Intercession - Sermon from July 29, 2018 at Fellowship Baptist Church

Intercessory Prayer

Today's message is about intercession. It's a topic I needed to understand better, and an area in which I want to grow and mature. I thought others could have a similar need. Also, the need for intercession has become especially clear in our church lately. I hope that those of you who are already proficient intercessors will bear with me, and hope that the Lord reveals one or two things you hadn't thought of before. 

We'll start in what I think is an unusual place, the end of the book of Job, for an example of intercessory prayer. Then we'll jump back to Genesis for a piece of Abraham's story, and then to the New Testament, to see what Paul has to say about it. 

Job 42:10 

10 The Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the Lord increased all that Job had twofold. 

This is at the end of the story, after Job lost everything, and his well-meaning friends had given him bad advice. Notice that the Lord restored his fortune after he prayed for his friends. 

Genesis 17:18-20 

This is when God is telling Abraham that He's going to make His covenant with his son by Sarah. Abraham sounds like he's trying to get God to change His mind. 

18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!” 19 But God said, “No, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name [n]Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his [o]descendants after him. 20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless him, and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall [p]become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. 

Colossians 4:2-4 

Paul is in the Roman prison, asking for the Colossians' prayers. 

(2) Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with {an attitude of} thanksgiving; (3) praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; (4) that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak. 

Oswald Chambers said that there is never a danger or trap of being deceived in intercession. I found this to be really interesting. Physically helping someone involves some risk, some danger. That other person might let you down, they might not accept your help, or they might have been lying when they said they needed help. Intercession presents no danger. You intercede with God and then watch for what He does. If they were lying, God will sort it out. You can't be deceived or let down. 

However, interceding is not without its risk. Henry Blackaby says in Experiencing God Day-by-Day “When was the last time your heart so grieved for those you were interceding for that your entire body agonized along with your mind and heart? (Heb. 5:7). We are a generation that avoids pain at all costs. This is why there are so few intercessors. Most Christians operate on the shallowest levels of prayer, but God wants to take us into the deep levels of intercessory prayer that only a few ever experience. Deep, prolonged intercession is painful. It involves staying before God when everyone else has gone away or sleeps (Luke 22:45). It involves experiencing brokenness with the Father over those who continually rebel against Him. How many of us will experience this kind of fervent intercession? We long for Pentecost in our lives and in our churches, but there is no Pentecost without Gethsemane and a cross. How do we become mature in our prayer life? By praying. When we do not feel like praying is precisely the time we ought to pray.” 

Intercessory prayer leads us to gain the Mind of Christ regarding the other so we discern God's will. We might want to jump in and “fix” things for them, but we might be short circuiting God's intentions if we do things our way. Pray that the other will recognize Christ's atonement just as you have. 

So what if we pray and nothing happens? What do we conclude about “God's promise that if we live righteous lives and pray fervently that our prayers will produce results”? (I think this comes from James. If our prayers are not accomplishing much, do we conclude that God's promise isn't true? (Hint: the answer is "no, we shouldn't conclude that.")

What should we do? We need to hold ourselves accountable to Scripture. Praying fervently means that we don't quit. And we need to let God lead us to pray for things that align with His purposes. We are not to throw our petitions at the foot of His throne. Our prayer must be worship, and lead to conforming to the mind of Christ, awaken our minds to the point that God can convey His mind to us about the people for whom we intercede. Can Jesus see the agony of His soul in us? He can't unless we are so identified with Him that we see others as He does. 

And if other people don't respond in the ways they ought to, don't become discouraged. Remember the multitude of stories of God's patience with His people and how patient He's been with you. 

