Author: Prodigal

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

James 4:7 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: One translation puts it like this. "Place yourself under the authority of God." Another says, "Humble yourself." I can’t help but think of little Isaac submitting himself to his father (Abraham) and laying down and being bound to be sacrificed. Isaac trusted his father just as Abraham trusted God. Isaac lay there watching his father raise a blade to sacrifice his son, when all of a sudden, God interrupts him. God provided a ram for the sacrifice rather than Isaac being killed. This was a test for Abraham to see just how much he loved and trusted God. Then there is the idea of resisting the devil. The term "resist" can mean "stand firm against" in this verse. This teaching seems to be an "all or nothing" type of message. You completely trust God, but you fight against the enemy. You pledge your allegiance to the heavenly Father, but you battle the enemy with all of the energy you have and all that you are. There is a promise here. By no means am I implying this is an algebraic formula or some way that we could or should manipulate God. It is a matter of spiritual maturity. If we fight long enough and hard enough, the enemy will understand that God is our source and He has already won the war.

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we find our allegiance, not in any man-made government or divisions, but in the Kingdom of God. That He would remind us that we are His children for those who are living rightly and according to His purposes. I pray that we would truly stand and fight the enemy, so that they turn around, tuck their tails, and run away out of fear of the Holy One.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation."

Mark 16:15 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: Wait! Does this mean I need to go and get my passport updated so I can travel the world? That is certainly an option. The awesome thing is that there are people around the world with the same belief in Jesus that can proclaim the gospel in their town, their city, their state, and even their region. If everyone was sharing the gospel, then there would be overlap, much like a venn diagram. If we will allow the light of Christ to shine from within us and we share that light with others, eventually, darkness will have no place to hide. You don’t have to go to seminary or be a pastor to share the light of Christ. We can just share how God has saved us from ourselves and how far He has brought us from where He found us. It really is that simple. We just have to share with others the story that God is writing through us.

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we would prepare ourselves for the incredibly long journey that is just outside our bubble of life. That we would slowly let down our guard and trust that God will protect us as we share the love that He has shared with us. I pray that as we share what God has done for us, that others will see that the very thing they are lacking is Jesus.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"Blessed is anyone who endures temptation. Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him."

James 1:12 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: Confession time! James is one of my most favorite books of the bible. The author seems to get straight to the point of the message. In the first chapter, there is a lot of encouragement for those who are facing hard times by way of persecution by the Romans under Herod Agrippa II’s rule. While we are not really facing any persecution here in the US, we should still be on mission for the cause of Christ. Keep in mind that after his baptism, Jesus was led immediately to the wilderness to be tempted for 40 days. He withstood all of the temptations he was faced with. Based on this verse, can you imagine the "crown of life" he received? This is encouraging. The difficulties we face in life are not caused by God, but He can use those situations to grow us to be more like Christ and toward spiritual maturity. There are plenty who are reading this right now that are facing major health issues whether personally or within family. There are those who have grown weary of the constant trials of life. Please don’t give up. God is truly with you. I would like to encourage you to welcome His presence in the situation. Welcoming Him in may not change the ultimate outcome, but He will certainly fill you with the hope, love, and peace you need to overcome all of life’s trials.

Prayer for today: I pray that we would take a step away from those difficulties in life that are overwhelming us. That we would invite the presence of God, the Holy Spirit, to speak into your heart about the situations you are facing. That He would reassure you with His peace and give you holy wisdom to face the giants. I pray that we would truly trust our heavenly Father that He will bring peace out of the chaos and speak life to our souls.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

Prodigal MikeMike
Prodigal Thinker Blog

@ProdigalThinkerBlog on FB

"Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ."

