He Has a Plan for Your Prayer

When I was a teenager, planning for the future was not my thing. I had a five-month plan, perhaps, but a five-year plan? Five years was ridiculously far away. For instance, applying to college was not the long, drawn out process it is for teens today. I simply chose to go the inexpensive route (both in dollars and planning time) and follow my friends to a state university.

God changed my way of thinking my sophomore year in college. The Living God tends to do that for His children.

“Do not conform to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2.

I knew I was not comfortable at the university--I wanted smaller classes, and a school with a spiritual aspect. Not being a partier, I was unhappy with dorm life, so I was already living back at home. The one school that fit the bill within driving distance of my home was St. Joseph College in West Hartford, Connecticut.

However, the school’s bill did not “fit the bill”--at $5,000 a year, it was more than triple the cost of my university (those were the days!). So, I prayed. This was a big deal for me: I had not prayed as a believer for something so big and so specific. But, other more seasoned Christians were telling me that God cares for His children and He answers prayer--sometimes in miraculous or unexpected ways.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” Ephesians 3:20.

So, I stepped out in faith: “Lord, I really want to go to St. Joe’s, but the tuition seems out of reach. I pray for a scholarship--and if the scholarship lowers tuition by half, then I’ll know you want me to go there.”

I still remember the day I opened my acceptance letter and my financial aid award: “You have been awarded the Vitimaur Scholarship for merit: $2,500.” I nearly fell over. It was my first clear answer to prayer and it was a huge faith builder.

But what I did not know was that my time at St. Joseph would bring several special people into my life: professors who encouraged me to pursue excellence and who inspired me academically for the first time in my life, and two future family members: my friend Maureen, who when I was a senior, introduced me to her brother, my future partner in life.

God had a plan for me that I did not even know existed--and that plan is still unfolding for me and my family ever since I prayed that very special request.

Marvel for a Minute by Jenna Vick Silliman

The bright colors of the rainbow are all around us reminding us of God’s amazing promises. In addition to the life we are now experiencing, there is MORE! Let’s marvel for a minute on this relationship with God. Is there any end to it? Jesus said He came to bring us LIFE and life abundantly--life beyond all our imagination or expectations. What an amazing answer to a little prayer of conversion to Christianity!

When I first prayed and asked Jesus to be my Savior, I had no concept of His Lordship, His awesome presence, or His greatness. The answer to this simple little prayer far surpassed any thought I had in my head. In fact, it turned out to be a revolutionary transformation—the proverbial worm into a butterfly! Think about His love for us? Can we fathom it?

Heaven is not a destination I’m headed for like I thought it was. It is now the place I am living from. The kingdom of heaven is at hand—within. We pray the Lord’s prayer about His kingdom on earth and this is our orientation now. All heaven is now backing us. Wow! I don’t know about you, but I didn’t bargain on that when I said the sinner’s prayer. I had no idea legions of angels would be surrounding me.  I had no concept of Jesus interceding for me at the right hand of the Father. I definitely did not know about Holy Spirit empowerment. I never thought about becoming royalty as the bride of King Jesus!Just think of the exchange rate of the Kingdom of God. We exchange darkness for light, evil for good, weakness for power, mourning for joy, and captivity for freedom.  We are no longer under the law or under judgment; now we are under grace and we are favored by God. As it says in Romans, sin no longer has dominion over us because we are under His amazing grace. We also exchange our life of aloneness and exclusion from the life of God, to one of belonging and being loved unconditionally and blessed with His sweet companionship 24/7. Who am I that the God of the universe would consider me? He listens to my desires, my hopes, and my dreams. He has new mercy and lovingkindness for me every day and steadfast love that is never ending.

God created each of us with gifts and talents and abilities to accomplish great and marvelous things. He also empowers us to do what He calls us to do. We are each given the power of His resurrection, it says in Scripture. Wow! How’s that for gasoline in your engine to go after your destiny? We are turbo-charged!

There is no question in my mind that of all the prayers I have prayed, my very first prayer of asking Jesus to be my savior, has been answered far beyond what I could have asked for or even dreamed! Thank You, Lord Jesus, for loving me.

Ouch!

(This is a repost of Thursday April 26. I corrected some format problems)


Why do you see the splinter in your sister’s eye but not notice the log in your own eye? Matthew 7:3 CJB

