Blog Archives
As If Heaven Had Ordained It
“Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.” – Joshua 21:45
When the Continental Congress gathered in Philadelphia in 1774 to unite against the British, they decided to open their proceedings in scripture and prayer. An Episcopalian minister named Jacob Duché was chosen. Before his prayer, rumors arrived that the British had attacked Boston. A frightened and receptive audience awaited as Duché read Psalms 35:1: “Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me!” It was the assigned reading for the day in the Episcopal lectionary, but John Adams says members of the Continental Congress were stunned when they heard the words. Adams wrote, “It seemed as if Heaven had ordained that psalm to be read on that morning.” Have you had such an experience where the scripture seemed perfect for what you were going through at the time? I have several such scriptures marked in my Bible. Once when I was anxious about a situation at work, I read Psalm 34:4, “I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” That verse gave me sudden comfort. Eventually, everything worked out. Another verse that has helped me when facing a difficult decision is the promise of James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” Praying over that promise, God has given me direction time after time. Once when I was a hospital chaplain, I visited a patient writhing in pain, asking me to pray. As I was about to pray, two nurses entered and gave her tablets to take for pain, then left the room. Immediately I began to pray, and I sensed God telling me to quote Psalm 23, so I did. Even before I finished the psalm, she grew peaceful and still. I finished quoting the psalm, added a few more words asking God for healing, and then I looked up. The patient was resting. Her sister-in-law looked at me, eyes wide in amazement. I said, “That pain medicine hasn’t had time to work, has it?” The sister-in-law said, “No, but Psalm 23 did!” What scripture has given you guidance, comfort, or strength “as if Heaven had ordained” it?
Prayer
Lord, my heart is full of anxieties and desires, but your word is full of good promises and timely guidance. As I read scripture, show me how it applies to my life as if Heaven had ordained it for this day.
Prayer for a friend who is struggling
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Heavenly Father, I ask for you to bless my friend. You know the trouble he is going through. He is afraid of how his sickness may affect his future. He wonders if he will be able to take care of his family. He is not able to do some of the things he once did, and he is searching for new purpose and meaning in his life. Calm the waters raging in his heart, Lord. Bring him healing to both body and soul. Please provide for his family. Please reveal to him new ways that he can be useful to Your kingdom. Show me how I can serve him. Show me how to be a good friend. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Prayer to experience God’s presence
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Almighty God, I come into Your presence… I am silent before You… I close my eyes; I am listening for You to speak… My mind is focused on You; surround me with Your providential hand… Seep into my soul; penetrate me with Your peace… I breathe in Your grace, and breathe out Your praise. In Your holy Name I pray. Amen.
Prayer for wisdom in suffering
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Precious Lord Jesus, I want to know the power of Your resurrection, and the fellowship of Your suffering (Philippians 3:10). When I am weak, help me draw strength from You. When people insult me, remind me that that they hurled insults at You. Give me grace not to slander, but give me courage to speak the truth. If I suffer for doing right, give me peace. If I suffer for my own sin, give me the courage to repent. In all things, give me the wisdom to know the difference.
Ukrainian Baptist leader speech to his churches
Speech by Valery Antonyuk (President of the Evangelical Baptist Union of Ukraine)
to ministers and churches on the occasion of war. (Translated into English.)
You can view his speech in Ukrainian on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCKqC8NNpPQ
Dear brothers and sisters, Church Ministers!
This morning, February 24, the war in Ukraine began. What we prayed would not happen happened today. And we, as believers, accept that we will have to go through the time of this trial.
The Bible says: “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,for you are with me,your rod and your staff will comfort me”
That is why we urge everyone to continue and intensify our prayers.
This is our weapon in time of war, our way of fighting. This is the first thing believers do. And we invite everyone, wherever you are, to seek the opportunity to do this in person, in your families, in your churches, on ZOOM, wherever possible, gather together and praise the Lord.
Secondly, it’s important that the Lord gives us His peace right now and that we don’t panic, fear, reckless actions, sudden decisions that can harm us personally and our min hysteria in the ukraine.
We invite all Church ministers in these first days to give a message of hope through God’s Word to all the faithful who have to stand in this gap today and pray for our country. We need to strengthen this time with fasting and prayer because this is the time the Church continues to minister.
We say to all Church ministers, elders, deacons: think about how to maintain hospitality in your church premises, in your headquarters, where you have the opportunity to receive people in need. People moving around Ukraine today and will be targeted, especially along the border areas. Please, it is important for us to organize ourselves so that we can accommodate people in need.
We have many unanswered questions and only by moving step by step can we figure out where we can take the next step. Therefore, we ask that we can organize this at the church level. Our communities must become centers of service, shelters, for our people in times of adversity.
