Psalm 103:3-6
He forgives your sins—every one.
He heals your diseases—every one.
He redeems you from hell—saves your life!
He crowns you with love and mercy—a paradise crown.
He wraps you in goodness—beauty eternal.
He renews your youth—you're always young in his presence.
God makes everything come out right;
he puts victims back on their feet.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
I am on the list to receive prayer requests from my mother’s church, my Emmaus community, and my own church. I also see needs expressed on Facebook and receive requests from friends and family members as special prayer concerns arise. Some days, the list of expressed needs is quite lengthy, and the burdens can become rather daunting. So many people are hurting in one way or another… illness… grief and loss…the challenges of aging…the challenges of youth and being a teenager, heading off to college or becoming an adult…economic woes… sin… we all have a laundry list of things to talk with God about each and every day. And then we turn on the television and hear the news of incomprehensible suffering in Third World countries… and we can’t help but be overwhelmed at times.
The GOOD NEWS is that God has answers! Many of them are outlined in Psalm 103…and I really love how this translation enumerates them. He heals diseases… every one of them! He saves you from hell… wraps you in goodness…renews your youth. Best of all, He makes everything right! I don’t know about you... but for me, this is fantastic news! I am moved to tears to think of this incredible love and protection… to know that God really is listening to my prayers and meeting my needs.
I don’t know what you are enduring today. You may be ill or have family members who are sick… you may be facing major challenges, such as a new school, a new job, or moving to a new city. You may have suffered a major loss – a loved one, a relationship change, or even the death of a beloved pet. You may feel old and tired… discouraged, depressed, or disappointed. You may have a heavy burden of sin that you are carrying like a backpack filled with rocks. But all of this and so much more matters to God… and He is ready to make things right.
Will you get instant relief? Possibly… although God’s timing is not always as quick as we would like. Will you feel God’s presence? Yes… if you maintain close contact with Him and truly seek Him on a regular basis. Will things get better? Absolutely! It may take awhile…but keep praying and believing. Keep trusting God to meet your every need. Don’t hesitate to ask fellow believers to pray for you – and with you. It is an honor and a blessing to pray for others, and there is tremendous power in corporate prayer. Flood the “airwaves” today with prayer and praise… let God set you back on your feet – and make things right for you and those you love.
©2011 Debbie Robus
Showing posts with label healing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label healing. Show all posts
Daily Devotional for March 29, 2011
James 5:13-15
Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven—healed inside and out.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Recently, it seems that I have encountered several situations that seemed somewhat hopeless… and the people involved in them felt incredibly helpless. “I don’t know what to do,” I’ve heard them say… and honestly, I’ve not had a concrete solution for them. I’ve seen e-mail requests that say, “The doctors say the only thing left to do is pray.” The truth is… in all of these situations, this should be the FIRST thing we do!
When all else fails, we turn to prayer… but the fact is that we should pray in the beginning. Even before the first sign of trouble, we should pray. And when there doesn’t seem to be any logical explanation for a person’s misbehaving, we should keep praying for them. When all efforts to “mend fences” and get along fail, we should keep praying. When doctors say, “We’re doing all we can,” we should keep asking God for His healing.
When we get good news, “Thank You, God” should be more than just a trite phrase we utter… we should sincerely stop and thank our Heavenly Father for His grace and mercy toward us and our situation. When we pray about any situation, we must trust that God will deliver the perfect outcome… and accept that it may not be the one we want or expect. But it will be the right one! God does not make mistakes!
Verse 15 says that “Believing prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet.” Believe this for yourself and your situations. Trust God to do the heavy lifting… all YOU have to do is lift your hands and ask Him for help… and offer Him praise for His answers.
©2011 Debbie Robus
Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven—healed inside and out.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Recently, it seems that I have encountered several situations that seemed somewhat hopeless… and the people involved in them felt incredibly helpless. “I don’t know what to do,” I’ve heard them say… and honestly, I’ve not had a concrete solution for them. I’ve seen e-mail requests that say, “The doctors say the only thing left to do is pray.” The truth is… in all of these situations, this should be the FIRST thing we do!