Colossians 3:23-24 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: There is a difference between who signs your paycheck and who you work for. No matter if you work for a company or if you are self-employed, as a believer in Christ Jesus, you work for the Lord. I was given the opportunity to relearn this a few years back. I was pretty much fed up with my job and found myself complaining a whole lot. So, I started putting out resumes and job hunting. It seemed that every job that I interviewed for had the pretty much the same demanding hours and exhaustive workload that I was trying to step away from with the job I was already working. Finally, one day I was sitting at my desk after an anxiety attack had just finished working me over and I hung my head and began to pray that God would either provide another job opportunity or that He would help me understand why I hadn’t been "released" from the job I was working. Patiently, God began to open my eyes and soften my heart toward the ministry opportunity within the company that I was working for at the time. It was a hard lesson to learn as I had to come to the realization that sometimes we find ourselves in situations so that God can grow us and reach out to the lives around us. He will meet us right where we are, if we will grant Him access. I can honestly say that while I still have difficult days, many of the people who read these posts are not only the ones that God meant for me to reach out to, but they reach out and encourage me.

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we would ask God to open our eyes to see what His heart desires for us. That we would warmly welcome the process of our heavenly Father teaching us and growing us into mature Christians. I pray that we would be agents of grace as we learn to love being content in all things.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"Righteousness guards one whose way is upright, but sin overthrows the wicked."

Proverbs 13:6 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: In my mind, I’m picturing some of the fortresses from Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers called "Helms Deep". The soldiers are preparing for battle, putting on their armor, and choosing their weapons to fight the enemy. In this verse, righteousness (right living) helps to protect and make stronger the firm foundation of those who are on the side of the truth. The flipside of this is that sin doesn’t make someone stronger. It breaks them down and causes even more confusion. Life presents enough battles and challenges on its own. Adding more enemies (sin) just makes the battle even more demanding and draining on our souls. Right living gives life and strength. Sin takes those things away.

Prayer for today: I pray that we would find our solace, our resting place in living rightly for the purpose of the kingdom of God, rather than ourselves. That we would trust our lives and our very souls to the One who created us for His glory. I pray that we would run from evil, but when the time comes for battle, that we would do as Galatians 5:1 says and "Stand firm in our faith" for Christ has set us free. And if we are freed in Christ, then we are free indeed.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins."

1 Peter 4:8 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: Leading up to this verse, Simon-Peter has been writing to all of the area churches, encouraging all to be the embodiment of Christ. We are to "maintain constant love for one another." The love that Simon-Peter is talking about here is a divine love. This type of love (Agape) is something that is foreign to us, but is only possible through the Holy Spirit within us. It is the same love that we receive from God through Christ. This is the reason "love covers a multitude of sins." So, in order to love like God loves us, we have to know and have experienced His love. A love that is unconditional, holds out hope, full of forgiveness, and holding no record of wrongs. Now THAT is a grace-filled love. If we really loved others like this, I don’t think there would be a whole lot of shame over sin or doubts. If you knew that you could speak the things normally kept in your heart or your head without fear of being judged or cast away, wouldn’t that free you to be more vulnerable? I know it would for me. That’s one of the many reasons for these thoughts.

Prayer for today: I pray that we would openly accept the full, unconditional love of God. So much so, that we would feel free to share with each other the things that complicate or come between us and our heavenly Father. Out of faith, we would begin to lower the walls of our hearts to allow the love of God AND the love of fellow believers to start the healing process for our souls.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you."

John 14:26 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: We have ALL of the resources we need to be an avid and devoted follower of Jesus Christ. Not only do we have His example of how to live our lives, but we also have the Holy Spirit who will teach us and remind us of the words of Jesus. I admit, there are plenty of times where it is challenging to listen and pay attention due to ADHD, but that just means I have to be more diligent. So, in general, if so many "Christians" are in the world, but not living His example, does that mean we are not listening? Maybe we are just side-tracked by the busyness of life or work or whatever. Trust me, I know it is easy to get side-tracked. One thing I have learned with my faith journey with a side order of ADHD is that I have to prioritize doing bible study, journal writing (which this is a good bit of it), prayer, and sitting/waiting on God’s presence. When I don’t prioritize, I spend little to no time with God. But when I place my relationship with God as a priority, everything else in life seems to just fall more in line.