We ask all Christians not to spread unverified information, but to share the information that you witness and know exactly the authenticity, to turn it into an occasion of information, testimony and prayer.
We also pray for the organization of our coordination center, because in the office here near Kiev, we continue to serve and organize all the work even now. We will get in touch with all associations and coordinate in time all those processes that will prove to be important for all the Ukrainian people.
We’ll keep you updated on the situation. From time to time, we will make such calls, report on the current situation, and pray that we will all be together, united in what the Lord is doing.
We believe that God, even through us, wants His Kingdom of peace to spread today, even in times of war. We pray for the protection of our country and firmly believe that God will bless Ukraine!
Therefore, let’s unite together, we serve even in these conditions. We begin a new phase, a new page of ministry that has never been written before. God who has blessed us by making us live peacefully and serenely for decades, but in this time our whole country needs a church that is the light and salt. The Lord is our shepherd, we shall not want and he will guide us even in these moments.
God bless us as we pray for you as we serve the Lord together.
Prayer for God’s presence
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Heavenly Father, I come before You in silence, my hands turned upward to You, my heart listening for Your voice. I take a deep breath; slowly I let it out. I want to inhale Your presence; I want to exhale distractions. I breathe in Your mercy and peace. I breathe out sin and shame. Jesus, I embrace Your grace. Drench me from head to toe with Your Spirit. As I go through this day, make me continually mindful of Your continual presence, and may I be a different man because the God-man dwells within.
Prayer to endure sickness
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Lord, I know that You are the One who removes sickness.1 Jesus, You healed the sick wherever You went.2 So I trust my sickness to You, and ask for healing. Remind me, also, that there is something worse than sickness. I know that a man’s spirit can endure sickness, but who can endure a broken spirit?3 So I pray that my sickness will be for the glory of God.4 and I pray that even in my sickness, I will find peace to my soul.5
Biblical references:
1 Deuteronomy 7:15
2 Matthew 9:35
3 Proverbs 18:14; Lamentations 3:17
4 John 11:5
5 1 Thessalonians 5:23
Life lessons from hospital patients
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
In my hospital ministry, I often ask patients what lessons they have learned. Here are a few of the wise words that I have heard, with limited details about the patients to protect their identity:
Elderly man with COVID-19. “They almost lost me, but the Lord still has a plan for me.” He was discharged a few days later.
Middle-aged woman who survived a car wreck, hit by a drunk driver: “Don’t take life for granted. It could all change in a moment.”
Elderly man with terminal cancer diagnosis: “Be ready to meet God.”
Elderly woman, retired educator, with congestive heart failure: “Do the right thing, treat people right; let be and let God.”
Elderly woman with kidney failure: “Live one day at a time.”
Elderly man in therapy, unable to move legs: “I don’t need money; I just need friends, and people to pray for me.”
Elderly female with multiple medical problems: “Accept what you get.”
Recently retired female pt who may need heart by-pass. “When I was little and there was a storm, mama put us children in a room together and said, ‘When God is doing His work, we be quiet.’” The patient explained that this became a motto for coping with trials: “When God is doing His work, we be quiet.”
Middle-aged female pt who nearly died in the ICU, slowly recovered and went to a room. “Just because life is hard, don’t give up.”
Younger middle-aged female pt who had a seizure and wrecked her car, and went through months of surgeries for broken bones. “I choose joy.”
Recently retired female pt who was told two months ago that she has breast cancer. “Don’t feel sorry for me. God’s got this. I’m not taking God down off His pedestal. What God can’t do, there ain’t no doing.”
Teenage male pt who had surgery for torn ligaments from football practice. “Everything happens for a reason.”
Middle-aged female pt who had a blood clot in the brain. “You can get glad or mad in the same pair of breeches.”
Middle-aged female pt who was in the hospital for a long time, recovering from COVID-19. “Learn to lean on God.”
Younger middle-aged female pt who spent over a month in rehab after spine surgery. “Don’t sweat the petty stuff. Prayer gets you through.”
Senior adult female who had a stroke. “The same God who did miracles for people in the Bible is getting me through this.”
Elderly man with leukemia, going home on hospice. “Money doesn’t mean anything when you leave this earth, and I have some money. The only thing that matters is that you know Jesus.”
Two prayers for Thanksgiving
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Reflection on how to give thanks
Lord, how can I thank You enough for all You have done for me? Should I offer a thanksgiving offering like the ancient Israelites in their temple? Should I offer a song of thanks, or tell others of your wonderful works? Yes, Lord, I will do all of these things. Because of all that You have done for me, I will bring an offering of my time and money to You in church. I will offer You praise with my voice in song. I will give a testimony of Your goodness to me.
