Brown's Daily Word 10-20-10

Praise the Lord for this new day. We will gather this evening for our mid-week gathering at 6 PM for food and fellowship, and for the Bible Study at 6:30PM and the Choir practice at 7:30PM. We will looking at Mathew 17.
Praise the Lord that He is the Living and loving Lord, who hears our prayers, who feels our pain, who receives our praise and thanksgiving, and who answers our prayer. One of the readings for last Sunday was taken from Luke 18:1 ff. In the parable, the widow didn't sit at home wringing her hands about her problem. Instead of worrying, she got up and approached the only person who could help her–the judge. In verse one Jesus said we ought always to pray and not to give up. The NASB says, “Pray and do not lose heart.” The Greek word translated “give up” is enkenkao. It literally means to “be filled with bad thoughts.” Worry is filling our mind with bad thoughts of the worst that could happen. Worry is like water in that it begins as a trickle of doubt that creeps into our mind. If it isn't stopped, it soon becomes a stream of fear which creates a pond of paranoia, overflowing into a river of distress which develops into a raging torrent of tension. Before we know it, the flood of worry has carved a Grand Canyon of anxiety in our mind!
William Ward wrote this about worry, “Worry is faith in the negative, trust in the unpleasant, assurance of disaster, and belief in defeat...Worry is a magnet that attracts negative circumstances...Worry is wasting today’s time to clutter up tomorrow’s opportunities with yesterday’s troubles.” Worry, to sum it up, is like rocking in a rocking chair–it gives you something to do, but you never go anywhere with it.
The Apostle Paul was stuck in a Roman dungeon, facing the possibility of having his head chopped off. Instead of worrying about dying, he prayed, and in addition to praying he wrote some letters to encourage Christans to pray instead of worrying. Look at his word found in Philippians 4:6-7. (Remember that these words were penned by a man sitting in a damp, dark, depressing dungeon), “Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worry into prayers. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down.” (The Message)
The most effective prayers in the Bible are those that were prayed persistently. In Psalm 55:16-17, David wrote, “I call to God, and the Lord saves me. Evening, morning, and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.” David wasn't one of those one-a-day vitamin prayers. He was an day in, day out, man of prayer!
In the Old Testament, Hannah desperately wanted a child. For many years she prayed and prayed to have a child. After her prayer went unanswered for several years she didn't say, “Well, it must not be God’s will for me to have a child.” She kept on praying and eventually God gave her a son – Samuel, the mighty prophet.
In the parable in the book of Luke 18, we are represented by the widow. She didn't worry and she was persistent in her requests. But is God like that crooked judge, who must be pestered and coerced before He will answer our prayers? He is not like that at all. Parables not only contain comparisons, but contrasts as well. Jesus used the mean judge as the antithesis of our loving Heavenly Father. He said, “And will not God bring justice to His chosen? Will He not answer their prayers quickly?”
C.S. Lewis wrote, “Prayer is request. The essence of a request, as distinct from a demand, is that it may or may not be granted. And if an infinitely wise Being listens to the requests of finite and foolish creatures, of course He will sometimes grant them and sometimes refuse them... If God had granted all the silly prayers I’ve made in my life, where should I be now?"
In Jesus our Lord,
Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X43XXpItGk0




Saturday Evening worship services
at : First United Methodist Church,
53 McKinley Ave., Endicott.
Sponsored by Union Center United Methodist Church.

Schedule for the remainder of October:
October 23, 2010
Music by Aric Phinney and team
Preacher: Rev Earle Cowden
October 30, 2010
Music by Laureen Naik and team
Preacher: Jeff Vansyckle

November 6, 2010 - ( Saturday) There will be a Thanksgiving banquet. At 5 PM a traditional Thanksgiving menu will be served, including home made rolls and pies. Chef: Lou Pasquel and team. (Reservations: Call the Church office (607)-748-6329 or email at umcgospel@aol.com
The banquet will be followed by 6:30 PM Worship
Music: Aric Phinney and the team
Speaker: Kelly Johnson from Nashville, TN.