Seven Gospel Imperatives

Matthew 5:14,16 NKJV

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” 

Topic(s): Prayer
 Todd Clippard

Yours is a very difficult question. All men do indeed possess free moral agency. But I'm not sure how praying for an individual would supplant or interfere in the exercise thereof. For example, when I pray, I pray for what is best for an individual. At the same time I pray for God's will to be done in all things. I think it best to pray that an individual will act in accordance with God's will, instead of praying for a specific course of action.

So long as we pray for what is best for an individual, and pray for understanding and the courage to accept God's will, I believe we ought to pray for others. In 1 Timothy 2:1-5, we are commanded to pray for our leaders that we might live quiet and peaceable lives. I don't think this is an attempt to usurp their free moral agency, any more than praying for myself is an attempt to have God intervene without my personal exercise of free moral agency.

Part of the difficulty is not knowing HOW God works in the lives of men. I believe prayer changes things, and I believe God works in the lives of men. However, it is difficult, if not impossible, for me to immediately point to any specific event and say, "This is the providence of God." An older, wiser, preacher-friend of mine once told me, "Always wait at least 15 years before crediting God with anything." What he meant was that sometimes we give God credit for things that end up hurting us in the long run, when our own poor decisions are the cause of the difficulty.

[ SOURCE ]

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV

Answer My Prayer | ACAPPELLA

James 1:2-18




Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 


If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

Psalm 121


I lift up my eyes to the hills-
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, 
the Maker of heaven and earth.


He will not let your foot slip-
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.


The LORD watches over you-
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.


The LORD will keep you from all harm-
he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore..