Beach Ball Miracles

 

I’ve been teaching a Philosophy 101 class to my youngest son, David the last few months. Our main textbook has been one that came highly recommended by my friend Thomas Crisp who happens to be a philosophy professor at Biola University.

Last night we came to the chapter about the existence of God. In it, the author, Dr. Tom Morris, shares a little personal story about what happened to him one day on the beach at Lake Michigan with his family.

His little boy, Matt, who was only four years old, was playing with this beach ball. The wind was blowing pretty hard. He warned his son to hang on to it, and about that time the wind blew and whipped it out of his son’s hands and all the way across the lake. They stood and watched it disappear over the horizon together. 

Then his little boy looked up at him with tears in his eyes and said, “Daddy, if we pray then God will bring it back.”

To which he replied, “Well, that’s a thought.” But in his heart he simply said, “Poor kid. He doesn’t understand how the world works.”

He went and laid back down on his beach towel. But his son’s simple statement of faith kept bugging him. Why was it so easy for his son to believe in a miracle? Why was he so cynical?

Eventually, under his breath he said, “Ok, God. Bring his beach ball back.”

Then he laid back down and took a nap. 

About 45 minutes later he heard a boat motor. He stood up. The boat was all alone on the horizon. He suddenly felt an urge to raise his hands over his head in a circle and then point out to sea, where the ball had disappeared. He did that. Twice. The boat bobbed up and down for a while, and then it turned around and sped off.

“Whatever,” he thought, and laid back down on the towel.

On hour later, the sound of the boat returned. He stood up again. The boat was getting closer. He waded out into the cold waters of Lake Michigan. The boat inched closer. Eventually he got close enough to talk to the driver who bent down and stood up with a beach ball and said, “Is this yours?”

“Yes,” he said. Dumbfounded. “Yes, it is.”

After talking with the two guys on the boat for a while he found out that they had started out their day with no intention of going out on the lake, but then they suddenly got the urge. That was exactly the time he had prayed for God to return his son’s ball.

They had driven up to the beach and used their binoculars to see if there were any cute girls on the beach. All they saw was this guy [him] standing up and holding his hands in a circle over his head and pointing. They didn’t know what to make of it but decided to head home. A few miles out they saw the beach ball, pulled it into the boat, and then decided to go back one more time to look for cute girls on the beach.

When they pulled up the second time, there were a few cute girls, right near where Tom and his son were sitting on the beach. As the boat got closer, Tom stood up and started walking over to them. That’s when they thought to themselves, “Hey, maybe he lost his beach ball?”

Armed with the story, Dr. Tom Morris went back to his University and shared these events with his colleagues. 

One of them shook his head in disgust and said, “People are dying of cancer, and being murdered, all over the world. And your son gets his beach ball back?”

Tom looked at the man, and then around the room at the skeptical faces of his fellow philosophy professors and said, “Yes.”

Isn't that the way faith works?

We can't understand it. We can't predict it. But sometimes, out of the clear blue, God amazes us with His compassion, and His power, just to show us what is possible if we will trust Him.

Sometimes, even when our faith is nearly nonexistent, He works a miracle anyway. Other times, His answer is "No", or "Not yet".

The bottom line, I think, is all about trust. 

Either we trust God, or we don't. 

What do you think? 

-kg 

*Taken from the book, "Philosophy For Dummies" by Dr. Tom Morris, p. 233-236

PART 2 Session 4: The Sermon on the Mount - Jesus Without Religion [Or Politics]

In Part 2 of this podcast series we will look at Matt. 5:31 through 6:24 which will cover:
*Divorce
*Taking Oaths
*Love Your Enemies
*Giving to the Poor
*Prayer
*Fasting
*Treasure in Heaven

Enjoy!

[Subversive Radio Podcast] The Didache: Ch.8-10

What does the Didache have to say about Fasting, Communion and Prayer?

Find out in the latest Subversive Radio Podcast from the Didache (a first century document about making disciples in the early Christian church).

Prayer 101

Christians have a unique problem. They know some verses of scripture so well that they can’t see clearly what it says.

For example, the Lord’s Prayer. Even non-Christians I know can recite the words, “Our Father, who is in Heaven; Hallowed be your Name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread…” etc.

