The Power of Jesus’ Name
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:16.
Christ is our pattern, the perfect and holy example that has been given us to follow. We can never equal the Pattern, but we may imitate and resemble it according to our ability. When we fall, all helpless, suffering in consequence of our realization of the sinfulness of sin; when we humble ourselves before God, afflicting our souls by true repentance and contrition; when we offer our fervent prayers to God in the name of Christ; we shall as surely be received by the Father as we sincerely make a complete surrender of our all to God. We should realize in our inmost soul that all our efforts in and of ourselves will be utterly worthless, for it is only in the name and strength of the Conqueror that we shall be overcomers.
If we believe in the power of Jesus’ name, and present our petitions to God in His name, we shall never be turned away. . . . Our help cometh from God, who holds all things in His own hands. Our peace is in the assurance that His love is exercised toward us. If faith grasps this assurance, we have gained all; if we lose this assurance, all is lost. When we surrender all we have and are to God and are placed in trying and dangerous positions, coming in contact with Satan, we should remember that we shall have victory in meeting the enemy in the name and power of the Conqueror. Every angel would be commissioned to come to our rescue when we thus depend upon Christ rather than that we should be permitted to be overcome.
But we need not expect to get the victory without suffering, for Jesus suffered in conquering for us. While we suffer in His name, while we are called upon to deny appetite, and to withdraw ourselves from lovers of pleasure, we should not murmur, but should rather rejoice that we are privileged in a very small degree to be partakers with Christ of the trial, the sacrifice, the self-denial, and the suffering that our Lord endured on our behalf that we might obtain eternal salvation.
That I May Know Him p. 265
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Prayer Requests
—– My shoulder is exactly where they want it for 8 weeks out of surgery! I am to ditch the sling unless I am in large crowded areas. But he said I should wear it at school for a couple more weeks. Especially at recess. He also the next 2-3 months are the worst for reinjury because there is little pain. So keep praying that I am careful and heal properly! Thanks for all the prayers so far! Shiloh
—–“Last Wednesday we saw the Dr. and she said Jim wasn’t tolerating the aggressive chemo so she was going to take him off of it to give him a quality of life. We asked her how long he would have to live if he didn’t take it and she said up to 6 months! She also said that because it was in his liver and a stage 4 he would never be able to have surgery to remove the tumor on his pancreas! Needless to say, we were devastated and this has been a horrible week. Jim had another CT scan Thursday and we got the results today. She said the spot on the liver is not there anymore and although the tumor has not shrunk anymore neither has it grown or more have appeared. She is also getting us another appt with the surgeon in _____ to reevaluate him, to have more tests done and maybe there is hope after all of him getting surgery. We continue to thank each of you for your many prayers and support. We still believe God is going to send us a miracle. Jenny and Jim” Pray they will be able to remove the tumor from his pancreas. Pray none of the cancer will ever come back. . . . . Nothing is impossible for God. I pray God will bless with peace and joy in this difficult time. Fran
—– Please pray for me – I’ve got some stuff (good stuff) coming up that I need all the support I can get on! LB
—– Of my nine brothers I only have three left. My brother Richard is having heart cath today. All prayers would be appreciated. He is 81 and not in the best of health. Nancy
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Dear Friends
Until I was 10, I was raised by my grandparents, Edwin and Ida Harmon. My grandfather had his own special room where he could relax and keep his stuff. He had a big overstuffed chair that was very comfortable and in the evening he would relax in that chair and read his magazines, when I was outside playing, that is. Whenever I came inside, he put them in his drawer and told me stories of his experiences, made shadow pictures against the wall, played a drawing game, etc.
I knew why he always put his magazines out of the way when I came into his room. Those magazines were not “children rated.” However, while he was at work and my grandmother was in the kitchen (where she spent most of her time), I would look at grandpa’s magazines. Many of them were about hunting and fishing, but one was called Adventure Magazine. The drawings in that one were really scary. He also had a Time-Life book about World War II that was even scarier. That book had very graphic pictures from the war. They frightened me and fascinated me at the same time. I spent hours looking carefully at horrifying picture after horrifying picture until they became indelibly etched in my mind. Even today, just the thought of some of them makes me shudder.
How cruel war is! How cruel is the heart of mankind without the Spirit of God dwelling there. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, how little they realized the results of their disobedience. It was such a little test, but what gigantic results. It was such a small act of disobedience, but it was a pivotal moment in their experience. From that small act, came a great change upon every aspect of our world.
Before the fall, Adam and Eve had good fellowship with their Creator. At the time for evening worship, He came to this small planet in His great universe and conversed with them. But after their disobedience, hearing Him walking in the garden brought a new feeling to their heart. It was a feeling of fear and dread. God’s Word tells us, “And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden. And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?” Gen 3:8-11
God knew what had happened, but He wanted them to acknowledge their transgression and ask for the forgiveness that they so much needed. Instead, Adam blamed Eve and Eve blamed the serpent, and, ultimately they were blaming God. “And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.” vs 12-14
How good and kind our Loving Father is! Before He told His erring children of the consequences of their sin, He gave them the promise of a Saviour! “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” vs 15 “Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. vs 16-19
From that one little sin, the close communion they had had with God became a more distant one. They could no longer hold face-to-face conversation with their Maker. They could no longer live in their garden home. “Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” vs 22, 23
From that point, the war that had begun in Heaven began to be fought here upon this planet. (Rev 12:7-9) Adam and Eve’s sweet harmony was broken. Worse still, their firstborn son murdered his brother. “And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.” 1 John 3:12 How those grieving parents must have wished that they had never listened to the evil one’s temptings.
From that moment the world began to deteriorate and mankind became “worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.” 2 Tim 3:13 Praise God! He does not leave us in such a pitiful state. He has provided a Way out of the war “against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Eph 6:12 Jesus is the “way, the truth, and the life.” John 14:6 His Great Heart of Love yearns over us offering His Grace and Mercy if we will reach out and accept it. He will help us resist the devil that goes about as a roaring lion to devour us. (1 Peter 5:8) He will protect and guide us.
Let us thank Him for sacrificing His own life, so that we may have a restored relationship with our Creator. Let us serve Him from a heart full of gratitude and love for all He has done for us. Let us place our weak and trembling hand in His strong and mighty hand, and let Him lead us to His Heavenly Kingdom is my prayer.
Rose