Tag Archives: On Prayer

Seven Pillars of Prayer

27 Saturday Aug 2016

Posted by in Family, Marriage, Motherhood, On Love and Marriage, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Christian Home, The Fear of God, The Glory of God, The Kindness of God, The Sovereignty of God

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“Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.” Proverbs 9:1

Lady Wisdom has set an example for us: she has built her house; she has hewn out her seven pillars. In following her lead, I have hewn my own seven pillars out of the Word of God, and I have been prayerfully building my house (my life) and my home (my family life) upon them since.

It was interesting to me to learn that the word hewn has two meanings- both of which served me well as I attempted to practically apply this Proverb to my life. The first meaning is to ‘chop or cut out something with a tool.’ The second meaning is ‘to conform to, adhere to’. As you read through these seven pillars, you can know that I prayerfully cut these seven pillars out of the rock of the Word of God. And, now each morning, as I pray through them, I ask the Lord to give me the ability to recognize these pillars at work in my daily life. I also ask Him to conform my desires, will, and actions to them, so that I gladly and willingly adhere to Him and His will in all things.

Although pillars in our day might primarily serve as a decorative aspect in house construction, there was a time in architectural history that pillars functioned as key load-bearing components in a building’s (space’s) structure. Likewise, these seven prayer-pillars are not superfluous appendages to the design of my house- they are seven essential doctrines upon which I am building my life.

  1. The glory of God – for which all things exist and is His perfect will (Leviticus 10:3, Exodus 33:17-23; Isaiah 43:6-7; Colossians 1:16).
  2. The sovereignty of God – a proper acknowledgment and acceptance of this brings an appropriate love for, respect of, and obedience to God (Proverbs 16:33, 21:1; Isaiah 45:5-7; Acts 2:23-241 Timothy 6:11-16).
  3. The faithfulness of God – which strengthens, comforts, and assures me of His love, especially in the midst of adversity (Lamentations 3: 22-24; 1 Corinthians 13:12-13; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Timothy 1:12).
  4. The promises of God – upon which I can stake my life and gain guidance for every decision that I must make (Isaiah 55:10-11; John 17:17; 2 Corinthians 1: 17-22).
  5. The fear of God – which is the beginning of wisdom and the confidence of my life (Job 28:28; Proverbs 14:33, Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).
  6. The hope of the kingdom of God and of His Christ – which is surely to come soon (Luke 11:2; Titus 2:11-14; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 1:13-14; Revelation 11:15).
  7. The meekness of wisdom– which is supported by every other pillar in my life and is  the proof that I am building my home like the wise woman of Proverbs 14:1. (Luke 7:35; Philippians 2:1-7; James 3:13).

Bettie’s Testimony

14 Sunday Aug 2016

Posted by in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Christian Love, Cross-Bearing, Family, Marriage, Testimony, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Christian Home, The Glory of God, The Kindness of God, The Sovereignty of God

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“And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.” Revelation 12:11

The testimony of God’s work in the lives of His dear children is a source of great encouragement to me- especially, the testimonies of the older saints that have walked with God for a long time. I love to listen to His beloved ones testify to God’s faithfulness to them through the decades. Bettie is one of those older saints who has walked with God for many years. Her story is one of the most remarkable testimonies of God’s sustaining grace that I have ever heard in my life.

Here, Bettie shares the hard truth about her painful marriage. She tells about the decades of her life that were full of rejection, loneliness, and longing. She even shares about her own personal struggle with the temptation to find some way out of her marriage commitment- either by suicide or divorce. And, then she shares about the abounding grace and the astounding providence of God that kept her from both of these things. She shares about how after 58 years of marriage, God answered her prayers and gave her the desires of her heart by blessing her relationship with her husband beyond her wildest imagination. Most importantly, Bettie shares how God used the severe mercy of a painful marriage to conform her into the image of Christ, teach her to love her husband selflessly, and trust God with her marriage, her emotional needs, her very life.

