LIFT UP

Have you ever been in the middle of a storm in your life when you were just so devastated, that even though you possessed great faith, it was a struggle to even pray?

It seemed like the burden you were carrying was overpowering you?

Maybe you even felt distant from God even though you really knew in your heart that He is always with you?

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At times like this, we need to reach out to the Christians God has placed in our path whom we trust enough to have them lift us up to the Lord in prayer.

Their faith can help carry our burden to the Lord. I think that is such an honor and privilege that we have.

That thought struck me recently while watching the movie “Miracles from  Heaven.”  For those of you who have seen the movie, maybe you would agree that it was something that could have been further developed in the script. I think it would have been a great addition for the movie to show the importance of praying for others.

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Has the Lord ever impressed upon your heart to lift someone up to Him in prayer that you knew was really struggling? Maybe the person did not even ask you specifically to pray for them.

This has happened to me a few times recently. Somehow, I knew without a doubt, I was suppose to pray for them and that things would turn out well for the people. It was a great experience to see how the Lord worked favorably through interceding for the people.

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Sometimes I think we should ask more people to pray for someone who needs prayer. We know that Jesus said “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.”  –Matt 18:19-20 (NIV) When we unite in prayer with other Christians, there is even more power. I found this truth in my life recently while praying for a dear friend who was sick.

In the middle of writing these thoughts, it was interesting to have a friend reach out to me and ask me to pray for her as she really felt led to pray with a Jewish friend of hers who is very ill. My friend really wanted to share Jesus with the person. It was an honor to join in prayer that the Lord give my friend the words she needed to share Jesus with her friend. We continue to pray that the person asked Jesus into her heart; she wasn’t really able to respond to know for sure.
The story of the paralyzed man in Luke 5:18-25 shows how the faith of his friends helped in his healing.  The paralytic’s friend’s brought him to Jesus, and “When Jesus saw THEIR faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”  –Luke 5:20 (NIV)  This story came up in conversation with a dear friend last weekend and fit in perfectly with these thoughts I was in the middle of writing. (Thanks, Nigel!)
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Photo credit by John 9:25 under Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) 

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I recently heard that the thought that we are meant for relationships. Just as God in three persons is in relationship with God.. Jesus.. Holy Spirit, so we are all needed to be in relationship with others. What better way to be in relationship than to be lifting others up to the Lord in prayer?

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When someone asks you to pray for them, no matter how small the need, remember what a privilege it is.

I think it’s also important to let the person know when the prayer has been answered if the person did specifically ask you to pray… Even if it wasn’t answered in the way you expected. It is faith building to see the Lord work through the gift of lifting up others to the Lord.
Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  –Galatians 6:2  (NIV)
This cover “Pray with Me” that a friend of mine wrote seems like the perfect ending to these thoughts. Take a listen and be blessed!

Author: Christine

Welcome to Hope to Inspire You….Highlighting God’s presence to Inspire your Life! I’m Christine, a Christian, hoping to inspire you by sharing what is in my heart about our faith and our great God. Take some time, read some of my thoughts, and feel free to comment and share your thoughts…It would be a blessing to hear from you. My prayer is that you may be inspired and blessed in some small way by reading!

4 thoughts on “LIFT UP”

  1. This is so true and so needed. When someone randomly pops into my mind out of the blue, I always take it as a prompt from the Lord to pray for them right then and there. I try to reach out to them to let them know but I don’t always get to do that part.

    thanks for the reminder and yes… is always an honor to go to the throne of Grace for someone.

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