Prayer testifying to God’s goodness
O, give thanks to the Lord! He has saved me from sin and sickness. He has heard my prayers and answered me. He has given me peace in trials, and hope to overcome despair. He has filled my heart with joy through a loving family, and an encouraging church. I have seen Him change lives; I have seen Him rescue people who seemed beyond hope. He has opened my eyes to His truth through the Bible, His word. Let everybody join me in thanksgiving; let us give thanks to the Lord!
Guest blog: Prayer when life is not all sunshine and cotton candy
Copyright by Rodger Moore. (The following prayer is shared, with his permission, from the coordinator of the pastoral care department at the hospital where we both serve as chaplains.)
Lord, sunshine, cotton candy, joy and happiness are not always the paths of life. There are also those moments of shadows, sorrow, grief and indecision. Regardless of the path which my journey may be taking in these moments may I be reminded of your presence and words:
• Be still,
• Slow down,
• Listen,
• Peace Be Still,
• You are not alone,
• I am with you,
• Come to me,
• Joy comes in the morning
As the Shepherd, protect, look out over me and provide for me;
As the Light of the World illumine my path and bring guidance to my heart;
As the Comforter envelop me in your arms and warm my heart;
As the Physician reach out to touch my mind, body and spirit bringing wholeness and healing.
In all moments of life bring your peace, calmness, serenity and trust. Amen.
A prayer in the pandemic
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Oh, Lord, how we need Your presence in this pandemic.
For those who are sick, we ask for Your mercy and healing.
For those who are caring for the sick, we ask for Your compassion and strength.
For those who are afraid of the sickness, we ask for Your peace and protection.
For those who make policies about the sickness, we ask for Your wisdom and courage to do the right thing.
Heavenly Father, unite all of us, as Your children, by the bonds of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
A prayer for personal peace
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
Oh Jesus, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), I ask You to calm my heart and still my soul. In the quietness of this moment,
I focus my thoughts upon You. You are the God of peace (Philippians 4:9), You are the living water (John 4:10, 14), so like a pond receiving water from a river, I look to You as my upstream source of restoration.
As I abide in You, and Your words abide in me, may Your presence overflow me and make me as calm as pond water.
A plea to save our Republic
On January 10, 49 B.C., Julius Caesar made a decision to cross the Rubicron River, defying the Roman Senate. This would lead to the fall of the Roman Republic and the rise of a Roman Emperor.
On the night of January 6, A.D. 2021, I went to bed distressed, having a hard time sleeping, and awoke earlier than usual to pray longer. After thinking about it all day, I feel compelled to speak up. As a Christian and an American, I condemn in the strongest terms the Trump supporters who invaded our nation’s Capitol building while Congress was in session, threatening the very heart of our democracy, and I was horrified at the blasphemy that some of them waved Christian flags and a “Jesus” flag while rioting.
Have we crossed a Rubicon, from which there is no turning back?
Some people will say that the rioters were not really Trump supporters, or that they were not representative of most Republicans and Trump supporters. On the other side of the aisle, some will say that it just showed how evil all Republicans are. Enough of this! We must stop pointing fingers at others, and we must come to grips with the fact that in a real sense, we all bear a responsibility for what happened yesterday, by passively allowing the rhetoric in this nation to rise to a fever pitch.
Words have consequences. When we speak angry words, some of our hearers will take our words farther than we ever intended. Sin is like that– it takes us farther than we want to go. To my fellow Christians, let us remember that scripture tells us not to let the sun go down on our anger. It tells us to be kind to one another. When we say angry things about our political opponents, there are always those who will repeat it and take it a step farther. One person posts angry words against a politician on social media, and another person reads it and spray paints the same politican’s house or yells at them in a restaurant. One person rips up a speech, and another person rips down a monument. One person cries out to march against the Capitol because he felt he was cheated in the election, and others will march right into the building and riot. If we want to save our democracy, we must stop pointing fingers at the other side and instead take a look at our own hearts. If the apostle Paul could tell the Christians to submit to governing authorites that was ruled by an evil Roman emperor, then we can do no less in our democracy, as imperfect as it is.
Have we crossed a Rubicon, from which there is no turning back? Or will we save our Republic?
This is a plea for us to tone down the rhetoric, to stop shouting at one another, and to listen to those with whom we disagree. It is high time for civil behavior in our civil body politick. Years ago, President Ronald Reagan and Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill were fierce political opponents, but they were friends, and could be civil and respectful to one another. We must return to those days when we can agree to disagree, without demonizing one another. It is worth it to save our democracy. Let us remember our pledge to the flag of the UNITED States, to be “ONE nation under God, INDIVISIBLE…”? Let us keep that pledge, for divided we fall, but united we stand.