At this time, Bettie is a model of beauty, elegance, and dignity. When I met her, her husband had come to the faith, and their marriage was a testimony of God’s abounding grace for all to see. Bettie shared this testimony at a woman’s retreat that I was part of last year- I share it with her permission. I wanted to post this testimony here because I believe with all my heart that as Christian women we need to be assured of God’s abounding grace to us in the midst of adversity. Really, this testimony is for every believer that would be reminded of the sovereign abounding grace of God. It is, especially, for every Christian woman that needs to know that God is working in her life for her greatest joy and His greatest glory, even through the severe mercy of a difficult marriage.

God’s Grace Abounds in My Life-To God be the Glory

“I became born again a Billy Graham crusade in 1952. Shortly after that, I met my husband, fell in love, and became a Catholic in order to marry him. During our courtship, he was very attentive to me. We married in 1953. I loved my husband more than I loved Jesus.

From the very beginning of marriage, God took me by the hand and led me on a life changing journey. I did not realize it at the time, for many times did I say, “But Father, I do not understand.” In due time God showed me and I now understand. It took my life time to do it.

My husband changed after we married. He would not look at me, talk to me or even say my name. When he came into a room where I was, he acted as though I was not there. There did not seem to be any way that I could please my husband. He always seemed angry. I became a non-person. When I confronted him and asked him why he was treating me that way, he denied he was doing so.

I began to read everything that I could on how to have a happy marriage. I was told on the one hand that if I was not happy in marriage- it was up to me to change it. I was also told not to accuse, but to express how being treated like that made me feel. My husband’s reply was usually, “Why should that bother you? It would not bother me.” He wanted me to live my life, he would live his life, and we would just be friendly with each other.”

As time went on and four children later, I thought of suicide. I remember driving and coming into town at the top of the hill and thinking I could just drive over the cliff with the four children (because I knew that my husband would not care for them). Suicide- the thought gave me energy. For a whole week I tried to decide how to do it. By the end of the week, I knew that I could not and would not do it. (God’s grace!)

Years went by, and somewhere about the fifteenth or sixteenth year of our marriage, God led me to a Bible study. (God’s grace, yeah!). I knew attending the Catholic Church something was seriously wrong. I did not know what it was. I found out by studying the Bible. The Bible, the precious Word of God, was like (and still is) sweet, sweet water to my parched soul and spirit. I felt like a dry sponge soaking it up.

I began to search the word for a way out of my marriage commitment. NO WAY! What I found were two very important commands for me. I was to be submissive and respectful to my husband. There were no pre-existing conditions, such as a loving husband. No. Those commands were from me from God. I did my best to obey.

Time went by. By this time, we had 8 children. We went for counseling. The counselor at this time, wanted to see us separately. First, he saw me, then he saw my husband. The counselor called me and said that I should divorce my husband. The counselor asked if I had a lawyer. I said, “No.” He said that he would help me get one. I said that I had to think about it. I sat for a long time thinking, going back and forth in my mind, weeping over the whole situation. I did not really want a divorce, but I did not want to continue to live as we were, either. That night there was a fire in the house where the counselor lived. The house burned down and he died in that fire. Thoughts of divorce were gone (God’s grace!) I do not mean to imply that this was God’s grace- that the man died in the fire. It happened, you must take it for what it is. I only know, from then on, I did not think of divorce again.

I continued in Bible studies every week. I learned that we are to pray for our enemies. So, I thought, if I am to pray for my enemies, then I most assuredly had to pray for my husband. I started praying for my husband.

We went to counseling again, together, to a Christian this time, for several months, then stopped. Things did not change, in our marriage. We started again, and stopped, but our marriage remained the same.

I continued to pray for wisdom and guidance for myself, and I continued to pray for my husband.

In Bible study, I was learning that my life, as a Christian, is a struggle; a constant battle between my old nature and my life in Christ. Through all of this, God was helping me to get my priorities straight. I began to want to be more like Jesus. Over time God would reveal my besetting sins- sins of self-pity, bitterness, and the terrible sin of envy. I envied other people’s marriages that I thought were happy. Over and over again, I had to run to God and cry out, “Lord, help me!”