But repeating the words from memory isn’t the same as understanding what is being said. The familiarity we have with the passage can actually become a barrier that prevents us from really seeing and receiving the truth that Jesus wants us to practice.

So, let’s try to see this passage (Luke 11) through new eyes.

First, His disciples see that He is praying and then they ask Him to teach them how to pray. This alone is surprising because most of the time the disciples are asking selfishly to be the greatest, or to sit at his right hand, etc. Here, they actually ask Jesus to teach them to pray the way He does.

So, in Luke chapter 11, Jesus begins his teaching by instructing us to remember that God is our “Abba” or “Daddy.”

What an astonishing way to begin. Instead of using a formal title to refer to God, Jesus uses the intimate word “Abba”. Literally, He is telling us to address God as our “Papa.”

In short, He wants us to start off with the realization that God loves us dearly.

Next, he instructs us to meditate on the Holiness of God. We’re commanded to pray that the Name of God be reverenced and held in the highest esteem, but only after we have first understood that God loves us as His children. This reminds me of the verse in 1 John which says:

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called the Children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1)

After this, Jesus asks us to pray that God’s perfect will be accomplished here and now: “Your Kingdom come.”

So far we’ve not even entered into the part where we ask God for something. We’ve simply put ourselves into the right frame of mind by taking the time to realize that: God loves us, He is Holy, and He is in control.

Then we get to the petition part. This is where things get interesting.

Jesus tells us to pray for “Daily bread”. In other words, we’re to ask only for what we need today. Nothing extra. Nothing beyond what is necessary to survive. Just simply for “enough.”

This seems to stem from Proverbs 30:

“Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.” (Prov. 30:7-9)

Here, the idea is that we want to remain content. We want to stay continually thankful for what God has given us for today. We actually want to depend on God for everything we need.

Then, Jesus gets down to business:

“Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.” (Luke 11:4)

Our forgiveness is linked to our ability to forgive others. In Matthew Jesus takes it even further by saying:

“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matt. 6:14-15)

The essential idea here is that unforgiveness is a sin. If we are still holding on to our grudge, then we have not actually repented of our unforgiveness and our sinfulness remains. Until we forgive others, we cannot be forgiven of our sin of unforgiveness.

Finally, Jesus asks us to pray that we will not be lead into temptation.

Now, go back and read Luke 11:3-4 and you’ll notice something astounding – it’s not about you.

Notice: Jesus does NOT tell us to pray for “MY daily bread” or to “forgive MY sins” or “Lead ME not into temptation.” Instead, what does Jesus say? He instructs us to pray this way:

“Give US our daily bread…”
“Forgive US our sins…”
“Lead US not into temptation…”

This is a prayer for one another. It’s an instruction to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Certainly we are included in the “Us” but we are not the subject. We are only included because we are members of His Body.

The beginning of the prayer is about God – He loves us. He is Holy. He is in control.
The rest of the prayer is about community – Feed us. Forgive us. Protect us.

This is how Jesus wants us to pray. He wants us to begin by taking the time to remember who God is, and then he wants us to take the time to lift up one another because we all have physical needs, spiritual needs, and emotional needs.

After this, Jesus shares a parable about a persistent friend. The point of this, I believe, is that Jesus wants us to pray continually – but NOT in a selfish way. Instead, I think Jesus wants us to remain persistent in praying the prayer he has just taught us.

In other words, Jesus wants us to continually pray persistently this prayer about God – because we need to remind ourselves constantly that He loves us, He is Holy and He is in control. Then, Jesus wants us to pray persistently for one another – because we’re all weak and we all need to remember that our brothers and sisters need food, and forgiveness, and protection.

I think this theory is especially likely considering how Jesus ends the parable of the persistent friend in verse 8:

“I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.”

The themes of bread and “as much as you need” point us back to the earlier “daily bread” reference.

