Fear

Today as I was listening to David Jeremiah, I heard him say something that made me think, and reflect on, and I’m going to share it with you. “Fear is a form of idolatry.” When we fear the problem whatever it may be we’re saying that the problem is greater than God’s ability to handle it. What problems do you have that are greater than God’s ability to solve them? The way to deal with fear is found in worship and praise. When we recognize God for who He is, and acknowledge that all we experience and know is because of Him, we put our problems, our fears, where they belong…. In His hands.

If you’d like to know more you can click here http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/turning-point/listen/ and click on “When Fear Dominates You” under the month of November.

Advertisement

From “Selected Writings of Joseph Philpot”

“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”1Pe_1:7

Trials and temptations are the means which God employs to manifest to the soul the reality and strength of the faith which he bestows upon it; for there is in every trial and temptation opposition made to the faith that is in the heart; and every trial and temptation, so to speak, threaten the life of faith. And they threaten it in this way — Under the trial God for the most part hides himself. He puts forth, indeed, a secret power whereby the soul is held up, or otherwise it would sink into utter despair, and be overcome and swallowed up by the power of unbelief. Hence comes the conflict between the trial that fights against the faith and the faith which fights against or rather under the trial.

Now, when in this trial, in this sharp conflict, in this hot furnace, faith does not give way, is not burned up, is not destroyed, but keeps its firm hold upon the promise and the faithfulness of him who has given it, this trial of faith becomes very precious. It is precious to the soul when God again smiles upon it, and becomes thus manifest as genuine. It is precious in the sight of God’s people, who see it and derive strength and comfort from what they witness in the experience of a saint thus tried and blessed; and it is precious also in the sight of God himself, who crowns it with his own manifest approbation, and puts upon it the attesting seal of his own approving smile. But above all things, it will be found precious at the appearing of Jesus Christ, and that not only in his various appearings in grace, but in his final appearance in glory, for of that the Apostle mainly speaks when he says that”it may be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”

My Prayer to the Father, August 25, 2012

Heavenly Father
I come to You, Father in humbleness
And praise for all that You are,
And for all that You have done.
You are the great and eternal God
Who reigns on high,
forever and ever.
You are the Author and the Creator,
And all things worthy
And deserving of praise
Are from Your hand.

Heavenly Father
You have made us in Your image;
You have made us to be people
With the capacity for thought
And the ability to feel,
And for these gifts we thank You
For without them
We would have no knowledge of You,
Nor be able to feel such love for You.
These are the gifts
Whereby You have made known
Unto man
All that they encompass
In Your Son
Jesus Christ.

Heavenly Father
With what love You love us;
With what mercy You treat us.
How would any of us
Endure but a second
Life in the darkness of this world
Were You not to show us daily
Who You are and what You
Do for us.
Who of us could within ourselves
Wake and start breathing on our own?
Could awake and begin our day
And see the sun rise
and the sun set
Apart from Your desire
That we should do so.

Heavenly Father
In the midst of this world
Corrupted by sin
Let us never forget as Your children
That You have not forsaken us,
That You have not left us comfortless,
That You are not beyond us.
Help us to always remember
That we are never beyond Your
Love, Grace, and forgiveness.

Heavenly Father
I come to You with just one plea.
Father, help Your children
To remember and never forget
That we are just that,
Your children.
That we are not capable of
Walking this earth alone;
That indeed we are not even
Capable of thought
And feeling
In ways that honor You
Apart from Your Spirit.

In Jesus name, I pray,
Amen.

My Prayer to the Father, August 9, 2012

Heavenly Father
I come to You, Father, as
The Father of Light
Piercing the darkness,
As the Truth
That cuts through all
That is false.
You are the Eternal
And Forever God.

I come to You, Father,
In worship and praise,
And with a humble heart
That is filled
With gratitude
And love.
I thank You Heavenly Father
For Your manifold blessings
And for all the ways
In which You
Bestow Your love
Upon us.

Heavenly Father
I come to You with a plea
This night, a simple plea.
Father, please never
Let me forget why I’m here,
And what my purpose is.
Please Heavenly Father
Don’t let me fall into
Vainglory,
Do not for a second
Let me think that anything
I do is important,
Or anything that You can’t
And haven’t done
Through others.
Help me to remember
That it’s not about
My doing it,
But that someone
Does it.

Heavenly Father
help me to grasp the importance
Of looking to Your Word,
To prayer,
And to the wisdom of
Godly counselors,
And the leading of the
Holy Spirit
To guide me
In the living out of my life
In this world
As I walk as a pilgrim
Upon foreign soil.

Heavenly Father
I pray that You give me
A deep and abiding need
To know Your Word of Truth,
And to treasure Wisdom
Above rubies and gold, and
That You will give and
Increase my desire
To live by it And thus
be led by it.

Heavenly Father
Help me to realize
And understand
That living in wisdom
Is to look
At each and every
Situation
From an eternal perspective
And one that honors
All that You are.
Help me to know
That when wisdom
Is in the lead
It doesn’t lead me
Into thorns.

In Jesus name, I pray,
Amen.

 

 

Updated Prayer Request List

Please pray for those mentioned. I have lost a beloved friend and mentor in the person of Gussie Thomas. Please pray for her family and her husband, Roy. She has gone Home, and I praise the Lord and give Him glory for the life she lived here, and for receiving unto Himself His beloved child.

My Prayer to the Father, August 2, 2012

Heavenly Father,
I come to You, Father, with a grateful heart
In sincerity, in worship and praise
Knowing my position before You
As I kneel before Your throne
In humble adoration.
You, Father, who are Spirit,
You, who have the power,
Beyond anything ever known,
Beyond anything that can be
Conceived of in my humanness.
Indeed, Father, I know that
Even when I am living
In the light of eternity
I shall never know
All that You know
And are.

Heavenly Father,
Creator of the stars, Author of their every name,
Maker of the heavens that continually
Stretch forth their boundaries into infinity
How can I ever begin to understand You?
You who have not only created the heavens,
But You who were before…
You, who made something out of nothing
For that is what defines a Creator.
You, who Your created ignore
And mock, and try to imitate
As if they can in any way
Create apart from You.

Heavenly Father,
Were it not so tragic, it would be amusing
To see how like little ants
We march to and fro in our busyness
Feigning such importance as we
March along paths made by others
Subsisting on what others have provided
Glorying in our strength and intelligence
And totally dismissing the truth
That You were there first to make the path;
That You created the source
Of our provision.

Heavenly Father
I can only think of myself and others
As being amusing to One so great.
Yet, I know Father, that You
Are not amused
As You watch from Your
Exalted place
As we scurry forth in our
Never-ending quest to make of
Ourselves what we can never be
Or achieve…You;
The true God, the only God,
You,
The Eternal and forever God.
We who live within a thin
Veil of flesh
Composed of water, air, and dirt,
With a heart and mind
Brought to ecstasy
By such tiny contrivances
As mere men can make
When they are nothing
Of consequence to You.

Heavenly Father
How it must have saddened You
To see that which You made
Act in such a way
When You made them for so much more.
To see and to know that the shadow
Of darkness would come
To cloud their minds and hearts.
To make them simple and empty
Of the beauty
Of Your perfect Love.

Heavenly Father
That is what built the bridge
No man or woman can cross,.
How foolish we are to think
That our works, our possessions,
Our wealth and monuments
Could ever buy us passage
To eternal life.
How ignorant we are to strive,
To explore and search,
To create and build
A way…
When the way is here
Waiting to be embraced.

Heavenly Father
It is here that I lay down before You,
With tears of joy inexpressible in my eyes,
As I contemplate all that You
Have given me.
Your name is Wonderful,
And You have made my life so
Because You provided the Way
In Your Son,
In Your one and only,
Son,
My Savior,
My Lord,
Jesus

Heavenly Father
This night, Father, I make a request.
Father, Glorious and True,
Make Your people brave;
Make then bold.
Make then, Father, give
What in their selfishness they cling to:
Their lives.
Make them know the truth
Of what Your Son proclaimed
That those who lose their
Lives for My sake
Shall find it.

Heavenly Father
Most of all, Make me.

In Jesus name, I pray.
Amen.