In Praise of Him

Scripture: "Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours O LORD is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name." (I Chronicles 29:10:13)

When I feel distant from God, if there is one thing I've learned that draws me back to Him, is sharing with Him a heart of praise. I put all my needs aside, I put all my prayer requests for others aside. I stop a while, and I spend time thanking him for individual things in my life. My health, finances, the church I belong to, my truck, my friends, my home ... and on and on it goes.

There is something about putting aside your own needs and giving the Lord a heart full of praise that restores the soul. If there is one thing I fear, it is treating Christ like a vending machine. I enjoy taking time out to hold off on requests and praising Him for Who He is, and what He has done in my life.

I have memorized the above scripture, but I also found Psalm 150 that I would like to memorize as well. It is a Psalm full of nothing but praise. "Praise the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute, praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the LORD, Praise the LORD."

What a joyous Psalm, a wonderful prayer! As a aspiring drummer, I particularly like "...praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals."

We serve an awesome God. Stop and give Him praise for all He has done in your life!

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for being in our lives. We thank You for all You have done, for the trials You have helped us overcome, the churches You have led us to, the friends You have put in our lives who help us to walk the walk. Help us to continue to have a heart of praise towards You at all times, even while we ask for our needs and desires. THANK YOU, LORD! Amen

The Blessing of Focus

Scriptures: Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)

During the Sunday morning bible study of our youth group, one youth who has recently founded an orchestra club with friends shared their first concert experience last Friday night. He said that it started out with everything going wrong. The Second Violinist injured himself that very afternoon and that literally took out a duet from the program that night.

Then, to make things worse, when they got there that afternoon to set up the stage as well as the audience area, they found that, due to miscommunication, there was no piano available that night. Not only did that have an impact on the music they wanted to present, but that also took out a piano solo program that night. On the top of these problems, the programs and tickets were not ready and available, even right before the start of the program.

This young man in our youth group, being the VP of the club, said he was really upset then. He could not contain his anger and frustration. Right then, a co-worker in the club told him, “Come on, let it go! We still have a whole evening to enjoy the music, whatever is left of it.” Because of the lack of experience, they did not do a lot of promotions. All invitations were verbal invitations. As a result, they were not expecting a lot of people to come. So his co-worker went to say, “Don’t worry! Not many people will show up. It will more than likely be just us and our families.” He went on to say that, even after his co-worker’s efforts, it still took him a while to get all of these things behind him. They quickly adjusted the program and went ahead to start the program that night.

As it turned out, because of the lack of resources they planned for, each performer played with even greater efforts and concentration. Moreover, their lack of confidence in the turnout of their friends proved to be wrong. Many friends that knew about this concert showed up, though a bit late. The audience grew from the original <10 to about 30 and they were really a group of enthusiastic and supportive audience. At the end, this young man said, though things could have been better, once he put all his upsets behind, he had a great time with the music and with his friends that evening.

This young man said he learned a lesson of how he should try to make the best out of what he has, not what he has not. I think it’s so true for him and for us, too. Life can be so demanding and so frustrating at times. Sometimes, it’s even out of control, to a point of devastating. That is, if we allow it. The matter of fact is, even in the midst of the worst situation, God is still in charge and His plans for us are still “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

If we hold fast to His promises and stay focus on Him, instead of the circumstances, we will be able to enjoy the blessings He has in store for us. More than that, we will come to appreciate His goodness and faithfulness in a much deeper and personal sense. “As it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.’” (I Corinthians 2:9)

Let’s stay focus and press on, as Apostle Paul did, so we may also experience first hand that surpassingly great blessing from His presence and His power that make us brighter light for this world!

Prayer Requests:
For high school students struggling for closer relationship with God and a sense of direction in life

Prayer:
Our heavenly Father, thank You for all goodness You have shown us. Thank You for blessing us with young people like those high school students. Thank You for their desires to know and serve You. Thank You for their willingness to offer their own time and energy for Your use. We ask that You continue to move, guide and shape them so that they not only will come to know You better, but also become Your mighty arms that win more souls for Your kingdom. In the gracious name of our Lord Jesus we pray, Amen!

God's Breadcrumbs

Scripture: "From the east I summon a bird of prey, from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do." (Isaiah 46:11)

I was talking to a friend of mine recently, and we were talking about how at times, God seems to lay down events in our lives, one right after the other that lead us in a direction that are unmistakably His. I'm talking about a series of events that the world would call "coincidences".