The last two points are simple. Jesus says that those who ask receive, those who seek find and those who knock open doors. Then he concludes his teaching with this:

“If you being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give you whatever you ask for.” (v.13)

Actually, no. That is not what Jesus says. If you read the passage yourself you’ll see that what Jesus says is actually this:

“…how much more will your Father in heaven give you the Holy Spirit.”  (v.13)

Why is this last part significant? Because Jesus wants us to ask for the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit leads us into all truth (John 16:13); The Spirit comforts us (John 14:6); The Spirit intercedes for us (Romans 8:27); The Spirit empowers us to follow Jesus daily (Acts 1:8; 1 Sam. 10:6); The Spirit bears fruit within us that includes “Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control.” (Gal. 5:22-23).

Want to know one other awesome thing that the Holy Spirit does for us? Check this out:

“Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.” (Galatians 4:6-7)

How cool is that? The whole thing comes full circle. Because we have the Holy Spirit within us, we are able to cry out “Abba” which is how the Lord’s prayer begins.

-kg

BREATHING LESSONS

As a child I used to suffer from asthma. I can remember wheezing and struggling to breathe as my parents coerced me to swallow the two bitter pills that would help to open my bronchial tubes and allow my lungs to process oxygen again.

The thing about asthma is that it keeps you from doing things that everyone else takes for granted, like running, riding your bike, playing tag, and a lot of other physical games with other kids.

At this age I was very aware of the fact that I had inherited my asthma from my own grandmother. Hers was much worse and required her to burn some sort of incense in an ashtray and inhale the fumes to clear her lungs. To this day I can instantly recall that smell whenever I remember being in my grandmother's house.

Eventually I outgrew my asthma, but I’ve never forgotten this phase of my life. Often, it serves as a metaphor to me when I consider the sustaining power of prayer in my life.

In the New Testament we are commanded to "pray without ceasing" (1 Thess 5:17), and breathing is often equated with prayer in the spiritual disciplines for this very reason. Our spiritual communication and connection with God should be a constant and never ceasing activity – just like breathing. We exhale our confession of weakness and we inhale the empowering Spirit of Grace.

This act of breathing prayer is life for us. Without breath none of us could survive very long. Prayer becomes our life line to the source of our life - Christ Himself. Breath also becomes an essential activity for anyone who runs a race, or hopes to compete in a marathon.

I point this out because Paul and the author of Hebrews often speak of the Christian life in terms of running a race.

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.” (1 Corinthians 9:24)

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7)

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1)

Without great, deep, constant lungfuls of oxygen, we are unable to compete in this daily marathon of faith. Prayer is the key for us if we hope to reach the finish line.

Lately I've been thinking of this because I've started to realize that my asthma is starting to kick up again. Not the physical asthma (I've outgrown that), but the spiritual asthma has begun to slow me down. Thankfully the cure is not a bitter pill or any noxious smoke. It's simply bending the knee and taking the time to listen to that still, small voice again. Time to sit quietly in the darkened silence - and breathe.

-kg

THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION

"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation...And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." - (2 Cor 5:18-19)


On Saturday, God worked a miracle. A son who had not spoken to his father for over 7 years got in his car, drove to a senior care center, signed his name on the register, and sat down in a chair in room 316 to talk to his dad.

His dad was dying of bone cancer. The two of them last spoke outside an all-nite diner half a decade ago. The son had been driving a delivery truck and saw an old man at the bus stop who he thought looked like his father. He pulled over. The homeless man turned out to be his dad. He gave him a few dollars, they talked for five minutes, and then the son drove away again.

The two never exchanged phone numbers. They didn't know how to get back in touch with one another again. Years went by. It seemed hopeless.

About a year ago I started visiting Robert Higgins in his motel room. He lived on the third floor, all alone. He would talk to me about that day he last saw his son. His eyes would fill with tears as he remembered his family: A son, two daughters, an ex-wife, all lost to him now.

Robert had no photographs of his wife or his children. "I'm not even sure I would know them if I saw them again," he told me. Once, a few months ago, I asked a friend to drop by and pick up Robert's laundry for him. Later on, Robert had confessed to me that when my friend walked in the door he wondered if it might possibly be his son.

We looked for Robert's son for several months. I came up empty, but another friend found a series of phone numbers online that looked promising. I called all five phone numbers and left messages. No one called back.

In the meantime, Robert ended up having surgery on his arm to remove cancerous parts of his right arm. He received a porcelain prosthetic from his right shoulder to below his elbow, beneath the skin. The cancerous bone was removed, but his arm was useless, resting limply in a black nylon sling around his neck.