From My Utmost for His Highest May 4 

Beware of thinking that intercession means bringing our own personal sympathies and concerns into the presence of God, and then demanding that He do whatever we ask. Our ability to approach God is due entirely to the vicarious, or substitutionary, identification of our Lord with sin. We have “boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus.”  Spiritual stubbornness is the most effective hindrance to intercession, because it is based on a sympathetic “understanding” of things we see in ourselves and others that we think needs no atonement. We have the idea that there are certain good and virtuous things in each of us that do not need to be based on the atonement by the Cross of Christ. We do not identify ourselves with God’s interests and concerns for others, and we get irritated with Him. Yet we are always ready with our own ideas, and our intercession becomes only the glorification of our own natural sympathies. We have to realize that the identification of Jesus with sin means a radical change of all of our sympathies and interests. Vicarious intercession means that we deliberately substitute God’s interests in others for our natural sympathy with them.  Further, when the Holy Spirit gives us discernment, it must lead us not to judgment, but to intercession. Remember that when God reveals other peoples failings to us, it's not due to the sharpness of our minds, but the penetration of the Holy Spirit. We can't turn discernment into comments of ridicule and criticism. Don't spend your time trying to get others right with God before you worship Him yourself. 

From My Utmost for His Highest – April 1 

Are we living in such a relationship with others that we do the work of intercession as a result of being the children of God who are taught by His Spirit? We should take a look at our current circumstances. Do crises which affect us or others in our home, business, country, or elsewhere, seem to be crushing in on us? Are we being pushed out of the presence of God and left with no time for worship? If so, we must put a stop to such distractions and get into such a living relationship with God that our relationship with others is maintained through the work of intercession, where God works His miracles. 

Use the circumstances we find ourselves in and the people who surround us to lift others up to God. 

I'll close with some examples and of Jesus responding to intercession, and of Jesus interceding for us. 

Some examples of Jesus responding to intercession 

Mark 7:24-30 – The story of the woman whose daughter is possessed by a demon. This was when Jesus said it's not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs, and the woman says even the dogs get the crumbs. 

Matthew 8:2-4 

2 And a leper came to Him and [c]bowed down before Him, and said, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 3 Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 

Matthew 8 

Centurion's servant was very sick. Jesus says He'll go to heal the servant, and the centurion says that he's not worthy to have Jesus enter his house. He knows Jesus has authority, to just say the word and his servant will be healed. Jesus commends him for his faith, and heals the servant. 

Two examples of Jesus interceding.

John 17 

11 I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are. 

I think this is the most powerful and important one of all: “Father, forgive them for they don't know what they're doing.” 

To conclude, Paul tells us to intercede, Jesus Himself intercedes, and we saw where Jesus responded to intercession. And back in Job and Genesis, we saw the Father responding to intercession. I think it's clear that we are supposed to intercede and that it's effective. 

A final thought: Oswald Chambers said is that if we're doing it right, we'll be so focused on praying for others, that we won't have any mental capacity left to focus on our own sad and pitiful selves. (What an uplifting thought. :) ) So you'll have that going for you. 

 

Why do I believe in God?

Someone I know posted a meme on Facebook that said "I try to do good in the world not out of fear for Hell or a reward of Heaven, but because it feels better not to be a *** *******" Someone else asked him where he thought his morality of not wanting to feel like an ******* came from, to which he replied it came from an instinct to perpetuate the survival of the species. (I just saw the questioner replied that they came from real Judeo-Christian values, not the perverse ones we see in many arenas today. I'd landed in the same place when I was thinking about this too. We all grew up in a country founded by Christians. Christian ideals are embedded in our founding documents. Should Christianity be mandated? Of course not. It can't be. Each of us must choose to follow Jesus. But do Judeo-Christian values provide an excellent civil framework? Absolutely.)

I'd replied to the original post that I'm a Christian and I don't do good works for any of the reasons in the meme. The poster replied that I'm just a good person and it has nothing to do with anything else. There are just good people who do good because it's in their nature.