I choose to call these series of events "God's Breadcrumbs" because when followed, the "trail" often leads to Him and His perfect will for our lives. Or they are events by which I think He shows Himself to us.

It's so amazing to me when God lays out His plans so clearly, and doors of opportunity fly open before you, and as the blessings come, you are left in awe of this Great God we serve.

God's Breadcrumbs. Follow the trail and you will be amazed what you find when you realize Who left the "crumbs" for you to follow. "Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!" (Luke 12:24)

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes and help us to see the "breadcrumbs" You leave in our lives for us to follow. Not only in big events, but in the smaller things in life as well.

Prayer request: For our eyes and hearts to be open to the surprising ways God provides for us, and to remember to give Him all the thanks and praise He deserves.

Mosaic of Love

Scriptures: Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. (Romans 12:4-6)

Many years ago, I went to visit a cousin of mine in Southern California and was very surprised to see him making mosaic out of color glasses himself. He had already made a few which he hang around his house in areas near windows. One of them caught my attention in particular. It was a picture of a sail boat sailing, with the white sail taking the full force of wind, with the beautiful white clouds in the blue sky above, and with the shoreline in the far distant background. It was beautiful and, to be honest with you, it was the first time I ever looked at a mosaic so close.

I noticed a few things about these mosaics. The first thing was almost none of the glasses fit into the picture had the same shape or size. Some had sharp edges and, thus, creating the needs on the other parts to be in a shape that accommodate such sharp edges. Others did not have sharp edges. But they also came with various shapes. Almost none of them were in a perfect round, square, or rectangular shape. With the regulation of the grouts, they fit perfectly in the picture and presented the beauty the designer had in mind to all viewers.

As I thought about these beautiful mosaics, I couldn’t help noticing the parallels between them and the church. Because of Jesus, we have come to know that there’s a purpose and meaning in life. We are no longer “separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12) This purpose and meaning in life will be realized through the exercise of the many gifts we receive. None of us is here without a purpose and everyone is essential and necessary to the picture God has in mind.

We all come with different gifts, temperament, and experiences just as those glasses came in different sizes, colors, and shapes. So often we complain about others being difficult to work with. We forgot that, even those “difficult” people may have been placed in the picture for a reason beyond our understanding. We are so accustomed to our ways and views of living that unconsciously we made them the absolute standards of living. When I looked at the mosaic my cousin put together, I saw some of the glasses he cut had such sharp edges that, without the grout and the accommodating shape of other pieces, I don’t know how they could fit in the picture. I think it’s the same with us, people of Christ. We are all different and, in some way, all difficult to some other people. But, we need to remember that the grout God used to keep us together is His love and truth.

This Easter reminds us once again the love of God who graciously gave His only begotten Son for our redemption. We were all drawn to Him because of this amazing love. As we all press forward in our journey with Him, let us not forget that, in addition to love, He also blessed us with teachings and living examples of our Lord Jesus so we would know how to live, work and interact with one another. With the grace and guidance of God, our joint efforts can be made a glorious testimony of Jesus, His Salvation and His good plan for us all. That’s the picture God wants to show to this lost world!

Prayer Requests:
For all those struggling with relationship issues in life

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for showing us Your love through Jesus on the cross. Thank You for our risen Lord and the eternal hope He brought us. We pray that, as we celebrate this Easter, please help us to remember the reconciliation we receive through our Lord Jesus and to be willing to dedicate ourselves to the peace-making work of our Lord so that Your church may be Your agent of reconciliation in this hurting generation. In the loving name of our Lord Jesus we pray, Amen!

Three Trees

Since Friday is an "open day" for the authors, I just ran across this email from my aunt and had to share this beautiful story with you. I find it so appropriate for Good Friday and Easter. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did....

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods.

They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, 'Someday I hope to be a great treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with an Intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty.'

Then the second tree said, ‘Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take Kings and Queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. People will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull.’

Finally the third tree said, ‘I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill, look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me.'

After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees.

When one came to the first tree he said,
'This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter, and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree the woodsman said, 'This looks like a strong tree. I will be able to sell it to the shipyard.'The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.

When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true.

