He calls Christian leaders to pray with tears for their people: 'Let the priests, who minister before the Lord, weep between the temple porch and the altar. Let them say, 'Spare your people, O Lord.' . . . Why should they say among the people, 'Where is their God?' " (2:17). (Google image, The Prophet Joel prays)
God knows and records our tears: "List my tears on your scroll—are they not in your record?" (Ps. 56:8) Our day is similar to that faced by Isaiah, "The Lord, the Lord Almighty, called you on that day to weep" (Isa. 22:12).
It will take more than tears to make prayer effective; but a burdened heart, a soul crying out to God, is the very essence of intercession. It is a spiritual crime to be calloused while the world goes to hell.
It is spiritually criminal to pray casually, dry-eyed and burdenless, while a world is in sin and pain. It is Christlike for your heart to weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15). It is Christlike for you to be so filled with loving compassion that you pray with tears for those broken, fettered, and destroyed by sin.
Prayer is not recreational or arbitrary for the Christian. Prayer is the very business of Christ's kingdom. Prayer is joining with the broken-hearted Father, Christ the weeping High Priest, and tender interceding Holy Spirit by sharing their heartbeat and bearing with them the same burdens which they carry in their loving hearts.
To pray with tears is to make an eternal investment. To pray with tears is to sow your tears for eternal harvest. No tear shed in burdened intercession for others is ever forgotten by God, unrecorded, or in vain.
Intercession watered with your tears is one of the most powerful forms of prayer known. As surely as God is in heaven, "Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him" (Ps. 126:5-6). Let this poem I wrote while in India speak to you.
Give Me Tears
Give me tears in my eyes, loving Lord, I pray;
Give me tears when I intercede.
Give me tears when I kneel at your throne each day;
Give me tears till I learn to plead.
Nail-pierced Lord, break this cold stony heart of mine;
Melt my heart with Your holy fire.
Flood my soul with the passion of love Divine;
May I hunger with Your desire.
Take the callousness all from my heart again
Till I hunger and thirst and yearn,
Till the longing for souls of sin-ruined men
All-consuming within me burn.
Fill my heart with Your tears; there unveil Your cross
Till all else of this world has died,
Till all else in this world I shall count but dross
Save the cross of the Crucified.
May my heart be a crucified heart always,
That it bleed for the souls of men.
May the burden for souls melt my soul each day
Till I share Your travail again.
Give me tears when I preach of Your dying love;
Give me tears when I plead with men.
Give me tears as I look to Your throne above.
Love of God, melt my heart again.
(I made a copy of this poem years ago when it was in another post of Dr. Dewel's, join me in making it a daily prayer)
(I made a copy of this poem years ago when it was in another post of Dr. Dewel's, join me in making it a daily prayer)
(Chapter 12, pp. 92-93, italics added for emphasis)
Used by permission
of the Duewel Literature Trust, Inc,
Greenwood, Indiana
Available by phone
317-881-6755, ext, 361
Let's pray-
"Father, it is true, I can’t do a solitary thing on my own: I listen, and then I decide. I’m not out to get my own way but only to carry out Your orders. Not because I think I can do anything of lasting value by myself. My only power and success comes from God.Your grace is sufficient for me, for Your power is made perfect in my weakness. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Amen"
Germine Copeland
Today's Bible verses-
1 John 4:10 “This is what real love is: it is not our love for God; it is God’s love for us. He sent his Son to die in our place to take away our sins."
Psalm 23:1, (NCV) “The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need”
Psalm 69:33, (NCV) "The Lord listens to those in need and does not look down on captives.”
Psalm 72:12-13, (AMPC) “For He delivers the needy when he calls out, the poor also and him who has no helper. He will have pity on the poor and weak and needy and will save the lives of the needy.”
Today's quote-
~ Charles Spurgeon- "If, my reader, you are of the proper thinking and are willing to acknowledge that you are a sinner, lost, ruined, and condemned, it is well with you. If you are of this attitude—that whatever humbling truth the Spirit of God may teach you in the Word or teach you by the conviction of your conscience, you will agree with it at once and confess, 'It is true'—then the Spirit of God has brought you to this humble and truthful and obedient condition. You are going in the right direction." [p. 167, Spurgeon on PRAYER & SPIRITUAL WARFARE]Words of wisdom-
~ God has special work for each of us, according to the gifts and talents we have. When we cooperate with others in doing God's will in our churches and communities, we are able to accomplish things that please Him; like a food pantry that feeds many families. Two of our churches fed over 200 families last week through their drive-through process! Praise God!
Popular post- Poured Out for Humanity
by Lee Forbes
Poured out for humanity
As God became a man
The perfect holy Sacrifice
The pure and spotless Lamb
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The home pages of the CFC website: https://www.
Replay past services, and read any past devotionals you missed.
The livestream link: https://www.cfconline.
[For CFC Sunday services, 10 or 10:15 am]
The pastors and elders of the CFC churches in northern NY, have provided daily devotionals from Streams in the Desert.
They are listed with links to provide a short Scripture reading
and brief message from one of them during the recent weeks.
Past special song presentations are also listed.
and brief message from one of them during the recent weeks.
Past special song presentations are also listed.
Jean's blog (Click to see snippets of the 7 recent posts)
Upcoming posts
God (Really) Does Love You
7/4th- Saturday's post by Kelly Balaire
#39 You Can Deepen Your Prayer By Fasting
7th- Tuesday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
#40 The Spiritual Role of Fasting
9th- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel
The Man Who Couldn't Talk
11th- Saturday's post by Dave Brandon
No comments:
Post a Comment