What prayers have I prayed that God didn’t answer in a way that I asked Him and yet, the results were better than I could’ve ever asked for?
It would be fair to assume that all of us have asked the Lord, whether in prayer or certainly in desperation, “Lord, change her…Can’t You see that if he behaves better, life will be good. As a matter of fact, Lord, if they change, I will act a lot better than I have been. I promise, my behavior will be much better, because You and I know, that’s why I am acting this way.”
God listens but I can picture Him saying “Oh really?”
That was the type of prayer that I prayed for my sister.
She was 6 years older than me. I so wanted her to love and accept me. I kind of idolized her. She let me hang out with her and her friends, sometimes. Other times, I had a niggling feeling like I was just a pain. I hate to admit it, but it became a love/hate relationship for me.
When she went to Nursing School, I felt proud to be her sister. It is a noble profession.
As I matured, I became aware of something that probably was always there. She often acted like SHE was my mother. She could be bossy and demanding. I resented that. The older she got, the angrier she became. Her dissatisfaction was not only aimed at me, but everyone.
 What I didn’t know then, was that angry people often use anger as a defense. They hurt inside, but they lash out and hurt other people. Often, the recipient becomes resentful and wants to retaliate.
My parents developed serious medical issues, late in life. My dad suffered a devastating stroke, which left him paralyzed. My mom also had a stroke. Hers was minor in comparison; but it left her with physical and mental deficits. 
The monitoring of their care fell into my sister’s lap. She didn’t sign up for it, but there was an unspoken expectation that she would assume the caretaker role. I mean, she was a nurse and she liked to be in charge, right?
My 3 brothers and I were supposed to relieve her on weekends. However, when we came on our assigned day, she would not leave the house as we had agreed on. On my day, I felt inadequate, as she hovered. I left with a sense that I couldn’t do anything good enough in her sight.
With all this pressure, her anger and resentment grew.
I remember showing up at her home once, with my own built up emotions, and talked back to her. I spewed words towards her that were like a volcano of hate.
From that incident, she wrote me a letter that had about 10 pages. She let me know every little thing that she felt that I had ever done to hurt her. She did not mince words. I was shaken and hurt.
“Lord, I have had it with her! She is impossible and wants perfection.” I am sure I added something like, “I humbly ask You to straighten her out”
I still held onto my self righteousness and what I felt was justifiable anger.
That would change the day the Lord opened my eyes.
Like a movie, a scenario came into my mind. I saw a little girl, maybe around 5 yrs old. As she stood there, heavy and wet men’s wool overcoats were being thrown over her, one by one. This continued until she was buried. As a result, I heard her crying. At once, I knew it was my sister. My sister, who never got to be a little girl with little girl needs, rather was a child that was burdened with grown up expectations and responsibilities. Her acting like my mother was not a defiant stance she took, but one that she knew was expected. It was a role of survival. This may have been symbolic, rather than a reality, but in that moment, I was crushed as I saw a doll that she never got to play with.
So many emotions arose in me. I cried and was filled with compassion that was tainted by shame. 
The Lord didn’t put shame on me; rather He wanted me to see things from a perspective of truth, rather than from the lens, that I had seen her from my whole life.
A soon as I could, I went to her house and told her of my awakening. I don’t think she fully understood it and the impact that it had on me. Besides, I was telling her something that was foreign to her. i.e. “God spoke to me” But what she did see was her “baby” sister in a much humbler place. I apologized for judging her…resenting her, while at the same time, thinking it was OK for her to do everything for my parents. I did feel inadequate and I reasoned that I didn’t live in the same town as they did. Nevertheless, I could have done more.
So my seemingly sincere (?) prayer was answered in a way that made me look at myself, rather than blame her. It was an additional measure of grace that God gave me such deep understanding of her.
Today, she and I have a wonderful relationship because of the extension of love, acceptance and forgiveness, we offer each other.
I thank God for that. I thank God for her. I thank God, as He answered my prayer so clearly but not anyway in which I asked.
Below, is a Prayer that many of us have heard. Maybe, like me, it may have become so familiar; we don’t pay attention to the words anymore.


“God grant me the serenity to accept the things (people*) I cannot change
The courage to change the things I can (help me to change ME*)
And the wisdom to know the difference
(*emphasis mine)
Linda Maynard

He took a bullet for me

Protection… Divine protection? I can think of a few.

The first time was a long, long time ago…

Pain’s branding iron pierced my right side. Tears rolled hot. I was alone. I was a boy. And I was dying… I knew it.

“Call Mom”  

Standing straight was out of the question. So hunched and holding my side I made it to the phone.  

Pain’s fingers strangled my voice to a whisper.

“Please, I need to talk to my mom.”

I waited and whispered a painful prayer.

My mom walked and whispered a fervent prayer.

God, help.

In that instant when we whispered…

God heard.

The pain vanished forever, before she reached the phone.   

No theology, I just know it was real. God intervened—and I was healed.

That was the first time I can remember—there have been more.

Like the time the pain wasn’t physical but emotional. I was embarrassed and ashamed. Dad prayed a simple prayer. And I never wet the bed again.

No fancy words. I just know it was real. God intervened and I was free.

And then, the blizzard of ’76 sent my snowmobile sailing through the air and me to the hospital. A concussion and broken collar bone later it was said I should have been dead.

Oh and there’s the Oklahoma rodeo, I thought would take my head.

And the snow storm where the power went out, the furnace wouldn’t light, the phone lines were down and the drifts were high. Miles of nothing surrounded the drafty old farm house. The temperatures plummeted below zero. The house turned cold and we were freezing. I knelt in the cold dark basement next to a cold oil burning furnace. With no idea what to do, almost audible I heard the words.

“Lay your hands on it.”

I thought it was crazy. Maybe I was freezing to death, and my mind was playing tricks. But, what did I have to lose?

