It’s a common occurrence to hear about people who are suffering?
- from the loss of a spouse or child.
- struggling with cancer and/or effects of the treatment.
- estranged relationships.
- mental illness.
- a lapse in faith.
- financial difficulties.
- self-esteem issues.
- depression.
- addictions.
Unfortunately, there are too many to mention. Let’s face it, we live in a fallen world!
Upon hearing about a person’s troubles the majority of people in this world have empathy and concern. It’s easy to pick out the “non-believer” because their usual response is “I will keep them in my thoughts”.
I am not exactly sure how that is supposed to help the person suffering. Do they have a wishing well they throw a coin into or are they just saying that they have empathy for them? Does one’s “thoughts” provide any significance to the outcome of the situation?
From believers you might hear, “I will keep them in my prayers” because believers understand the power of prayer. But then you have the “timid” believer who will respond with “I will keep them in my thoughts and prayers” just in case they are talking to a “non-believer”. I cast no judgement because I was a timid believer prior to my “spiritual awakening” (born again). I wanted to acknowledge my belief in God but I didn’t want to offend a fellow human in case they were a “non-believer”. So, I included the word “thoughts” to cover my bases. How polite of me!
Confidence in Prayer
Believers are confident in their prayer because in 1 John 5:14 we read “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”
In one ear and out the other
But how many of us believers actually “remember” to pray for a person after we hear about their struggles? Unfortunately, the expression “in one ear and out the other” happens too frequently as we become easily distracted with our daily challenges.
A friend from Bible study caries a very small notebook. He writes down the name of people who are struggling with a short description of their suffering. For example, after hearing at a chance meeting with a neighbor in a grocery store of someone struggling, he records it in his notebook upon returning to his car. Later that evening, he and his wife will pray for the people recorded in his notebook.
I refer to my friend’s notebook as his “Yeti”. But not the type of Yeti you have heard about as a young child; that mysterious ape-like creature who lived in the Mountains of Asia better known as the Abominable Snowman.
The Yeti’s I am referring to are the things that remind you to pray for someone. I came up with the monicker “Yeti”; because one of one of my Yeti’s, is an actual thermos made from the company named “YETI” that specializes in outdoor products.
My son gave me a YETI thermos years ago when we were very close. Unfortunately, we have become estranged. Like most families in America we disagree on politics. People would say that’s ridiculous. Perhaps, but it’s pretty clear to me that one of our political parties has become antithetical to everything I read in the Bible. So for me, it is not as simple as favoring one sports team over another; it is about a spiritual warfare for the soul of this country. Which brings me to the “real” estrangement issue. I can’t accept that my son has become a “non-believer”. There’s no common ground to have a “genuine” relationship between believers and non-believers. Do I have friends/acquaintances who are non-believers? Yes, but they were not raised by me to believe in God only to turn their backs on Him later.
Believers understand the dread in the heart of a Christian parent of an “unbelieving” adult child. We love our children and above all else, we want to know that we will be sharing eternity with them in God’s presence. But we also know, that God gave them free-will and it scares us to the core to think our children choose this physical world over God. We use the only parenting tool we have left, prayer. Their hardened hearts might be beyond our reach, but they are never beyond God’s reach.
So that Yeti thermos filled with coffee goes to Bible study with me every week and I can’t help but look at it without asking God to turn my son back towards His light. Of course I yearn to have a close relationship with my son again, but not a superficial one. What good is it to have a relationship that does not survive the physical death of this world. I have other Yeti’s. My wife has photos of my son and me, strategically placed around the house including one on my night stand, to remind me to pray for him, . My son gets a lots of prayers, including the first thing every morning and each night as I go to bed! If we never reconcile in this life that would be very sad. But it really grieves my heart to think we may never be reunited in the next life because he chose to reject God.
In Revelations 5:8 we read … “And golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints“. Who are the saints? The Bible teaches us the saints are true believers who accept Jesus’ work on the cross that paid for our salvation. It is a righteous person who believes! We believers are the saints and not only do our prayers matter to God, He also treasures them. We are assured in James 5:16 “…The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”
One of our greatest callings as believers is to keep filling those golden bowls with prayers for our non-believing children, for the sick, for the lonely, for the depressed, for the poor, for the addicted, and for all who are suffering in this world. And may God accept our prayers and help to turn everyone we know and love, back towards Him so that we can all enjoy eternity in His presence together. – Amen
My Yeti’s are an actual Yeti thermos, photos and now a small prayer notebook. Please share the Yeti’s you have come to use?
Your comments are welcome – please review House Rules.
To protect your anonymity use a pseudo name.
Your email will not be seen, but a fake email is ok too.
Leave a Reply