This got me thinking. Where do I think morality comes from, and of course, being a Christian, I believe it comes from God. The person who posted this meme is an atheist. He and I have gotten to a place where we can respectfully disagree on this. We agree on most other things, in particular we agree on what "a good person" looks like in this world. So how did that happen? How can I believe that our sense of morality comes from God, while he believes it got there through natural selection? What evidence do I see that morality doesn't come from within mankind, but was put there by an external God?

Of course, the Bible says God exists and that He is the source of everything. But that only works for someone who already believes in God. That won't work for my friend.

I settled on this idea: the definition of "a good person" has changed dramatically over time and across cultures. In some cultures, human sacrifice was considered good and right. A good person today doesn't think that human sacrifice is right. How could that have evolved into existence as instinct, but my belief evolved exactly the opposite way? Slavery was considered good and right by some cultures, and in fact still is for some. My friend and I don't think it is. Anthropologically speaking, my idea of what makes up "a good person" only works for the recent past. A good person does good for complete strangers who have no way to pay them back. How does that perpetuate your survival? Doing good to your own clan / tribe certainly makes sense. But groups historically competed for resources. Survival was hard. It didn't make sense to use up your resources on someone you weren't related to. No, I don't buy it. The sense of right and wrong is not intrinsic to humans without someone else writing it there. That person is God.

But wait! You might say that in the Old Testament, the ancient Israelites were not very good people by our standards. God told them to do some pretty awful things, like wiping out every man, woman, and child of certain groups in the Promised Land. Do you claim this is the same God that defines morality today? Isn't that a contradiction about the nature of God? It's a question I've asked for myself. It's a difficult one to reconcile.

Here's where I have landed on this question. The instructions from God that seem downright barbaric to us - wiping out the occupants of Canaan, stoning adulterers - were rules to be applied at that time, in that place, ONLY. These actions and penalties were never intended to be eternal. When Jesus preached, He told us our neighbors were everyone. He didn't tell us to wipe out people, and he stopped the authorities from stoning anyone. Beyond that, He corrected the distortions that humans had perpetuated on right and wrong, or held over from times past. He didn't even tell the Jews to wipe out the Romans from occupying their land (which is what many people hoped He would do). Clearly wiping out people wasn't right anymore.

So why was wiping out other people and stoning sinners EVER right?

I'll start with wiping out the occupants of Canaan. I'm not a scholar on the ancient Middle East. I have not studied the people who lived there before the Israelites came out of Egypt. So I'm going on what I've been told, which is that the previous occupants were extremely corrupt and living extremely immorally. Sacrificing children, raping, and pillaging kind of immorally. It wasn't wrong to them. They hadn't evolved a sense of morality for survival of the species; they'd evolved a sense of IMmorality for survival of the species. God, who is all good and right, and is omniscient, knew that they weren't going to "come around" and needed to be wiped out like an infection. So He commanded the Jewish nation, the nation He was building, to be the disinfectant. Did He NEED them to do it? No. He could have done it himself, however He wanted, like He did with Sodom and Gomorrah. He used the Israelites in order to build up the nation and to build up the relationship between them and Himself. Scripture is replete with accounts of the Israelites prevailing against impossible odds when they simply trusted God and followed His directions.  Over and over, when they trusted in God, the outcome was what He said it would be. When they trusted in themselves rather than God, ignoring His warnings, things didn't turn out well. And finally, God knows that it's better for us when we are involved in His work, rather than Him just handing it over. We need to see for ourselves, what happens when we follow his direction and when we go against it. Without any struggle, we tend to give the glory to ourselves. If God wiped out Canaan without involving the Israelites, they wouldn't give God the glory. They needed to see that He was responsible.

What about the punishments for breaking God's law? Isn't the death penalty a bit severe for adultery, homosexuality, and disobedient children? Let me reiterate - it was only prescribed in that place, in that time. Jesus made it clear that we aren't supposed to be stoning anyone anymore.

