Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Hovering Prayers

I have a philosophy of praying I call "hovering prayers". I'm not sure how theologically or Biblically sound this philosophy is, but I believe it's possible.
I think there are many prayers that God holds in this hovering zone until the time that they are needed. Intercessory prayers for strength, for guidance, for healing, or any other prayers we pray for others are often put in this "holding zone" until the time they are especially needed. Perhaps the circumstances are not in line yet for the prayers to be answered, or perhaps the person's heart is not yet right.
Then, when the timing is right and those prayers are needed in that person's life, the Lord "drops" those prayers down to touch the people and circumstances involved.
We often hear testimonies of people who attribute their spiritual awakening to the "persistent prayers of their grandmother" over the years. I think this could be an example of the "hovering prayers".
We all have our ideas about how God should answer our prayers, but so often God's answers come at a different time, in a different way than we anticipated. As these prayers are hovering, they are answered in the exact way and the exact time that God intends.

Sunday, March 12, 2006

Truth (with a capital T)

What I desire for myself, and for those I pray for and those I love, is Truth (with a capital T).

We so often think that truth is a certain denomination, a certain lifestyle, a certain vocabulary, and that it fits neatly into a tidy little box.
But, real Truth (with a capital T), is not protestant or Catholic, it is not male or female, it is not rich or poor, it is not black or white or any color or any age. It is not western culture, or eastern culture, or any one culture. It is not rural or urban.

To know real Truth is to throw out all our preconceived ideas of what truth is, and to know only and utmostly that Truth is represented in the person of Jesus Christ, and that that Truth crosses all barriers and all boundaries.

We all have cultural and learned truths (with a lower-case t) by which we govern our lives and our faith. Those are fine and perhaps necessary. But, when it comes to the overall picture, and to the sharing our faith with others, we must all fucus on the one actual Truth.