Over the next several months, Robert struggled to take care of himself in the motel room. With only one arm, he was unable to shave, to open his food, to cook for himself, or to get dressed. There were a few scares due to his emphyzyma as well and he eventually agreed to relocate to a senior care center near my house.

In all this time we spoke very little about his family. It became too painful to be reminded of a son and a family that he might never get to see again.

But then one Saturday, about five months ago, my cell phone rang. It was Robert's son. He told me that there had been some "drama" in their family a few years ago and that he felt like he might be ready to talk to his dad again. He agreed to let me give Robert his cell phone number and we said goodbye.

Still, months went by with no return calls from Robert's son. I began to get frustrated. So did Robert. His hopes, which had soared with possiblity, were now once again dashed on the rocks.

After this, during our visits together, Robert began to voice disappointment about his son's silence. He wondered if he would ever see his son or hear his voice again.

Up until this point, Robert had asked me not to tell his son about the bone cancer or the hospice care. I assume it was because he wanted his son's reconciliation to be based on a genuine desire to reunite and not because of his terminal condition. As hard as it was for me, I agreed to keep Robert's secret.

But, about three weeks ago, after nothing but silence from Robert's son, I decided to write a letter. In it, I revealed everything about Robert's condition to his son. I even included a photograph taken at Robert's 78th birthday party a few months previously. As Robert's condition worsened I felt like I had no choice but to risk our friendship in order to give his son one last chance to reconcile before it was too late.

Before I could send the letter out, Robert had a change of heart. In fact, it was the day after I had already written, (but not delivered), the letter to his son. As I was getting ready to leave after one of our visits together, Robert said, "Why don't you call my son and let him know everything about the cancer." I agreed, of course, (saying nothing about the letter I had already written up), and the next day I dropped the letter off at his son's workplace.

Another two weeks went by with no response. In the meantime, I prayed. In fact, my family prayed, our house church prayed, our men's group prayed, my parents in El Paso prayed, my Facebook friends prayed, and countless others prayed for Robert's son to have a change of heart.

On Saturday that prayer was answered.

Robert called me on my cell Saturday evening after his son had gone home. "He stayed here about four hours," Robert said. "We talked a long time. We both cried together, and then we watched the baseball game on television."

When it was time for Robert's son to leave he took his father's hand and said, "Dad, I need to go now. Would you mind if I came back and visited with you again sometime?"

Robert said, "Mind? Are you kidding? Come back anytime you want and stay for as long as you want."

When I heard the news about God's grace to Robert I wept for joy. I could hardly contain myself as the tears poured out of me.

"This is an answer to my prayers, Robert," I said. "You know I've been praying for this a long, long time."

"I know you have, Keith. My son even told me to make sure I called to let you know that he had finally come to see me," Robert said.

My prayers now are that God would use this breakthrough as an opportunity to reunite Robert with the rest of his family. I want Robert to see God work one more miracle. I want Robert to see his family come together again before he dies.

I also want Robert to surrender his life, and to give his heart, to the God who loves him more than life itself. I want him to know the same Jesus who moved time and space and shifted the stars to make a way for an estranged, lost son to be reunited with a dying father on Saturday.

Pray with me, if you would, for my friend Robert Higgins. I'm not sure how much longer he will live. Honestly, all I know is that I will be with him until the very end. Now, thankfully, I know that his son will be with him, too.

This miracle, as wonderful as it is, is just the beginning. I'm sure God is not finished with this man's life just yet.

I can't wait to see what God does next.

Thank you for praying.

-kg

A HOUSE OF PRAYER

A few months ago I began to rediscover prayer in my spiritual journey. I think it started when a friend sat down to share a testimony on MP3 by Lance Lambert. It was about how God touched the hearts of a few young people in England several decades ago and spawned a radical New Testament church. One thing that Mr. Lambert said on this recording stuck with me. He said, “An open meeting requires more prayer, not less.”