A Prescription for Anxiety
Article copyright by Bob Rogers.
Doctors regularly write prescriptions for all kinds of ailments. We have medicines to relieve pain, relieve high blood pressure, reduce fluids in the body, fight infection, and even to calm our nerves. These are good and useful to our physical health.
Anxiety is often a symptom of those who are sick. Good news–there is also a spiritual medicine available for that! If you are feeling anxious, fearful, and frequently worried, then I encourage you to consider the prescription found in Philippians 4:4-9.
To take this prescription, you will need a Bible and paper or a device to take notes. Read the following verses and then take the doses below:
Philippians 4:6: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Determine to name your worries and fears. Write them out. Go to Matthew 6:25-34 and take note of the worries that Christ names and dispels in that passage. Then, do as Philippians 4:6 says, and instead of worrying about the problem, present your problem to God in prayer. Instead of telling God how big your problem is, tell your problem how big your God is.
Philippians 4:7: “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” As you pray, ask yourself, against what does your heart need to be guarded? Is it fear? Against what does your mind need a guarded? Is it doubt? Is it something else? Ask Christ to stand guard over your heart and mind.
Philippians 4:8: “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things.” Divide your page into two parts. On the left, list each of the good things in this verse. On the right, list a specific example of how you have seen and experienced this in your life. Then, do as the verse says and meditate on “these things.” Go back and read Philippians 4:4, which urges us to rejoice. Spend a few moments rejoicing over the good things you listed.
Philippians 4:9: “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” Now it is time for action. In this verse, Paul urges the Philippians to do what they saw in him. Likewise, you can think of a hero of the faith, and what you have learned from him or her. Now is time for an action plan! Just as Paul urged them to do, write down what you will do. Put a specific time and date on it. Notice the verse ends with a promise, “and the God of peace will be with you.”
Praying and reading Scripture is good medicine-you can’t take too much! In fact, you may want to take the above medicine in different doses every day. You could take each of the above verses and actions one day at a time. Then, you may want to read the entire fourth chapter of Philippians each day for a week, making notes on the assurances and encouraging words.
A generation ago, people joked that a doctor would tell a patient, “Take two aspirin and call me in the morning.” Let me encourage you to take whatever your medical doctor prescribes, but also take these doses of Philippians, then comment to me in the morning! I would like to hear from you–so leave a comment below. Feel free to send us other scripture that you have found helpful. May the Lord bless you as you meditate on His word.
How to Overcome Worry
Article copyright by Bob Rogers.
There are more things to worry about than sand on the seashore. But in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Don’t worry about your life… or about your body” (Matthew 6:25, CSB). Jesus followed that statement with five reasons why we don’t need to worry. In each of these reasons is a truth that teaches us how to replace worry with something else!
1. Life is about more than things (6:25). Jesus said, “Don’t worry… Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing?” This question teaches us to overcome worry by changing our priorities in life. Once Jesus turned down lunch from his disciples and said, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about” (John 4:32). He was referring to the satisfaction in His soul of leading the Samaritan woman at the well to faith. Jesus didn’t worry about things, because His priority was spiritual.
2. Since God provides for His creation, you can trust that He will provide for you (6:26). “Consider the birds of the sky,” said Jesus. “They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they?” This truth teaches us to replace worry with faith. Instead of turning over negative things in your mind, meditate on positive gifts from God. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything” (Philippians 4:6, NLT).
3. Worry doesn’t change your problem (6:27). Jesus asked, “Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying?” This truth teaches us that worry is a waste of time—time that could be spent doing something useful, such as taking action to deal with the problem. My friend Melisa Grubbs says, “I can be a worrier or a warrior.”
4. If you focus on God instead of your problem, God will provide (6:33). When you hold a small object close to your face, it looks bigger than any object in the room. Worry is like holding your problem close to your face, instead of looking to God. Jesus promised, “But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.” He was teaching us to replace worry by looking closely at God instead of looking closely at the problem. Scripture and prayer help us focus on God. Some helpful verses are: Psalm 27:1, Psalm 34:4, Isaiah 26:3, Matthew 11:28-30, Philippians 4:7, and 1 Peter 5:7.
5. Learn to live in the present (6:34). Jesus said, “Don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself.” How often have you fretted in anticipation of something out of your control, and later learned it was not an issue after all? So, replace worry about tomorrow by living in the present. Don’t miss the beauty of today by imagining things that may not even happen tomorrow.
No wonder Jesus Himself could sleep through a storm, and then wake up and calm the sea (Mark 4:38-40). Rest in the Savior, and He can calm your storm, as well. “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7, NLT).
Bob Rogers 