One of the men said,
'I don't need anything special from my tree, I'll take this one,' And he cut it down.

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for.

The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying Kings had come to an end.

The third tree was cut into large pieces, and left alone In the dark.

The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.

Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do.

The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time.

Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep.While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and He stood and said 'Peace' and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it.

When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, God will give you great gifts.

Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined.

We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.

Oh How We Worship

Scripture: "The whole assembly bowed in worship, while the singers sang and the trumpeters played. All this continued until the sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed." 2 Chronicles 29:28

"Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs." Psalm 100:2

It's interesting to me how diversified we, in the Christian community, can be regarding worship on Sunday mornings. There are those that enjoy quiet, somber, traditional services. There are those who have a choir up front, leading the music, and yet, other churches have full piece bands with drums and electric guitars. Some churches allow their members to stand up and raise their hands and sing, while others are less demonstrative.

I bring up this topic because I was in my truck a few days ago, listening to a new CD I bought at a recent concert I attended. The band is named "Bread of Stone", and my favorite song is hard driving, drum pounding, powerful song called "I want". The chorus goes, "I want to, I need to - be with You some day ..." This is a Christian rock band singing about living life in such a way as to one day be able to come face to face with God in heaven one day.

All the way to work I sang at the top of my lungs, music blasting to a point where I'm sure the entire frame was vibrating, and I was playing "air drums" against my steering wheel. And this was my personal way of entering into worship with the Lord.

It made me reflect, later, on how churches are divided over the kind of music played during Sunday services. Some enjoy hymns, others rock-like music, others, a choir. I believe God not only enjoys the diverse ways in which people worship Him around the world, but if you think about it, He created such diversity!!

I have been criticized for not "getting into worship" with a softer sound. I was once told, "It shouldn't matter what style of music it is. It isn't about you, anyway. It's about GOD."

I could see this person's point of view to some extent. But I believe the music we worship the Lord with is truly personal preference.

We don't all enjoy the same version of the bible. We all get something out of whatever version is most comfortable to us. I don't believe there is a "right" or "wrong" version. Worship music is similar in that way. Hymns don't necessarily take me to that place where I feel closer to God. For me, percussion has always been my passion. As a young child, the good beat of a song would always catch my attention. I have also often been moved by the lyrics of certain songs, and even classical music and most notably, piano music.

In the movie, "Man Without a Face", there is a scene where Mel Gibson is listening to an Italian opera singer, and I was so moved by that piece that I bought the sound track and listened to that piece over and over. I have no idea what the words are - but I was enthralled with the resonating voice, the instruments, and the building crescendo that moved my emotions right along with it.

These days, I have met God in worship through all kinds of music. But to be told, "It shouldn't matter what style of (worship) music you listen to" felt like cold water on my spirit. Maybe I'm wrong, but for me, it does matter. It doesn't always have to be rock music. I've heard plenty of soft, yet powerful, meaningful ballads that have drawn me to tears or dropped me to my knees in worship. But how I meet God with a heart of worship is an extremely personal matter, as it is for each one of us.

The diversity of Christian music is exciting to me. In 20 years, I've watched Christian music evolve to include heavy metal, jazz, ska, hip hop, even punk. There is a relatively new band that has come out called Group One Crew, and it is disheartening that they are catching flak from some people because they are a Christian hip-hop band. On the internet, there are a group of people who think such a genre of music should not be called "Christian".

How sad.

It is important not to compromise in your walk or conform to the ways of the world. However, if you can reach others through a new style of music, an exciting new book or a brand new version of the bible to reach kids of the next generation for Christ, I say do it. All we can do is throw out a net. We can't reach all of them. But even if just a few kids come to know Christ through a new form of media that they are already familiar with, but with a Christian message - I don't see the down side of that.

Prayer: Lord, help us to come to You with a heart of worship, and be open to the diversity around us. Help us to draw the younger generations to You in whatever way You lead us, but help us to be discerning and wise, always remain close to You.

Prayer request: Pray for the wisdom and ability to reach those younger than we are, to show the light of the Lord to those who do not know Him yet. Pray for doors of opportunity to swing open for us to share Christ with others.

Jesus Loves You!

