Pray for Family. (Imitating Christ)

Greeting Prayer Warriors,

It’s interesting how the Lord tests our patience. I find this a hard virtue to master. Pray for me! I am on an airplane, gratefully bumped to first class.  However the flight attendant seems bothered when I ask for a beverage, asks if I am finished when I’ve barely touched my food, and has made me hesitant to even ask for a glass of water. She also is ignoring our row. Even my seat mate is chucking at the fiasco. Nothing like perspective though to shift the paradigm. This poor flight attendant has been up since 3:45 am, and is probably having great difficulty focusing much less functioning. I can only reflect on how I would desire patience if I was having a similar day.

Isn’t that one of the things Jesus calls us to when he says “Come follow me.”? We are invited to imitate Christ. He is patient and kind regardless of our shortcomings, missteps, demands, and inattentiveness to Him! 

“Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:19

As we approach Advent, let us pray for the grace to grown in virtue. Let us then share our virtues with our family, as we pray on their behalf as well. May we become fishers of men too!

Peace, Joy, and Love

Janet

Imitate Christ in kindness. Pass it on!

Prayer for Marriages (The Soil of our Hearts)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

We are approaching the time of preparation.  I am not speaking about gift buying and wrapping, nor home decorating, but of our souls.  This week is an interlude just before Advent, a time of preparation, waiting, and anticipation for Christ to be born anew. Now is not the time get caught up in a pre-Christmas frenzy, but rather to slow down and carve out daily time during Advent to prepare your heart to receive the gift of His birth; the incredible gift of a Savior.

Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You too must be patient. Make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.  James 5:7-8

If possible, pray together as a couple.  If not, include your spouse in your prayers. If you are not married, pray for a special couple. For by prayer, we are able to persevere through the good and the bad, the expected and unexpected, the joys and the disappointments.  Perseverance, strengthens us, and gives hope to all.  Hope leads to a strengthening of faith and faith inflames our hearts to receive Our Savior.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Celebrations are best after a long period of preparation.  Why wait?  Prepare the soil of your united hearts with prayer.  Pass it on!

Pray for Families (Black Friday)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Today, families flood retailers for the best deals on items ranging from electronics to toys.  The media shows scenes of people camping out, waiting in line prior to stores opening, and in a frenzy,  grabbing items before they sell out.  It’s all about saving money and claiming the “prize” of obtaining the best deals. S/he who gets the best deal wins.

If only we were that frenzied at wanting to save souls.  S/he who does, receives the ultimate reward; eternal life.  Best of all, it is free. The price has already been paid. All you have to do is show up ready and respond affirmatively to the call, “Follow me”.

Whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3:7-8

Let’s spend Black Friday through Cyber Monday praying for souls, beginning with family. 

Lord, break through the all that obstructs one’s desire for you and create in them a holy hunger to know you. Woo them with your tender kindness, heartfelt compassion, and merciful love. Help them see that all their heart desires can be found in you.  May our prayers be efficacious in winning souls for you!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray while shopping.  It will be doubly efficacious! Pass it on.  

Pray for Marriages (Shepherd Us!)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

The oldest institution on earth still doesn’t have a “how to” manual; marriage!  Perhaps it is because Jesus prefers we rely on Him as our primary guide versus the abundant media resources.

“Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!” Luke 18:38

We may not know what we need, but we best be sure that he can provide it!!

Lord, help married couples understand your wisdom.

The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.

He fills the gap if we trust in Him.  

In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me; he restores my soul.

His presence is a calming force, for he knows our limitations and loves us unconditionally.

He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name. Psalms 23:1-3

No one wants us to succeed in marriage more than Him. No one.

Jesus, give us the grace to trust in you, especially when we are most doubtful!  Thank you for your blessings in our marriages. Make gratitude our constant attitude! Amen.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Jesus saves marriages; just trust in Him! Pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Alone in the Crowd)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Most can remember a time when they felt totally alone. The weight of what they carried (emotionally, physically, or spiritually) felt so overwhelming, that whether they were standing in the midst of a room full of people or alone in the silence, they were left with a sense of abandonment, and the fear of moving through their situation alone. Perhaps they turned to God or feared a rejection from Him too. Yet it is precisely at these times He is with us. He wants us to admit to Him that we have relied way too much on ourselves, and not enough on Him.  We tend to forget Christ loved us so much that He died for us.

I turned every way, but there was no one to help; I looked for support but there was none. 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. I cried for help. I called out: LORD, you are my Father, my champion, my savior! Do not abandon me in time of trouble, in the midst of storms and dangers. Sirach 51:7-8, 10

As we pray for families, let us focus our prayer on all who feel alone. Consider that they may also be the people we least expect, such as those who always wear a smile, those who are outgoing, and those who seem to have a charmed life. Yet inside, they may be suffering deeply.

Lord, in your immense love for us, hear our prayers for your children.  May they sense your presence, especially when they receive an unexpected kindness. May our prayers open their hearts to your grace, that they may know the most difficult journeys are made sweeter when you are their companion.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Say a prayer for someone and pass it on! 