When all else fails, we turn to prayer… but the fact is that we should pray in the beginning. Even before the first sign of trouble, we should pray. And when there doesn’t seem to be any logical explanation for a person’s misbehaving, we should keep praying for them. When all efforts to “mend fences” and get along fail, we should keep praying. When doctors say, “We’re doing all we can,” we should keep asking God for His healing.
When we get good news, “Thank You, God” should be more than just a trite phrase we utter… we should sincerely stop and thank our Heavenly Father for His grace and mercy toward us and our situation. When we pray about any situation, we must trust that God will deliver the perfect outcome… and accept that it may not be the one we want or expect. But it will be the right one! God does not make mistakes!
Verse 15 says that “Believing prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet.” Believe this for yourself and your situations. Trust God to do the heavy lifting… all YOU have to do is lift your hands and ask Him for help… and offer Him praise for His answers.
©2011 Debbie Robus
Daily Devotional for February 21, 2011
Psalm 34:12-27
Do you want to live and enjoy a long life? Then don't say cruel things and don't tell lies. Do good instead of evil and try to live at peace. If you obey the LORD, he will watch over you and answer your prayers. But God despises evil people, and he will wipe them all from the earth, till they are forgotten. When his people pray for help, he listens and rescues them from their troubles.
The LORD is there to rescue all who are discouraged and have given up hope. The LORD's people may suffer a lot, but he will always bring them safely through. Not one of their bones will ever be broken. Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God's people you will be punished. The LORD saves the lives of his servants. Run to him for protection, and you won't be punished.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
You don’t have to look very far to find someone who is hurting these days. I read a post last week on Facebook from a mom whose teenage daughter was crushed because she felt she had been wrongly accused of something. I know how that feels… do you? We see reports on the news of people who have spent years in prison for a crime they didn’t commit, only to be proved innocent by DNA tests or other newly introduced evidence. And miraculously, in some instances, those victims are sometimes able to forgive their accusers.
We’ve seen reports of those who were able to forgive a drunk driver who killed their loved one. Just last week, I saw a television interview with Janet Jackson in which she acknowledged that her father beat her when she was a child… but she said, “I know he loves me in his own way.”
Forgiveness is a powerful, powerful thing. Grace and mercy are incredibly cleansing and healing. We can be mad and bitter toward others for a lot of things, from lousy childhoods to being wrongly accused or false assumptions to being mad at God because a loved one suffered and/or died. And all of these things may cause us to say cruel things… to lie and lash out at others… or at the very least, to live a life that is robbed of happiness and peace.
We do have an option. We can “cast all our cares” upon the Lord. We can run to God and ask Him for protection. We can ask Him to heal us and give us hope… to fight our battles for us… to fill in the gaps with grace and mercy where we feel we have none – for ourselves or toward others. Read this verse again: “Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God's people you will be punished.”
I don’t believe most of us set out to intentionally be wicked, but let’s face it… in some way, we all are at one time or another. Let’s ask God to forgive us… give Him our struggles and our hurts and let HIM handle them for us. Let’s make today the day we start to live in the hope of God and trust Him to rescue us and set us on course for a long and happy life in Him. I’m in… are you?
©2011 Debbie Robus
Do you want to live and enjoy a long life? Then don't say cruel things and don't tell lies. Do good instead of evil and try to live at peace. If you obey the LORD, he will watch over you and answer your prayers. But God despises evil people, and he will wipe them all from the earth, till they are forgotten. When his people pray for help, he listens and rescues them from their troubles.
The LORD is there to rescue all who are discouraged and have given up hope. The LORD's people may suffer a lot, but he will always bring them safely through. Not one of their bones will ever be broken. Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God's people you will be punished. The LORD saves the lives of his servants. Run to him for protection, and you won't be punished.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
You don’t have to look very far to find someone who is hurting these days. I read a post last week on Facebook from a mom whose teenage daughter was crushed because she felt she had been wrongly accused of something. I know how that feels… do you? We see reports on the news of people who have spent years in prison for a crime they didn’t commit, only to be proved innocent by DNA tests or other newly introduced evidence. And miraculously, in some instances, those victims are sometimes able to forgive their accusers.
We’ve seen reports of those who were able to forgive a drunk driver who killed their loved one. Just last week, I saw a television interview with Janet Jackson in which she acknowledged that her father beat her when she was a child… but she said, “I know he loves me in his own way.”