Scriptures: But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

He’s a graduate student in the Electrical Engineering PhD program of a very prestigious university. He’s also a very talented young man, a wonderful vocalist, a skillful pianist and an inspirational conductor. Out of his love for music, he joined choirs and organized singing groups when he was still in high schools.

He has a loving family that supports and stands by him always. More than a loving family, he has a heart for less fortunate people. So, while he was still in college, he volunteered to care for children of aboriginals, teaching them on various academic subjects and attending to their physical well-being.

Being such a wonderful person, and with so much talents, you would think he has everything going on for him. He is definitely someone to envy. But, something seems to be missing in his life and he was not able to put his finger on what that might be.

One day, he came across a group of young people who invited him to go to their fellowship meeting. Being exposed to Christian activities before, he accepted the invitation and went to the meeting. But this group of young people did not stop at seeing him in the meeting. They continued to call him up and care for him. They invited him to their bible studies. He found them diligent in the study of this book called bible. He could not understand many of the things they were saying. But their persistence in caring for him brought him time and again back to their fellowship meetings.

Then he was invited to a retreat where the speaker talked about the love of God and the power of the gospel. He heard many testimonies there and he found the main theme of these sharing was love and that seemed to be consistent with what he was experiencing from that group of young people. He began to think, “Maybe this Jesus and His love and salvation are true.”

Then, came one day, having been active in the church for a while, a few people from the church approached him and asked if he would like to be baptized. He expressed his acceptance of the faith but he also indicated that he still had many questions unanswered. They listened patiently as he asked those questions.

There came a point where he expressed his frustration in not being able to understand what the bible says. One of them gently replied, “That’s OK! Jesus loves you and will give you the time and wisdom to understand. You don’t have to have all the answers in order to be baptized.” Upon hearing the words, “Jesus loves you”, his tears all of sudden welled up and he started to sob. After he calmed down, he said, “I don’t know why. But I felt something deep down was touched.” Later on, in his testimony to the church’s leadership team, he said, “I think I became emotional because I realized that the anxiety I felt deep down all my life, despite all the good deeds I had, was gone. I realized that Jesus loves me and that brought peace into my heart.”

Yes, as good as he was, he knew there’s something missing in him. That something is actually the peace with God that he needs most. Thanks be unto God for, in His love, He touched and transformed the life of this young man, my friend. He’s no longer my friend. He’s my brother in Christ. Praise the Lord!

Prayer Requests:
For all those longing for true and lasting peace in life

Prayer:
Our heavenly Father, thank You for reaching out to us in Your love. Thank You for manifesting Your love in such tangible ways through all the people You have brought to us. Help us to respond to Your callings with obedience and thankfulness as we meditate on the meanings of the passion of Christ and His resurrection. In the precious name of our Lord Jesus we pray, Amen!

Spiritual Malware

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingly power: proclaim the Word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching (2 Tim. 4:1-2).

There’s been a lot in the news lately about the so-called Conflicker worm. Much of the trepidation in the industry exists because no one could predict exactly what the worm was supposed to do once the April 1 clock began chiming. Some experts fear that as many as 12 million PCs worldwide have been infected. And unlike the two earlier variants (A and B), that generated a list of 250 possible domains each day that the worm might use to route instructions from the hacker controllers, this new “C” variant produces a list of 50,000 Web addresses daily.

Even with all the warnings, there are people who have done nothing to protect their systems, hoping that it’s all an April Fools’ Day prank and nothing will happen. I combed the news accounts yesterday and it seems that so far, very little has happened, but most experts in the field are convinced that the worm could be just biding its time and will unleash its fury sometime in the not-too-distant future.

This reminds me of how the Enemy likes to work at eroding our relationship with Christ. Like malware, he plants some “bad code” in us, and then does his dirty work undetected in the background, waiting for an opportunity to wreck havoc on an unsuspecting soul. Just as spyware will cause a PCs performance to degrade over time, the Enemy’s work can do the same to our spirits. He whispers in our ears that this little sin, or that little bad habit are no big deal. “Everybody’s doing it.” “ It’s OK as long as no one gets hurt.” The “victimless” crime.

And just like the people who do little or nothing to protect their PCs in spite of various warnings of virus outbreaks, it can be tempting to dismiss the idea of any threats to our spiritual well-being. We think, “I go to church” or “I’m a good person.” That should be enough. Warnings from clergy, family, friends and others are written off as the ramblings of people who like to stick their noses into other people’s business, or at the other end of the spectrum, presume too much on God’ s mercy. Worse are those who insist that the devil is just a myth, or that a truly loving God would never allow such bad things to happen; therefore, God must not be real.