 I stretched out shivering fingers and touched the cold dead furnace. A rumbling sounded, like a hundred bowling balls rolling, slow. I jerked my hand back, startled. But then I reached out again…and felt the warmth of the most beautiful blaze.

I could go on and would if time would allow. I’d tell you about the time my toddler, Travis fell off the top of the slide, a split second after I had whispered a prayer of protection. He cried so hard, but not because he was hurt—because he spilled his cup of soda. And I could tell you how a drunk bumped us from behind as we traveled about fifty miles an hour down a dark icy freeway. He spiraled out of control and sent several cars into the ditch. We fishtailed like through an icy maze, but managed to stay between the ditches. Was it simply good driving or did Jesus take the wheel?

You, too, could list near misses; moments that could have turned out so wrong, but ended up all-right.

But everything is nothing, compared to what I really want to share.

The ultimate experience is when someone steps in front of a bullet that was meant for you.

I knew better but I did it anyway. I’d gone where I shouldn’t have gone. I’d done what I shouldn’t have done. I’d said what I shouldn’t have said and thought what I shouldn’t have thought. I know this. I had it coming. But He took my place. He stood in the gap and paid the price.

On an old rugged tree my Savior died for me and by His grace I’ve been saved from hell for eternity.

He took the bullet for me…for you.

~

Wet Sheets

He knew he shouldn’t wet the bed at his age. He tried everything to quit. He wouldn’t drink anything after supper. He always went to the bathroom – real hard – before he went to bed. But, those dreams, tricked him. They seemed so real. He would wake up, get up and walk to the bathroom – just like he was supposed to. But, most every morning – when he found the wet sheets – he’d realize he had only been dreaming. And the helplessness he’d feel usually caused the lip to quiver and the dam to break. And, that’s how Ricky started most of his days.  

But, that all changed, in an instant. Family friends stopped by for a visit. They stayed for supper, and by the time they were ready to leave, a good old fashioned Minnesota blizzard had set in. The roads were simply too dangerous – company was going to stay.

When five year old Matthew said, “We’re spending the night! Oh goody, I can sleep with Ricky in his bed,” Ricky felt sick. His lip started to quiver.

Ricky went straight to his room and plopped on his single bed and hugged his pillow. He could smell the fresh clean sheets. Clean because he had just washed them that morning and the morning before that and the morning before....

He had learned to do his own laundry.  It had become an unpleasant morning chore. Sometimes he’d wake up long before everyone else and sneak down to the basement and wash his wetted sheets and clothes, and then he’d sneak back upstairs and make his bed and put on clean pajamas. Then he’d lay in bed and watch the night turn to day. He’d pretend he was waking up after a good night’s sleep – dry. He longed to sleep through the night and wake up dry – especially tonight.

His lip quivered and the river flowed – from his eyes. The words from the kids at school echoed in his head; cry baby’s quiver – here comes the river. Ricky rolled over on his back, hugged the batman pillow over his face, and wept…What am I gonna do? I’ll just stay awake all night. I won’t allow myself to go to sleep… God don’t let me fall asleep. This kid is younger than me and he probably doesn’t wet the bed. What will the kids at school say…cry baby’s quiver here comes TWO rivers… and one’s yellow. Laughter like a million voices pulsed in Ricky’s head. God help me…Ricky groaned.

A soft knock at the door jolted Ricky back to the present. Using his pillow he quickly wiped away the tears and jumped up.  He pretended to be looking out the window. The door slowly opened.

“What’s up Bud?” His Dad whispered and wiped a stray tear from the boys’ cheek.  

Ricky held his breath and looked at the door expecting, the kid, to walk in.

“He’s still downstairs.” His Dad comforted. 

Ricky’s lip started its quiver and he quickly looked out the window to hide the water works welling.

His Dad knelt on one knee and looked out the window, too. “A little nervous?” He said it like it was no big deal. Not like it was the end of the world – which it was.

Ricky sucked in a breath and whispered, “Yeah”

Then his Dad whispered, “If you don’t want to…just ask God.” Then, he waited.

Ricky, shifted his weight back and forth, starred out the window, wiped his nose with his sleeve and whispered out the window toward the wind. “Dear…” His voice broke and bottom lip took off on a beat of its own. He spun around into his father’s arms and wept, “Please God, make me stop wetting the bed.”

An eternity passed. And Ricky’s Dad stood. And spoken as a matter-of-fact he said, “OK, now you won’t…anymore.” He patted Ricky’s head, turned and walked out the door. End of story.  

Ricky tilted his head and stared at the space where his Dad just stood. How does he know? How can he be so sure? He’d never known his Dad to lie. So, hmmm – it must be true.

It was. From that day to this, never again did Ricky wet the bed.

This story is true. I know – because it’s about me. And it’s about you, too. We all have stains.

I’m glad – real glad – I still don’t wet the bed, but there’s more for me to be thankful for than just that.

I realized that day; God cares for me – even little bitty boy stuff.  

I also found out, time and again, from that day to this:

When I have a test,

I give it to God – then rest.

He takes a hold of the reign;

Then He gives it back again.

But, it comes back only,

As a testimony.