Pray for Marriages (Honoring Those Who Have Served)

Veterans Day

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

On this Veterans Day, I began reflecting on the service of our veterans and active duty military from all branches of the Armed Forces.  Like a fog clearing, I see how “Christ-like” their sacrifice is.  For the good of others, they commit to leaving their families for long periods, and unfortunately, sometimes forever. They endure hardship, pain, praise, and sometimes even ridicule, as well as emotional, physical, and mental stress. Whether on the front lines or in the supply chain, they work for the good of our nation and other nations.

For I am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand.  2 Timothy 4:6

Often forgotten are the spouses of these active duty soldiers and veterans. Their sacrifice is one that mirrors our Blessed Mother’s. They sacrifice their own comfort and security by “holding down the fort” while their loved one is absent. The spend time worrying and offering their sacrifice of prayer, loneliness, weariness, and emotional stress as they live through their own tour of duty at home.

Let us not grow tired of doing good, for in due time we shall reap our harvest, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

Then there are the spouses that accompany a veteran post war/tour of duty. Often they too experience the after-effects of their spouse’s tour of duty. The more horrific the soldier’s experience, the more silent the veteran is about their tour. Often the spouse walks in tandem with their veteran, traveling the rocky path of PTSD, an alternate “via dolorosa”.

When in your own land you go to war against an enemy that is attacking you, you shall sound the alarm on the trumpets, and you shall be remembered before the LORD, your God, and be saved from your foes. Numbers 10:9

My gratitude is immense for our veterans, but our prayers need to reach even higher heights.  Spend some time this week in prayer for the marriages of our active duty military as well as all veterans. 

Lord, bless our active and retired military personnel, and as our Divine Physician, heal the festering wounds that seek to cripple their marriages.  Look with compassion on all they have sacrificed, and grant them extraordinary graces.  Protect their children, and sooth their souls.  In your great love, hear our prayers. Amen.

Peace, Joy and Love,

Janet

Pray for a veteran! Pass it on! 

Prayer for Families (Gift of Self)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Floods, tornados, fires, earthquakes, and mud slides are just a few signs that Mother Nature doesn’t discriminate by wealth, nationality, race, political party, gender, or religion.  Yet somehow, disasters bring out our humanity seem to unite us. 

If someone who has worldly means sees a brother in need and refuses him compassion, how can the love of God remain in him? Children, let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth. 1John 3:17-18

If you know of someone suffering the effects of a disaster or loss, offer them assistance of help, comfort, love, and prayer. We are all one family in Christ.  Act from a sincere heart, give what you can, and continue to pray without ceasing.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

You never walk alone. The Lord is with you and sends his advocates to help! Let us praise Him! Pass it on! 

Pray for Marriages. (Free Choice)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

God in the beginning created human beings and made them subject to their own free choice. If you choose, you can keep the commandments; loyalty is doing the will of God. Sirach 15:14-15

From the beginning the Lord gave each one of us the right to choose and make the choices we see fit. “Free choice” is a God-given right. However, in choosing we are also making a statement to the Lord; will we follow Him, or go our own way?

Consider the phrase, “subject to their own free choice.” For WE are the object of our choices! We are choosing life or death!

I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life! Deuteronomy 30:19

In marriage, when we say, “I do”, we are committing to letting go of “I” and becoming “we”. This new oneness should continue to inform our choice, for we are choosing for the whole, “us”.

One may think that true freedom is doing whatever they want whenever they want. This is a delusion, because true freedom is paradoxical. It involves dying to oneself, putting the other first, following the Lord’s will, and letting Jesus do the heaving lifting.

If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. Philippians 2:1-2

Prayer clears away what clouds the heart. Pray for the wisdom to make good choices for your marriage, or pray for a family member’s marriage that may benefit from the clarity that only results from sincere prayer.

Peace, Joy, and Love,
Janet

Choose life! Pass it on! 

Pray for Families (Beloved Souls)

All Souls Day

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Years ago I heard someone retell the story of his near-death experience.  They met the Lord and saw some relatives awaiting them.  As his story continued, he said “I saw my aunt there and was so surprised, because she was mean!!” I chuckle at this memory.

When reflecting on deceased relatives there will be those you loved, those you liked, or those you may have loathed.  Regardless of your feelings, all are beloved children of God.

And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it [on] the last day. John 6:39

Only the Lord knows the heart, thus he is the ultimate judge. For we do not know who needs our prayers and who doesn’t so we should pray for ALL souls.

If he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. But if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be absolved from their sin. 2 Maccabees 12:44-46

Lord, hear our prayers for those who have gone before us. Help us not to judge the dead, for perhaps those we deemed most unlovable actually were the ones who suffered most out of love of You. We trust in your mercy.  Hear our prayers for souls, that all may one day be united with you.

Waste not a minute!

Pray with out ceasing!  1 Thessalonians 5:17

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Increase the decibel of prayer so that it rivals the prayers of the saints! Pass it on!