As someone who has been hosting an open meeting in my home now for over four years, this statement galvanized my passion for prayer and reignited a desire to draw nearer to Jesus in every way. In fact, before I was finished listening to the entire message I was overcome by an intense desire to fall on my knees and seek God’s face. It was like a spiritual gravity was tugging on my spirit and compelling me to immerse myself in the presence of Jesus.

Because of this, our house church began to meet a half hour early each Sunday to seek the Lord together and to ask Him to be the head over us and to lead us as a Church. Our women were already meeting regularly to pray, but eventually, we also added another weekly prayer time for men to meet and pray every Wednesday evening.

It was at our very first men's prayer meeting together that I was overwhelmed with this simple revelation – “We are not enough. But God is more than enough.” As we fell on our knees before God, it became abundantly clear that we were powerless to affect any change whatsoever in the lives of people around us. In fact, we were equally powerless to change our own hearts.

Apart from Jesus and His Holy Spirit, we knew that we could do nothing to grow, to teach, to evangelize, to make disciples, to change hearts, to restore relationships, or to even “be the Church” in our community. We needed more of Jesus, and we needed Him to lead this Church or we were hopelessly condemned to go through the motions every week. None of us wanted that.

The more I immerse myself in prayer, the more I realize how desperately I need to stay on my knees and continually seek God’s face. Jesus reminded us that “My temple will be called a house of prayer” (Matthew 21:13) and since we are the Temple of God (1 Peter 2:4-5; 1 Cor 6:19), this suggests that the Church should be a place where prayer is continually practiced.

Some people feel as if prayer is not their spiritual gifting and therefore they don’t feel that all of the many examples and commands regarding prayer in the New Testament apply to them. However, prayer is not a spiritual gift. Of all the 28 spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible, prayer is not among them. In fact, many of those gifts can only be released or applied through prayer, (i.e. – Prophecy, Words of Wisdom, Healing, etc.). So, prayer is a necessary function of the entire Body of Christ, not just the chosen few.

Besides, no one argues that they do not have the “gift of prayer” when they discover they have cancer, or they find out their child is in the hospital. Tragedy has a way of reminding us that prayer is for everyone who lacks hope, or wisdom. Prayer acknowledges that we have a need that only God can meet.

I know many people who consider themselves “intercessors” and who believe that they have a ministry of prayer and a calling to pray that is greater than what everyone else in the Body might be called to. However, the word intercession is only used four times in the NT and three of those references describe how Jesus and the Holy Spirit pray for us, (Hebrews 7:25, Romans 8:26-27). It is only used once in reference to corporate prayer, and not in the sense of any special gifting or quality of prayer practiced by a chosen few. The entire Body is urged to “intercede..on behalf of all men.” (1 Timothy 2:1) So, the ministry of intercession is for everyone in the Body of Christ, even though some among us may feel more passionate about it than others.

Prayer in the New Testament is seen as something that every believer participates in. If we are serious about being people of the Book, and if we are dedicated to practicing the same quality of faith that we see in the New Testament church, then we will begin by praying together and we will continue to pray together for as long as we live. Prayer is like breathing for a follower of Jesus. It is an affirmation that “apart from (Jesus), you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

If we really believe that we are powerless to do anything apart from Jesus, then we would be on our faces and in prayer daily seeking His direction, wisdom and power.

If we really believe that Jesus speaks to his people and that we can hear his voice, then we would be spending as much time as possible listening for that voice and seeking his counsel for our lives.

Often, it is only when we are in need that we abandon our selfish desires and surrender ourselves to prayer out of desperation. As C. S. Lewis so aptly pointed out, “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: It is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

I sincerely hope that the Church would not wait until death, divorce, bankruptcy, cancer or some other great tragedy compels us to enter into His presence. My hope is that God’s people would be drawn to their knees by simple obedience and a sincere desire to humble themselves and to seek His face.

We have been given access to the throne of Grace by the blood of Jesus, our Lord and King. He went to the cross to tear the veil in half and open a direct line of communication. Let us not trample on this awesome display of God’s desire for intimacy with us. Instead, let’s humble ourselves and confess our weakness and make our petitions known to Him.

