For me time is one of the most precious gifts God has given us. It is more precious than, silver, gold or the most flawless diamond. We all live within the context of time. Time never stops, nor will it ever go backwards. No amount of power can bring back time. Time is always of the essence. It is a now thing. To enjoy the benefit of the time given to us is to use it to our advantage with God.
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I remember many years ago, I was requested to visit a dying man. All the relatives were present. I asked everyone to come near the bed of the dying person. I started with a prayer of repentance and forgiveness. After the prayer, the family reached out to each other and embraced each other. Not long after our prayer the man died.
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I was again invited by the family, 40 days after his death, to a gathering to pray for the soul. When I entered the house, they were all so glad that I came. It seemed like I was their special guest. The wife came to me and introduced me to all the family members. I was amazed that those present there also included a second family.
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The wife told me their story. The husband left them 20 years ago for another woman. They saw him for the first time in 20 years in the hospital. The people present in the hospital were the first family and the second family of the dying man.
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Without me knowing what the situation was, in the hospital before his death, I called them all to participate in prayers and I even requested that we hold hands in a prayer chain and they complied. The two families held hands and we prayed for repentance and forgiveness. After the prayer they were all touched by the Lord, embraced each other and forgave one another. Shortly after that the man expired.
I was again invited by the family, 40 days after his death, to a gathering to pray for the soul. When I entered the house, they were all so glad that I came. It seemed like I was their special guest. The wife came to me and introduced me to all the family members. I was amazed that those present there also included a second family.
.
The wife told me their story. The husband left them 20 years ago for another woman. They saw him for the first time in 20 years in the hospital. The people present in the hospital were the first family and the second family of the dying man.
.
Without me knowing what the situation was, in the hospital before his death, I called them all to participate in prayers and I even requested that we hold hands in a prayer chain and they complied. The two families held hands and we prayed for repentance and forgiveness. After the prayer they were all touched by the Lord, embraced each other and forgave one another. Shortly after that the man expired.
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My visit to pray for the family was perfect timing. It was the time to forgive, time to forget the past, and to be reconciled. For a very long time every one, especially the children from the first family, hated the father so much that even on his dead bed, they were not concerned about the fathers predicament. But the prayer that day made the difference; they all got healed and accepted each other.
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My visit to pray for the family was perfect timing. It was the time to forgive, time to forget the past, and to be reconciled. For a very long time every one, especially the children from the first family, hated the father so much that even on his dead bed, they were not concerned about the fathers predicament. But the prayer that day made the difference; they all got healed and accepted each other.
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Looking back, this family suffered for a long time. Pains, hurts and anger devoured them. For a long time, they never enjoyed life. It is so frustrating to live with hate and anger. It was only when they were totally reconciled that they were able to enjoy the true meaning of life. For a long time, they were imprisoned by pain, hurt and anger. For a long time, having pains was a natural feeling.
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Now, I understand that to live life is to be set free and that life is too short, it is time to make a choice; to stay imprisoned or to be set free. In this story, there are a lot of things to learn; especially that to forgive is to be set free. To be forgiven is peace. And I also learned that now is the time to receive freedom, peace and joy. Be set free now, for us enjoy life to the fullest.We can not do this on our own, this is the reason why Jesus died on the cross, to set us free. Let us ask God to help us be set free. It is a now thing.
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Now, I understand that to live life is to be set free and that life is too short, it is time to make a choice; to stay imprisoned or to be set free. In this story, there are a lot of things to learn; especially that to forgive is to be set free. To be forgiven is peace. And I also learned that now is the time to receive freedom, peace and joy. Be set free now, for us enjoy life to the fullest.We can not do this on our own, this is the reason why Jesus died on the cross, to set us free. Let us ask God to help us be set free. It is a now thing.
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My prayer. God, I can not be set free on my own. Jesus, you purchased me with your blood. I do not own myself anymore, because you own me. I totally surrender myself to You. Please take over, please heal my pains. Since you own me Lord, please forgive them through me. It has been a long time that I have been suffering because of negativity in my heart. Heal me NOW, Lord. It is my desire to live life to the fullest. Thank you Lord. Amen
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1 comment:
God is always on time.
Reflecting on this teaching on TIME has brought back memories of how God's help came just at the right moment.
In August 2004, my mom suffered a stroke and was rushed to the Philippine Heart Center. We stayed in the hospital for a week. My mom had to stay in the ICU for a couple of days and our hospital bills soared up to P110,000 in just five days! The events in the last couple of months has taken its toll on our family's savings since my dad also had 2 major operations in May. My dad only had around P20,000 left in the bank - and that measly sum was all that we had. That left us with figuring out how to get P90,000. My mom had to be taken out of the hospital the next day, so that we would not incur added expenses in the hospital. We had 1 day to produce P 90,000! We needed a miracle.
My dad and I prayed to God and asked for help - and we left God to deal with our problem.
I have been trying to sell my car for the last couple of months -- but it had no takers. That afternoon, someone came to our house and said that he came all the way from Pampanga to buy my car! Apparently he learned about the car on sale from one of our neighbors a couple of weeks ago. He said that he is willing to buy my car for P 90,000!
That day, God sold my car and gave us the exact amount we needed to get my mom out of the hospital. God was right on time!:-)
-- manay
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