This is where I add notes and thoughts as I study the Bible. Please feel free to comment.
I am bothered when a Christian leader’s whole message comes across as “The sky is falling, there’s no time, drop who you’re praying for and pray for us!’ I’ve searched the Scriptures, and that’s not how God expects His people to do things. God is not the God of panic, limitation, or impossibility.
What do the angels and Jesus say when they come to minister to a person or give someone a message? Yep, they lead with “Peace.” No matter what befalls us or a brother or sister in the Lord, we must not invite worry into the problem.
Should we stop and pray for someone? Yes. Do we begin a focused time of intercessory prayer for a person or a group of believers that are being buffeted by the evil one? Absolutely. Does God lay a burden on our hearts concerning an individual or ministry? You betcha. Do we freak out and run around as if we’ve lost our minds? No!
When the Apostle Paul was shackled and locked in prison, Paul’s utmost concerns were for people and the administration in the churches he founded. Paul’s priority was first, God’s work, second, God’s people, third, himself.
God is a God of order and purpose; nothing happens that God never expected or is unable to use for His will. The first thing we should do is ask God how He wants us to pray and how we are to respond. Burdens often require action from us.
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2
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