~

God works

I feel so fortunate that the Creator of the Universe lets me talk to Him, that He wants to talk with me. I have so much I could say about prayer that it would take a whole bunch of posts.

So I decided to focus on just one specific area that God's worked in my life, much to my amazement, through prayer during these last few years. It's in the area of marriage.

You may not be at all like me. You may be an optimistic, outgoing, self-secure individual who came from a healthy, loving, stable Christian family. Well, like I said, that's not me. But I am so grateful that God works in our lives and we don't have to stay the same.

When my husband John and I wed in 2005, I was determined to not make the same mistakes that I'd insanely repeated through much of my life.

I know John and know that he prays for me daily. His prayers have resulted in some basic truths finally getting through to me (I didn't happen to have the family background where I learned the basic skills for a successful marriage). I've learned that you can not change another human being. I've also learned that every single person on the planet can be annoying sometimes and you just have to extend one another a lot of space and grace. So, instead of nagging my poor beloved, or pushing for my way when something was important to me, I committed myself to be quiet and pray.

Guess what happened?

God worked. He has done such a better job at things than I ever could have demanded, manipulated, controlled, or coerced into happening. I can let go and let God work instead of thinking the whole world is on my shoulders and that I have to be responsible for everything. I commented on David's post on Monday about how when I read passages in the Bible such as Ephesians 6:12 and Daniel 10:12-14 my awareness of the spiritual realm is increased. I believe that prayer is one of God's ways for us to work in that spiritual realm. John's prayers on my behalf have been fruitful and God is working in me, changing me; from the inside out.

It's also been cool when situations arise where I want so much to argue with John and push for something, I can just be quiet and go pray. A really light weight example (because who wants to share the heavy weight ones?) of this happened this past year. John grew up with a dad who didn't like pets and they never had pets, so John didn't learn to enjoy animals in his life. During our first year that we moved here my younger two sons and myself acquired a 5 month old dog from the local animal shelter. As John was looking toward retiring this past year, he told me that he didn't want this dog (Jake) to be a part of our household when he would be now be at home so much of the time. Well, if you're a dog person you know that 3 years with a dog makes him a part of your heart. Yet it's not like I could choose the dog over John. So I was quiet and prayed. A year later John has retired and Jake is still here. John is crazy about that dog and spoils him more than it would ever enter my mind to do. God changed John's heart. As we were out hiking this past week and we were watching Jake run up the steep mountain that John and I were slowly making our way up, John commented on how much joy this goofy dog brings into our lives.

What about you, what are some ways God's worked in your marriage through prayer?

Prayer - Leveraging the Kingdom and Talking to God

I confess, for many years I thought prayer was throwing thoughts and hopes into the supernatural realms with no way of knowing how it would be received, or even if it would be received, in Heaven, In AA they told me to only pray of the knowledge of His will. In the evangelical church they told me that everything I needed to know about His will was in the Bible.

Prayer was sort of a religious thing to do in hopes of receiving a hard to get blessing. Hopefully, this week; your Kingdom Bloggers will shed some light on how, and why they pray.

When I was a kid I used to wish for stuff - a new bike, dad would quit drinking, that I would get past "Go" in Monopoly, Linda would ask me to dance instead of me asking her at the 8th grade hop - stuff like that. It seems like I was expressing my hopes for luck. And truthfully, most of it didn't work out. I used the same mentality once I got saved, wrapping my prayers to my Heavenly Father with or "Lord" and ending them, "in Jesus' name." If I was really religious, I might say "Lord God." The results were not much better than the wishes of my youth.

Early on I was washed to and fro by life.When things were going good I was blessed. And when they weren't, I was cursed. Prayer didn't seem to change much. I honestly didn't know much about the Bible, but I was reading it. I read it a lot in fact. I didn't know a lot about prayer, but I did listen to guys pray on the retreats. Of course we ended every AA meeting with the Lord's prayer.

In 1982 I read a book entitled, Nine o'Clock in the Morning. I read about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and the power that was supposed to be in it. I asked the Anglican Priest at my church, and he smiled. We went to the altar to ask for this phenomenon of the Christian faith. Wow, that changed a lot of things.

It seemed that I could hear God better - I just seemed to know things. I was more passionate in worship services. The Bible made a lot more sense to me, and oh, I could really pray with a new found fervency! This fire seemed unquenchable.

I remember going to my first - we'll call it what is was - Charismatic prayer meeting. It was bunch of Episcopalians (WASPs if you are my age, and not too PC) sitting on the floor in the fellowship hall chattering away in unknown languages. Crazy, I know - but stay with me. They were praying for a little guy about 4-years-old with a club foot. He got healed that night. On another occasion, there was a guy, a big biker type fellow there with the WASPs. He had a Devil tattoo on his arm. That night, during more of this prayer, it was gone! Completely gone!

I keep telling myself, prayer has power.

I thought I would try out this prayer thing-a-ma-bob. There was a gal I knew in AA, and one evening we were smoking cigarettes, and she was coughing up a storm - it was bronchitis. I asked God to heal her. It was gone right then and there. Her eyes were as big as the tires on a monster truck - mine too. She stopped smoking too. You know, I was thinking, there is something to this prayer. I prayed up a storm - I got right in the devil's face - I did. HERE is much more on that story.