First, I think some perspective is in order. God created the universe. He is all-powerful, all-knowing, perfectly loving, and perfectly just. I did not create the universe. I'm not all-powerful, all-knowing, perfectly loving, or perfectly just. I'm none of those things and He is all of them. He is God and I'm not. I don't know everything that He knows. HE defines right and wrong. Period. That in itself is enough for me to say that what He told the ancient Israelites to do was right. He said it. He defines what is right. Therefore, it is right. Q.E.D.

But to someone who isn't starting from the same place I am, this logic isn't enough. I know, because at one time it wasn't enough for me. I tried to justify to myself, from a practical standpoint, why God would do this. I came back to "God was building a nation". Times were different. The world was savage. Human practices were immoral. We didn't have the "Judeo-Christian ethic" yet. Nations rose, nations fell. God was building His nation on a solid foundation, not on sand. Is adultery good for society? Does homosexuality grow a nation? Do horribly disobedient children strengthen a civilized people? (Let's assume these parents loved their children. Do you think they'd apply this particular penalty flippantly? I think they'd only use this one on horribly disobedient children, such that their behavior was dangerous to the family or society.)

Wait, did I say homosexuality and adultery were not private matters? Yes, I did. Remember, in my argument, one of God's main goals is building the nation of Israel. Nations die without children to grow up. Homosexuality produces no children. From a very practical sense, people who willingly engage in practices that don't fulfill God's purpose become a drain on society. The nation was fragile. People could veer off course very easily. The nation couldn't tolerate willful defiance. And adultery, I think it's clear even today that adultery destroys families. We see it everywhere. Children have the best shot at growing into excellent adults when they have both parents committed to their well-being. Is it possible for children to grow up with one parent? Yes. Is it much harder, does it happen less often than with both parents? Yes. What about if a parent dies? The rest of society was instructed to take care of orphans and widows. Would most children and wives CHOOSE to become orphaned or widowed, thus making life harder for themselves? Becoming an orphan or widow is not an act of disobedience.

My point here about these severe penalties for things that aren't even illegal in today's world is that the world was much different in that time and place. The world's "deck" was already stacked against the Israelites. They couldn't tolerate any WILLFUL actions that would make it worse. God's Law tells us what is best for us. I think it's clear that it's much better for society not to engage in the things God tells us not to. God is not a cosmic killjoy. The Law isn't there take the fun out life. It's there to tell us how to live the BEST life, and to show us our need for a Savior (which, btw, He also provided for us). The life that is best for us, and best for society at large.

I started out with talking about morality coming from God, not evolving from within mankind, hence God exists, ended up reconciling an apparent contradiction between God's instruction in the Old and New Testaments. If you've read this far, thank you and I hope it's helpful to you.

12 PARENTING TIPS

This Day's Thought from The Ranch

12 PARENTING TIPS FOR THE NEW YEAR

by Eric Elder
theranch.org

Eric Elder and Family - Christmas Eve 2013

Eric Elder and Family – Christmas Eve 2013.

I’d like to share 12 parenting tips with you for the New Year.  As a father of 6 kids, I’m always glad to hear what others are doing to parent their kids.  So when some friends of my college-age kids asked me what advice I would give them for raising kids of their own in the future, I put together this list of some of the best pieces of wisdom I’ve gathered over the years that have worked well for me.  I thought you might like to read it, too.

Since there are 12 tips and there are 12 months in the year, you might want to save or print this message so you can focus on one tip each month.  They’re not in any particular order, so you can pick a tip for each month that seems most helpful to you at the time.

And even if you don’t have kids in your life right now, maybe you know someone who does who might be interested in reading these tips.  If so, please pass them along, as each tip includes a special word from God’s Word.  Even though I’m not a perfect father, I know Someone who is and His wisdom can’t be beat!  With that disclaimer out of the way, here are my “12 Parenting Tips for the New Year.”

1) Recognize that children are gifts from the Lord.  