God was teaching me how to be obedient, how to persevere and endure, how to forgive, and how much He loved me. I slowly began to realize that it did not matter if my marriage was happy or not. What began to matter to me was my relationship with God.

By this time, I knew my marriage was not going to change.

I submitted the last vestige of myself to God, and said, “It’s okay. I except this, if this is to be my life, then it’s okay. Help me to be the woman You want me to be.” (God’s grace.)

But wait! God had something more wonderful than I could have imagined for me. By this time, I am 77 years old, and my husband is 80 years old.

God led my husband and me to another Christian counselor. It started out as we were attending counseling for one of our grand-daughters, who was struggling with behavior issues. God led this counselor to see that something was seriously wrong with our marriage relationship. In this Godly man’s counseling, my husband began to see things differently. My husband began to change. He now treats me with love and respect.

I know that were it not for my marriage situation, it would have been something else that God would have used to each me and correct me. Jesus says in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” Also in John 14:14, “If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” I asked God to renew my love for my husband, and He did it! After 58 years of marriage, I did not expect this. (Grace abounds in my life.)

I thank God for my life, and the lives of my children that I did not destroy. I thank Him for not allowing me to destroy our family. I thank God for not allowing some other man to come into my life. I was so vulnerable, so lonely, so starving for love, if someone had treated me with the least bit of kindness, I would have succumb, I believe. Thank God, He spared me that temptation!

Through this whole marriage God has become more and more BIG! And, I have become more and more small.

I cannot stress enough how important God’s Word is to me. God’s Word is food for my soul, my very being. I see my own sins. When they were revealed to me, (thank the Lord, not all at once!), the struggle to overcome them made me realize I could not do anything apart from Jesus in my life.

I began to see that I did not really need my husband’s love. I want my husband’s love, but I now know that I am loved far, far greater than I can even put my mind to. This, God’s love for me, truly is everything to me. Jesus does meet all my needs. Through what God has done in my life through Jesus, my love for my husband is different now. My love for him is cleaner, more pure, and unselfish.

This weeding out and fine-tuning that God does takes its time, sometimes a long time, but for me, it was worth it- the suffering, the obedience, and waiting! I like the way Spurgeon worded it- “No, our master’s experience teaches us that suffering is necessary, and the true-born child of God must not, would not escape it if he might.”

On God’s Kindness and Good Guilt

27 Monday Apr 2015

Posted by in Exhortation, Faith, Repentance, The Kindness of God

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 “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength…” (NIV)

As we experience more and more of the goodness of God in our relationship with Him, we are naturally led into deeper and deeper levels of holiness. For, the kindness that we experience in our relationship with God produces in His children a godly grief in our souls, which leads us to confess and repent of more and more of our sin. As we do this we become holier; thus we begin to live in the joyful freedom of walking in newness of life.

Another way to say the same thing is to say that the kindness of God causes us to feel a good-guilt over our wrongdoing. Good-guilt is rooted in an awareness of the goodness and love that God has shown to His children. Good-guilt is good because it makes us want to turn away from the things in our lives that displease God (i.e., our sin) and turn towards the Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation that He died to give us. That is why the Scripture says, “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?” (Romans 2:4, NLT).

When we say that we repent of our sin we mean that we have a change of mind about our sin; and for that reason, we turn away from our sin and towards God in the desire to live a God-glorifying life. In other words, to repent of sin is to turn around and go in the opposite direction when we realize that we are heading the wrong way on the path of life. Repentance is the authenticating mark of our profession of faith in Christ. It is the first outward proof that we possess true saving faith. If we agree with God that our sin is wrong, we will do everything that we can to turn away from it and turn towards the righteousness that is ours because of the cross-work of Jesus Christ. It is in this way that repentance leads to salvation. As Isaiah 30:15a says, “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength…” (NIV).

