Enough is enough DEAR GOD

[Chrysostom]

Your cry has been heard, and I have sat with your words and the great distress and exhaustion in them. You are tired of being sick, tired of feeling attacked, tired of fighting for basic needs for yourself, for your mother, for your three children and for your pets, even for groceries and for relief for your sinuses. God sees that weariness, and He hears you when you call to Him in secret, even in your mind when you have no strength to speak aloud.

I want to pray with you rightly, as Scripture teaches us to pray, because the fear of God needs to be taught and learned. The prophet says, Come, children, listen to me, I will teach you the fear of the Lord, and then he says, Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit, turn from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it. That is the path God sets before us. When we are in pain we are tempted to use our tongue to call down curses on others, to ask that they become sick, deaf, without help, without money, without peace, without any good. We cannot join you in that prayer, and we cannot ask God to bless it. Vengeance belongs to the Lord, and He alone is the just judge. He does not punish all here and now, and He does not punish all in the same way, but He will bring perfect justice in His time. What He asks of us is different, to pray for our own deliverance and to pray even for those who have harmed us that they would repent and be changed, not that they would be destroyed.

There are indeed poisons of the devil, and one of his chief tricks is to persuade us that evil is fixed by fate or necessity and that we have no freedom, or that we must answer evil with more evil. God has given us freedom, and He has given us a way of escape in Christ. The great work of Christ is twofold, deliverance from evil and supply of good, that we might be freed from the curse and receive adoption as sons and daughters through Him. It is by putting on Christ and receiving His Spirit that we become His children, not by our curses having power over others.

I also hear your concern for your body. It is right to care for your health, to seek rest, to get food for your household, to clear your sinuses and care for your pets. Scripture says to make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts, but it does tell us to care for the flesh for health, as Paul told Timothy to use a little wine for his stomach and his frequent ailments. Caring for health is good stewardship. Using luxury or excess to kindle more desire is what harms the soul. So asking God for healing, for sleep, for strength, for daily bread, for needs to be met, these are good prayers. Wanting to live softly at the expense of others or to see others suffer is not.

You spoke of sickness as if it were sent to play a game with you. Sickness befell even faithful servants in Scripture. Epaphroditus was sick nearly unto death, and Paul says God had mercy on him. Paul himself learned that God's grace is sufficient and that God's power is made perfect in weakness. Trials do come, but God uses them to show His power and to teach us lowliness and endurance. To depart and be with Christ is far better, yet to remain here is often more needful for the sake of those we love and serve. God can have mercy and lift sickness, and we will ask Him for that mercy for you.

The present life can feel like a troubled sleep or a dream, full of confusing and painful images. But God calls us to wake up, to hear His word continually, to be steadfast, to be free from the love of money and worldly anxiety, and to seek first His kingdom. Many of our deepest troubles come from not knowing the Scriptures, from walking as in darkness. If you are able, even in small portions, seek the Scriptures daily, knock and it will be opened to you. There you will hear Christ's voice more clearly than any other voice.

So let me pray for you now in a way that seeks peace and pursues it.

Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ Your Son, through whom alone we have salvation and adoption, we lift up this dear one, her mother, her three children, and the pets entrusted to her care. You know her sickness, her sinus pain, her exhaustion day and night, her need for groceries and for financial provision and for safe travel. Have mercy on her as You had mercy on Epaphroditus, and grant healing and rest. Give her grace that is sufficient for today. Provide what is needed for food, for health, for a safe home, and for peace in her mind so she can pray to You in quiet trust. Guard her family, keep them able to hear and see and to care for one another, and keep them safe from all evil, hidden in Your protection. Teach her Your fear, keep her tongue from evil, lead her away from curses and toward blessing, and help her to forgive as You have forgiven us, leaving all judgment to You. Deliver her from the evil one and supply every good thing according to Your will. Let her energy be restored for good, for prayer, for family time, for raising her children in Your ways, and for doing good to others, feeding the hungry, protecting the vulnerable, and showing mercy. We ask this through the blood of Jesus, in whom we have hope. Amen.

You are not alone. Keep turning to Christ, keep asking for daily needs, keep seeking peace, and keep trusting that God will answer in His perfect justice and mercy. We will continue to pray for your healing, your family's safety, and for your needs to be met.

 

[Silas]

Your cry has been heard and I want to answer with care for you, for your mother, for your three children and for your pets, and for the weight of sickness and fear you are carrying.

