"You have not yet
resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; and you
have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, 'My son, do
not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved
by Him' for those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son
whom He receives.'
"It is for discipline
that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom
his father does not discipline? But if
you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are
illegitimate children and not sons.
"Furthermore, we had
earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much
rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?"
Hebrews 12:4-9
"We mistakenly look for tokens [proof] of God's love in happiness. We should instead look for them in His
faithful and persistent work to conform us to Christ.
"As Philip Hughes has observed, 'Discipline is the mark
not of a harsh and heartless father but of a father who is deeply and lovingly
concerned for the well-being of his son.' [Philip E. Hughes, A Commentary on
the Epistle to the Hebrews, (Grand Rapids: Eerdman's Publishing Company, 1977),
page 528]"
Proof of God's love? Just
read the prayer requests, the updates and all the praise points over the
years!
Take care with love, especially His! Your servant and friend in Christ, Darlene
URGENT PRAYER REQUEST:
For the family and friends of James
Foley, so brutally slain in Syria and for the situation developing around this.
For those trying to stem the devastation of Ebola in Africa.
UPDATE: Patti's beloved husband, John who recently had a stroke is home now and starting
rehab to help him read and see more clearly again -- the family needs prayers
during this time, especially Patti. She
thanks each of you for your faithfulness...the Lord has given John a soft peace
that is making this time of growth easier for all.
For those touched and confused by the suicide of Robin
Williams, especially his family.
NEW PRAYER REQUEST: A dear friend, Jen, has fallen and needs to
regain her strength. For Louise
for healing in their family.
UPDATE - Baby Saige is
doing so well and her parents thank each of you for praying for her. She comes to church with her parents and
sister now. She is a very happy little one who looks and acts like a
"normal" 8 mo. old! She will
not need another surgery until she is 3-5 yrs. old!
UPDATE -Heath's grandma
writes: "Heath started school the first day. His hand continues to get
stronger. He is taking keyboarding which will help his hand development and he
will be graded differently. I know that without all the prayers and good
Christian friends his outcome would have been different. Once again, I want to
thank you so much, words can't express my gratitude." Laurie
UPDATE: For 29 year old Sara - that she goes home to
the care of her parents while she is so unwell. and for her brother who needs God's wisdom for a business-related matter.
PRAISE & THANKSGIVING: Pray
for David R as he manages his
macular degeneration and praise the Lord for the installation of his wheelchair
ramp on his birthday.
Carla (and Paul, David and
Matthew) has been hired by a group in New York
and will be moving there in September.
Please pray for everything to go smoothly for them and that they will be
happy in their new environment.
Update on Patty, who lost her three year old daughter four
years ago has sent a most amazing letter of thanksgiving. She is not 100% but says she is around 85%. There has been little progress with her yet,
a very difficult loss for her, to be sure."
PRAY FOR THOSE WITH HEALTH
CONCERNS: Pray
for my brother, Tim, that his
COPD (cardio-pulmonary artery disease) is manageable for him and that he will
have the patience and wisdom to cope with the limitations.
Pray the Lord quiets Adrian's
heart as he struggles with pain. His
battle with cancer continues. Give his
doctors wisdom and compassion.
UPDATE ON ISAIAS' FATHER: Isaias father is still
struggling physically. The family is
there with him now as Isaias must go on the road to minister to others. Please pray Isaias can return soon to be with
his father.
Pray for someone suspected of having esophageal cancer - had
tests in hospital recently. No results
yet. And another who has cancer
surgery. They are hoping they got it
all.
For Audley and Beverly’s situation and his return to the
ministry. For Nancy who
continues to grow stronger after her life-threatening head injury a few years
ago, and for Fred as he cares for
her.
Please pray for Maedhros,
who is having a serious operation soon.
Pray for BG that his
blinding headaches will finally stop.
Please pray for Chester
as he continues to struggle through a host of medical challenges and
poor care. Give him energy, strength and
resolve. Bettina needs our prayers to give her strength and
wisdom.
Pray for Raven
as she regains her strength from the cancer treatments.
ONGOING JOB RELATED: Paul NS continues to struggle in
finding work. He grows weary and
discouraged. Pray God will grant him
patience and hope and a job so his health will also improve.
Hans: Pray he will find a good job soon.
Carla has asked us to pray for:
Tanya who has lost her
senior role. Please give her grace
through this time and trust, to know God has things firmly in His hands.
Please pray for Michael,
a man who is humble and without a home or a job who needs a chance to get his
life back to normal.
Deepak needs
prayer that his work efforts begin to bear fruit as he works through the grief
of his father passing. He needs strength
and resolve to make wise decisions.
Justin B and his father in
India need prayer that Justin will find work in his field of BPO and voice in
the Lord's perfect time.
ONGOING PRAYER REQUESTS: Pray the Lord’s hand is dramatically apparent
in the lives of all who receive and read this devotion...that His mighty
works would be worked out in each life for His purposes in surprising and
wonderful ways!
Elaine and Jim starting
a new ministry in Hong Kong - that the Lord will strengthen their resolve and
their hands.
Isaias & Judith
need our continued prayers for protection and good health. They lead the efforts of Ambassadors for Christ in
the Philippines. The
financial needs are so great, please consider contributing...just click on
Ambassadors for Christ link above.
For Linda and Ian. For Rob and his daughter. For Reg. Pray for Annette and Lyle and their wonderful family. Pray for wisdom for my brother as he deals with an
important matter. For David
K, in his studies and Matthew
K as he grows up.
PRAY FOR THE WORLD: Pray for revival in the USA to continue. Pray
for Birgit who is in
Germany. Please pray for the many
individuals in Singapore, China and
India. Just recently the WeakDay
Devotion blog is being read by many people there! God is mysterious! Pray for the Catholic Church and that the new
Pope will always put Jesus first.
* "Trusting God"
is copyright protected since 1988 by Jerry Bridges. All rights are reserved, including
translations. The ISBN is
08910-91742. I quote carefully and
respectfully from his wonderful book.
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