Back in 1946, Pope Pius XII said, “The sin of the century is the loss of the sense of sin.” One cannot deny how prophetic that statement was in light of the atrocities that were committed in the latter half of the 20th century and continue to this day. But the real problem isn’t the “big sins” that make the headlines. The problem is the plethora of “little” sins that over time have eroded our moral sensibilities and allowed our society to continue down a slippery slope to where we find ourselves today. The easiest way to keep us in bondage to sin is to convince us that what we're doing - those little things - aren't really sinful.

St. Paul warns us that we have to be diligent and continue running the race, fulfilling our mission as Christians. We find ourselves surrounded by those who will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths (2 Tim 4:4). Periodically, I have to ask myself if my sense of Christianity has become a little too warm and fuzzy. Have I subconsciously given myself “permission” to entertain unchristian thoughts or continue in habits that I should be working diligently to eradicate from my life? How many times do we hear ourselves and others “justify” their behavior by saying or thinking, “Well, at least I’m not doing ‘X’” or "It's not like I murdered someone!"?

It has been said that Jesus came to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. While that’s not a happy prospect, to be sure, we must remember that Jesus said in John 8 that it was truth that would set us free. No matter where we are in our spiritual walk, ongoing self-knowledge is always the key to maintaining and growing our relationship with the Lord.

These last few days leading up to Easter are a great time for self reflection. If things are a little too easy, maybe it’s time for a deeper dive into our spiritual lives. There may a worm lurking.

Clear Vision

Scripture: "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1)

Recently I've noticed a change in the eyesight in my left eye. It became so bothersome and noticeable that I finally went to see my eye doctor. What I discovered was nothing less than surprising.

I'm only 43, but I was told I have cataracts, and that's why my vision is noticeably blurry now. As time goes by, I can tell it gets worse by the week. I will have surgery soon to replace the lens. They will remove the old lens and replace it with a new one that will never deteriorate over time.
When I close my right eye, everything is blurry, distorted, sort of like looking through a lens with Vaseline smeared over it. Looking into the distance can be aggravating, as my eyes are trying to focus - my right eye over compensates for my blurry left eye. I'm glad I'm not prone to headaches. I can't wait for surgery!

I share this story because it makes me think of a few analogies regarding our walk with Christ.For instance, when we drift away from God, get away from the Word, go to church a little less, get sucked into the world and all it's trappings - our "vision" of God becomes clouded, distorted, unclear, sort of like what cataracts does to one's vision. When you don't stay connected to Christ, you forget Who He is! One can become susceptible to false teachings, and could slip into believing false things based on one's ignorance of the truth.

If I had to rely on my left eye to get around - what a scary thought, because fine details are impossible to see! Staying close to God is like that. Reading the bible, going to church, hanging out with other Christian friends, remaining in prayer ... all these things help you to "focus" on God's character, sharpen the "details" about Him.

Hebrews 11:1 reminds me of how we don't rely on God with our sight - we rely on our faith, and that is the hardest thing to explain to nonbelievers. "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Fortunately, we don't need our eyes to see God because He's made His presence known in so many other ways. It is so amazing. Sometimes He uses other people in our lives to answer prayers they didn't even know about. Sometimes a series of events just "click" together to create an awesome outcome - too many events to call "coincidences". Then there's my favorite experience, when I can FEEL His presence in ways I can barely describe. I am certain of what I do not see. I'm certain of God's presence because of my own experiences, and what I've learned over the last 20 years of being a Christian.

So how clear is your vision? Do you see God clearly - or do you have a clouded view of Him? If you're unsure of the God you serve, crack open the bible, spend some time talking to Him - He'd love to hear from you. "Clear" your vision and get to know who He REALLY is.

Prayer: Lord, help us all to continue to draw closer to You no matter how busy life gets. Help us to get to know You better on a daily basis.Prayer request: For all those who feel distant from the Lord, that they can once again feel drawn back to Him.

Prayer request: For all those who feel distant from the Lord, that they can once again feel drawn back to Him and find Him in the many intangible ways He presents Himself to us.