Keep praying. Never give up

Jesus said that we should keep praying and never give up. He said that God would hear and positively answer the prayers that He has put on our hearts. That is what praying “according to God’s will” means. It is not an “opt out clause” or excuse for unanswered prayer. It is there to give the person of faith certainty in that their Holy Spirit inspired prayers will be answered.

What has God put on your heart to pray?
Blessings,
Bob Lipsys.

Here is a true story about persisting in prayer (The Book's reference is given below.)

Roger Simms, hitchhiking his way home, would never forget the date--May 7. His heavy suitcase made Roger tired. He was anxious to take off his army uniform once and for all. Flashing the hitchhiking sign to the oncoming car, he lost hope when he saw it was a black, sleek, new Cadillac. To his surprise the car stopped. The passenger door opened. He ran toward the car, tossed his suitcase in the back, and thanked the handsome, well-dressed man as he slid into the front seat. "Going home for keeps?" "Sure am," Roger responded. "Well, you’re in luck if you’re going to Chicago." "Not quite that far. Do you live in Chicago?" "I have a business there. My name is Hanover."

After talking about many things, Roger, a Christian, felt a compulsion to witness to this fifty-ish, apparently successful businessman about Christ. But he kept putting it off, till he realized he was just thirty minutes from his home. It was now or never. So, Roger cleared his throat, "Mr. Hanover, I would like to talk to you about something very important." He then proceeded to explain the way of salvation, ultimately asking Mr. Hanover if he would like to receive Christ as his Saviour. To Roger’s astonishment the Cadillac pulled over to the side of the road. Roger thought he was going to be ejected from the car. But the businessman bowed his head and received Christ, then thanked Roger. "This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me."

Five years went by, Roger married, had a two-year-old boy, and a business of his own. Packing his suitcase for a business trip to Chicago, he found the small, white business card Hanover had given him five years before. In Chicago he looked up Hanover Enterprises. A receptionist told him it was impossible to see Mr. Hanover, but he could see Mrs. Hanover. A little confused as to what was going on, he was ushered into a lovely office and found himself facing a keen-eyed woman in her fifties. She extended her hand. "You knew my husband?" Roger told how her husband had given him a ride when hitchhiking home after the war. "Can you tell me when that was?" "It was May 7, five years ago, the day I was discharged from the army." "Anything special about that day?" Roger hesitated. Should he mention giving his witness? Since he had come so far, he might as well take the plunge. "Mrs. Hanover, I explained the gospel. He pulled over to the side of the road and wept against the steering wheel. He gave his life to Christ that day."

Explosive sobs shook Mrs Hanover’s body. Getting a grip on herself, she sobbed, "I had prayed for my husband’s salvation for years. I believed God would save him." "And," said Roger, "Where is your husband, Mrs. Hanover?" "He’s dead," she wept, struggling with words. "He was in a car crash after he let you out of the car. He never got home. You see--I thought God had not kept His promise." Sobbing uncontrollably, she added, "I stopped living for God five years ago because I thought He had not kept His word!" [J. Kirk Johnston, Why Christians Sin, Discovery House, 1992, pp. 39-41. www.christianglobe.com/illustrations/prayer])

Never give up praying
And never ever give up your hope in the Good God you are talking with,
Bob Lipsys.

If God cares for us, why has this happened to us?

In a world filled with tragedies and pain, this question is deep in the hearts of many. Why? ……… Why God why?
One of the best pieces of writing I have read on this topic was authored by Phil McCallum. Phil tells us that when caught up in this thinking we need a mind shift.
He says that we are getting the wrong view of the situation. God is not against us or punishing us. Rather God has come to rescue us….
Have a read for yourself.
Bob Lipsys
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by Phil McCallum http://www.todayspastor.com
“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?
Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” Judges 6:13-14
Observation
The greatest obstacle to answered prayer can be me. The problem is not with God. He wants to rescue. The problem instead is with my skewed view of reality.
Gideon had a head problem. He had a faultless chain of logic that was totally wrong but made perfect sense. Bad things were happening, therefore he assumed that God was against his people. The difficulty of his logic was that it exonerated Gideon from attempting anything to challenge the status quo. He felt perfectly justified to hide like a fugitive in his own land, choking on chaff dust, because God was against them all.
We too block answers to prayer when we see God as the source of our problems instead of the beginning of our solutions. If we think life’s problems are God’s fault why try to change things?
There is a higher, heavenly perspective that the angel brought into Gideon’s life. This heavenly logic is like a gust of fresh air in a stuffy room. Here’s the new logic: assess your personal strengths and use them and God will use you. The presence of potential in Gideon’s life was proof that God was with him. He later proved himself as a leader, strategist and warrior. Once unpackaged the problem was solved.
Application
Answers to prayer require as much a change in my heart as in God’s heart. We must exchange faulty thinking for fresh perspective. Instead of asking, “What does God have against me” we should instead ask, “What do I have going for me?” The answer to prayer is not external, it is internal. Inside of me God has placed the potential for the answer. I have to change my outlook so God can use what he has given me to change the world around me.
Prayer
Father, give me a clearer and clearer understanding of what you have invested into my life so that you can work through my life. Amen.
by Phil McCallum http://www.todayspastor.com
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Good Word Phil……
“I have to change my outlook
so God can use what he has given me
to change the world around me.”
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Blessings are falling
Grab them with both hands- Bob Lipsys