Pray for Families (Sometimes/Other Times)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

There is an appointed time for everything, but why wasn’t I consulted as to a convenient time?! 

I have thought that on several occasions. How many times have you conversed with the Lord with a “Really?! Are you kidding me?!”

Sometimes,

• We are stretched when we prefer to remain inflexible
• We are tried on the day we are short on patience
• We are called to be generous just at the time our bank accounts are thin
• A friend or family member is taken from us just when the relationship was improving 

Other times,

• We don’t know why we have been so blessed
• We get unexpected great news
• We are touched by the kindness of total strangers
• We get what we need, exactly when we need it

There is an appointed time for everything and a time for every purpose under the heavens.

A time to give birth, and a time to die;  time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.

A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to tear down, and a time to build.

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.

A time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.

A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to be silent, and a time to speak.

A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.  Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Lord, hear our prayers for family. Help us to understand your timing. While we know you hear our prayers and petitions on behalf of our family members, it is difficult to remain steadfast when you choose not to act. May we still praise you for your perfect timing. We ask for patience during times of waiting and trials. May we trust in you always, not just sometimes or other times. Jesus we trust in You!

Peace, Joy, and Love,
Janet

Call others to trust in God and pray for families. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Asking the Hard Questions)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

On Sunday during the homily, I was struck by the priest’s challenge regarding one’s faith/religion. I’ll paraphrase. “Are you asking the hard questions? “ he challenged, “or, do you just practice your religion because it was passed down to you generationally?  His point was that without critical thinking, challenging the premise, hearing all perspectives, doing your own research, and discovering the foundation you’ll never own your faith, let alone be able to defend it.

The heart of the intelligent acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.  Proverbs 18:15

Perhaps that applies to marriage as well.  Do you ask the hard questions? Why did Jesus make marriage indissoluble? Why would he choose to perform his first miracle at a wedding feast? What does it mean, “the two shall become one”? What’s the purpose of having children? Does it matter? Does marriage matter?

All these things I probed in wisdom. I said, “I will acquire wisdom”; but it was far beyond me. What exists is far-reaching; it is deep, very deep: Who can find it out? I turned my heart toward knowledge; I sought and pursued wisdom and its design, and I recognized that wickedness is foolishness and folly is madness. Ecclesiastes 7:23-25

When we don't seek to understand the “why”, we create our own false narrative to fit our own situation.

Lord, increase our curiosity to learn, to be your disciples. May we seek to understand your perfect plan for marriage and grow in perfect love. Set our hearts aflame; give us the fire of desire! May you bless our efforts and our marriages!

There is plenty of information available to answer the “Why?” Take the step toward fully owning your marital commitment.

Peace, Love, and Joy,

Janet

Challenge the apathetic. Pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Soil of One’s Heart)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Sometimes during conversations, I am struck by what someone says, and unbeknownst to them, the seed they planted germinates in my heart and mind. Imagine the effect if what we share is a gospel message?  Perhaps a story of when the Lord pushed into our lives?

For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you. 

1 Corinthians 11:23

Not everyone is called to preach from the pulpit, but everyone is called to preach with their life.  Actions, words, stories, and kindnesses all can project the Love of God. When touched in that way, we are never the same as as our heart begins to stir within us. Seek to spread the Good News, beginning with family. Soften the soil of their heart with a kindness. Say a prayer for yourself before you begin. Then pray for your family and sow, sow, sow! Lord, be the Light that brings forth growth!

Peace, Joy and Love,

Janet

A willing heart is the only tool you need to plant.  Pass it on!  

Pray for Marriages (Faith in Healing)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

When a couple marries, the hope is that they each mature and grow in unity. Yet sometimes the scale is unbalanced. One may mature sooner, one may never mature, their faith journeys may diverge, politically they may become polarized, or their parenting styles may be different. These type of things are to be expected and serve to help us grow in the virtues of patience, kindness, temperance, and self-control. Yet some challenges are totally off the grid, such as when a spouse suffers from an addiction, such as drug, alcohol, or pornography. If you are in this situation, please seek outside counseling and support.  The same holds true if you are in an abusive relationship.  You do not cause the abuse. Leave to a safe space and get help.

