Do you pray for your friends and family? I do. This morning I asked myself how badly I want God to answer those prayers with a “Yes.” We have prayer lists, prayer chains, Facebook prayer groups where we can post prayer, and radio stations that we can call in with prayer requests, but all of that is pretty easy. Too often my own prayers consist of a quick few words with God, and then I move on with my day. I was reminded this morning of the passage of scripture where the friends carry their friend to Jesus for healing. When they get to the house where He is, they can’t get to Him, and so they take the friend, climb up on the roof, make a hole in that roof, and then lower the friend’s mat down in front of Jesus. Guess what? The friend receives the healing. I am wondering how I can carry those for whom I am praying to the healer. These friends physically worked hard to make sure that their friend was cured. It was through their faith that Jesus granted the request. I guess my first step is to grow stronger and stronger in my faith, so that when Jesus sees my faith, He will bring healing to those around me. As for the physical part, I don’t know yet. I’m going to have to think more about it. I do know that prayers for people involve more than just saying a few words. What are your thoughts on this, my friend?
Dear Jesus, please teach me how to bring my friends and family and congregation to You for healing. Increase my faith, oh Lord, so that I can be a vessel for Your healing. Amen.
Luke 5:17-20; 24-25
One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “friend, your sins are forgiven.” He said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God.
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