“Cast all your cares on the Lord, for He cares for you.” – (1 Peter 5:7)

"When we work, we work. When we pray, God works." - J. Hudson Taylor


-kg


**
The New Testament on Prayer

Jesus intercedes for us:

“Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them." (Hebrews 7:25)

The Holy Spirit intercedes for us:

In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. (Romans 8:26-27)


Prayer is necessary for the health and well-being of the Body of Christ:

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16)


Prayer is like breathing for a follower of Jesus:

“Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17)

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” (Eph 6:18)


Prayer is an alternative to worry and stress:

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:6)

Jesus taught us to pray at all times:

“Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart…” (Luke 18:1)

Jesus taught his disciples (followers) to pray:

"One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." (see Luke 11:1-13)



The New Testament Church was devoted to prayer:“These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” (Acts 1:14)

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men” (1 Tim 2:1)

**
Common Christian sayings on prayer that we already know but seldom practice:

“A praying man will stop sinning but a sinning man will stop praying”

“Prayer aligns our will with God’s will. Prayer changes us, even if it doesn’t change the situation.”

CHILEAN QUAKE MOVED THE PLANET. DID IT MOVE YOU?

With scientists informing us that the 8.8 quake in Chile altered the length of the day and location of the poles by a tiny amount, I can’t help but wonder if it has moved anyone here at all.

Of course, I’m speaking of my own heart, really. I do not know you. I have no idea how this earthquake may have affected you, or moved you. I can only say that, for me, those images of destruction and despair get lost in the noise.

I have barely had time to reflect on the devastation in Haiti, and now an even greater destruction has come to Chile. What am I to do? How am I to respond?

Having donated money to an on-the-ground ministry in Haiti, I had just begun to check off the box and move on with my life. Now, this. Will another monetary gift make this one go away? And then I can’t help but wonder, how long until the next one? How long until this devastation finds us here in the United States?

What would it be like to have the earth shake violently beneath my feet? For darkness to fall over me as concrete and steel come crashing down? What would it be like to search for my sons, or my wife, and not find them? What would I do if there were suddenly no running water, no food, no medicine, and worse – no hope?

As I look at these faces covered with soot and dust, with tears streaking down and eyes full of despair in Haiti and Chile, I can’t help but wonder how long will it be until this touches me? And when it does, what will I do? And what is it that I would want someone in another nation who sees my photo on the internet to do about my pain?

A mentor of mine once said that the only mistake we can make when we consider Jesus' call to love our neighbor is not to see our neighbor in the face of the next person we meet.

But, what is the response of one who follows Christ to this endless parade of suffering and devastation? How can we be like the Good Samaritan when there is a man laying in the road on every website we visit?

At some level I know that we can only do the best we can do. We cannot berate ourselves for not taking an action that is beyond our ability. But, if it's more an issue of the heart, then I must admit that my heart is not as soft as it should be. And no amount of check-writing will change that.

I have a poster on my bedroom wall. It says, "We can only fail them if we do nothing." It is a poster to remind me of children who are orphaned and abused and exploited around the world. I look at those words and they burn in my mind. Because I wrote them. And now they echo back at me. Certainly I may have done something, but it's so small as to feel like nothing to me.

Lately I have been meeting on a weekly basis to pray with other men from our Church family. After just two weeks now I've become refreshed by these times of prayer. And one thing that has begun to stir in me is that prayer shifts my perspective to admit that there is much I cannot do.

By praying we acknowledge that we are unable to change men's hearts. We are powerless to heal others. We are helpless when it comes to divorce, and cancer, and unforgiveness, and poverty. We are insufficient. We are - by definition - 'not enough' to change these things. But God is. He can. And when we pray we begin to become filled with the great hope that He will move and act and work in ways that we can't.

Tonight I pray for the countless thousands who are suffering in Haiti, in Chile, in India, in Thailand, in the Philipines, in Africa, in North Korea, in China, and in every dark place on this globe. Yes, even in America. And I ask God to heal them, and bless them, and rescue them. And I also ask Him to send an 8.8 quake into my heart to shake up my status quo and tranform my life.

I think, honestly, that is what I would want if someone were to see my face on the internet and read of the devastation in my hometown. I would want them to lift me up in prayer. I would want to hear the voice of God. I would want to know that He had not forsaken me, or forgotten me.

Honestly, I want that now.

Amen.
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