Your attitude towards your children may be the single-most important factor in your parenting toolbox.  The Bible says that children are blessings, not burdens:  “Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them” (Psalm 127:5a).

You can check your attitude by asking what your heart feels when you hear of someone who already has 2 or 3 children and they tell you they’re expecting a 3rd or 4th.  Or 5th.  Or 6th.  Or 7th, etc.  If your heart sinks with the addition of each child, you may secretly be viewing children as burdens, not blessings.  If the same person had told you God had given them a 3rd or 4th car (or 5th or 6th or 7th, etc.), or a 3rd or 4th house (or 5th or 6th or 7th, etc.) and your attitude is like “Wow! That’s incredible!” then you may want to rethink your attitude.

Children do take time and energy and attention, just as cars and houses do, and more children take more time and energy and attention, just as more cars and houses do (just ask anyone who has one or more of any of these!)  With great gifts comes great responsibility.  But children, like any gifts from the Lord, are still gifts to be treasured, valued and held in the highest regard.  Check your attitude, and remember that children really are gifts from the Lord.

2) Love your spouse.  

This tip may not seem like it has anything to do with parenting, but it’s actually one of the best tips on this list!  I have a plaque from my dad that says:  “The most important thing a father can do for their children is to love their mother.”  My dad reminded me of this one day when I was feeling particularly inadequate about my parenting.  He said, “You have no idea what you’re doing for your children just by loving Lana.”  Looking back over the years, I’m sure he was right.

A genuine love between parents can do more for children than we can imagine.  The Bible says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her… and the wife should respect her husband” (Ephesians 5:25 and 33b).  Parents at odds cause children to take sides and respect only one or the other (or neither) and they can play off of that to try to get what they want.  If you want your children to treat others with love and respect, treat your husband or wife with love and respect (even if they don’t do the same for you).  Your children will be blessed as a result.

3) Realize that children take time.

Children do take time, but they don’t take time away from life.  Children take time that enhances life.  Trips to the zoo, trips to the beach, sitting down and playing games, setting limits on your workdays and Sundays and weekends so you can be with them, all take time away from other things you could be doing.  But the return on your investment is so much greater, both in the moment and over time.

For Lana, when she decided to stay home from work so she could homeschool our kids and spend more time with them, it was costly on many levels: financially, personally and professionally.  But she never felt like she was wasting her life by doing this, but investing her life.  When she died, too young at 48, she was thankful she had spent her time the way she did, with no regrets.  Quality time is sometimes only possible because quantity time makes it so.

4) Let everyone work together to make the household work.  

One of the blessings for me of having a larger family has been to see how all the kids can work together to help keep our household running.  Doing everything for our kids was never an option because we simply couldn’t do it all.  Responsibilities were given to each child as soon as they were able, from cooking and cleaning to dishes and laundry, from building and bookkeeping to yardwork and petkeeping.

The Bible says, “If you don’t work, you don’t eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10, MSG).  We never taught this in a mean-spirited way, but as a matter of getting things done more efficiently (or getting things done at all!) whether it was getting food to the table or chores finished on Saturday.  For us, giving kids responsibility was both practical (for keeping our house running) and good training for their future.

5) Discipline in love, not in anger.  

Discipline is simply more effective when it is separated from anger.  The Bible says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right…” (Ephesians 6:1) but that is quickly followed by these words: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).

I’ve found it best not to explode at my children, not because I don’t want to, but because it’s not useful.  They can’t hear you–or your love for them–when you’re screaming.  The times I most regret in my parenting are the times when I’ve disciplined in anger.  But I’ve never regretted disciplining in love because that has set the stage for their future success in life.  A simple tip:  count to 10 before disciplining children.  For teenagers, wait a week!  (I’m serious!)

6) Pray for God to reveal the truth, even if it’s painful to hear.