I keep telling myself, prayer needs God's direction.

I prayed and prayed and prayed - even when I didn't have the words - I prayed. But the fire died down, things got tough, and I checked out for a while. Prayer without a growing relationship is like leaving a tape playing for your family to listen to over and over. It's all very one-sided.

I keep telling myself, prayers are not so we can get God to do a parlor trick, they are so that we can advance the Kingdom of God.

Some years later, I was having sort of a personal revival. I went to meeting in New Haven,CT a few hundred miles from my home. There was a guy there praying for folks. He came to me and said. I see that you don't pray like you used to. If you'll pray, you'll see miracles, and be happy. I knew what He was talking about.

I learned: Prayer is like breathing for the Christian. Sometimes it is relaxed and easy, other times we are huffing and puffing to make it one more step. But we never stop.

So I began prayer walking. I walked th beach, the mall, the street and prayed. I built up my spirit and I began to pray about situation that seemed impossible, and God would answer. I began to hear his voice more and more. So I prayed more and more. I can't explain, but my faith began to explode. I would walk up to folks and know what to pray for - then God would do it. There was a blind man selling pencils on Main St., could I pray for him and see him healed? I didn't do it. There was a drug addict that died in the parking lot of my building, I could have prayed for him to be raised from the dead? I didn't even try. I bet Thomas would have.

I learned: Prayer takes faith which I didn't always have.

I did became more and more confidant. I studied healing, and prophesy, and the spiritual gifts and I prayed for people - lots of people. Things didn't happen every time, but they did happen a lot of the time. I was getting quite good results working the ministry lines at church and on mission trips. Honestly, I was more amazed than those receiving the ministry.

I keep telling myself, God can use even a screwed up guy like me - one with many faults, average intelligence and an impetuous nature.

When I went to Norway, I had 32 folks praying for me daily! It is no wonder so much amazing stuff happened!

My own prayers for myself were a lot tougher. I thought I knew how I wanted things to turn out.  I prayed for knowledge, wisdom, forgiveness, faith, relief from my shame and for my family and friends. It was frustrating getting into a groove with God. Honestly, as learned to hear God, and be obedient, to pray things through, I started to see the situation in my life differently. The Lord was gracious as He told me what car to buy, what house to live in, where to go to church, what to say to my kids. I prayed for answers, and I got them.

A real prayer life is not about the amount of prayers, but the quality of those prayers based on the knowledge of God's will. I pray for His will a lot, but I always press God for details before making a decision.

I have had the pleasure to see my kids learn the same lessons, to trust God, and expect Him to answer. They have more faith than I do most of the time.

One summer day were at the beach near our house.The girls were 5 and 8 at the time. A young man was playing Frisbee and disappeared into the lake. Everyone was in a panic, and some of the kids playing the game found him unconscious beneath the surface; dragging him onto the lake shore screaming and yelling..There was a nurse and she started to give him mouth to mouth, but nothing. My oldest simply walked over and laid hands on his foot, and prayed for life. To everyone's amazement, mine included, he coughed up water, and actually sat up.

I keep telling myself, sometimes I think we just need to pray less,with more faith.


How do you pray?

Hauoli Makahiki Hou...God is Aloha.

Anybody who has known me through my forty-five years in this world probably would say one of two things: 1. He's the luckiest person I've ever met, or 2. God must have a dedicated squad of angels watching over that guy.

Depending where on the timeline of my spiritual walk I happened to be determined my own view of the matter at that given point. You might say I've really pushed the envelope most of my life. Physically I've slowed down quite a bit in recent years, but boy how do I pay for all those earlier stunts from younger days.

I was always the one to dive in and do or try absolutely anything...and still am to some degree. With no regards for safety or sanity, it's no wonder I chose the Marine Corps as a means to serve my country (and pay for my education I might add). Because when it comes to adrenaline rushes and taking things to the extreme, Marines lead the way.

I was stationed at the Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station on New Years Eve in 1987/88 when a devastating floor ravaged the island of Oahu. It's hard to imagine an island flooding, but keep in mind all the Hawaiian islands follow the same template with high mountains in the center sloping rapidly to ocean level. After several days of steady rain, a torrential downpour sent many metric tons of water rushing through valleys and literally taking everything in the path with it to the ocean.

Neighborhoods that were ill-equipped to handle the excessive amount of water became flooded and littered with debris that included dead livestock washed from higher elevations. It was a natural disaster that the windward side of the island didn't have a plan to address...and the state government knew it.

As luck would have it, yours truly was the Officer of the Day on duty at the time a plea for help came from the state, so it became my job to rally the troops. I don't think it would surprise you to hear that finding a sober Marine on New Years eve is a fairly daunting task, but after an hour or so, I managed to put together about 50 fit Marines and a couple of dozen heavy hauling trucks and tracked vehicles to venture out and help.

