is Linda pray for her she was crying so hard
needs healing for her knees she was thank you. M
—-PLEASE PRAY FOR MY THIRD SON. He just found out last night that while he went to work everyday that his wife was having [intimate relations] with his older brother. Now my son is SUICIDAL AND I THINK HE IS HAVING A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN. My youngest son is driving over 200 miles to his house right now to try and help him. And my third son has been working hard trying to support this older brother and his four kids and he was letting them live in his house because they had no where else to go. Connie
—-At 2 weeks old, baby Imogen Rea was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer, congenital Glioblastoma Multiforme Grade 4. Her parents Brad and Christie are asking everyone to pray for Imogen that she survives and lives a long and healthy life. Judy
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Dear Friends,

Some years ago, Ronnie Jay and Eileen went camping in Oklahoma along with the church’s Pathfinder group. Ronnie Jay was one of the counselors at the time and asked his big sister to go along.

As always seems to happen during one of these outings, the first night and next morning they had heavy rains. Sunday there was a planned canoe and rafting trip down the river. Unfortunately, it was now way above flood stage after the previous two days of rain. The bulging river flowed swiftly, but the leader felt that they would be able to go anyway.

Ronnie Jay went on the raft, but Eileen wanted to canoe. The other person in the canoe had never been in one before. Eileen sat in the back in order to be able to steer, and off they went. Since the other person was inexperienced, she was not paddling correctly. Eileen had to compensate for every paddle stroke. It was difficult due to the swollen river, but she was able.

When they returned home that evening, Eileen remarked that she was glad that years before when her father taught her how to canoe, he had paddled in such a way that she had to fight to keep the canoe going in the right direction. It seemed to her that he was really working against her: he was. He wanted her to learn to steer under the most difficult of circumstances. It was very frustrating to her as she thought that he was teasing. However, through that experience, she learned to overcome his odd paddling and steer a canoe correctly. That had been his purpose. She now knew that even though he had appeared to be working against her, he was really helping her to become the type of canoeist that he wanted her to be.

Many times it seems like everything is going wrong in our life. We become confused and frustrated and feel forsaken. We fight against our circumstances, not realizing that God is helping us to become the kind of persons that He longs for us to be. He is using these very unpleasant circumstances to help us to become stronger Christians, to help us stay on His pathway, to help us to rely upon His strength. “Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee. Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear him.” Deut. 8:5,6

Paul tells us, “despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” Heb 12:5-11

Yet, even in the troubles our Heavenly Father allows to come upon us, He mingles His great mercy. He loves us with an everlasting love and draws us ever closer to Himself. (Jer 31:3) “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy….He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” Ps 103:8-14

May we remember that the trials that come our way are given in mercy to strengthen us and help us to overcome the sins that so easily beset us. May we, in times of adversity as well as in the good times, “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Heb 4:16

Rose

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rosesdevotional/~3/MZS0P40POZA/ask-that-your-joy-may-be-full.html