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we would understand that we have ALL of the resources available for a dynamic relationship with God through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. That we would place our relationship with God as a priority so we are able to grow in maturity, not lacking anything. I pray that as we spend more time with God, that He would not only bless us in our lives, but that He would bless others through our relationship with Him.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death."

2 Corinthians 7:10 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: Godly grief? What on earth could that mean. In an article by Kevin DeYoung on The Gospel Coalition site, "Godly grief is to be genuinely sorry for sin, to hate it more and more, and to run away from it." He references the story from Luke 15 of the prodigal son when "he saw that he not only had made a mess of his life, but he had sinned against his father,". This is one example of Godly grief. It is amazing to read through the bible to see that God uses those who have a contrite heart to do the most outstanding things. God doesn’t use superheros, he uses men and women with baggage and a broken past. He uses those that have messed up, but understand the grief they have caused our heavenly Father. He can turn a bad situation and create goodness and life out of it. Are we willing to be that honest and vulnerable with the God of the universe? OR Do we think we have come to a point that is so horrible that God can’t fix it? I know several that struggle with this, including myself at times. Please hear me. There is no one that has done something SO terrible or wrong that God can’t forgive. He still loves you and holds out hope that you will turn your heart over to Him. Will you?

Prayer for today: Today,

I pray that we would recognize and be grieved by our sin. That we would let down our guard with God and that we would let Him build us up again. I pray that we would be encouraged that He can accomplish great things in and through us as long as we will trust Him.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life."

John 5:24 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: Are you ready to take action? Are you ready for direction/instruction and then to act on what you have heard? There is a wonderful message in this verse. If we hear the words of Jesus AND believe in God, then our souls will live forever in heaven. But that is just a starting point, not the high point in our faith journey. This act of listening/reading God’s word and believing in God is a daily process. Constantly looking to God for instruction and guidance on how He would have us live our lives for His glory. Is eternal salvation a wonderful gift? By ALL means, yes! But shouldn’t we want to share that gift with others. I can think of several people that do not seem to be headed in the direction of heaven. My heart breaks for them and I pray for them often. I pray that God would present an opportunity to speak to those folks about His son. Shouldn’t that be the desire for all of us?

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we would be still and actively listen for God’s voice, whether through studying His word or in our prayer time. That we would not just hear the word, but we would be people of grace in action. I pray that for each of us that we would be given opportunities to build relationships with those who do not believe and that we would be granted opportunities to share the message of love, the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…

"Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord."

Hebrews 12:14 (NRSV)

Prodigal Thoughts: I nearly missed it, folks. I had to really read this verse a few times before I began to understand what God wanted to say today. When you deconstruct this verse, here is the basic information. Pursue everyone with the peace and holiness in God. Can you have peace without holiness? Possibly. Can you have holiness without peace? Yes. In Jesus’ time, there were plenty of folks that were stuck on their religion, but didn’t create peace around them. I’m speaking of the Pharisees. There are folks that follow the same concept of religion. Earlier in this chapter, the writer has been talking about the example of Jesus and how his true followers should be living out the same type of lives. Is there any room for error? I believe there is. That is why God deals in grace and mercy. He knows that we battle between being His or being of the world. The more we study His word and communicate with Him in prayer, the less we will find ourselves leaning toward the way of the world. So, what can we take away from this verse? Know that the world is searching for something to fill the God-shaped void in their lives and in their hearts. When you are provided an opportunity to be an agent of peace for someone else, take it. Step out in faith. God will lead you.

Prayer for today: Today, I pray that we would be agents of grace and peace to each other as well as those around us. That at the direction of our heavenly Father, we would take action to reach out and offer others the same peace that we receive through a growing relationship with God. Finally, I pray that we would view others not in a condescending way, but that we would have compassion in our hearts and hold out hope that they will come to know Jesus.

If you need prayer, please reply and I will pray for you. If you would like to talk about this verse or have questions, I’m always open for your feedback.

God’s grace on you…