Confessions of a MAN-PLEASER

18 Saturday Apr 2015

Posted by in Boasting in Weaknesses, Confession of Sin, Hypocricy, Repentance, Sanctification, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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“The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.” Proverbs 29:25

Lord, please forgive me for allowing my fear of man to shape an ungodly view of church life in my soul.  I confess that all too often, I have left church on Sunday mornings upset that I wasn’t invited into the “Cool Kid’s Huddle” after service. I confess that instead of leaving church full of rejoicing that I have been accepted into Your family; I have left church sulking that I wasn’t accepted into the “in” crowd. It is so embarrassing that I do this. It is embarrassing that I have even gone to church one time thinking about me at all- let alone having done it countless times. Church is about worshipping You, and serving Your body; not about my pride or my fear of man. Lord please forgive me.

Lord, please forgive me for allowing my fear of man to shape my ungodly speech. I confess that I have often hopped on the “Complaining about Everything Ban-Wagon-”  just so that I could share in conversation with others who were complaining. I have done this even when in reality I didn’t feel upset about anything that You had providentially ordained into my life. I know that the Word says, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing…” (Phil 2: 14). I also know that my complaining and grumbling, has often been motivated by wanting to have something in common with other people, or because I didn’t want others to think that I was being overly pious. (Which is really lame, considering that Christians are supposed to be pious.) In truth Lord, I think that my obsession with people pleasing also accounts for most of the gossip that I have ever shared. It is like I just wanted to be the one with the juiciest morsel of the day- the person who is in ‘the know’ with what’s going on in the lives of others. – Lord, please forgive me- I know that Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

Lord, please forgive me for loving the praise of men more than loving the opportunities that You have given me to serve You. I have often allowed my fear of man to make me feel ashamed that You have manifested your grace in me in a different way than You have manifested your grace in the lives of my peers. It has been my fear of man and my pathetic desire to just “fit in” that has given me that uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach, when I have been called to serve you in a different way than my friends have been called to serve you. I have thought foolish things to myself, like: “What if so and so doesn’t approve?”, or  “What will ‘this one’ or ‘that one’ think of me when she hears about me doing thus and so?”.

Lord, I would have thought that the grace that you have shown me in giving me unique opportunities to serve You- would have caused the other type of pride to well up in side of me. You know the “I am so great, look at me” kind of pride. But, I am such a mess (outside of your grace) that that type of pride is quickly squelched by the reminder of my intrinsic uselessness, my lack of innate intelligence, and the horrifying reality of my sinfulness. Besides, like 1 Corinthians 4:7 says, “For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” Lord, please forgive me- I confess that my pathetic man-pleasing, people-pandering pride has made me so fearful of people that I have sometimes even wanted to forfeit the blessings of Christ and the graces of the Holy Spirit- so that I could just be like everybody else. I mean really, how sad is that? How wicked is that? How sad am I? How wicked am I? I don’t think that it gets more debased than to want to shirk the calling of God just so that I can “fit in” with the world around me.

Lord, please forgive me for my fear of man- it has been a systemic problem in my walk with You.  Even in this brief time of confession I can see how terrible of a snare this sin is to my soul. Please forgive me, please free me, please grant to me the faith that I need to trust in you, and to be kept safe. For Your Word warns me that “The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.”

Please Lord, Keep Me from the “Temptations of the Table”

03 Tuesday Feb 2015

Posted by in Edification, Encouragement, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, William Wilberforce

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Shortly after  Wilberforce’s conversion to Christ, he felt the call of God on his life. He believed that the Lord was calling him to lead England in social reform- chiefly by ending the British involvement with the slave trade. To this end, he invested over thirty years of his life, and in so doing, became one of the most influential social reformers that Britain ever knew.

What is of particular interest to me concerning Wilberforce is how he viewed what he termed as the  “temptations of the table,” how he viewed “...dinner parties filled with vain and useless conversation.” In one  journal entry, he wrote that dinner parties “…disqualify me for every useful purpose in life, waste my time, impair my health, fill my mind with thoughts of resistance before and self-condemnation afterwards.” Apparently, Wilberforce had a singular life focus- his calling to end slavery- and in his effort to fulfill that call, he was sensitive to the many temptations and diversions that accompanied the affluence in which he lived.