A pastor’s kid once said that it wasn’t fair that his dad was a pastor, because God always seemed to tell his parents whenever he was doing something wrong.  We really can pray that God will show us what’s going on in our kids’ lives, even when we can’t see it ourselves.  The Bible says, “He [God] gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him” (Daniel 2:21b-22).

There have been times when I have prayed that God would show me if there’s anything I should know about my kids so I can help them stay on the right path, even if it’s something I didn’t want to hear.  I’ve been surprised when, soon after a prayer like this, God has revealed something to me–whether in a dream or a phone bill or an unexpected email–that was painful to hear but has opened the door to a conversation where I can help walk my kids through a difficult situation.

7) Love doesn’t always say “Yes.”

A good parent wants to bless and please their children.  But some parents say “Yes” to their kids’ pleas solely to win their love and friendship, not because it’s good or best for them.  There are times when your kids need a best friend and there are times when you can be one for them.  But there are other times when they need you to be a parent, and only you can do that for them.

Some parents say “Yes” to all things in order to win their children’s friendship.  But a well-timed or well-reasoned “No” can be just as loving. The Bible says, “A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Proverbs 25:11), which means that certain words we say are beautiful and perfectly fit for the occasion.  While this applies to words of any type, it can especially apply to your yes’s and your no’s.

8) Keep your words uplifting and encouraging.

As parents, our words have an extra weight of authority.  As such, we have to be extra careful with what we say, especially when it comes to criticism.  Some people may say, “They have a face only a mother could love.”  But what if it’s the mother who says, “You’re ugly!” or “You can’t sing!” or “You’re no good at ______ or _______ or ________!”

A good rule of thumb is to give at least 10 positive affirmations for every 1 correction, and then only if it’s necessary for their benefit (for instance, to save them from embarrassment in public).  Watch your words, especially your words of criticism.  The Bible says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29).

9) Pray for them starting even before they’re born, both privately and out loud.  

We’ve prayed for each of our children from the moment we knew they were in Lana’s womb.  We’ve prayed for their lives, their health, their faith, their futures, their callings, their spouses, their children and grandchildren and great grandchildren and so on!  We’ve done this privately in our own quiet times, as well as out loud at nighttime as we tuck them into bed and kiss them good night.

I still do this even for my college-age kids when they’re home, putting my hand on their heads and praying for them before they go to bed (or before I go to bed, which is more often the case these days!)  It may seem awkward, but I believe in the power of prayer, plus I think it’s important that our kids know that we’re praying for them, as a matter of love and care.  As the Bible says: “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).

10) When they sin, love ’em more.  

Sometimes our kids do things that make us frustrated and make us want to pull back from them.  But I’ve found that’s the time I need to “love ‘em more.”  Someone once asked the famous evangelist Billy Graham what he would do if he found out one of his children had sinned.  He said, “Why, I’d love that one even more.”  It’s not that Rev. Graham would love them more because of their sin, but because he knew that love is the best antidote to sin.

Our kids need love and acceptance, just like we do, and that’s why they sometimes seek it out in the wrong places, just like we do.  It’s at times like these that they need to see our love and forgiveness for them more than ever, just as Jesus did for us when He died on the cross.  As the Bible says, “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).  When your kids hurt you or mistreat you or disappoint you, don’t pull back.  Do what Jesus did and “love ’em more.”

11) Take breaks for rainbows.  

A life with kids is filled with interruptions.  But don’t take the interruptions as sidelines from life, but as one of the best parts of life itself.  We have a painting in our home that says, “The work will wait while you show the children the rainbow, but the rainbow won’t wait while you finish the work.”  Take advantage of those fleeting moments to enjoy your life with your children.

It’s OK to stop and smell the roses.  The Bible says, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).  When we moved to the country, Lana and I would take walks with our kids at sunset whenever we had the chance.  There were always plenty of other things to do, but none of them so memorable to me as those sunset walks.

12) Let kids be kids, but don’t let them be in danger.  