After working through most of the night and next morning, we had literally moved dozens of households to safer accommodations. The water had continued to rise through the entire process and was getting close to roof line levels. There was one house in particular that would end up causing me added problems. Water was at 5 feet and rising when one Marine swam in to check out for people inside. He came back out of the house to inform me there was a man inside who was refusing to leave. Without thinking, I dove into the water from the truck and entered the house.

Now God has blessed me in a number of ways in my life, but the blessing of height is not one of those blessings. So in 5 feet of rushing water, I'm swimming instead of walking. When I reached the door going into the house, I noted the water was coming up rather steadily and would soon cover the top of the doorway. I paddled through to find a man on top of his refrigerator clinging desperately to a box. Inside the box was a collection of 8 or so bottles of liquor...I'm not talking high-end, top shelf stuff either...cheap liquor.

He emphatically insisted he was not leaving without the box. After back and forth banter for a minute or so, I went back through the doorway to recruit help with his extraction. Unfortunately, the house right next door was sliding from its foundation while a couple were on the rooftop with the house breaking apart beneath them, so all my potential reinforcements had shifted to conduct yet another hasty rescue. I was on my own. Before going back through the doorway, I stopped to collect myself and asked God to help me do what I needed to do. My spiritual walk was seriously lacking during this time in my life, but not so much that I didn't know I was going to need God's help.

Back in I went. I firmly told the local man that if he didn't swim to me...he was going to drowned in his house. The water had come up another half foot or so. He started crying and clinging to the box more firmly and declared in a panicked voice that he couldn't swim. I know... you are thinking the same thing I did at the time...how do you live in Hawaii and not know how to swim? I made my way over to him and told him to relax and let me drag him through the water and out of the house. As he continued to become more and more distraught, I knew drastic measures were needed...without another thought, I knocked him out.

By this time, I had to literally dive under the top of the doorway with 'box man' in tow. It would have been near impossible to bring him out while fighting him at the same time. I acted in the most natural way for me without regards to the numerous potential consequences. It could have turned out a number of different ways...several of which would have resulted in both of us dying that day.

Several months later, I was recognized by the State of Hawaii for leading the rescue effort which resulted in a face-to-face meeting with the Governor at the time, John Waihee. There were so many acts of bravery during the flood by so many different people. But for some peculiar reason, the one I just shared with you took on a life of its own. As I was shaking Govenor Waihee's hand at an awards ceremony, he said in his thick Hawaiian accent, 'God favors you young man. He was watching over you during those days.' He had heard about the incident himself. Standing very close by was the very man that I had assaulted and nearly drowned trying to rescue. He was crying and holding the hand of his grandson that I got the privilege to later meet. I've never accepted compliments well in my life...it's one of my many shortcomings. But I remember distinctly at that moment instead of pride, I felt a sense of embarrassment. Today I understand why...

What happened that day had nothing to do with me. God knew the type of person that needed to be at that very spot at that very moment. He used me just being me for His own purpose. Let me go another step. The words Gov. Waihee spoke to me that day had a reaching and profound effect on me. Most Hawaiians are not known for following a Christian faith, but I later learned in a personal letter that Gov. Waihee was a committed Christian man. What he said to me that day...he truly believed. I realized in my heart then that God had answered my prayer that day, and He was with me... as He had been through numerous other stunts, incidents or accidents in my life. A conflict within me started that would go on for 10 more years but ultimately result in a rededication of my life to Him.

My major regret today is that my own ignorance and stubbornness prevented me from giving God all the glory and credit while I had that stage in 1988. All I can do is make up for that today by sharing a story from my life where I know God was with me, and I could do it with so many other examples throughout my past forty-five years too. Each and every one an example of God watching over a pitiful wretch like me. I praise Him...I love Him...I worship Him...and I thank Him for being God.

Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34 NIV

Picking out a single answered prayer incident to share is very difficult. For a cancer survivor, it seems almost sacrilegious not to talk about the numerous prayers answered during that time in my life, but the same could be said for a number of incidents/times in my life.

One thing that has drastically changed in my prayer life recently is that my prayers are focused more on other people and less on me (see Tony C Today post). In that light, I want to share an answered prayer I lifted on the behalf of someone else.

It's a genuine compliment for someone to ask me to pray for them. I know we often use the phrase to the point of near cliche, but I've also come to realize that praying for others was an example Christ displayed while hanging on the cross. Do I really need any more motivation than that to lift others in prayer?

Not that long ago, there were three separate people on my daily prayer list that had lost their jobs. They each had skills that made them very desirable employees, but the state of the economy had caused most companies in the country to freeze any additions. All three were convinced their unemployment could last quite a long time.

Being unemployed is scary enough, but being unemployed and in the 45-59 age demographic can be down right discouraging. I communicated with all three several times each week, and I could sense the disparity as another week came and went. I made the decision to make each man a priority in my prayers, and I would request prayer for them at every opportunity. All three were men of God, and I'm sure were praying for employment daily also.

As another week would pass, my intensity in prayer would grow. God will always provide for us if we submit and have faith; however, I also know the pressures of meeting daily living expenses and providing for your family can test a man's faith under crushing obligations and expectations.