Wilberforce’s singularity of purpose and his sensitivity to the allurements of the flesh are very instructive to me. First, his singularity of mind and purpose teaches me that I must foster a singularity of mind and purpose in my service to Christ. I have to train my self to embrace the call of Christ to do all that I do for the glory of God. In a like manner, Wilberforce’s sensitivity- to those things in his life that threatened his singularity of mind and purpose -challenges me to carefully evaluate the distractions and temptations in my own life; those things which threaten my own singularity of mind and purpose in my service to God. Certainly, I must be careful not to fall into “vain and useless conversation” or anything else that would could somehow “…disqualify me for every useful purpose in life, waste my time, impair my health…” and/or “…fill my mind with thoughts of resistance before and self-condemnation afterwards.”

To this end, my prayer is that the Lord will grant me both singularity and sensitivity, as He granted to William Wilberforce. In other words, my prayer is that the Lord will keep me from the “temptations of the table.”

On Confession of Sin and Playing Games with God

29 Monday Sep 2014

Posted by in Confession of Sin, Edification, Exhortation, Repentance, Sin, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, Walking in Newness of Life

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“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:19

“Confession is the authenticating mark of repentance, and likewise, repentance is the authenticating mark of our confession. They are like two sides of the same coin. If we truly agree with God about our sin, we will make every effort to stop sinning. We will do everything that we can do to turn away from our sin and turn towards God in the pursuit of holiness. Confession without turning away from sin is not real confession: it is lip-service that we are making to God. Giving lip-service to God reveals either deep stupidity (for who is stupid enough to play games with God?), or it reveals a genuine lack of understanding of who the God of the Bible is and how dangerous sin is. Jesus tells people who think that they are all set with half-hearted Christian living (things like insincere confession or lives that lack the fruits of repentance): “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent” (Revelation 3:19).”

Walking in Newness of Life: Experiencing the Power of God in Resurrection by Identifying with Christ in His Death and Burial pp. 51-52

 

On Confession of Sin

26 Friday Sep 2014

Posted by in Confession of Sin, Exhortation, Repentance, Sin, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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“When we confess our sin; we should name the exact times that we have committed our pet sins, the precise places that we are more likely to indulge our sinful appetites, and the people with whom we feel the freest and most comfortable committing our sin. If we do this we will be helped in our repentance; for we will be more aware of the relationships, places, and opportunities in our lives that we must be careful to turn away from in repentance. Also, by being specific in our confession, we own more truthfully the provisions that we have made for committing our sins in the past. This level of honesty with God and ourselves will likely aid in the production of the good-guilt, i.e., the godly grief, over our sin that is appropriate for a believer to feel. Feeling godly grief will cause us to confess and repent of our sin more and more; making us holier and leading us into deeper and deeper levels of holiness. Confession and repentance of sin keeps us on the path that leads to salvation. Ongoing confession and repentance of sin will keep us on the narrow path that leads to life. That is why the Scripture says, ‘…godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation.’ “

Walking in Newness of Life: Experiencing the Power of God in Resurrection by Identifying with Christ in His Death and Burial  pp. 51-52

A Brief and Practical Application on the Sovereignty of God

06 Saturday Sep 2014

Posted by in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, The Sovereignty of God

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God hates gossip, slander, and other forms of maligning people. God wants us to love our neighbors – not treat them hatefully by talking about them behind their backs, or, even, insulting them to their faces. When God is using a difficult person to sanctify us, the goal should be to allow that person to be used by God to help make us holy; not to tell them off or to be the one that gets the last dig. We do not want to miss the whole “Sovereignty of God” concept in our sanctifying relationships. Instead, we want to remember that the Lord divinely appointed all the difficult people in our lives, so that we can learn how to be more like Jesus who “When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly” (1 Peter 2:23, NIV).

Taken from Walking In Newness of Life (p.87).

