Take it to the Lord in prayer...

At our most recent staff prayer meeting, we were reminded of the words of the hymn writer, Joseph Scriven. "Oh, what peace we often forfeit. Oh, what needless pain we bear. All because we do not carry, everything to God in prayer."

We are so aware of the power of prayer and are thankful for the evidence of it in how those prayers are so frequently answered. From the big things like the provision of homes to the smaller things, like being able to find an available workman, God is in the detail and He cares about the things that burden our hearts.

We'd recently been praying about a housing situation, where we felt at a loss with the level of priority the person had been given and would therefore not be eligible to move quickly, as was the need. The situation had become riskier and would continue to worsen. After much time spent petitioning to the appropriate agencies and several rejections, we persevered and appealed and continued to pray. After weeks of hearing nothing, we logged on to the profile one morning and noticed they had been awarded top priority. The reaction from them on the phone was priceless, the utter joy and relief expressed was a thrill to hear.

We can spend so much time and energy worrying about the outcome of challenging situations and carry the burden of this. We can rely in our own abilities and although we thank God that He equips us for the task He would have us to do, He wants us to bring our worries and anxieties to Him, to "cast your cares on Him because He cares for us" and to trust in Him and His goodness.

Lynn