Several months passed with no real prospects for the three. Unemployment figures were spiking, and the outlook was grim. Prayer intensity increased yet again.

Amazingly, in the same week, all three men received job offers! Prayer answered. One of the three actually received job offers from two different places, and each man accepted a job that actually had better pay and benefits than his previous employment. Praise God!

I left out part of this story for a reason, so let me back up for just a moment and cover a deeply personal blessing in all of this. Two of the three men lost their jobs on the exact same day... May 14th. The other had lost his two weeks prior. I was scheduled for a heart catheter procedure on the morning of May 15th. On the same day the two had lost their jobs, one sent me an email of encouragement and the other sent me a text message that evening. The third man came to see me at my office the following week to see how the procedure had gone.

Unfortunately, I didn't get the email until a couple of days after my procedure (pre-BlackBerry), but that fact didn't dampen my appreciation in the slightest. The text message literally brought me to tears. I sat on my couch when it arrived and thanked God for people who thought of others before themselves and prayed that I too could be like that at all times....just like Jesus.

That text came from one of this blog's co-writers, David Johndrow. My drive to be a better, selfless prayer warrior comes from the example Christ gave on the cross...and from the example these three men live in their Godly lives thinking of others.

I know many others prayed for me also (like Dave Tvedt, our other co-writer), and I truly am thankful for each prayer sent on my behalf. I also believe with all my heart that God is using our online connections with one another, as Christians, to provide an opportunity for us to encourage, testify to His love, and to evangelize in His name.

Please allow me the privilege of lifting you up to Him in prayer when a need arises. I'm just an email, tweet, Facebook message, instant message, or text away...oh yeah...I still take phone calls too.

GRRRR! God is Faithful

God is faithful. Without a doubt He is quick to respond to my pleas for holiness. The Will of God is my Sanctification, my living in Self-Control and He is faithful to see to it that I strive for nothing less. No matter where I am or who I am with, God desires for me to be Holy. He asks of me to be unselfish, willing to yield to Him as well as others. To pursue peace with all, even when it doesn't suit me. Whenever I pray the big prayers, soon after I am given the "good fortune" of walking the Walk.

I should know by now that He will not hesitate to give me opportunities to Glorify His name through me. In the past, I have prayed to be a better husband, a better dad, a better friend, a better servant of Jesus.... I am given the chance to do just that. When I have prayed to be a better husband, within hours I am asked by my wife to do something with her or for her when I am wanting to be left alone. When I have asked Jesus to help me be a better dad, my kids are at their worst behavior. When I pray to be a better friend, that's when I get a call from someone needing prayer during the end of football game. When I tell Jesus that I want to serve Him more, that is when I am asked by someone to give them a ride, help them move or run an errand for them.

It is a lot easier to be Christ like when things are going smooth as opposed to being caught up in life's struggles. It is easy to be a good husband when I want to. It is easy to a good dad when the kids are well behaved and affectionate. It is easy to be a reliable friend when it's convenient and I can easily "schedule it in".

But Jesus aint about making my life easy. He is all about making my life better. When I am so full of the King that the slop and slime of Dave is not visible, then my life is better. When I am holy, I won't have to deal with the consequences of my stupidity or selfishness. Also, when I am walking in the Love of Jesus and not the love for dave, life is better for those around me. They are the ones who benefit most by my obedience to Lord Jesus. When God is Faithful to answer my prayers for Holiness, those around me will see Jesus when they see less of me.

May all who fear you find in me a cause for joy, for I have put my hope in your word. I know, O Lord, that your regulations are fair; you disciplined me because I needed it. Now let your unfailing love comfort me, just as you promised me, your servant. Psalm 119:74-76

Seeing Red - God Knows Your Need Before You Ask!

The following story is an excerpt contained in my book - From Darkness to Light - God and Cars

There came a time when I was unemployed. In the midst of my lay-off, I lost my company car. As I stood watching from my bedroom window, listening the sound of clanking chains and whirring hydraulic pistons, the tow truck came and took it away.

It was a tough time. I was renting a room just after my divorce. I had lost a job working for the company that I sold my Internet start-up to. I hadn't even had a chance to open a new bank account. The prospect of a car loan without a job was a stretch.

I honestly didn’t know what I was going to do, and I needed wheels.

The next day I borrowed a car from a friend at church to do some errands over the weekend. My daughter Erin and I were chatting as we stopped here an there. She was in the third-grade at the time. At 8-years-old she had gotten radically baptized in the Holy Spirit; showing a real propensity to hear from God. She turned to me and said, “Dad, don’t worry about the car, you are going to get a check for $2000 -- no $3000.”

I remember thinking that is such a long shot. I just looked over at her and smiled. Apparently my smile gave away my lack of faith. “No, really, God says.” She added.

I was regularly running a young adults group -- 13 to 33 -- that was hosted by a couple from my church. These kids were somewhat outcast from the regular congregation. They found Jesus in the excitement of the Holy Spirit’s presence.