Video

1.min. 49 sec. on Prayer with David Platt

26 Tuesday Aug 2014

Posted by in Boasting in Weaknesses, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman

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So yesterday’s post was on prayer. Here is a 1 minute and 49 second sermon clip from David Platt on prayer. Specifically, it is a sermon clip dedicated to answering the question “Why is prayer necessary?” If I knew you personally, and I knew that you loved Jesus, and His glory more than anything- I would beg you to take the 109 seconds needed to watch this… because it would bless you at least 100 times that. While I don’t know most of you personally, I know that if you follow my blog, you love Jesus and His glory- so please take the 109 seconds needed to watch this… it will bless you at least 100 times that.

Weary in Prayer?

25 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by in Boasting in Weaknesses, Call to the Cross, Cross-Bearing, Edification, Encouragement, Exhortation, Music, On Prayer, The Believing 21st Centruy American Woman, Uncategorized

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“Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” (Isaiah 35:3-4).

When a succession of  trials come into our lives, we can get worn-down; we can develop weak hands and feeble knees. This is what happened to Moses in Exodus 17. You remember that Moses had the dubious task of leading a difficult and trying people through the barren wilderness of the ancient near east. After many a long and trying mile, moving this unhappy people from one dry, arid place to another dry, arid place in the dessert, Moses leads them to a place (Rephidim) to set up camp. At Rephidim, the Israelite-malcontents threaten to kill Moses. Their contention with him? They were thirsty, and he had led them to a place that had no water. (I am sorry, but that is just wrong…) Then, after rescuing his life from their hostile hands by getting them some water to drink, the nation of Amalek sets out to battle with the Israelites. At this point, Moses is required to intercede for the people of God – (the same ones that had just threatened his life because they were thirsty) – as the nation’s victory rested squarely on Moses’ intercession for them. And, as to this work of intercession? Well, Holy Writ tells us: “Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary…” (Exodus 17:11-12). You see, Moses’ arms got tired- that is, his arms of intercession got tired- maybe his serial trials left him feeling worn-out and run-down.

Sometimes, when we have a series of trying circumstances, we have to deal with difficult people, and stressful situations, we also become weary in our intercession. It is then that that we can look to Moses and learn from him- to keep believing God, keep praying, and keep waiting on Him by trusting in the awesome life-giving promises of His Word. We see this truth illustrated in the life of Moses in this Biblical narrative. Exodus 17:12 reads: “…so they took a stone and put it under him [Moses], and he sat on it while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun” (Ex.17:12). You see, just when Moses felt like he was at the end of his intercessory rope- God sent his brother and another trusted companion to help him to rest his weak hands and feeble knees. They did this by giving him a seat on a rock, and holding his arms up. We see here two examples of God’s good provision of sustaining grace for prayer. God gave Moses exactly what he needed to finish the race- to stay the course. The Lord gave Moses the strength to carry on- He gave Moses every necessary thing that he needed to come through the battle victorious. We know this because Exodus 17:13-16 closes the historical account of the battle at Rephidim with this record: “And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

In the same way, we who are in Christ can be confident that God will give us His merciful sustaining grace when we need it. The Lord will provide all the means that we need to finish the race- to stay the course. He will give us strength to carry on. And, just like He gave Moses exactly what he needed to come through the battle victorious; He will give us everything that we need to come through our own battles victorious, as well. Only let us believe God- as Moses did. Let us lay hold of the awesome faithfulness of the Lord our Banner. Let us heed the admonition of Hebrews 12:12-15 to “…lift your [our] drooping hands and strengthen your [our] weak knees, and make straight paths for your [our] feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.” And, most importantly, let us “See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God…” And, how can we do this in practical terms? How can we fail not to receive that awesome sustaining grace of God? Well, the same way Moses did, of course. We can take a seat and rest those feeble knees of ours on the Lord God- the Rock of our Salvation (Isaiah 26:4, 44:8). We can do whatever we have to do to keep those arms of intercession up. Whether that means that we seek the aid of brothers and sisters to join us in prayer, or we tarry in the Word longer than usual- refusing to leave our prayer closets until we hear from God in His Word and choosing to remember both the admonition and the promise of Scripture: “Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God, will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”