Forgiveness is a powerful, powerful thing. Grace and mercy are incredibly cleansing and healing. We can be mad and bitter toward others for a lot of things, from lousy childhoods to being wrongly accused or false assumptions to being mad at God because a loved one suffered and/or died. And all of these things may cause us to say cruel things… to lie and lash out at others… or at the very least, to live a life that is robbed of happiness and peace.
We do have an option. We can “cast all our cares” upon the Lord. We can run to God and ask Him for protection. We can ask Him to heal us and give us hope… to fight our battles for us… to fill in the gaps with grace and mercy where we feel we have none – for ourselves or toward others. Read this verse again: “Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God's people you will be punished.”
I don’t believe most of us set out to intentionally be wicked, but let’s face it… in some way, we all are at one time or another. Let’s ask God to forgive us… give Him our struggles and our hurts and let HIM handle them for us. Let’s make today the day we start to live in the hope of God and trust Him to rescue us and set us on course for a long and happy life in Him. I’m in… are you?
©2011 Debbie Robus
Romans 6:4
When we were baptized, we died and were buried with Christ. We were baptized, so that we would live a new life, as Christ was raised to life by the glory of God the Father.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
When I wash Timothy’s hair in the bath tub, I scoop up water in a plastic dish pan and pour it over his head to rinse his hair. He loves this… it’s a game to him. The water washes his soapy hair squeaky clean, and he is changed by it.
Some people feel an almost “magical” transformation when they become a Christian – or when they are baptized. Others don’t feel anything drastic at first… their changes are more gradual, but no less significant.
As we grow in our faith and service to God, we do change. We find that the things we once considered “fun” or acceptable are no longer interesting… and may even be offensive. We find that our focus and our priorities change… usually from ourselves to the love and service of others. We think more about how we can worship God and serve Him than what we are going to do… today, tomorrow, next day - or next year.
Recently I had some sort of cold “bug.” The first few days, I didn’t feel so well. I had no appetite… I was tired all day… and very little interested me. As I began to feel better, I was able to do more without resting. I even began to get hungry again! And as my energy returned, I had more enthusiasm for all sorts of things. Sometimes it’s like that with our Christian life. Some of us were sick in sin for a long time…healing and recovery may take a while! But it will happen – if we stay focused on Jesus.
We do have the opportunity to become a new creature in Christ. Our past is behind us, and we have been given new life… a second chance. Let’s not waste it. Let’s be the people God called us to be and honor Him with everything we’ve got. Let the healing begin… here and now… for each of us! And may we all be “well” soon!
©2010 Debbie Robus
When we were baptized, we died and were buried with Christ. We were baptized, so that we would live a new life, as Christ was raised to life by the glory of God the Father.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
When I wash Timothy’s hair in the bath tub, I scoop up water in a plastic dish pan and pour it over his head to rinse his hair. He loves this… it’s a game to him. The water washes his soapy hair squeaky clean, and he is changed by it.
Some people feel an almost “magical” transformation when they become a Christian – or when they are baptized. Others don’t feel anything drastic at first… their changes are more gradual, but no less significant.
As we grow in our faith and service to God, we do change. We find that the things we once considered “fun” or acceptable are no longer interesting… and may even be offensive. We find that our focus and our priorities change… usually from ourselves to the love and service of others. We think more about how we can worship God and serve Him than what we are going to do… today, tomorrow, next day - or next year.
Recently I had some sort of cold “bug.” The first few days, I didn’t feel so well. I had no appetite… I was tired all day… and very little interested me. As I began to feel better, I was able to do more without resting. I even began to get hungry again! And as my energy returned, I had more enthusiasm for all sorts of things. Sometimes it’s like that with our Christian life. Some of us were sick in sin for a long time…healing and recovery may take a while! But it will happen – if we stay focused on Jesus.
We do have the opportunity to become a new creature in Christ. Our past is behind us, and we have been given new life… a second chance. Let’s not waste it. Let’s be the people God called us to be and honor Him with everything we’ve got. Let the healing begin… here and now… for each of us! And may we all be “well” soon!
©2010 Debbie Robus
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