Over the months prior, I had been teaching them about about character, faith, prayer and the spiritual gifts. Some of them were learning to pray for healing and others were prophesying. At the end of the meeting that Tuesday night, I asked them if they would pray for me. As a minister, I don’t often ask for prayer from those that I am ministering to. However; this night the Holy Spirit was exceptionally present during our meeting - I thought I'd take my chances.

One of the girls began. “I am seeing a small car.”

Another added, "I see you with money, yes, you are going to have a car by the weekend."

"Wow! If this is God, I can't wait." I thought to myself.

I got a ride home from a friend that was co-leading the meeting. He wasn’t very convinced that the prayers were of God. I shrugged my shoulders as I walked up my driveway - I wasn't so sure I was convinced either. I tossed a few worship CDs in the changer, got in bed and trialed off to sleep listening to Robin Mark and David Ruis.

The next day; Wednesday, I spoke with my pastor, and asked if he knew where I could find a car. Honestly, I was “fishing” hoping that the church would help me out in my time of need. He said he didn’t know, but he’d be willing to give me a ride to get some groceries and drop by my Post Office box. I was hoping that my unemployment check would be there so I could get it in the bank.

I twisted the key to the box lock and reached in grabbing a few pieces of mail and a couple of ad circulars; no unemployment check. There was a credit card statement and a letter from my mother. It seemed odd to receive a letter from my mother. We spoke regularly on the phone; usually about once or twice a week. She would always send a birthday card, which was a long way off, and a Christmas gift, which I had already received. I hadn’t told her about the car in our last few calls, but she did know that I was unemployed. I opened the letter, which read.

“David, I was praying for you, and I decided to send you this check. Enjoy life! I Love you, Mom”

I was so stunned I kept reading the amount. “Three thousand dollars and no/cents: $3000! I went and got in the pastor’s car-- I could barely talk. I just held the check out for him to read. “Well,” he said, handing me a folded check, “Here is what the church is able to do to help.” After he dropped me off, I unfolded his check which was in the amount of $150-- the exact amount I would need to pay the sales tax on a $3000 car.

I called my daughter and she was very excited that I had received the check just has she had spoken. “I told you, Dad!” she quipped.

“Thanks honey - hey, what color is my new car?” I asked.

“Green!” she replied.

“Are you sure?”

“Ummm, no, actually that is my favorite color. God said it's red.”

“OK. Thanks, I love you” I said as I hang up.

That night I met with the young adults group again. We got together almost every night. I made an arrangement to look for cars the next day with one of them who was not working. He and I stopped at one place, and I drove a red two-seater - well it was kind of maroon. It was more money than I had, but I liked the car and thought maybe I could negotiate a lower price. I took it for a spin, but the clutch was making noise and I decided against purchasing it. I stopped by a few used car lots, looking at mostly red and green cars. Nothing stood out to me, and everything was out of my price range.

The next day the parents of one of the younger kids in my group offered me a car to go looking again. I hit a few of the smaller lots around town. There was one that always seemed to have cars in my range—two to three thousand dollars. I pulled in, eyeing a beautiful green 4-door sedan. It was loaded with every option, leather seats and priced at $3295. So, I asked to take it for a ride. Alone, as I drove around town, I decide to call one of the girls in my group that seemed to have a real prophetic gift. “I am test driving a car, what do you think?” I didn’t give her any information.

She replied, “I had a dream last night about you driving a red 4-door, is it red?”

“No,” I said, “its not.”

I went back to the lot to look around a bit more. There were a couple of other red cars; only one was in my price range. I asked for an ignition key, the salesman put a dealer plate on it, and away I went. The car, a Mazda Protegé, void of all creature comforts -- not even a radio or automatic transmission -- oddly it had A/C.

As I negotiated traffic, trying out the brakes, shifting gears and testing the acceleration, I reached over to see if the A/C worked. As I touched the switch, I heard that still small voice. “You can drive this car to Florida.”

This was an odd confirmation to my friend’s dream-- but it was a red 4-door sedan for $3295. I decided that I was pretty sure I had the right car, the one the God wanted me to have. As I sat at the traffic light just before the dealer’s parking lot, I decided to put out a "fleece" like Gideon did. "Lord, if the salesman will give it to me for $3000, I will take it. Amen" That was my prayer in Jesus' name.

I stepped out of the car and the salesman came over. “I’ll take it for $3000.” I said.

As we walked into his office, he said, “Oh, I don’t think that I can do anything on the price.”

I pulled out the cashiers check for $3000 and put on his desk facing him. “I have cash, and I have it now.” I said. “I am going to buy a car before the weekend; do I need to keep looking?”

“I was going to change the oil, and put new wiper blades on it, but if you want it like it is, then we have a deal.” He reached over to shake my hand.

“We have a deal.” I said. After a few minutes he slid the purchase agreement across the desk and I signed it. Then he passed the title of ownership to me with a sales receipt. I took them to the Registry of Motor Vehicles and got my plates. It was Friday about 3. I had a car, a red 4-door - and right before the weekend!

Thank you Jesus!

Just a few months later, my plane tickets were canceled for a vacation I was planning with my kids. So, we got in the little red Mazda and drove it from Cape Cod to Orlando and back! Let me tell you, the A/C was very enjoyable that warm week in April.