Corresponding Grace

~~~ Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25 ~~~ Psalm 138 ~~~ Matthew 7:7-12 ~~~

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

Why does Jesus need to tell us to ask, seek and knock?

Are we afraid of coming to Jesus with our needs?

Do we feel if we do not ask then we cannot be denied?

Ask and it will be given to you;

seek and you will find;

knock and the door will be opened to you.

Our prayers are always answered, but we 

do not always understand the answer.

There are passages in scripture that reveal 

to us just how long it sometimes takes 

for prayers to be answered.

The Israelites were in the desert for forty days.

Queen Esther lay face down on the ground in prayer.

She surrounded herself with her servants and maids.

Esther was attempting to isolate herself from outside distractions.

Now help me, who am alone and have no one but you,

O LORD, my God.

Esther cries out to the Lord 

in her most desperate time of need.

What about us?

Do we wait until we are desperate?

Isn't it much better to keep the lines 

of communication open with God all of the time?

Have you ever considered this...

What if God answers your prayers in order to reach someone else?

This may be how it happens...

You pray...God answers...you praise God for his answer...

you share this with someone else...

that person now finds reason to ask God for their needs.

Your Blessings from God are never just for yourself.

I heard this on the radio this morning.

Have you ever taken your blessings 

and used that grace to help you reach out to others?

Every Blessing comes with corresponding grace,

it is this grace which prepares us to reach out to someone in need.

Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. 

God makes all things work for good...his good.

Be willing, especially during this time of Lent,

 to God using you for the work in his kingdom here on Earth.

You have a unique part in his divine plan.

~~~Peace~~~

Esther's Humble Prayer

~~~ Esther c:12, 14-16, 23-25 ~~~ Psalm 138 ~~~ Matthew 7:7-12 ~~~

Queen Esther did not hesitate in her anguish to lay face down on the ground.

As a ruler, it would be more likely for her subjects 

to assume this position before her.

In this posture of submission Esther voices her prayer.

She sheds all that marks her as queen...

her royal robes, her precious perfumes...

"My Lord, you alone are our King. Help me, 

who am alone and have no help but you, 

for I am taking my life in my hand..." 

Esther knows in her heart

 that even though she and her people have gone astray

 God in his goodness will hear her plea to be spared.

She does not know that years later Jesus will encourage

 all of us to speak our needs directly to him.

Esther's prayer continues...

Be mindful of us, Lord. 

Make yourself known in the time of our distress

 and give me courage...

Save us by your power, and help me, 

who am alone and have no one but you, Lord. 

You know all things.

Some form of these words 

have been in my heart on several occasions.

I have longed for God to make himself known 

to me, especially in times of darkness.

Esther does not despair; she places her trust in God.

God does give her the courage to go before the King, 

even though, poetically, she faints standing in his presence.

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

The psalm refrain sums up the prayer of Esther.

If we come to God in prayer asking for what we feel

 in our heart he will answer us.

The posture of Esther's prayer, while not necessary,

may have confirmed for herself the sincerity of her plea.

God, of course, does not need us in any specific position to pray.

He promises to answer our prayers no matter how 

or where we pray. What matters most is that we are praying.

Blessed to have a God who wants to listen to our prayers.

Even more blessed that he wants to answer these prayers of ours.

Come before God with your prayers.

Peace.

Answered Prayers

~~1 Samuel 1:9-20~~(Psalm) 1 Samuel 2:1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd ~~Mark 1:21-28~~

 Hannah was praying silently;
though her lips were moving, her voice could not be heard.

Fervently Hannah prayed for a child, not just any child but a son.

She spoke the words from her heart.

Her voice was silent, but her lips were carefully 

forming each word.

God listens and God answers even when we 

cannot hear our own voice.

God does not need to hear our spoken words in order 

to hear our prayer requests.

Eli said, “Go in peace,
and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.”

Eli loved Hannah even though she had been barren for years.

He respected and honored her longing to bear him a child.

He blessed her prayers. He joined with her desire

 that God would hear her prayer.

He wanted her to be at peace with her prayer.

He wanted her to believe that God was indeed listening to her heart.

Sometimes what we long for within our soul

 is more powerful than any prayerful words could ever be.

How has God answered your prayers?

...for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.

A new teaching with authority.

Jesus taught in the Temple with the authority 

bestowed on him by the Father and the power of the Spirit.

He taught from the source. A 'new teaching' indeed.

He spoke with pure goodness, holiness.

He spoke from the heart from his core.

The evil spirits could not ignore his searing words,

even though he was not speaking directly to them.

They felt compelled to exit their host, whom they had been

 tormenting for some time.

His words literally put the fear of God in them.

They wanted to escape...to run and hide.

The unclean spirits could not get out 

of their host being soon enough.

Prayers were answered for a man who came to listen

 to the teaching of Jesus.

The man himself made no request to be freed

 from the unclean spirits.

Jesus heard his prayer of silent desire.

It is not always necessary to use words when we pray.

May God answer those prayers in the silence of your heart...

those unspoken prayers...those prayers which have no adequate words.

God Blesses us with answers to prayers

 we have yet to pray.

He answers with what he knows is best for us.

Hannah received her son, Samuel.

God heard her solemn prayer.

The man was cleansed of the unclean spirit.

God heard the prayer he had not yet spoken.

Perfect Heavenly Love

 

 St. Boniface, Pray for us.

~~~ Tobit 3:1-11a, 16-17a ~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ Mark 12:18-27 ~~~

 

 “Blessed are you, O Lord, merciful God,
and blessed is your holy and honorable name.
Blessed are you in all your works for ever!”
Following this prayer answers reigned down upon the supplicants.

God is more likely to respond to true prayers of surrender.

He is less likely to respond to our despair.

 

In despair you curl up into a tight ball and become unresponsive...

In surrender before God you lay prostrate, face down...

thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  

This is a prayer of thanksgiving in anticipation for what God will do.

 

I invite you to begin the practice of thanking God for what

he will bring to fruition in your life

 For God, as we know, does not operate within our limits of time.

Everything connected with us is present to God.

What we pray for today he has already taken care of for us.

We may not be able to see God's angels, but he sends them to surround us;

they are his appointed messengers.

 

As soon as this prayer was offered up to God;
he sent down his answers.
The angel came to Tobit restoring his sight.
The wicked demon was driven away from Sarah, giving her peace.

 

Time, being of no consequence to God, makes the questions
about wives and husbands in heaven a foolish one.

When we arrive in heaven whatever we were as an earthly person
will be brought into his holiness and glory.  

We cannot fathom all that God has prepared for those who love him.
Relationships in heaven will be relationships of complete love...
the love that can only come from God.
We will not be making choices or comparing one person to another person.
We will instead see the greater picture of what it means
to be a part of the entire Body of Christ.
There will be no jealousy or favoritism...
We will all be one with God.

When they rise from the dead,
they neither marry nor are given in marriage,
but they are like the angels in heaven.

The love that we have for one another here on earth
pales in comparison to the perfection of heavenly love.

 Let us strive to love as best as we can for a greater
experience awaits us in eternity with our heavenly Father.

 

Eternal Blessings of Perfect Love.