The Christian Lifestyle Magazine, Issue 12

MARRIAGE
In a time when our lives felt
by God? The giant slayer wasn’t a man
serve your gods or worship the gold
completely out of control, with the
of weak faith since he followed God’s
item you’ve set up, oh king. Love it!
enemy relentlessly attempting to
heart.
Our God can save us, but even if not.
shape our thinking, I was reminded
You may suppose these Old
We won’t bow My God can answer
of a Proverbs verse that I treasure. A
Testament examples were hampered
my petition, but I’ll still trust Him if He
friend gave me a coffee cup with it
by sin. I did. So, let’s browse the New
doesn’t.
beautifully printed across the front!
Testament, shall we? Paul, who wrote
Prayer is a very powerful tool, and
What a good way to start the day!
most of the New Testament, prays 3
the Bible teaches that it is impossible
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord
times for God to remove a “thorn in
to please God without faith! That
with all your heart, and lean not on
his flesh,” but God answers no and His
being said, our faith should be in
your own understanding.” Trust Him!
grace will carry him through (2
the One we’re praying to, not in the
FOR
BETTER
AND FOR
WORSE
My wife ran towards God rather
than away from Him as she wrestled
with Him to see things from His
perspective. She found peace and
breakthrough while reading the book
of Samuel and the account of Hannah,
who couldn’t have a child. 1 Samuel
1:6 says the Lord closed Hannah’s
womb, but she prayed and cried out
to Him, and He answered her prayer.
She gave birth to his plan and glory.
Samuel. A great prophet embraced
God. God knows best; trust Him. God
had opened my wife’s eyes to our
situation. We don’t use his methods.
He wants us to believe Him even
Corinthians
12:7-10). In
Gethsemane,
Jesus prays.
Jesus, facing
the agony of
the cross and
dying for the
sins of the
world, prayed
Matthew
26:29. “Father,
if it’s possible,
let this cup
pass from Me;
however, Your will be done!” Who
“OUR FAITH
SHOULD BE
IN THE ONE
WE’RE PRAYING
TO, NOT IN
THE THING
WE’RE PRAYING
FOR OR IN
THE PRAYER
ITSELF!”
thing we’re praying for or
in the prayer itself! We
can trust Him even if He
says no. Living faith is one
that is rooted in the Living
God. I’d like to encourage
you. Don’t rely on your
own understanding! Don’t
let misunderstandings and
disappointments influence
your thinking. The amazing
thing is that we can trust
Him even when the
outcome does not match
our prayers. I recall the
night after our friend’s baby girl died.
when we don’t understand. Because
could accuse Paul or Jesus of lacking
We stayed up all night praying and
Hannah believed in Him, God
faith? But God ignored their requests.
worshiping the Lord. We were hurt
reopened Hannah’s womb. Too often,
Let that sink in. Father’s plan, will,
and weak as a result of our ordeals,
By: Leeroy Booysen &
Jethro Smith
“Our faith should be in the One we’re
praying to, not in the thing we’re
praying for or in the prayer itself!”
At around 6 a.m., eleven months
into our marriage, I’m holding my
pregnant wife in my arms as she drifts
in and out of consciousness. Every
few minutes, I can feel her body go
limp between gut-wrenching cries
of agony. I’m praying nonstop, trying
not to think about the possibility that
she’ll cross over to the other side
and leave me sitting on the bedroom
floor, holding her limp body. After a
few days in the hospital, she returned
with a flat stomach and a deep, silent
sadness that I couldn’t solve or cure.
Her joy seemed to die that day, along
with our unborn child.
She didn’t get out of bed for a few
days after that. Days when she was
engulfed by darkness. She’d wake up
in tears and stay that way until sunset.
“God, why did this happen?” “Will
we ever be able to have children?”
“We are terrified! We don’t want to
go through that trauma again!” These
kinds of thoughts served as a
soundtrack for this season.
Days turned into weeks, then
months, and I wondered when this
period of deep mourning would end!
Will it ever end? My wife was now
dealing with nagging questions that
couldn’t be neatly answered. “Am I
sterile?” “Will I ever be able to have
children?” If this season wasn’t difficult
enough, a couple we really love in the
Lord went through something similar
and gave birth to a stillborn (we found
out we were pregnant within weeks
of each other and our kids were going
to grow up together). “But why, Lord?
We prayed! We intervened!” “Why,
Lord? Will it ever end?” Have you
ever wondered if God didn’t answer
your prayers because your faith
wasn’t strong enough? Or how about
another believer implying, “If only you
had more faith, if only you prayed
more!”
Our own opinions and
understanding can be so
dangerous that they can shape
and change our attitude toward
circumstances, people, and God
for better or for worse! How many
times have we attempted to fit this
complicated, wonderful life into a cute
little package that we can manage,
understand, and control? Can you
recall the last time you heard untrue
gossip about someone? Saying things
that sound good and spiritual but end
up betraying God’s image and heart.
This is exactly what Christians do
unknowingly when we begin to form
our own opinions that contradict what
the Bible teaches.
we blame our lack of faith for God’s
unanswered prayers.
We can deeply and unknowingly
hurt others in an instant simply by
implying, “God didn’t answer your
prayers because you lacked faith or
didn’t pray enough!” Could it be that
God’s will, plan, and purpose are
different from what I’m praying for?
To comprehend God’s ways, read
scripture. Jesus told His disciples
to pray for the Father’s will in Matt
6:9-13. John teaches that if we pray
according to God’s will, it will be
done. Moses, a man of faith, begs the
Lord to enter the promised land in
Deuteronomy 3:23-27. LORD says,
“Enough” “Don’t talk to Me about
this!” 2 Sam 12: King David begs God
to spare the child born of his sin with
Bathsheba. He fasts and cries. Later,
David wished to build a temple for
the Lord, but God refused. His son
builds the temple. David was denied
and purpose was different than their
own. In Daniel 3:17-18, Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego declare their
confidence. If tossed into the flames,
our God can save us. And He’ll save
us, oh king. If He doesn’t, we won’t
but we were able to trust Him, and so
can you!
It’s a decision you can make right
now that you’ll never regret! Trust
Him with all your heart.
50 THE CHRISTIAN LIFESTYLE 51