This is the last in this series on who takes the initiative in seeking to either do God’s will or to attempt a God inspired event or act, God or Us. All too often we fail to take the initiative and often believe that if God wants us to do something he would tell us. If you haven’t read the first three articles, please do so before reading this last one.
In these articles on “Who Takes The Initiative” I have been trying to build a case for not waiting for God to command us to do something but rather to take the initiative in desiring God to approve what we see is a current or pending need. I have encountered many believers who have come to the false understanding that if God wants us to do something he will tell us. The point I made in the second article was that God created us to be like him and therefore he gave Adam the first task of naming the animals. God wanted us to take the initiative in creating and managing the world we are in. If you haven’t read the first two articles please do so before proceeding.
We have been exploring the significance of Elijah the prophet of Israel in 1 Kings 17. We are dealing with the events and repercussions of Elijah’s prophecy that there would be no rain in Israel until he prayed again. The drought went on for three and a half years, which enraged king Ahab who was a most wicked man. Our title focuses on “When The Brook Dries Up,” so I want to ask the question, “How Do We Handle” when God’s provision is taken away? How we answer this question will, in a large part, determine whether we move forward in our relationship with God or as some have coined the phrase, “Backslide” in that relationship. Please read the first two articles before proceeding.
We are looking into the life of Elijah to learn principles of how to walk strongly with God in a broken and twisted world. We always need to remember that the brokenness of the world shaped much of what we expect from a good life and often those beliefs are misleading and also very harmful in walking with God. If you haven’t read the first article on this subject please do so before reading this one.
This is the fourth and final part on dreams, so if you haven’t read the first three, please do so before reading this final article. Dreams are far more important than we have been led to believe and I believe they can be awakened and developed if we understand their importance.
Everyone dreams though not everyone remembers their dreams. Some people have learned to “Process” their dreams and they have found a way to remember what seems elusive to most of us. Dreams are a powerful tool in our lives whether we understand them or not. Some kids have grown up be afraid of their dreams because of perhaps having one particular dream that was more of a nightmare. Some have learned how to “Program” their minds to drift off to dream in a certain way or on a certain subject. Some people just discount dreams all together as a mystery that can’t be understood or just relate them to chemical changes in the body.
All of us experience worry, anxiety and fear from time to time. This is a human experience. These issues become a problem when they become long-standing “friends” that seem to bring about a paralysis in our spiritual and emotional development. When the average professing Christian reads the New Testament the picture that is portrayed is one of victory and success. All too often believers in the forgiveness of Christ aren’t yet sold on how God wants to impart victory as well as forgiveness.
When I travel around, especially in airports or overseas, I see many people who are paralyzed from various debilitating diseases and it hits me how fortunate and blessed I am to only have a few things wrong with my body that hinder my life experiences at this age. When I see a person who is partially broken or paralyzed I pray a simple prayer for them and myself. First, I apologize to the Lord for my complaining over small pains and problems and I also ask the Lord to bless that particular person with the obvious difficulties. That he or she would be healed both physically, emotionally and spiritually. So often I recognize they do better with their disabilities than I do with my seemingly normal life.
People have all kinds of methods of praying. Some feel they need to fold their hands. Some feel the need to kneel or lay prostrate on the floor or ground. Some lift their hand and heads, and others bow their heads. The question is ….. is there a right or wrong way to pray?
Some years ago, I had the privilege of visiting the Middle East, in particular, the land of Israel. While in Jerusalem, I went to the Western Wall also called the wailing wall, where people from all over the world come and bring their special prayers written on small pieces of paper to be put in the cracks between the stone. This wall is special because it is all that remains of Solomon’s original temple.
Before we had electricity, we had candles and oil lamps. It wasn’t for comfort so much as it was for the purpose of seeing in the dark. Spiritually, the same idea can be applied to prayer.
Candles have a way of making us feel warm and cozy even in warm weather. When visiting Hawaii recently, I would see candles and torches burning all over the place. Along the beach, at the pools, at restaurants and just about anywhere people want to set the mood of warmth and comfort. It also helps tourist spend money!
Since I grew up in a non-religious home, we didn’t go to church and light candles for others, but I was always curious why people did it. It is my understanding that Catholic’s and Orthodox Christians lite candles as a prayer for other people. For Jewish people they would light candles to start the sabbath at sun-down. For me I just like to light candles and watch the flames. I love camp fires to just sit and veg. Fires have such a hypnotic affect and I can almost melt watching the flames dance.
