As I was standing in my kitchen this morning exchanging texts with my sister in law who happens to live in Texas about 30 minutes from Houston, I was just struck with overwhelming emotion for the people there. I have lived in Texas and traveled to Houston many times as a child and to see it in its present state is just bewildering.
Because it is my nature to fix things I immediately began to think “what can I do?”. My sister in law is volunteering at the shelters close to her but I live over 600 miles away. In moments like these I feel small and insignificant. In the Godfather, we hear the phrase “take it to the mattresses,” meaning war is about to ensue, I heard a voice say to me take it to prayer and don’t say “all I can do is pray.” Why? Because it reduces prayer to be inconsequential and prayer is anything but minor or frivolous.
Prayer is powerful, Prayer is war, Prayer gives strength and brings courage we see that clearly with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, He prays and is empowered for the inhumane treatment He is about to endure on the cross for our behalf.
We know prayer is powerful because Jesus tells His disciples in Matthew 17:21 that what they were facing and trying to overcome (helping the small boy possessed) could only be conquered through prayer accompanied by fasting. PRAYER is meant to be our POWER HOUSE MOVEMENT, not some wimpy kid on the bench, not some play that never got on the ball field to the players!
As I went into prayer this morning, tears were falling, my heart breaking for all those people and animals, I was brought to Genesis 18:14 14 Is anything impossible for the Lord? I will return to you when the season comes round again and Sarah will have a son.”
Abraham could not comprehend the totality of God’s power, the magnitude of God’s unlimited abilities to triumph over any and all situations. God asks Abraham- is anything too great for Me?! It was a rhetoric question, not to be answered because the answer was within the question itself… NO, nothing is too great for God!
Abraham could not process that his wife of around 90 years of age would actually be able to give birth. FAITH DEFIES LOGIC! Stop trying to use logic to understand the Lord’s abilities, He is not bound to our limited reasoning skills. God would defy the logic of the human body by Sarah having a baby at the end of her life instead of at the beginning of her life. Mind blowing! God can’t help but to shock our feeble minds with His love and power.
Again I was brought to Jeremiah 32 where God declares who He is and the totality of His power: 32: 27 “I am the Lord, the God of all humankind. There is, indeed, nothing too difficult for me.” Jeremiah at this point in his life is basically in a cistern of mud and muck (literally) because Israel is in a state of war with the Babylonians and about to be conquered. The King was not too keen on Jeremiah’s prophesy against his efforts. Faith will at times try us… calling us into situations where our faith is stretched and walking in daring faith means we may not be liked very much, remain faithful to the Lord and stand your ground through prayer and faith knowing He has your back.
Remember there is nothing too great for the Lord to overcome, subdue, or rule over… NOTHING… I don’t know what you are trying to overcome but I do know if you invite God into your situation He will recede the flood waters and you will once again see dry land. I hope you join with me as I pray for the people of Texas, that God moves in a mighty way and that they see His unconditional love and enormity of His power to use this crisis to display His goodness and glory bringing unity where there was once separation… God brings harmony to the discord of our life should we seek Him… Seek Him today and every day.
Good Morning Ladies….
PS. We tend to focus on the worst of humanity because the media likes to feed us garbage and a diet of non-stop garbage is going to lead to bad health… We may be a nation that at times is disgruntled with each other, families are like that but we also ban together and help raise each other up during a crisis. If only we could live like that every day; sadly, seldom do families live like that on a daily basis. We focus on the worst of humanity but let’s not over-look the best of humanity too. We will raise each other up out of the devastation and rebuild on new ground… better ground.