I understand the longing to be well, to have your sinus cleared, to have simple needs like groceries met, to have peace in your home, and to know that your family is safe and able to hear one another without confusion or fear. It is right to bring those needs to God. He cares about the body as well as the soul, and Scripture shows Jesus healing many kinds of sickness, sometimes with a touch, sometimes with a word from a distance, sometimes instantly and once gradually, showing that He is not limited to one pattern. The healing work He did, and the way the early church prayed for the sick through the elders, reminds us that God is able to heal today and that every process of healing He has placed in our bodies is still His work.

At the same time the Bible does not teach that God wills physical healing in every case in this life. The apostle Paul prayed three times for the removal of what he called a messenger of Satan to buffet him, and the answer he received was not removal but sustaining grace. That helps us see that we can pray earnestly for healing, and we should, while also trusting God's wisdom when healing comes slowly, comes through ordinary means like medical care, or waits for its fullness in eternity. It is not right to conclude that ongoing sickness means there is some hidden sin or lack of faith. Some are healed and some are not, and why that is so is often beyond our understanding. What we do know is that the greatest need any person has is salvation, and God has made only one provision for the forgiveness of sin and guilt, through the blood of His Son Jesus Christ. The Spirit bears witness to that one way. To come to Jesus is to come to the only cure for the incurable malady of sin, and that spiritual healing is the foundation for every other hope we have.

I also hear how strongly you feel attacked by evil and how much you want justice and protection. Jesus does have authority in the spiritual realm. He commands evil powers and they obey Him. That authority belongs to Him, not to our words or wishes. Because of that, we do not need to try to control the spiritual world by pronouncing curses or asking God to make other people sick, poor, isolated, or unable to have their needs met. Scripture teaches us to leave vengeance in God's hands and to respond to adversity with kindness and love, trusting Him to judge righteously in His time. Asking God to bring harm upon others, even those we believe have harmed us, is not the way Jesus taught us to pray. Instead we can ask God to stop what is evil, to protect what is innocent, to bring what is hidden into light, and to do what is just and merciful according to His will. He hears prayers offered even in secret, even in the quiet of the mind, and He is able to keep you and your family in His care without you having to fight for every need in your own strength.

It is also true that following Jesus can feel lonely when others around us do not understand. Jesus Himself was misunderstood by His own family for a time. When we belong to Him we are brought into a new family, the family of God, where the bond through Christ can be deeper than even blood ties. That does not remove love for your mother and children, but it means you are not alone. God can surround you with His love and with people who will pray with you and help bear burdens.

So I will pray for you in this way, and I encourage you to pray this way as well. That God would draw you and your household to Jesus for forgiveness and peace. That He would lay His hand upon your body for healing according to His will, whether instant or gradual, and give wisdom for any care you need for your sinus and health. That He would provide for your daily needs, for food and finances and transportation, as He knows them. That He would give you quietness of mind to pray in secret and confidence that He hears. That He would exercise His authority over every evil influence, guard your home, your mother, your children and your pets from harm, and give you rest. And that He would keep your heart from seeking the harm of others, and instead fill you with His love and peace even while you wait on Him.

May the Lord show you His mercy, guide you in practical steps for care, and keep you in the shelter of His presence.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for giving us the privilege to pray on your behalf. We are glad that you asked us to stand in agreement with you in prayer.

We have been lifting you up before the Lord and we continue to remember you, your mom, your three children and your pets in prayer. We have prayed that the sickness and sinus affliction you felt was sent against you would leave you now, that your voice and hearing would be restored, and that the Lord would place a hedge of protection around your household. We have asked God to meet your practical needs so urgently on your heart, including your grocery needs and care for your pets and cats, and to provide for your finances and transportation. We have also stood against the spiritual attacks and assignments you described, the games of blame and word curses, the remote harassment and heaviness that has made you feel that enough is enough, and we have asked the Lord to silence the voice of the enemy and to let your home be filled with positive energy, peace, clear communication and family time. We take comfort in Isaiah 54:17 that no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper, and in Psalm 34:18 that the Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.

If your request was answered and you have seen healing, protection, provision and peace restored for you and your family, please post a praise report and let us all know how God has worked. If your request does not seem to have been answered yet and you are still waiting for complete healing, for your needs to be met and for rest from these attacks, please post it again as a new request and allow us to continue with you in prayer.

We pray that the Lord will bless you and keep you, that He will rebuke the enemy on your behalf, that He will restore your health according to 3 John 1:2, and that He will cover you and your loved ones under the blood of Jesus. May God bless you as you continue to seek Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. We pray in Jesus Name. Amen.