Pray for Marriages (Humility and Surrender)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,  

Sacraments bestow grace. We understand that in our heads, but do we know that in our hearts? Contemplate how generous God is in bestowing gifts. Can you now imagine how lavish that grace is?  

Each sacrament is a gift. Every sacrament is conferred by a Vicar of Christ. What a blessing it is to receive more than just a marriage license, but a sacramental blessing!

For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7

I’ve never considered this passage in the light of marriage before, but it is very fitting. Marriage is not for the timid! Each couple is given the power to shine the light of Christ through their union, in new and profound ways. They have been fortified as “the two will become one flesh.” * The love of God has been infused into them, and they are to fan it into flame, not squelch or misuse it. Throughout one’s marriage, there will be plenty of opportunities to practice self-control: Mind, body, emotions, words, and actions. One is to remember God’s gifts and beg for more grace!! Never be timid in the asking!

“God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6

Lord, may your grace continue to flow upon marriages. May we each rely less on self, and more on you, as each vows to pray, “O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!”When one is angry, frustrated, lost, disillusioned, fearful, offended, crushed, demoralized, pushed down, unyoked, or betrayed in their marriage, may they turn to you and pray, “O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!” For you, Lord, who deigned to bestow such abundant graces upon marriages, will fill in the gap and lead them to restful waters if only they can pass the reins. You reign! Help all couples to humble themselves before you, bow down, and receive the shower of graces which await them. Amen.

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Humility and surrender are a powerful combination. Pass it on! 

*Mark 10:8

Pray for Families (Chosen for His Love)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

How is it that the sweetest, most pure little ones can become so broken and corrupted over time? We should look inward and ask that question, because we all came into this world as little ones filled with innocence. Yet in time, we, like others around us, may have found ourselves lost, searching, lonely, anxious, broken in spirit, broke, or even living the high life, trying to convince ourselves of our happiness. Or maybe we saw our misery and sought solace in drugs, alcohol, sex, or whatever gave us fleeting pleasure. One learns these things never fill the void, but often widen it. Watching a family member struggle is enough to break our hearts. However if this is yourself, do not despair!

Our help is in the name of the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.  

Psalm 124:8

The Lord conquered our sin and paid our debt. If there is something to contemplate this Lent, ponder that. He chose us as the recipients of His love, a love our mind can hardly grasp. A love that beats for us. A love begging for each of us to turn to Him in our loneliness, brokenness, confusion, or despair, that we might be restored anew.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” 

2 Corinthians 12:9

We all hold all of God’s children in our hearts, many who have been victims of difficult circumstances, made bad choices, or haven’t yet awakened to the psychological oppression of their choices. Thus we continue in prayer. I imagine most of you prayer warriors only became warriors because someone known or unknown prayed for you when you were struggling in life. With gratitude and love, let’s pass on the gift of prayer by lifting up all those we have been asked to pray for, as well as all those that may have no one to pray for them. But just as important, let’s pray for each other, that we may persevere in our prayers and be renewed when our strength is weakened.  Finally, let us also give thanks for the Lord’s enduring mercy, which helped extricate us from the evils in our past.

 

If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed, if he keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live. He shall not die! Ezekiel 18:21

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet 

His love endures forever. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Not Happiness, but Holiness)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Since so many of you pray for marriages, you are no stranger to the seen and unforeseen struggles that can occur or even blindside a couple in marriage. During the absolute lows, one usually turns to prayer, even if they have been remiss in that department for a while. After what may feel like an eternity of prayers and petitions, who hasn’t uttered something to God  in accord with this Psalm?

How long, LORD? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I carry sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? Psalm 13:2-3

Yet, the Lord answers in his own time, giving you the graces you need for today. He only asks for your trust.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely. Proverbs 3:5

How often do we rely on our will and vision of happiness versus the Lord’s? (Be honest with yourself).  But conspicuously absent from scripture is a promise of happiness. Instead, regarding our marital vocation we are told:

Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. Romans 12:12

Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11

We are not only called to love and peace in our relationship, but to holiness. 

Be holy, for I, the LORD your God, am holy. Leviticus 19:2

Live up to what you are called to, and joy will undoubtedly follow.

Reaching for holiness can feel like climbing Everest. Daunting! A trial run, turning back, retrying, abandoning the mission, renewed hope, another plan, visualizing the summit, inclement weather, repeat! Pray for yourself, your spouse, and others, that each may be given the daily grace, to weather the storms and walk toward holiness, one step at a time! Unlike Everest, the Lord will be your sherpa to the summit, if only you trust in him with all your heart! 

Holiness is the goal, happiness is the by-product. Pray! 

“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” Corinthians 12:9

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray more for marriage and family this Lent! Pass it on!

Pray for Families (Fast not Furious)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Admit it. Fasts are intimidating. We can talk ourselves out of them before we even start! We seem to focus too much on self and the discomfort of any self-denial, rather than the Person we are emptying ourselves out for. When we empty ourselves of the cluttered junk drawer of our souls, we clear out space for the Holy Spirit to enter in. When we make personal sacrifices and offer them up, we make atonement for our sins and please the Lord.  

To refrain from evil pleases the Lord, and to avoid injustice is atonement. Sirach 35:5

Fast by removing yourself from the temptation to sin. (A person or a thing.) Fast from pride. Is there someone you stubbornly refuse to apologize to? Seek reconciliation. Are you prone to anger and lose your temper with people? Abandon the furious! Fill the void with prayer. 

