Prayer-Soldier Newbie
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Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2016 12:50 pm Post subject: The Strength He Gives His Disciples |
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The Strength He Gives His Disciples
Scripture:
Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all you that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all you that mourn for her. That you may suck, and be filled with the breasts of her consolations: that you may milk out, and flow with delights, from the abundance of her glory. For thus said the Lord: Behold I will bring upon her as it were a river of peace, and as an overflowing torrent the glory of the Gentiles, which you shall suck; you shall be carried at the breasts, and upon the knees they shall caress you. As one whom the mother caresses, so will I comfort you, and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. You shall see and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb, and the hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants, and he shall be angry with his enemies. ( Isaiah 66:10-14 )
But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails any thing, nor uncircumcision: but a new creature. And whosoever shall follow this rule, peace on them and mercy: and upon the Israel of God. From henceforth let no man be troublesome to me: for I bear the marks of the Lord Jesus in my body. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen. ( Galatians 6:14-18 )
And after these things, the Lord appointed also other seventy-two. And he sent them two and two before his face into every city and place whither he himself was to come. And he said to them: The harvest indeed is great, but the laborers are few. Pray, therefore, the Lord of the harvest that he send laborers into his harvest. Go: Behold I send you as lambs among wolves. Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. Into whatever house you enter, first say: Peace be to this house. And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon him: but if not, it shall return to you.
And in the same house, remain, eating and drinking such things as they have: for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Remove not from house to house. And into what city soever you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. And heal the sick that are therein and say to them: The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. But into whatsoever city you enter, and they receive you not, going forth into the streets thereof, say: Even the very dust of your city that cleaves to us, we wipe off against you. Yet know this, that the kingdom of God is at hand. I say to you, it shall be more tolerable at that day for Sodom than for that city.
And the seventy-two returned with joy, saying: Lord, the devils also are subject to us in your name. And he said to them: I saw Satan like lightning falling from heaven. Behold, I have given you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and upon all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall hurt you. But yet rejoice not in this, that spirits are subject unto you: but rejoice in this, that your names are written in heaven. ( Luke 10:1-12, 17-20 )
Reflection:
The Lord desires peace and prosperity for all the children of His creation, but the people bring misery and strife upon themselves when they turn away from Him and the blessings of His Word. His commandments are not burdensome, for they are commandments of love (1 John 5:2-4). They are not meant to oppress us, but encourage us to live pleasing to God and in care of one another. It is because of pride, envy, greed and selfish desires that people fall to the lures of the evil one and rationalize their transgressions with twisted logic. In the storm of sin, no one is free, because sin enslaves us to the realm of heartache and wretchedness.
Many are tempted to believe that happiness may be found through selfish pursuits, but no one can find eternal happiness in what is fleeting or which yields harm to those we are called to love. We cannot offend God and also expect His compassion; and yet, despite our sins, He continues to love us through His great grace and mercy. Could we imagine what the world would be if all the children of His creation would turn to Him and live by His Word? This is His desire for us.
The words which cross our lips do not have the same meaning as the effort which comes from our hands. We may profess a belief, but what is the meaning of our words if we provide no evidence of our commitment through what we do? (James 2:14-26) We should not fall to the temptation to judge ourselves as better than we are, for we are often blind to our failings; nor should we fall to the temptation to boast of our good works (Matthew 6:1-4), for if we believe in Him, our works are the obligation of our belief and the demonstration of our love for our Creator. (1 John 3:24, 1 John 5:2-3)
If we are judged by our iniquities, there would be no hope for us, for our sins are many and the temptations before us are stronger than our flesh. It is only by the strength of our Lord and Savior by which we have hope, for when He is within us, we are able to do that which we may not do alone. It is by His obedience to the Father by which our place in heaven was purchased. It is by this same strength, which we may only receive through our Lord, by which we may do what is just and shun the one who seeks the ruin of our souls.
We might be tempted to ask, but what can one person do? With all of the hunger, illness, crime, corruption and violence in the world; we might be tempted to believe there is no hope, that there is nothing we can change. To try is but a waste of time. It is easy to be the one to do nothing, for there is no help required for that. It is a deception of the evil one for us to believe we have nothing to contribute, for he counts on our blindness, our weakness, our lack of confidence and our fear.
What Satan does not want us to know is that with faith, we can make a difference in the revolt against his designs. What will come begins with our decision to give of ourselves to the work of the Lord. If we have faith, there is much we may accomplish (Matthew 17:20, Luke 17:5-6) when we choose to join our hands with His and encourage others to the same.
In prayer, let us ask Him for the wisdom, courage and strength by which we may set out to share the blessings of His work. Let us ask Him to guide us in how we may use the talents He created within us so we may share the blessings of civility, faith, hope, charity, and love. Let us ask Him to guide us in how we may lend our hands to the revolt against the ways and deceptions of the evil one.
May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier
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