There’s a fine line between letting kids be kids and letting them be in danger, because a lot of the things kids do can be dangerous!  It’s one thing if they want to let their hair grow out, but quite another if they want to hang out with dangerous people.  It’s one thing to let them be adventurous, but quite another to let them do something that’s truly life threatening.

I’ve had to walk that fine line and have had multiple conversations with my kids about each of these things.  And God is the one who has reminded me multiple times to let my kids be kids, especially my teenagers.  But I’ve also had to step in and say, “I’m glad to let you be a teenager, but I won’t let you be in danger.”  That’s just wisdom, and knowing which is which often comes only from God, who is happy to let us know the difference.  If you’re not sure what to do in a situation, ask God who is glad to pour out His wisdom on you.  As the Bible says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5).

Thanks for reading these 12 tips, and thanks for passing them along to others who might benefit from reading them.  Again, you might want to save or print this message and reread it from time to time as your kids go through different stages of life, or choose one tip each month this year to focus on with your kids.

May the Lord bless you as you seek to bless the children in your life!

Sincerely,
Eric Elder

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St. Nicholas: The Believer, by Eric and Lana Elder

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This Day's Thought from The Ranch, 25615 E 3000 North Road, Chenoa, IL 61726, USA

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God continues to work!

I have an update on some of the people God brought into my life, where I've gotten the chance to join Him in His work.

I'll start with the best news: The coworker's wife who was feeling anxiety, which I told my friend could be God drawing her to Himself - SHE GOT SAVED! Hallelujah! She continued to ask questions, and my friend continued to lovingly answer them while pointing to the power of Jesus in his life. Meanwhile, I just KNOW that our wives need to meet, and I set about trying to come up with a way to make it happen. Again, I am trying to do this in my own power, and failing. I ought to know better, because of course, God provided the way. My friend's wife is anxious. My wonderful wife, a licensed massage therapist, offers her a massage. She accepts. After a few weeks, they get it scheduled and she loves it. My wife simply showed her the love of Christ. She didn't evangelize verbally, didn't beat her over the head with a Bible. Just loved her and cared for her. Showed her what a real Christian is like.

Then my friend got the chance to ask his wife if she'd be willing to talk to a pastor about why she was anxious. She agreed to, and he contacted my pastor (she of course wondered how he knew this pastor, perhaps a little suspicious, but he answered truthfully that he'd met him through me). Two days after the visit from my wife, they meet at their house. After many questions and answers, my pastor asks whether she wants Jesus to enter her life, and she says she does! My friend questions her a little more to make sure she understands what she is doing, and she does. Right there, she repents and accepts Jesus as her Savior and Lord! I saw my friend two days later, and he was speechless, and glowing with joy!

After a few busy weekends, he makes it to my church and he is thrilled (along with all of the people at my church who have been praying for him and his wife for the last six months). He sends her the sermon from that week, along with the pastor's email about how our church had to come together for a last minute relocation. My friend thinks he isn't going to be able to go to church the following week due to some family logistics. The next thing he knows, his wife has changed things around and the two of them make it to church, and I finally got to meet her! Of course everyone at church is thrilled to meet her and turns on the hospitality. I hope she felt welcome and returns.

Our long-time fill-in guitar player has returned to church, but not playing guitar. Our new fill-in keeps coming back! It looks like he's staying. Also, the soundboard guy has accepted Jesus! We hope his family is next.

The lunch-time small group study at work is going strong. .We have three people in a conference room and one on the phone. Some weeks, we've had two on the phone. Everyone is participating and we are all learning a lot about our identity in Christ. And it turns out our colleague who moved away, is moving back to PA for a new assignment. He'll be about 90 minutes away, so we should be able to visit sometime.

I haven't heard from the friend who isn't a believer. Which reminds me that I need to get back to praying regularly for him. I have been remiss.

I think that brings this part of my story up to date. In the next post, I'll explain the last-minute relocation that I mentioned. What a story of victory in Christ that is!