Refrain from anger; abandon wrath; do not be provoked. Psalm 37:8

What’s that self-talk, “I don’t really sin”? Fast from that lie. Perhaps Lent is a good time to rediscover the definition of sin, as the culture has removed that word from all vocabulary. Find a good “Examination of Conscience” to reawaken your consciousness of sin, and strive to follow the Commandments.

“Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to the LORD’s command? Obedience is better than sacrifice. 

1 Samuel 15:22

Finally, if you struggle with your fast, direct your focus to the fruit it will bring: a deeper relationship with our Lord. With collective prayer, we all can persevere, blossom and bear fruit. We’ve got this!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Pray that our offering bear fruit! Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (To Be Loved)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

Have you ever desired to love your spouse as Jesus does? Maybe you’ve never thought of such a prayer, but I can tell you with confidence, that is how they would like to be loved.

I belong to my lover, and my lover belongs to me. Song of Songs 6:3

You may be thinking that’s a tall order! And it is. Yet, one can’t even get near to achieving that if one doesn’t empty oneself of all the useless stuff taking up space in their heart. Pause and contemplate what consumes your desires. What? Why? How much? Ponder it some more.

For the first time in my memory, Valentine's Day lands on the first day of Lent, Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is really just the prequel to the greatest Love story ever told, one of complete sacrificial love; one that requires emptying oneself for the beloved, to imitate the Beloved. 

Christ Jesus, Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:6-8

If you haven’t decided on what to do for Lent, consider vowing to empty your heart of the useless, to make room for the Divine.  

Lord, our greatest desire is to be loved, and to be known. Yet we are stingy with our love and extravagant with our demands. Help us to purge all the clutter occupying our hearts so that we may become extravagant with our love and stingy with our demands. Shine a light in our souls so that we can more truthfully examine the junkyard that exists there. With your compassion and grace, help us purge the waste. Then fill us with your merciful and unfathomable love, so that we can share it more fully in our marriages, glorifying You and testifying to your amazing grace and love.

May He grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love,  may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 

Ephesians 3:16-19

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Fill your heart with the love of Christ and pass it on! 

Pray for Families (A Renewed Spirit)

 Greetings Prayer Warriors,

We have spent many years praying for family members and family units. I have no doubt those prayers have borne fruit.  What we haven’t spent any time doing, is praying for ourselves. We too are an important part of our families, as we are the ones who are spiritually uplifting our loved ones. If the pillars fall, the building unit collapses.

Though worn out with the length of your journey, you never said, “It is hopeless”; You found your strength revived, and so you did not weaken. Isaiah 57:10

Take some time to pray that you and your fellow prayer warriors will be fortified for the spiritual journey. That you will be strengthened in Him. That you can continue to carry the light of Christ in your hearts to shine forth to others, that all may come to know Him.

They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength, they will soar on eagles’ wings; they will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint. Isaiah 40:31

Heavenly Father, we, the prayer warriors, can often feel weak, defeated, frustrated, and weary.  Thank you for the times we’ve felt energized, fortified, and on fire for You. In our hearts, we desire to be empowered for the long-haul journey, even when our spirits droop. Send a fresh outpouring of the Spirit upon us, renew us, and grant us the grace not to hide your light under a bushel basket of our insecurities, but rather to shine Your penetrating light of love, mercy, and hope to illuminate our families and as well as this darkened world. Jesus, we trust in You!

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Prayer really is the answer. Pass it on!

Pray for Marriages (Honoring the Vows)

Greetings Prayer Warriors,

While actual wedding trends are ever changing, I am becoming increasingly attuned to why marriage ceremonies have traditionally consisted of vows made before God. One reason must be because vows made before God are harder to break. Perhaps that could also be the reason vows aren’t made before God; a contract is easier to break than a covenant. 

In any marriage, difficulty eventually arises and catches one off guard as bliss turns blustery. Most weddings officiants don’t talk about the crosses that are placed within a marriage, yet they are hard to avoid. Undoubtedly, there will be times you may not want to continue to honor the commitment to your spouse, but pause and ask yourself, are you hard-hearted enough to renege on your commitment to God? Consider, would the Lord preach the permanency of marriage if He wasn’t going to support you with His grace?

Jesus said, “The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized.” Mark 10:39

While Jesus wasn’t married, He exemplified sacrificial love. He suffered greatly as many of his “brethren'' rejected Him. He gave His life for us, but still waits patiently for acknowledgement. He understands all too well that Love given, isn't always love returned. In marriage, He invites us into sacrificial love for our own good and the good of our spouse. It is a gift, as it is your ticket to holiness.

I trusted, even when I said: “I am sorely afflicted,” and when I said in my alarm: “No man can be trusted.” How can I repay the Lord for his goodness to me? The cup of salvation I will raise; I will call on the Lord’s name. My vows to the Lord I will fulfill before all his people. Psalm 116: 10-14

Never forget that grace is there for the asking, as the Beloved gives good gifts. Never forget to pray for those who haven’t yet realized that. Never forget that your spouse is on a journey of their own, and may be progressing at a different rate than you. Always pray it forward as someone else has been praying for you. 

Peace, Joy, and Love,

Janet

Keep the faith; endure in hope. Pass it on!