In the shadow of your wings I take refuge till the storms of destruction pass by. Psalms 57:2

Let us pray that the Lord sends forth a spring of healing graces to burst forth for marriages and that we may never lose faith in the power of God to change the circumstances in one’s life.

“Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. Matthew 8:8

Lord, each of us carries wounds from our youth, be they emotional, physical, mental, or spiritual. When these wounds fester untreated, they often lead to addictions, violence, or even withdrawal.  Lord, for marriages to thrive, so must the individuals in them. May we seek first our own healing, so that we are better equipped to support our spouse’s healing. Hear our collective prayers, for our desire to see marriages thrive is aligned with your plan for marriages. Increase the faith of those seeing no light at the end of the tunnel. For if you can raise the dead, you certainly and heal marriages gasping to survive.  Jesus, we trust in You!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Believe that God can restore even the most broken marriage. Pass it on!

Pray for Families (Sacrificial Loving)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Over the years as I’ve contemplated Christ’s Passion, other than knowing it was horrible, it’s been hard for me feel how difficult it must have been for Him to endure. Yet if I break it down, it becomes more tangible. In Gethsemane, he prayed alone (while the apostles slept) and sweated blood in anticipation of bearing the gravity of our sins. Reflecting on times I’ve felt alone, abandoned, and betrayed, makes His experience real to me. My abandoning and betraying Him through my own sins, became His reality. His scourging leads me to reflect on the times I’ve been hurt through another’s actions, words, or deeds, yet I’d be remiss if I didn’t consider the effect of my own such actions on Him.  Continuing my reflections, I slowly came to understand his Passion in a new way. It was through the cross that my salvation was born. Embracing my cross is easier now, because it has new meaning. Sanctification of self and others emanates from our crosses. For it was because of Christ’s love for us that he embraced his cross, so how can we respond in any other way but imitation?

If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good, this is a grace before God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his footsteps. 1 Peter 2: 20-21

Offer your crosses as a prayer for family members. With each sacrifice, asking the Lord to renew, sanctify, uplift, convert, strengthen, and fuel holy desire in them.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Make a sacrifice out of love for another. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (With no Conditions)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

One’s deepest desire in life is to be loved; cherished for who we are.  We search all over hoping to find that special love, often morphing ourselves into what we think is loveable.  We get married and love conquers all; well at least initially.  As the pendulum swings between for better and for worse, unconditional love is challenged.  In small imperceptible ways, love can slowly become conditional.

I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do. John 13:15

We gradually keep tabs on ways our spouse ‘owes us”, either financially, emotionally, or physically; in sweat equity, child-rearing time, carpool time, and the list infinitely goes on.  

We can easily forget that our salvation came at a price: Sacrificial Love completely poured out.  Because the Lord loves us unconditionally, he paid a price for us that we can never repay.  He asks that we in turn we don’t ask “repayment” from others, especially our spouse, in any terms.

Lord, we can never repay the debt we owe you, as you gave EVERYTHING in order to save us and show us what real love looks like. Help spouses to both give and receive love unconditionally.  May we love because you loved us first and gave us the best example.  Provide us with all the grace we need.  Amen.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Love one day at a time. Pass it on!

Pray for Families (Hope in Suffering)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

You may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:6-7

One can hardly turn on the news without hearing of the horrific effects of natural disasters, church scandals, sexual abuse, untimely deaths, and all kinds of things that seek to deflate our hope and trust in God. Perhaps you have been the victim of some of these things. It can be hard to understand why God allows bad things to happen.

I find the lyrics to a song that seeks to find the meaning in the Lord’s greater plans, keep reverberating in my head, so let me share them with you.

What if Your blessings come through raindrops?
What if Your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near?
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?*

Then I remembered the mercies of the LORD, his acts of kindness through ages past; For he saves those who take refuge in him, and rescues them from every evil. Sirach 51:8

He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, [for] the old order has passed away.” 

Revelation 21:4

Lord, be our strength as we share in one another’s sufferings. May we never fear suffering, for you walk with us. When we are too weak, you carry us.  When our tears are spent, you console us. When we are in pain, you comfort us. You restore us each day with your grace. You are an awesome God! Let us be a reflection of your kindness and compassion, so that the hope that never disappoints may be forever renewed in this world! Amen.

Peace, Joy, and Love,
Janet

Hope is restored through kindness and compassion. Pass it on!

* “Blessings” by Laura Story